According to a report released by the Hawaii Tourism Authority, visitor arrival had increased by 5.6 percent in February 2012 and spending had increased by 8.5 percent as compared to the same month a year prior. This equated to 626,367 visitors who spent a total of $1.09 billion, or $183 per person per day. President and CEO for the Hawaii Tourism Authority, Mike McCartney, stated, “We are happy that the momentum for our tourism economy remains strong. At this pace we are not only exceeding our year-over-year expenditures, but will surpass the peak year of 2007 and are currently ahead of the aggressive targets set for 2012.”
Vice president for Hilton Hawaii, Jerry Gibson, was a little more reserved with his opinion and noted that the expense for running a hotel has increased dramatically since 2007. Gibson stated, “We are very fortunate that Hawaii is one of the best tourism markets in our nation, and we are forecasting a good first half of the year. However, it would be extraordinarily difficult to achieve the levels of 2007. I don’t think we’ll catch up to the revenues, and certainly the expenses have increased to the point that we couldn’t overtake them.”
Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 3-30-2012, www.staradvertiser.com
Posted by Jeff Uyemura-Reyes, Broker-in-Charge, Realtor
Global Executive Realty, LLC
www.myhawaiihomesearch.com
www.myhawaiicondo.com
www.myhawaiidreamhome.com
