Visitor spending on Hawaii Island leaps to $854.2 million in the first quarter
Visitor spending on Hawaii Island leaped to $854.2 million in the first quarter from $741.1 million in the first quarter of 2023 and from $646.4 in the first quarter of 2019, according to a monthly report from the state of Hawai‘i Department of Business, Economic Development &Tourism (DBEDT). That marked increases of 15.3 percent and 32.2 percent, respectively.
Across the Hawaiian Island chain, visitor spending was up on Kauai and Oahu, but down on Maui.
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On the island of Kauai, a sizzling start in the first quarter has visitor spending on track to best last year’s record-setting total of $2.76 billion.
Visitor spending on Oahu inched up to $2.17 billion in the first quarter from $2.11 billion in the first quarter of 2023, and from $1.98 billion in the first quarter of 2019. That marked gains of 2.8 percent and 9.4 percent, respectively.
Visitor spending on Maui sank in the three-month period ended March 31, as the island economy continues to recover from a series of wildfires on Aug. 8, 2023, including the deadly Lahaina Fire.
Total visitor spending weighed in at $1.42 billion in the first quarter, compared with $1.79 billion in the first quarter of 2023 and $1.33 billion in the first quarter of 2019. That marked a decrease of 20.7 percent and an increase of 6.4 percent, respectively.
Overall, visitor spending measured $5.22 billion in the first quarter, compared with $5.37 billion in the first quarter of 2023 and $4.49 billion in the first quarter of 2019. That marked a drop of 2.7 percent and an increase of 16.3 percent, respectively.
