Report: Arrivals nearly on par with 2019 levels

Average daily number of visitors on Maui in July was half the county’s population

Maui's visitor arrivals in July were just one percent shy of pre-pandemic figures, while visitor expenditures were up nearly 17 percent over 2019, according to preliminary statistics released Monday.

In July, Maui saw 304,878 visitors, just one percent below the 307,834 that visited the Valley Isle in 2019, according to the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism.

Kauai was the closest in the state to achieving pre-pandemic arrivals, as it was only 0.7 percent off of 2019 numbers with 138,130 visitors in July compared to 139,157 in July 2019.

On Maui, visitor expenditures last month hovered around $591 million, compared to the $506 million spent in July 2019, or a 16.8 percent growth.

The average daily census of visitors -- a figure pointed to often by those urging tourism management -- was up, with 77,717 average visitors per day on Maui in July, two percent higher than in July 2021 when there were 76,202 average visitors per day and up 1.5 percent from pre-pandemic July when there were 76,577.

The Maui Island Plan calls for the number of visitors on island to be no more than one-third of the resident population.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2021, the entire county's population was around 165,000. While a breakdown of Maui, Molokai and Lanai was not available, this meant the average number of visitors on Maui per day in July was roughly half the resident population.

Statewide, 919,154 visitors came to the state in July, representing a 92.4 percent recovery from July 2019 when 995,210 visitors came to the state, DBEDT said in a news release.

This is the highest monthly visitor count since January 2020, the news release said.

Visitors spent $1.94 billion in the state last month, an increase of 14.3 percent compared to the $1.7 billion reported for July 2019.

"Meaningful economic recovery continued during the peak summer month of July as Hawaii saw significant increases in total visitor spending from the U.S. and Canada markets compared to July 2019," said John De Fries, CEO and president of the Hawaii Tourism Authority.

He said travel demand from Japan is anticipated to gradually increase in the fall and winter seasons, with the recent resumption of air service between Tokyo and Kona along with Tokyo and Honolulu. (Maui does not have any direct flights from Japan).

"As we pass the middle half of 2022 and compare the state's economic recovery through tourism with 2019, visitors spent 5.8 percent or $610.1 million more during the same period with arrivals to Hawaii lower by 13.2 percent or (a decrease of) 815,906 for the first seven months. We are currently 86.8 percent recovered from 2019," DBEDT Director Mike McCartney said.

But he added that DBEDT does not forecast full recovery until 2025.

Visitor arrivals to Maui last month even topped July 2021 numbers, with arrivals up 7.8 percent compared to the 282,736 in 2021, when tourists flocked to the state after months of pandemic lockdowns and travel restrictions.

But visitors on average spent less time on the island as compared to last year, with average length of stay at 7.90 days in July, compared to 8.35 days in July 2021, for a 5.4 percent decline. In July 2019, the average length of stay was 7.71 days.

Molokai and Lanai were still lagging in visitor arrivals last month as compared to pre-pandemic levels.

In July, Molokai had 4,075 visitors, which is down 38.9 percent from the 6,665 seen in July 2019. Lanai saw 6,156 visitors in July, down 33 percent from 9,190 in July 2019.

However, both islands saw visitor arrivals increase from last year. Molokai visitor totals were up 27.3 percent from the 3,202 visitors who came in July 2021, while Lanai saw an increase of 1.9 percent in July compared to the 6,040 visitors in July 2021.

Visitor stays for both islands were shorter in July as compared to last year. On Molokai, the average stay was 4.92 days, or down 12.9 percent from 5.65 days in 2021. On Lanai, the average stay was 3.86 days, or down 15.6 percent from 4.57 days in 2021.

Still, this was longer than pre-pandemic times, when visitor stays were 3.63 days on Molokai and 2.80 days on Lanai in July 2019.

Visitor spending on Molokai and Lanai was up in July as compared to 2019, with $3.1 million spent last month on Molokai compared to $2.9 million during the same time in 2019, or 5.9 percent more. On Lanai, visitors spent $15.9 million last month, up 11.5 percent from the $14.3 million spent in July 2019.

As the recovery progresses, leaders acknowledge the move toward educating the visitor and achieving balance with tourism.

"Our destination management work will continue to focus on educating visitors about traveling within our islands in a manner that is mindful, as we seek to balance the economic vitality of our industry with the health of our natural environment and the well-being of our communities," DeFries said.

McCartney added: "Therefore, as we move forward together, we must strive to achieve a healthy balance between our community, the environment, and the visitor industry. 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."

* Melissa Tanji can be reached at mtanji@mauinews.com.