Jetstar's arrival could revive Aussie tourism
The carrier's plans to start flights between Down Under and Honolulu will boost air seats
The entry of low-cost Australian airline Jetstar into the Hawaii market could boost the state's tourism count from Down Under back over the peak.
Hawaii welcomed nearly a quarter of a million travelers from Australia during the market's peak in 1990, but by 2003 that figure had sunk to 78,000 as major carriers began using long-range jets to bypass Hawaii and fly nonstop from Australia to the West Coast. While visitor numbers have been steadily recovering, until Jetstar's arrival there has been little hope that they would be able to match past performance, said Helen Williams, county manager for Hawaii Tourism Oceania's Australia market.
"We could surpass 300,000 visitors if Jetstar flies at full capacity," Williams said. The carrier will boost the annual seats to Hawaii from Australia by about 156,000, which has the potential to increase the market by 80 percent.
Jetstar, a subsidiary of Qantas Airways, said yesterday that it will begin its three-flight-a-week service from Sydney to Honolulu on Dec. 27 and two-a-week service from Melbourne to Honolulu on Dec. 29. The carrier had announced in June that it planned to begin flying the routes, with an earlier target startup date.
Seats to Sydney will start at $356 each way, while seats to Melbourne will begin at $366 one-way. Starclass fares, the company's luxury category, will begin at $736 each way.
The carrier's entry into Hawaii is part of Jetstar's long-range plan to develop a route network serving a large number of Australian and overseas destinations, said Jetstar's chief executive, Alan Joyce.
"As the Qantas Group's launch customer for the new-generation Boeing 787 aircraft from late 2008, not only will the Dreamliner enter the Honolulu market, but it represents part of a possible long-term strategy of future flying to (the) West Coast United States," Joyce said.
The carrier also has begun offering long-haul operations from Sydney and Melbourne to Bangkok and Phuket, Thailand; Osaka, Japan; Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam; and Bali, Indonesia.
The addition of Jetstar, Hawaii's fourth carrier to offer service to and from Australia will bump the total annual number of seats coming into Hawaii from 194,000 to approximately 350,000. Jetstar said it initially will use Airbus A330-200s then transition to new Boeing 787 aircraft in 2008.
Qantas already flies to Honolulu from Sydney three times a week. Air Canada flies daily from Sydney to Honolulu and continues on to Vancouver, Canada. Hawaiian Airlines also provides round-trip service from Down Under three times weekly.
Hawaiian cut its four times weekly service to Australia in June due to reduced demand and aircraft needs, said Keoni Wagner, senior director of corporate communications for Hawaiian Airlines. Wagner declined to comment about the impact that Jetstar's arrival will have on the local marketplace; however the rival carrier's prices will undercut Hawaiian's current fares by about $100.
"We intend to offer fares that are about 20 to 30 percent lower than any other carrier," said David May, Jetstar's general manager of marketing and public relations.
Jetstar's entry into Hawaii is not only good for consumers, but also brings real growth opportunities for the state's visitor industry, May said.
"We wouldn't be entering the market if we didn't feel that we could stimulate growth," May said. "Every market that we've entered has grown by between 50 and 200 percent."
Bringing more Australian visitors to Hawaii creates a more stable and diverse marketplace for the state's visitor industry, said Rex Johnson, chief executive officer for the Hawaii Tourism Authority.
"It's great news because of its potential to grow our economic platform," Johnson said.
