Isle attractions
saw traffic fall 7%
last month

Lower-priced sites did
better than higher-end ones,
a report says

Star-Bulletin staff

Attendance last month at Oahu's top commercial visitor attractions was down 7.1 percent, compared with April 1997, and visitors sought out the lower-priced attractions at the expense of the top end, according to the Hawaii Attractions Association.

"The attractions industry as a whole is feeling the pinch of fewer visitors spending less money," said Lori C. Lum, president of the association.

Financial data, reported by the 20 member businesses and analyzed by the accounting firm KPMG Peat Marwick, showed that per-capita spending at the attractions was down from last year for the fourth month in a row.

"Many of our members are being hurt financially by the reduced numbers of visitor arrivals and the reluctance of visitors to spend money on bigger-ticket items," Lum said.

Smaller, less-expensive attractions reported double-digit attendance increases compared with the year-earlier month but bigger attractions reported single-digit decreases, KPMG Peat Marwick said.

The association members include the Polynesian Cultural Center, Bishop Museum, Sea Life Park Hawaii, Aloha Tower Marketplace, Maui Divers' Jewelry Design Center and the USS Arizona Memorial.