More spending offset by fewer visitors
Record domestic arrivals are canceled out in July by a drop in foreign tourists
An increase in spending by individual visitors to Hawaii was largely offset by fewer tourists and shorter visits in July, state tourism officials reported yesterday.
Total visitor spending during the month inched up 0.3 percent to $1.2 billion compared with the same month a year ago, the Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism reported yesterday.
For the first seven months of the year, total visitor spending in Hawaii has increased 4.6 percent, to nearly $7 billion.
By some measures, July's performance was consistent with the yearly trend. Spending per person per day rose 4.4 percent to $176, while per-person spending per trip rose 2.2 percent to $1,618.
The problem was a decline in visitors. Total arrivals fell by 1.9 percent to 725,683, while total visitor days declined 4 percent to 6.7 million.
State officials focused on the most positive aspects of the report, highlighting the record 564,294 domestic visitor arrivals in Hawaii, even though that figure was up only 0.9 percent from the same month last year, and was canceled out by a 10.6 percent decline in international arrivals. The number of visitors from Japan was down 9.1 percent.
"We are very pleased with July's extraordinary performance from the domestic market," said Marsha Wienert, state tourism liaison, who also singled out the cruise business as an area of growth. "Norwegian Cruise Line's new home-ported Pride of Hawaii contributed to the increased visitor arrivals as cruise visitors, who arrived by air, increased 54 percent compared to last year."
Joseph Toy, president of the consulting firm Hospitality Advisors LLC, said the decline in the number of visitors is less important than the increase in revenue. Fewer visitors spending more money can be good for Hawaii, because they can put fewer demands on infrastructure and taxpayer-financed services, Toy said.
"It's similar to what we're seeing on the hotel side," Toy said, pointing out that higher room rates have produced higher yields for hoteliers even as occupancies have softened slightly.
Furthermore, Toy said, the year-to-date number is more important than the number for July.
"I tend to look at the monthly number as important," he said. "But I generally try to decipher the trends from the year-to-date" data.
VISITOR ARRIVALS
The number of visitors arriving in Hawaii in July with the percentage change from the same month last year:
|
VISITORS |
PCT. |
Domestic |
564,294 |
+0.9% |
International |
161,389 |
- 10.6% |
Total |
725,683 |
- 1.9% |
BY ISLAND |
Oahu |
451,247 |
- 4.8% |
Kauai |
125,698 |
+13.3% |
Lanai |
8,010 |
+9.4% |
Maui |
242,626 |
+3.1% |
Molokai |
7,582 |
+18.8% |
Big Island |
162,472 |
+5.0% |
Source: Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism
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