For Immediate Release: April 28, 2006
DBEDT Release News 06-13

Note: March 2006 Visitor Research Data can be viewed here.

1st Quarter Visitor Expenditures Rose 5.2 Percent to $2.9 Billion
Total Visitor Days Set New First Quarter Record

HONOLULU--Total visitor expenditures increased .4 percent to $974.4 million, thanks to higher daily visitor spending which rose to $170 per person from $161 per person in March 2005. Total visitor days fell 5.1 percent compared to last March, according to preliminary data released by the Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism (DBEDT) today.

The decrease in total visitor days was due to lower domestic visitor arrivals compared to March last year. International arrivals were comparable to March 2005, while domestic arrivals decreased 6.3%.

Total visitor expenditures for the first quarter of 2006 rose 5.2 percent to $2.9 billion. Average daily spending increased to $170 per person compared to $162 per person in the first quarter of 2005, while total visitor days were .2 percent higher compared to the same quarter last year.

Year-to-date, domestic arrivals set a new first quarter record of 1,275,237 visitors. Total arrivals fell slightly by .5 percent from first quarter 2005 to 1,802,097 visitors. A 2.7 percent decrease in international visitors due to lower arrivals from Japan (-7.5%) was offset by increases from the Canadian (+9.1%) and domestic (+.5%) visitor markets.

"Since the Easter holiday fell in April this year versus March last year, it is very difficult to compare March 2006 to March 2005," said Tourism Liaison Marsha Wienert. "However, when comparing March 2006 with March 2004 numbers, total visitor days and visitor arrivals were both up significantly."

"We are encouraged that first quarter arrivals set a new record for the domestic market and total visitor days exceeded all previous years," said Wienert. "Furthermore, we are excited by the strong growth in visitor arrivals from Canada and by the continued increase in the level of overall expenditures."

Of the total number of visitors who came during the first quarter of 2006, 102,423 visitors either flew to the state to board Hawaii home-ported cruise ships or arrived on foreign cruise ships visiting the islands, up 52.8 percent from the same period last year. Cruise visitor days climbed 76.5 percent compared to first quarter 2005.

First Quarter 2006 preliminary visitor statistics:

Total Air Visitors: Air visitors spent a total of $2.9 billion in the first quarter of 2006, up 5.2 percent compared to the same period last year with increases from the U.S. West, U.S. East and Canadian visitor markets. Total visitor spending by Japanese visitors decreased 1.2 percent.

Year-to-date visitor spending on Oahu totaled $1.3 billion (-2.5%) followed by Maui at $903.9 million (+21.1%), the Big Island at $389 million (-.2%) and Kauai at $295.2 million (+6%).

Contributing to the growth in total visitor expenditures was a .2 percent increase in total visitor days. A total of 1,802,097 visitors came to the islands during the first quarter of 2006, down slightly by .5 percent from the same time last year. The average length of stay by these visitors was slightly longer at 9.56 days.

Visitor arrivals rose on Kauai (+8.8%), Maui (+4.6%), Molokai (+9.4%), Lanai (+15.5%) and the Big Island (+4.1%) compared to first quarter 2005.

A greater number of visitors came for meetings (+14%) and incentives (+19.1%) and to visit friends or relatives (+3.9%).

Year-to-date, repeat visitors accounted for 64.4 percent of the total visitors to Hawaii, similar to the same period last year.

• Domestic air visitors: Domestic visitor days rose .6 percent as arrivals also rose by .5 percent to 1,275,237 visitors, a new record for the first quarter of any year. The average length of stay was 10.36 days.

  The number of U.S. visitors, which accounted for 91.8 percent of total domestic arrivals to date, was .4 percent higher compared to the same period last year with increases from the Mountain, West North Central, West South Central, East South Central and South Atlantic regions. Total domestic arrivals include U.S. residents and international visitors who came to Hawaii on domestic flights.

• International air visitors: International visitor days decreased 1.3 percent due to a 2.7 percent decrease in arrivals to 526,860 visitors. The average length of stay was 7.62 days.

• Air visitors from the top four major market areas (MMAs):

  U.S. East: Total spending by U.S. East visitors increased 4.5 percent compared to the first quarter of 2005, to $1 billion, the highest among the four major visitor markets. The average daily spending was $177 per person, the second highest among the top four visitor markets.

  U.S. East visitor days increased .6 percent compared to first quarter 2005. Contributing to the increase was a .9 percent growth in arrivals to 534,158 visitors. The average length of stay was 10.72 days. A higher number of U.S. East visitors came for conventions, corporate meetings and incentives, and to visit friends or relatives.

  U.S. West: Total spending by U.S. West visitors reached $955.9 million, 7.2 percent higher than year-to-date 2005. This group of visitors spent an average of $149 per person per day.

  U.S. West visitor days decreased slightly, -.5 percent. Arrivals rose .2 percent to 656,342 visitors for the first quarter of 2006 but was offset by a lower average length of stay (9.78 days). More of these visitors came to honeymoon, visit friends or relatives, and for conventions and corporate meetings.

Japan: Japanese visitors spent a total of $510.4 million in the first quarter of 2006, 1.2 percent lower compared to the same period last year. While ranking third in total expenditures, Japanese visitors continued to spend the most on a daily basis at $262 per person.

Japanese visitor days declined 9.7 percent, due to a 7.5 percent decrease in visitor arrivals to 349,949 visitors. The average length of stay by these visitors was 5.56 days.

Canada: Year-to-date, total expenditures and average daily spending by Canadian visitors ranked fourth among the top four major visitor markets at $211 million (+16.4%) and $133 per person, respectively. Canadian visitor days increased 11 percent, boosted by a 9.1 percent growth in arrivals to 108,263 visitors. The average length of stay was 14.64 days.

• Per person per trip expenditures by MMA:

  Canadian visitors spent the most per trip in during the first quarter of 2006, at $1,949 per person, followed by visitors from the U.S. East ($1,895 per person), All Other markets ($1,557 per person), Japan ($1,459 per person) and the U.S. West ($1,456 per person).

Total cruise visitor days climbed 76.5 percent in the first quarter of 2006. Contributing to this increase was a 52.8 percent growth in cruise visitors to 102,423 visitors, including those who arrived by air to board cruise ships and those who came on the ships. These visitors were aboard 23 international cruise ships including the foreign-flagged Norwegian Wind. In addition, there were two U.S. flagged ships home ported in Hawaii, the Pride of Aloha and the Pride of America, an increase of one ship as compared to last year.

Repeat visitors to Hawaii comprised 57.6 percent of out-of-state cruise visitors, compared to 57.1 percent in first quarter 2005. These cruise visitors stayed an average of 9.65 days in Hawaii, of which 5.86 days were spent on their cruise and another 3.79 days were spent before and after their cruise.

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