Hawaii Tourism Sees Record-Setting Hotel Revenue This August

hawaiiAccording to several media outlets, hotels in Hawaii set another all-time single-month record in August, bringing in $339 million in revenue to cap off the best summer ever for the state’s tourism industry.

The August revenue was $3 million better than July — a record at the time, according to The Seattle Times. It was also a 9.1 percent increase compared with August of last year, when hotel room revenue was $311 million. A survey released Tuesday by Hospitality Advisors LLC says total hotel revenue hit $1.42 billion in the summer months of June, July and August, with $965 million spent on rooms. The rest was spent at restaurants and bars, parking, retail and other hotel offerings, according to the report.

Mike McCartney, president and CEO of the Hawaii Tourism Authority, says, however, that he anticipates seeing a slowing in arrivals and expenditures as the fall shoulder season approaches. The Hawaii Tourism Authority will continue to monitor the fluctuating fuel costs, strengthening of the dollar against international currencies and other economic conditions, which have been impacting visitor length of stay, he says.

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"It is important that we recognize that the volatility of the market and competition could hinder the growth of our state’s lead economic driver and resource, which currently supports 170,000 jobs statewide, one Hawaii job for every 47 visitors," says McCartney, in a written release.

Total summer revenue was up 8.5 percent over $1.31 billion in total summer hotel revenue in 2012. It’s the fourth straight summer of big jumps in hotel revenue since 2009, when the recession battered Hawaii tourism and sent summer hotel revenues down more than 20 percent to about $880 million. Hospitality Advisors CEO Joseph Toy told The Seattle Times the boost in revenue was helped by a 7.7 percent summer increase in capacity for air travelers. Airlines are using planes with more seats and running several new routes from U.S. states and Asia.

And in a recent interview with Julie Zadeh, managing director, travel trade marketing for the Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau, Travel Agent learned that hotel revenue in August wasn't the only successful part of 2013 for Hawaii tourism. While 2012 was a record year for Hawaii tourism, 2013 arrivals are up 5.5 percent and expenditures up 5.7 percent year-to-date.

"This is really one of the best years we've ever had," Zadeh told us in that interview. "Our arrivals our up, our spending is up, our ADRs, which is how we really measure success, is very strong too."

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Visitors from around the world continued to choose the Hawaiian Islands during the first seven months of 2013. So far this year, visitors spent an average of $41 million per day – $20 million on Oahu, $11 million in Maui County, $5 million on Hawaii Island and $4 million on Kauai, which supports more than 167,000 jobs and has provided $911 million in state tax revenue year-to-date.

She attributes the success to an increase in flights from the East Coast as well as the buzz created by all the new hotels that are setting up shop in Hawaii.

Visit www.gohawaii.com.