LIHU‘E — Visitor spending on Kauai eclipsed $200 million for the eighth straight month in August, as tourists continued to plow big bucks into the local economy while on the island.
The spending total climbed to $229.3 million in August from $195.5 million in August 2022 and $159.0 in pre-pandemic August 2019, according to a monthly report from the state of Hawai‘i Department of Business, Economic Development &Tourism (DBEDT). That marked increases of 17.3 percent and 44.2 percent, respectively.
The surge in spending on Kaua‘i came amid a sharp uptick in visitors to 131,628 in August from 120,808 in August 2022 and 120,030 in August 2019. That represented gains of 9.0 percent and 9.7 percent, respectively.
Visitor spending was mixed on the other three major islands with Maui taking a big hit in the aftermath of the deadly Lahaina Fire.
Spending on Maui measured $246.7 million in August. That was down from $484 million in August 2022 and $404.7 million in August 2019, or decreases of 49 percent and 39 percent.
Portions of West Maui have since reopened after the town of Lahaina was devastated by an Aug. 8 wildfire, which claimed the lives of at least 98 people and destroyed more than 2,000 structures, many of which were houses and apartments.
“As we welcome the return of visitors to West Maui (including Napili, Ka‘anapali, Honokwai and Kapalua), we will be supporting Maui’s economy and keeping our people employed so they can continue to live on Maui and recover,” said DBEDT Director James Kunane Tokioka in a statement that accompanied the monthly report.
“We encourage respectful travel, supporting local businesses, and participation in volunteer opportunities that malama (give back to) Hawai‘i. For more information, please visit gohawaii.com/malama.”
Spending on O‘ahu weighed in at a stout $847.1 million in August. That was up from $813.5 million in August 2022 and $732 million in August 2019, or increases of 4.1 percent and 15.7 percent, respectively.
Spending on Hawai‘i Island came in at $244.6 million in August. That was up from $236.1 million in August 2022 and $193.1 million in August 2019, or gains of 3.6 percent and 26.7 percent, respectively.
