Po’ipu winter visitors: Many couples eat out

The winter survey of Po’ipu visitors, conducted in January and February of this year, shows some differences from the 2000 winter survey, including the fact that this year’s visitors to Po’ipu planned vacations shortly before coming (three weeks as opposed to 19 weeks in 2000).

Ocean swimming, shopping and snorkeling remained the top three activities, with all but shopping down in terms of percentages planning on participating in these activities, for 2002 compared to 2000.

Over half (54 percent) of this year’s winter visitors to Po’ipu, according to figures compiled by the Poipu Beach Resort Association, planned to stay only on Kaua’i, up from 49 percent in 2000.

More than half of the 282 respondents were return visitors to Kaua’i, though more than half (51 percent) were first-time visitors to Po’ipu. On average, they planned on staying 10 nights in Hawai’i, and a week at Po’ipu.

A full 80 percent of Po’ipu winter visitors were couples without children, similar to 2000 survey results (75 percent), and 62 percent booked their travel directly this year (47 percent via phone, 15 percent via Internet), compared to 55 percent in 2000 (45 percent phone, 10 percent Internet).

The percentage of those coming to Po’ipu booking through travel agents fell to 39 percent this year compared to 42 percent in 2000. They dined out nearly every night, most are college graduates, are generally affluent, and 96 percent plan on returning to Po’ipu for future vacations.

The West Coast remains the core of Po’ipu’s visitors, with California, Washington and Oregon the top three states of origin of Po’ipu visitors both in 2002 and 2000.

In 2002, though, states four and five were Colorado and Michigan/Minnesota (tied), respectively, and in 2000 they were New York and Colorado, respectively.

Word of mouth (friends or relatives) was the way many winter visitors learned about Po’ipu (38 percent).