The bright spot in the September arrival figures for Kaua’i is that the number of Japanese visitors to the island for the first nine months of this year was a hefty 10.6 percent ahead of last year’s pace. According to
The bright spot in the September arrival figures for Kaua’i is that the number of Japanese visitors to the island for the first nine months of this year was a hefty 10.6 percent ahead of last year’s pace.
According to state Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism (DBEDT) figures, even though September arrivals of Japanese visitors dropped 36.4 percent compared to September of last year, the 101,619 that arrived over the first nine months of this year represents a 10.6 percent jump compared to 91,841 who came during the same period last year.
Most of the rest of the report contains, predictably, negative figures associated with a first-ever, two-day shutdown of all domestic airports on and just after September 11. International flights were grounded for three days.
This affected both the number of arrivals and lengths of stay, according to Dr. Seiji Naya, DBEDT director.
Some 63,053 people visited Kaua’i last month, down 26.7 percent compared to the September 2000 figure of 86,042 and the worst September since 1993, when the island was still recovering from Hurricane ‘Iniki in September of 1992 (please see the chart).
Year-to-date Kaua’i numbers show 791,779 visitors for the first nine months this year, a drop of just 3.8 percent compared to 823,061 over the same period last year.
Statewide, 352,110 visitors came to the islands last month, down 34 percent from 533,849 the same month last year. For the first nine months this year, 5,051,064 visitors came to Hawai’i, down 4.3 percent from 5,279,055 for the same period in the year 2000. The 2000 visitor arrival, spending, and length of stay results broke all previous records.
Locally, visitor-industry leaders are indicating that October should have seen a return to something resembling normalcy, though November advanced bookings are cause for concern, said Sue Kanoho, executive director of the Kaua’i Visitors Bureau.
Just back from a marathon eight-city, 14-day road trip to encourage travel to the islands, Kanoho can attest to strict security at the nation’s airports.
She was the subject of several pat-down searches, and when your bags are searched on the mainland, everything in them is taken out and re-packed after inspection, she said.
Rather than bemoan the tighter security, the ever-resourceful Kanoho sees it as a potential marketing tool: If you’re going to stand in long lines and be subject to physical and baggage searches at mainland airports, at least make sure it’s worthwhile by booking travel to a place that will be warm, fun and welcoming once you get there.
Discussing the negative September and year-to-date figures for Kaua’i visitor arrivals, Kanoho was upbeat. “Kaua’i’s really holding its own right now.” United Airlines is talking about adding a second Saturday nonstop flight between Lihu’e and San Francisco, and hasn’t talked at all about cutting back its daily nonstop flights between Lihu’e and San Francisco and Los Angeles, she added.
Those flights have been averaging around 90 percent full, according to the carrier. But United’s Hawai’i boss warned that because of cutbacks in flights to cities that are gateways to Hawai’i and Kaua’i, numbers of people getting onto United planes for Hawai’i could be impacted.
Kanoho won’t get her feet too used to Kaua’i before jetting off again, this time to New York City this Thursday, Nov. 1, for the American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) world congress.
During her earlier promotional blitz, she talked about travel to Hawai’i in San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, Atlanta, St. Louis and Denver.
While home for Thanksgiving and Christmas, she will be on the road again later this year, this time westbound, to the Japan Association of Travel Agents biennial gathering in Japan.
According to information gathered from Hawai’i Visitors & Convention Bureau and Kaua’i Economic Development Board releases, confidence in airline safety appears to be on the rise, even if confidence in the economy isn’t.
A national survey shows that concern with airport security is waning slightly, as are fears of sabotage and terrorism. Hawai’i could be in a position to benefit from continued concerns about international travel, as surveys indicate American leisure travel by air is likely to be to domestic destinations.
Most callers (72 percent) to the HVCB toll-free Hawai’i information line said the events of September 11 would not impact their decision to travel to Hawai’i within the next two years.
Those who continue traveling to Hawai’i from mainland cities of origin said they did so primarily because they had already paid for the trips, followed by not wanting to give in to terrorism, according to exit surveys conducted earlier this month.
Among Japanese visitors, the perceived safety of Hawai’i as a destination was the main reason for them to come to the state rather than another international destination, according to similar exit surveys.
Almost six out of 10 Americans who said they would cancel or take fewer trips because of the terrorist attacks also stated that attractive promotional offers from the airlines would influence their decision to travel once again, something Kanoho said she also heard repeated during her mainland travels.
The average number of daily passengers arriving in Hawai’i on domestic flights during the week ended October 17 climbed to 90 percent of last year’s number. The average number of daily passengers arriving in Hawai’i on flights from Japan during the week ended October 22 stands at 42 percent of last year’s number.
Business Editor Paul C. Curtis can be reached at mailto:pcurtis@pulitzer.net or 245-3681 (ext. 224).
