The extra day in February helped the Aloha State generate year-over-year growth in visitor arrivals, as Hawaii welcomed more than 688,000 travelers during the month, an increase of 4.1%.
Total visitor expenditures, meanwhile, climbed 4.8% in February, to more than $1.2 billion, according to preliminary estimates released by the Hawaii Tourism Authority (HTA) March 29.
“February was a strong month for Hawaii’s visitor industry,” George Szigeti, the HTA president and CEO, said in a statement. According to Szigeti, February’s average daily visitor spending of $43.3 million was led by the U.S. West ($14.3 million) and U.S. East ($11.2 million) markets.
Domestic arrivals were also up across Hawaii in February as the U.S. West increased 8.1% during the month and the U.S. East climbed by 10%.
International arrivals from Canada, however, plunged 10.6% while Japanese visitor totals remained essentially unchanged year over year.