HONOLULU (KHON2) — More than 770,000 people traveled to Hawaii this October. That’s just shy of what we saw in October 2019, before COVID shut everything down. While the industry continues to rebound, the Japanese market is still lagging.
There were just under 67,000 visitors from Japan in October, an improvement from the previous year, but still less than half compared to before the pandemic.
It’s taking a toll on some businesses. Shops like Coco Nene said they have seen a big decline in sales without the Japanese.
“Our products really resonate with them, like gift giving and stuff, so we’re just really excited to see them make a comeback,” said Danny LaBelle, Coco Nene Waikiki manager.
Many restaurants like Eating House 1849 said they rely heavily on Japanese tour groups.
“Right now, we’re in the process of recreating our Japanese tour group menus as an annual thing to try to entice and get people interested and keeping it fresh around here,” explained McKenna Brown, Eating House 1849 General Manager.
One of the hardest-hit industries is destination weddings.
Watabe Wedding Corporation recently notified the labor department of a drastic reduction in hours for more than 160 full and part-time employees starting Dec. 1.
According to the Hawaii Tourism Authority, the Japanese travel market has steadily improved but is moving slower than originally expected.
“I certainly believe that once the yen is more favorable to the American dollar, we’re going to see them coming in droves because they love Hawaii. They’ve always loved Hawaii and I think the wedding business and everything will pick back up. Hawaii is always going to be a top destination for Japanese visitors, so we’re excited when they do come back. We’ll welcome them with open arms,” said Mike Palmer, Kuhio Avenue Food Hall co-owner.
According to DBEDT, Japanese visitors spent $874 million in the first ten months of this year compared to the $1.9 billion in 2019.