FL MORRIS / FMORRIS@STARBULLETIN.COM
Guests of the Royal Hawaiian Hotel lounged under umbrellas on Waikiki Beach Sunday.
Hotel and resort condominium occupancy in September followed the same trend as visitor arrivals: While there was vast improvement over September 2001, the industry is still not back to 2000 or 1999 levels. Occupancy and rates
are still recovering
Star-Bulletin staff
Plus, room rates fell from last year, as hotels continue to offer discounts as a means of boosting occupancy.
Statewide occupancy last month was 65.43 percent, on average, up from 57.87 percent last year, but down from 76.44 percent in 2000 and 73.99 percent in 1999, according to a new survey from consulting firm PKF-Hawaii. The year 2000 was Hawaii's best for tourism arrivals.
The average daily room rate in September was $128.60, down 2.8 percent from $132.24 last year and way down from $142.11 in 2000.
Room revenue, a better financial indicator for the hotels, was up 10 percent to $84.14 per room from $76.52 last year, but was down from 2000's $108.63.
"While it is encouraging to see that occupancy increased in September 2002 we should keep in mind the drastic decrease which occurred in 2001 resulting from the shutdown of the travel industry nationwide," said Ernie Watari, chief executive of PKF-Hawaii. "Upon comparison to levels in 2000, statewide occupancy, (room rates and room revenue) are substantively down."
Waikiki occupancy rose to 69.29 percent from 58.41 percent last year, though room rates fell to $95.25 from $97.01. Waikiki room revenue was up to $66 from $56.66 in 2001, and down from $95.65 in 2000.
Similarly, occupancy rose on all neighbor islands compared to last year, but only Molokai exceeded its 2000 level, rising to 46.92 percent occupancy from 36.07 percent in 2000.
PKF-Hawaii's monthly survey is based on 74 hotels and 61 resort condominiums in the state.
