Hawaii Tourism Authority Looks to Future

More than 450 professionals from various segments of Hawaii's tourism industry—including several suppliers from beyond Hawaii's shores—are gathered in Honolulu this week at the third annual Hawaii Tourism Conference organized by the Hawaii Tourism Authority. They are taking the pulse of the state's largest industry, as well as looking to its future. Key topics of discussion include the need to reinvest in the industry even when times are good, as they are now in the islands, which logged record visitor tallies last year and had a solid first half of 2006. Presentations have addressed everything from festivals and niche tourism to airlift. Wednesday's sessions include the presentation of 2007 marketing plans by the authority's various marketing contractors.