HONOLULU (KHON2) — In July, a total of 919,154 visitors came to Hawaii, marking a 92.4% recovery from July 2019 and the highest monthly visitor count since January 2020, according to preliminary visitor statistics released by the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism.
There was also an increase in visitor spending. In July, visitors spent $1.94 billion compared to $1.7 billion in July 2019, showing a 14.3% increase in spending. While the numbers are higher this year, DBEDT does not forecast a full recovery for Hawaii’s economy until 2025.
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“Therefore, as we move forward together, we must strive to achieve a healthy balance between our community, the environment, and the visitor industry,” DBEDT Director Mike McCartney said in Monday’s announcement. “This balance also includes bringing back our international markets later this year. Tourism is an economic opportunity for individuals, businesses, and communities to uplift and strengthen our home.”
All visitors in July flew to Hawaii, mainly from the U.S. West and U.S. East, and stayed an average of nine days. Visitors from Japan were down by 82.8% this year compared to 2019 for the month of July; however, travel demand from Japan is expected to gradually increase heading into the fall and winter seasons with the recent resumption of air service between Tokyo-Kona and Tokyo-Honolulu.
“Travelers from around the world, have come to know and appreciate that Hawaii is indeed a special place where dreams do come true,” HTA President and CEO John De Fries said in a statement.
There were also less travelers from Canada, but not by much (a 4.7% decrease) comparing July 2022 to July 2019. There were nearly 93,000 visitors from all other international markets, which include those from Oceania, Other Asia, Europe, Latin America, Guam, Philippines and the Pacific Islands. In comparison, there were 127,510 of these international visitors (-27.2%) in July 2019.
To see the rest of the monthly visitor statistics, click here.
