Waikiki
occupancy
keeps falling

Beach hotels have the
worst January since '83 and
the statewide rate
also decreased

By Russ Lynch
Star-Bulletin

Dragged down by Waikiki Beach resorts' slowest January since 1983, Hawaii's hotels and vacation condominiums recorded another occupancy dip last month.

January was the 21st consecutive month in which occupancy was lower than the year-earlier month, according to a report today from hotel industry consultants PKF-Hawaii.

Room rates were down too, but there were a few bright spots, primarily in some neighbor island locations that are less affected than Waikiki by the fall-off in travel from Japan.

Statewide, vacation accommodations averaged 71.2 percent full last month, down from 73.5 percent in January 1998. The Waikiki hotels slipped to 72.2 percent, a major dip from 78 percent in the year-earlier month.

The beach hotels in Waikiki reported what PKF's chairman and chief executive officer Ernie Watari called a "very troublesome" 69.75 percent occupancy, down from 78.3 percent in the previous January.

The much-smaller "other Oahu" category -- properties outside Waikiki -- fared even worse at 60.9 percent, down from 73.5 percent.

Maui, however, showed a strong increase to 75.3 percent last month, from 69.4 percent in January of last year, and Kauai improved to 60.9 percent from 58.2 percent.

Japan's economic woes are obviously having a detrimental effect on Waikiki, Watari said. Most Japanese tourists make Waikiki hotels their base. When they don't come, Waikiki is hit particularly hard, hoteliers say.

"The islands of Maui and Kauai fared well, primarily boosted by westbound visitors enjoying the continued strength of the U.S. mainland economy," Watari said.

However, the Big Island showed an occupancy decline to 71 percent, from 74.3 percent in the year-earlier month, and Molokai dipped to 50.1 percent, from 53.5 percent.

The statewide average room rate was down 2.1 percent at $146.73, from $149.92 in January 1998, led by a 9.4 percent decline on Oahu, to an islandwide average of $124.77, compared with $136.20 in January 1998.

Waikiki hotels averaged $125.62 last month, down 7.8 percent from $138.19 in the year-earlier month.

Maui's average room rate for January showed a 4.9 percent improvement to $172.54, from $164.53; and the Big Island was virtually unchanged at $166.31, compared with $166.06.

Kauai's hotels averaged $154.93 per room per night last month, down 4.4 percent from $162.01; and Molokai's average was down 9.2 percent $78.79, from $86.79.