New nonstop flights contribute to growth for Kaua‘i

LIHU‘E — Kaua‘i experienced a double digit upswing in tourist arrivals in November.

Arrivals to the Garden Isle increased by 13.3 percent to 82,566 visitors last month.

According to figures released by the Hawai‘i Tourism Authority, most of the visitors to Kaua‘i came from the East and West Coasts, Canada and Japan.

While daily spending was lower, total visitor expenditures on Kaua‘i were up 11.8 percent to $96.3 million last month alone.

During the past 11 months, Kaua‘i arrivals were up by 7.3 percent to 987,734 visitors.

During the same period, visitor expenditures rose 21.7 percent to $1.3 billion in revenue on Kaua‘i over the same time frame in 2011.

On pace for a record-breaking year with a total of $12.9 billion in visitor expenditures through November, the state is posting a $2.1 billion increase over the same period last year.

During the first 11 months of 2012, visitors who traveled to Hawai‘i by air spent an average of $193 daily, which is $16 more per day over last year.

Continuing efforts by the HTA to increase the number of people flying in and visiting the Neighbor Islands has led to incremental growth in visitor arrivals and expenditures across the four major islands, according to a release.

The HTA board of directors approved aggressive targets in July to reach 7.89 million visitors and to reach $13.9 billion in spending.

The HTA posted that given the current pace, the state anticipates reaching and possibly even exceeding those targets and remain optimistic about the potential of international visitors as there has been tremendous growth in the Asia and Oceana regions, resulting from numerous new flights and flight frequency this year.

Through ongoing collaborative efforts with global marketing partners and the visitor industry, the HTA is continuing to build a sustainable tourism economy.