Opening of Hawaii
tourism office in
China a critical step

The opening of an official state tourism office in Beijing is expected to help Hawaii's public and private sector get a firmer foothold in this coveted market by boosting tourism and business opportunities.

A China tourism office will better enable the state to achieve tourism-building goals in Asia, said Ted Liu, director of the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism.

"It's huge," Liu said. "It really marks progress in our relationship with China."

For the past six months, the state had been aggressively trying to reach an agreement with the Chinese National Tourism Administration to get a business license similar to the one awarded in June to the state of Nevada, a prime competitor for this tourist market.

Although the China travel market to Hawaii is small, representing less than 1 percent of Hawaii's total visitors days in 2002, state officials have identified it as a market with enormous potential. The World Tourism Organization estimates that China will produce 100 million outbound tourists by 2020 and members of Hawaii's public and private sector want their share of this potentially high-spending market. During a four-day weekend in Beijing, Hawaii delegates said they saw evidence of good times to come -- approximately 110 million Chinese tourists spent an estimated $1 billion.

Even if the number of Chinese visitors to Hawaii stays small, "One percent of 1.2 billion people is still a fairly significant number," said Mike Nelson, director of marketing for Ko Olina Resorts, the primary sponsor of the trip.

The opening of an office will be the first step in Hawaii's quest to achieve "approved destination" status from China, which would ease travel for tourists, said Marsha Wienert, Gov. Linda Lingle's tourism liaison. Licensing will also enable Hawaii to work directly with Chinese government agencies, airlines, tour operators and other businesses, she said.

The office has already resulted in private sector agreements for members of the state delegation that went to China July 24-29 to meet with government officials and business executives in Shanghai, Beijing and Tianjin. More than 100 Chinese companies met with 24 Hawaii companies.

The meetings coincided with a week-long exhibit of Hawaii businesses and entertainers at a new cultural, shopping, dining and entertainment center in Shanghai.

The event helped Hawaii brands penetrate the Chinese market, said Jerry Chang, president of Hawaii Coffee Co./HI Sweets, which sampled and sold more than 2,000 cases of Kona coffee products during the exhibition.

"When everybody sees Hawaii coffee, they want already," Chang said.

Lt. Gov. James "Duke" Aiona Jr. joined the delegation for a portion of the trip to lead a series of discussions with Chinese officials, including the mayors of Beijing, Shanghai and Tianjin.

"The China market offers new opportunities for Hawaii businesses in the areas of tourism, environmental protection, education and training, culture and entertainment," Aiona said.

During the trip, Hawaii's Integrated Development Group of companies signed an agreement with the Geely Holding Co., one of the top 10 private holding companies in China, to develop a resort on Hainan Island in southern China. The University of Hawaii Travel Industry Management School and Nankai University in Tianjin also signed an agreement to develop tourism expertise exchange programs.