Hawaii’s World
STARWOOD Hotels and Resorts Worldwide is one of tourism's most innovative companies. Haunani-Kay Trask is Hawaii's most vocal opponent of tourism. Together they help me make a point. Let’s find a better way
to co-exist with tourismStarwood, a name millions don't recognize, aims to make money with a conglomerate of upscale hotels that will feed business to each other.
It included 712 hotels as of last week -- 16 in Hawaii -- and aims to grow at two a week. It owns about 200, has franchise, management or marketing arrangements with others. They have different names, mostly representing their pre-Starwood identities: Sheraton, Westin, the Luxury Collection, Four Points Hotels by Sheraton, W Hotels and Caesars World.
The only way customers know they are linked together is to enroll -- free -- in the Starwood Preferred Guest program and earn two award points for every U.S. dollar spent with Starwood properties in more than 60 countries and over 100 resorts. The Hawaii list includes Sheraton, Westin, marketing services for the Prince Hotels and Lanai's two resorts.
Starwood makes its award points especially desirable by eliminating blackout dates. It subsidizes members when they are so full a Starwood Preferred Guest freebie might displace a paying customer. Add ties to 20 airlines and Starwood may have the whiz-bangiest award program anywhere.
Now turn to Hawaii's most vocal opponent of tourism -- Trask. Her new book, "Island Princess," repeats that commercial tourism has raped the native culture of Hawaii and demeaned Hawaiian people. "If you are thinking of visiting my homeland, please do not," she advises national readers in a reprinted paper. "We do not want or need any more tourists and we certainly do not like them."
Most island people, she acknowledges, see tourism as a source of jobs, not as a form of cultural prostitution. The new Hawaii Tourism Authority is offering a strategic plan for public comment that seeks the middle ground of protecting Hawaii's cultural values, natural assets and community interests while still stimulating tourism -- but not to the old growth levels of pre-1990.
It has identified significant public unhappiness related to tourism, including crowded roads and beaches.
It suggests focusing more on higher visitor spending -- longer stays included -- than on numbers. It recognizes the importance of public support. It falls just short of saying what I have sometimes written: Hawaii and tourism are married with no possibility of divorce. Our focus must be on making this marriage work.
It can work. It can and is helping revive the Hawaiian culture.
This middle ground needs our focus. Here's another point from my past: As economic control of Hawaii passes outside our borders, our main protection lies in the power of state and local governments to set rules. We must seek and elect the best possible people to public office to watch over our needs -- better than many we have now. Confinement of hotels to specified areas is already well-established and working. Environmental protection has enormous support. I sometimes consider the Sierra Club as extreme in its positions, but it is a needed environmental sentinel.
A.A. Smyser is the contributing editor
and former editor of the the Star-Bulletin
His column runs Tuesday and Thursday.