Another quick tourism update

According to an article in today's Honolulu Star Advertiser, Hawai'i hotel performance increased, despite the "strong downturn of Japanese visitors after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami."

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser

State hotel occupancy increased, as more visitors from the West Coast, East Coast, and Canada helped offset the drop in Japanese arrivals.

I still think we need to wait in order to determine the overall effects of Japan's crisis on our tourism industry and economy. Hawaiian Airlines is offering another really cheap deal for fall West Coast travel ($356 roundtrip between West Coast cities and Honolulu), so that will help attract visitors.

But what about sales of stores in Waikiki, especially luxury brand stores? I'm pretty sure their main customers were the Japanese. (Why would people on the mainland shop at the Waikiki stores when they can buy the products for the same price or cheaper in their hometowns?) If the Japanese can't start shopping there again anytime soon, will we begin to see a bunch of closures in the near future?

I think that Hawai'i should try to attract the newly rich Chinese. I have held this opinion for a couple years now - way before Japan's earthquakes. I am constantly hearing about China's growth and development. Hawai'i should try and tap into this new group in order to grow our economy - the Chinese are the ones with all the money now. Why not make Hawai'i the go-to vacation spot for the Chinese, as it is for the Japanese? It is always preferable for us to bring in foreign money, anyway, rather than merely cycling money within our US economy, right? I'll be honest that I prefer the Japanese to the Chinese - the Japanese are so polite and respectful, while the Chinese can be loud and obnoxious. But it's just a cultural difference... yes, one that could change Hawai'i's atmosphere if droves of Chinese start to come to our islands. But I think that if Hawai'i wants to grow, one of the possible answers is China.