HONOLULU (KHON2) — North Shore beaches, the Pearl Harbor National Memorial and the Diamond Head State Monument were among the top Oahu attractions tourists visited this year, according to a state-commissioned survey. Queen Emma’s Summer Palace, Harold L. Lyon Arboretum and Hawai‘i State Art Museum were at the bottom of the list.
The famous landmarks and natural beauty were the top reasons that motivated visitors from the U.S. West, U.S. East and Canada, followed by outdoor/sporting events.
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The Q1 2022 Visitor Satisfaction and Activity Survey (VSAT) by the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism (DBEDT) released a list of Oahu places that attracted visitors.
Oahu Attractions
| Attraction | U.S. West | U.S. East | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atlantis Submarine & Cruises | 2.5% | 4% | 2.8% |
| Bernice P. Bishop Museum | 4% | 3.7% | 9.1% |
| Byodo In Temple | 11.6% | 10.2% | 3.66% |
| Chinatown & Honolulu Art District | 13.6% | 10% | 13.9% |
| Diamond Head State Monument | 25.9% | 37.4% | 42.2% |
| Dole Plantation | 31% | 33.6% | 36.1% |
| Foster Botanical Garden | 3.7% | 4% | 5.9% |
| Haleiwa | 20.9% | 21.2% | 20.4% |
| Hanauma Bay Nature Reserve | 11.6% | 13% | 15.3% |
| Harold L. Lyon Arboretum | 0.3% | 0.8% | 0.4% |
| Hawai‘i State Art Museum | 1.1% | 0.7% | 1% |
| Honolulu Museum of Art | 1.5% | 1.6% | 2.6% |
| Hawaiian Mission Houses, Historic Site & Archive | 1.1% | 1.2% | 0% |
| Hawai‘i’s Plantation Village | 1.8% | 0.7% | 1.6% |
| Honolulu Zoo | 5.5% | 7.1% | 8.7% |
| Ho’omaluhia Botanical Garden | 6% | 6% | 4.6% |
| Iolani Palace State Monument | 4.7% | 5.5% | 5.2% |
| Kailua Town | 14.8% | 13% | 19.8% |
| Kaiwi State Scenic Shoreline/ Makapuu Trail | 5.9% | 7.4% | 7.9% |
| Kakaako Street Art | 1.7% | 1.9% | 1.8% |
| Koko Head Crater Trail | 5.7% | 6.7% | 10.1% |
| Kualoa Private Nature Reserve | 15.4% | 15.6% | 15.9% |
| Lanikai or Kailua Beach | 28.8% | 30.4% | 38.3% |
| Manoa Falls & Trail | 9.1% | 13.1% | 11.7% |
| National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific | 7.8% | 11.5% | 5.4% |
| Nuuanu Pali Lookout | 10.1% | 12.2% | 14.1% |
| North Shore Beaches | 46.9% | 53.1% | 51.4% |
| Pearl Harbor National Memorial | 30.2% | 49% | 28.9% |
| Battleship Missouri Memorial | 10% | 18.9% | 14.9% |
| Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum | 9.4% | 13.8% | 14.7% |
| Pacific Fleet Submarine Museum | 3.5% | 5.2% | 7.3% |
| Polynesian Cultural Center | 13.6% | 13.1% | 13.5% |
| Queen Emma’s Summer Palace | 0.9% | 1.9% | 0.6% |
| Sea Life Park Hawai‘i | 2.3% | 2% | 3.8% |
| Waikiki Aquarium | 4.4% | 4.0% | 8.9% |
| Waimanalo Beach Park | 10.3% | 12.4% | 16.9% |
| Waimea Valley | 16.5% | 20.9% | 13.3% |
Eight visitor markets are typically analyzed, but due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, visitors from Japan, Oceania, Korea, China and Europe were not surveyed.
While overall satisfaction among Hawaii visitors rebounded to pre-pandemic levels, there were fewer visitors who said they would return to the islands. Click here for those reasons.
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A total of 3,832 visitors were surveyed between Jan. 1, 2022 and April 30, 2022. Click here for the full results.
