For Immediate Release: October 25, 2007
DBEDT Release News 07-28

$9.2 Billion in Visitor Spending Realized Year-to-Date

Note: September 2007 Visitor Research Data can be viewed here.

HONOLULU--According to preliminary statistics released today by the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism (DBEDT), visitor expenditures for the month of September increased .5 percent or $4.8 million ahead of last September to $927.1 million. Expenditures for the first nine months of 2007 totaled $9.2 billion, an increase of .6 percent or $58.1 million over the same period last year. The average daily visitor spending for September rose from $188 per person to $194 per person and for the first nine months of 2007 spending also rose 2.6 percent to $180 per person.

For the month of September 2007, total arrivals declined 1.2 percent to 552,742 visitors. This decrease combined with a shorter average length of stay (down from 8.77 days to 8.63 days in September 2007) resulted in a 2.8 percent decrease in total visitor days.

Visitors from the U.S. East (+2.6%) and Canada (+9.5%) in September 2007 increased but arrivals from the U.S. West (-5.8%) and Japan (-2.7%) were lower compared to the same month last year.

Through September 2007, total visitor days decreased 1.9 percent compared to year-to-date 2006, while total arrivals dipped 1 percent. Among the top four visitor markets, visitors from the U.S West (+.7%) and Canada (+1.9%) increased but arrivals from Japan (-2.6%) and the U.S. East (-2.7%) were lower compared to the first nine months of 2006.

"Overall, our visitor industry remains sound, with continued growth in visitor expenditures," said State Tourism Liaison, Marsha Wienert. "We are especially pleased with the increases in visitors who came here for conventions and corporate meetings, with Japanese visitors coming to Hawai‘i to honeymoon and with the continued strong performance of the cruise industry in Hawai‘i."

Other Highlights:

• More U.S. West (+2.8%), U.S. East (+57.1%) and Canadian (+105.6%) visitors came during the month for conventions compared to September 2006. The number of U.S. West (+33.9%), U.S. East (+139.1%), Japanese (+886.5%) and Canadian (+73.8%) visitors in the islands for corporate meetings also increased significantly from last September.
• Contributing to the growth in convention and corporate meeting visitors in September 2007 were the 2007 Chartered Property and Casualty Underwriters Society Annual Meeting with close to 7,200 delegates, the American Society for Bone & Mineral Research 2007 Annual Meeting with 4,900 delegates and the Corporate Group event with 5,600 delegates.
• September 2007 was also a popular month for honeymooners from Japan, which jumped 40.8 percent compared to the same period last year. The number of Japanese honeymooners has increased six out of nine months in 2007. So far this year, Hawai‘i hosted 133,226 Japanese honeymooners, up 11.5 percent from to year-to date 2006.
• O‘ahu, Kaua‘i, Moloka‘i and Lana‘i reported increased total visitors arrivals in September 2007 from the same month last year. O'ahu, Kaua‘i, Maui saw increases from U.S. East and Canadian visitors but fewer from U.S. West and Japanese visitors. Moloka‘i and Lana‘i saw growth in Japanese and U.S. East visitors. Hawai‘i Island reported lower visitor traffic compared to September 2006.

• Total visitors who stayed in timeshare (+4.6%) and condominium (+1.7%) properties increased while those who stayed in hotel properties declined 3.8 percent in the first nine months of 2007.
• Year to date, visitor spending on O'ahu rose .5 percent from the first nine months of 2006 to $4.2 billion. Spending on Maui was the second highest at $2.6 billion, but decreased 4 percent from a year ago. Hawai‘i Island at $1.3 billion (+6%) and Kaua‘i at $990.1 million (+4.9%) both showed growth over the same period in 2006.

• Total cruise visitor days for September 2007 rose 28.2 percent and the number of visitors who boarded a Hawai‘i home ported or foreign flagged cruise ship grew 19.9 percent to 44,990 visitors.
• Total cruise visitor days increased 32.5 percent for the first nine months of 2007. Contributing to this increase was a 29.2 percent growth in cruise visitors to 371,440 visitors. These passengers include those who flew to the state to board cruise ships or came by cruise ships visiting Hawai‘i. Of the ships in Hawai‘i year-to-date, there were 52 cruise ship arrivals, compared to 45 in the same period last year. Cruise ship arrival is the number of times cruise ships enter the State of Hawai‘i. A cruise ship may be counted multiple times if it leaves Hawai‘i then returns with new passengers within the same month.

Technical Notes: 2006 air visitor data presented in this news release are the final data for the year. Detailed final statistics have been published in the 2006 Annual Visitor Research Report, available at the Visitor Statistics website: http://www.hawaii.gov/dbedt/info/visitor-stats

For more information, contact:
Marsha Wienert, Tourism Liaison
Phone: (808) 586-2362
Email: marsha.wienert@hawaii.gov

Dave Young
Communications
Phone: (808) 587-1212
Email: dyoung@dbedt.hawaii.gov