March visitor count
hit by Japan’s woes

The figures spur the
HVCB to cut its 1998 forecast

By Russ Lynch
Star-Bulletin

A feared slowdown in travel from Japan surfaced in full force last month, pulling Hawaii's overall tourism arrivals down by 6 percent compared with March 1997.

The slump caused the Hawaii Visitors & Convention Bureau to make a pessimistic prediction for the rest of the year, in its monthly research report issued late yesterday.

The HVCB, which in December predicted no growth in tourist visitor arrivals for 1998, now says arrivals this year could be down as much as 2 percent from 1997. Japanese arrivals are likely to be down 4-to-6 percent, the HVCB said.

The HVCB report said that Hawaii hosted nearly 40,000 fewer tourists last month than in March 1997, led by a 14 percent plunge in arrivals from Asia.

"In March we saw the year's first major dive in eastbound arrivals," said Tony Vericella, HVCB president and chief executive officer.

"For the first time this year, passenger counts from all of Hawaii's Asian gateways posted declines. Prior to March, Japan gateway cities had remained stable, while traffic from Korea and Southeast Asia pulled the overall eastbound market down," Vericella said.

Even mainland markets, which had been on a rise due to the booming mainland economy, took a negative turn in March after seven consecutive months of growth.

March visitor arrivals from all points totaled 590,950, down from 628,560 in the previous March. Westbound arrivals, from the mainland, Canada and Europe, totaled 376,920, down 0.8 percent from 379,800 in March 1997. Eastbound arrivals, from Japan and other Asia-Pacific points, totaled 214,030 last month, down from 248,760 in March 1997.

For the first three months of 1998, overall tourists arrivals equaled 1.7 million vs. 1.73 million in the first quarter 1997, a 1.7 percent decline, the HVCB said.

Vericella used the opportunity of the reduced figures to renew his pitch for substantial dedicated state funding for tourism, a major item under discussion in the current session of the Legislature.

"According to travel industry members interviewed in our research, Hawaii is in for a tough year," Vericella said. "The picture would have been significantly worse if the governor and the Legislature had not approved the special $10 million in additional marketing dollars in 1997. But, having said that, given the current level of Hawaii's tourism promotion ($25 million a year), I don't see that a different outcome is possible," he said.

The negative arrival numbers were balanced somewhat by a slightly longer average length of stay, 8.41 days last month compared with 8.14 days a year earlier.

However, the loss of Japanese business brought the daily tourist census -- the average number of tourists in Hawaii on any day of the month -- down 2.8 percent from the year-earlier month, to 160,360 compared with 165,060. Tourism industry officials say that statistic is significant because it is a direct indicator of how much tourism money is being spent .

The HVCB reported a significant drop in visits by honeymoon couples, a 25.1 percent overall decline led by a 41.6 percent drop in eastbound honeymoon arrivals as Japanese newlyweds chose to stay closer to home. Overall, 32,320 visitors last month said they were honeymooners, compared with 43,150 in March 1997.

Although Oahu, where the short-staying Japanese mostly spend their time, had the biggest year-to-year decline in tourist arrivals, all islands except Kauai had declines, the HVCB said.

Oahu had a 7.4 percent decline, a total of 408,630 arrivals last month vs. 441,320 in March 1997. Maui had a 5.1 percent decline in arrivals to 207,360, from 218,460.

Big Island arrivals fell 3 percent at 114,240, compared with 117,820 a year earlier. Vericella said the decline was due to a 12.1 percent drop in Asia-Pacific arrivals.

Lanai arrivals dropped 12.3 percent at 9,500, from 10,830 in the previous March, and Molokai was down 17 percent at 6,570, from 7,920 in March 1997.

Kauai's 89,690 arrivals total last month was a 1.7 percent increase from 88,220 in the year-earlier month.