Hawaii visitor arrivals were up 4.3% and visitor spending increased 6.8% for October, according to the Hawaii Tourism Authority (HTA).
Preliminary statistics released by the HTA last week show that visitors spent $1.2 billion in October, the fifth consecutive month that visitor spending has increased.
Gains in arrivals and spending from Western states helped offset continued decreases from Canada. In October, Canadian arrivals to Oahu were essentially flat, declining 0.1%, but the Island of Hawaii and Kauai saw drops of 20.3% and 17.2%, respectively. According to the HTA, those islands have seen double-digit declines in arrivals since direct flights to Kona and Lihue were suspended starting in May.
Through the first 10 months of 2016, statewide visitor arrivals were up 2.8%, to about 7.4 million, and visitor spending has increased 4%, to $12.8 billion.