HTA: Hawaii Vacation Rentals on the Rise

The Hawaii Tourism Authority (HTA), the state tourism agency, recently released a study of the vacation rental market in Hawaii.

The study was conducted by SMS Research in phases at year-end 2013 and between August and September of 2014 to determine the estimated number of vacation rental units statewide being advertised individually on the Internet.
 

Vacation rentals identified by this study included condominium units, vacation rental houses and properties identifying themselves as bed and breakfasts. 

The HTA study estimates that more than 22,000 lodging units are listed on the following popular internet distribution channels: Vacation Rentals by Owner (VRBO), Clearstay.com, TripAdvisor and AirBnB.

“While hotels continue to be the accommodation of choice, the popularity and demand for alternative accommodations, have grown rapidly over the years,” said Ronald Williams, chief executive officer of the HTA, in a written release. “As a knowledge-based organization, the HTA initiated this study to help us, the state, the counties and the industry further understand the reach of this specific market segment. It will provide the counties with information to help them better understand this segment when making policy decisions in the future.”

If all of the identified units were available for visitor use at the same time, these units would account for up to 25 percent of Hawaii’s total lodging inventory. In comparison, hotels units make up roughly 50 percent of visitor accommodations mix, condo-hotels represent 12 percent and timeshares at 12.1 percent.

The HTA plans to integrate the methodology of this study into future Visitor Plant Inventory studies in an effort to monitor accommodations trends throughout the state. The report can be found on the HTA’s website at (www.hawaiitourismauthority.org/research/research/infrastructure-research/).
 
Visit www.hawaiitourismauthority.org.