North, central Kaua’i alone in state with hotel occupancy increases

North and central Kaua’i were alone in the state in March as areas enjoying increased combined hotel and resort condominium occupancies compared to March 2001.

According to figures from the Honolulu accounting and management firm PKF-Hawaii, north Kaua’i occupancy this March was 72.4 percent, up from 68.5 percent in March of last year, while central Kaua’i properties recorded an occupancy rate of 72.1 percent this March, up from 64.4 percent in March 2001.

The north Kaua’i increase, 11.9 percent, also represented the largest jump in the state.

Those figures helped the island’s overall occupancy rate this March to 68.6 percent, down only slightly from 70.2 percent in March of last year.

Maui continued to lead the state this March, with an 80.4 percent occupancy rate, down from 85.5 percent in March of 2001. The statewide occupancy rate was 76 percent, down from 80.9 percent in March 2001.

While occupancies remain behind last year’s totals for both March and year to date, the head of PKF-Hawaii says the statistics continue moving toward pre-September levels.

“March statewide occupancy decreased 6.03 percent from 2001, continuing the progression of improvements,” said Ernie Watari, PKF-Hawaii chairman and chief executive officer. He is talking about improvements in the rates of occupancy decreases.

“Equally as important is the improvement in RevPAR (revenue per available room), from the 18.77 percent decrease in January to the 6.71 percent decrease in March, showing that revenues generated are progressing towards pre-September 2001 levels,” he added.

For the first three months of this year, Kaua’i’s occupancy rate was 65.9 percent, down from 70.8 percent for the same period in 2001 but still the state’s smallest percentage decline. Statewide occupancy was 74.4 percent for the first quarter this year, down from 81.8 percent recorded in the same period last year.

All regions of Kaua’i experienced occupancy rates in the 60s, while all areas of Maui and O’ahu experienced occupancy rates in the 70s, for the first quarter of this year.

In the hotel-only market, Kaua’i properties moved toward the 75 percent rate that is considered by industry standards the break-even point. Central properties did the best, recording an occupancy increase to 74.1 percent this March, up from 65 percent the same month last year.

Due to changes in reporting, no figures are available in the hotel-only category for south and north Kaua’i. The island’s hotel-only occupancy rate last month was 73.1 percent, up from 72.4 percent last March. Kaua’i was the only island to record an increase in this category.

Statewide hotel-only occupancy this March was 77.4 percent, down from 81.9 percent in March 2001.

For the first quarter this year, in the hotel-only market, Kaua’i occupancy was 69.3 percent, down from 73.6 for the same period in 2001, with central Kaua’i properties showing only a slight occupancy decrease, to 69.7 percent in 2002’s first quarter, compared to 70.4 percent in the same period last year.

Statewide hotel-only occupancy for the first quarter this year was 75.2 percent, down from 82.5 percent in the same period last year.

Despite North Shore resort condominiums showing the state’s only March increase this year compared to the same month last year (72.4 percent last month, 68.5 percent in March 2001), the island’s resort condominiums (excluding timeshare units) slumped to 57.8 percent this March, down from 65.8 percent in March of last year and the lowest rate in the state among the counties.

Statewide resort condominium occupancy this March was 69.5 percent, down from 76.1 percent in March of last year.

For the first quarter, resort condominiums in every destination suffered lower occupancy this year than last. Statewide occupancy was 70.5 percent in the first quarter of this year, down from 78.3 percent in the same period last year.

The Kaua’i resort condominium occupancy rate for the first quarter this year was 57.8 percent, down from 65 percent recorded in the same period last year. The South Shore sunk to 53.9 percent, down from 62.4 percent in the first quarter last year, and the central and north regions did only slightly better.