The fun and games on Kaua’i are serious big business, too. Nobody keeps a running tally, but merchants and tourism officials generally know that amateur sports tournaments and events on the island make cash registers ring. For instance, spending on
The fun and games on Kaua’i are serious big business, too.
Nobody keeps a running tally, but merchants and tourism officials generally know that amateur sports tournaments and events on the island make cash registers ring.
For instance, spending on hotels, rental cars, food and amenities during the recent Mustang baseball tournament added up to an estimated $2,500 per player.
Using that formula, the local economy probably benefitted similarly during the Garden Island Classic softball tournament, which attracted 33 teams from as far away as New Jersey. Each squad had 11 to 15 teenage players, and the out-of-state and off-island teams also were accompanied by relatives and other supporters.
“It’s a tip of the iceberg thing,” said Sue Kanoho, executive director of the Kaua’i Visitors Bureau. “A lot of people make a vacation out of these events.”
Even when they involve in-state travel alone, sporting events on Kaua’i pack coin. The state canoe championships two weekends ago at Hanalei Bay resulted in full inter-island flights and a run on the rental car counters at Lihu’e Airport.
Even small-scale events, such as a women’s mini-soccer tournament last weekend in which a team from California played a Kaua’i counterpart, pull in some business for local merchants.
There are no official statistics on the sports-related spending, however, so there also is no concerted effort to promote Kaua’i as a place for the events.
“There’s potential and it’s growing,” Kanoho said. “But until we know the exact impact, there’s not much we’ll do to go after it. And it’s already here, anyway.”
Meanwhile, the visitors bureau is continuing its general marketing of Kaua’i in the tourism industry. Edie Hafdahl, the bureau’s director of marketing, will represent Kaua’i in a series of seminars on the mainland U.S. and in Canada for travel agents. Stops are planned for Aug. 28 in St. Louis, Mo., Aug. 29 in Dearborn, Ill., Aug. 30 in Minneapolis, Minn., Oct. 22-23 in Canada (Edmonton and Vancouver), Oct. 24 in Seattle and Oct. 25 in Portland, Ore.
The visitor bureaus of each island and the Hawai’i Visitors and Convention Bureau are hosts of the seminars.
Editor Pat Jenkins can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 227) and mailto:pjenkins@pulitzer.net
