4th Quarter 2009

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     In the third quarter of 2009, Hawaii’s tourism sector performance was mixed.  Visitor arrivals and average daily visitor census both increased in the quarter after several quarters’ substantial declines. Visitor expenditures; however, decreased due to sharp decrease in average daily visitor spending.
   
     Reversing the downward trend experienced since the second quarter of 2008, the total number of visitors arriving by air to Hawaii increased 44,618 people or 2.7 percent in the third quarter of 2009 compared to the same quarter of 2008 (Tables D-1 and D-2).  The total average daily census was up 3,646 or 2.2 percent in the quarter.  In the first three quarters of 2009, total visitor arrivals by air decreased 303,404 people or 5.9 percent from that of 2008, while 2009 year-to-date (YTD) average daily census decreased 8,643 or 4.9 percent from 2008.

     The third quarter growth in total visitor arrivals was due to increase in domestic arrivals. Total visitor arrivals on domestic flights increased 50,824 or 4.2 percent in the third quarter of 2009 from the third quarter in 2008 (Table D-3). Due to substantial decrease in the first two quarters; however, the 2009 YTD domestic arrivals were still down 210,403 or 5.5 percent from that of 2008.
   
     In contrast, arrivals on international flights decreased 6,206 or 1.3 percent in the third quarter of 2009 compared to the third quarter of 2008 (Table D-4).  2009 YTD, international arrivals were down 93,001 or 6.7 percent from that of 2008. 
   
     In terms of major market areas, from the third quarter of 2008 to the same period of 2009, arrivals from the U.S. West increased 56,444 or 8.1 percent (Table D-5); arrivals from the U.S. East increased 3,130 or 0.8 percent (Table D-6). This was the first positive quarterly growth since the third quarter of 2007 in the U.S. East Market. Arrivals from Japan decreased 3,834 or 1.2 percent (Table D-7), an improvement from the larger decreases experienced since the fourth quarter 2007.  For the first three quarters of 2009, arrivals from U.S. West, U.S. East, and Japan were down 2.6 percent, 8.3 percent, and 7.5 percent, respectively, from the same period last year.

     Because of slightly shorter lengths of stay, the average total daily visitor census increased less than the increase in visitor arrivals.  The total average daily visitor census was up 2.2 percent or 3,646 visitors per day in the third quarter of 2009 over the same quarter of 2008 (Table D-8). Domestic average daily census increased 2.8 percent or 3,627 visitors per day (Table D-9), while international average daily census remained about the same (Table D-10).  In the first three quarters of 2009, domestic average daily census decreased 5.4 percent from that of 2008; international average daily census decreased 3.0 percent from the previous year.
   
     Nominal visitor expenditures by air totaled $2,466.2 million in the third quarter of 2009, down $284.1 million or 10.3 percent from the same quarter of 2008 (Table D-11), due to sharp declines in average daily visitor spending.  In the first three quarters of 2009, visitor expenditures decreased $1,256.6 million or 14.6 percent from 2008.
   
     Total airline capacity, as measured in terms of the number of available seats flown to Hawaii, decreased 0.3 percent or 7,613 seats in the third quarter of 2009 compared to the same quarter of 2008 (Table D-12).   A 0.2 percent or 3,848 seats increase in domestic seats (Table D-13) was more than offset by a 1.8 percent or 11,461 seats decrease in international seats (Table       D-14) in the quarter.  For the first three quarters of 2009, the number of total available seats decreased 6.8 percent from 2008.
   
     In the third quarter of 2009, statewide hotel occupancy rate averaged 68.6 percent, down 1.9 percentage points from the same quarter of 2008 (Table D-15).  In the third quarter of 2009, hotel occupancy rate decreased the most in Kauai (lost 11.7 percentage points), followed by Hawaii County (lost 4.7 percentage points), Maui (lost 3.9 percentage points), and Honolulu (lost 0.2 of a percentage point). In the first three quarters of 2009, statewide hotel occupancy rate averaged 66.9 percent, down 5.8 percentage point from the same period of 2008.
   
     Readers interested in visitor statistics on a monthly basis can find them on the DBEDT website: http://www.hawaii.gov/dbedt/info/visitor-stats/tourism/ and those interested in daily passenger arrival data at: http://www.hawaii.gov/dbedt/info/economic/data_reports/special/