Hawaii Expects Visitor Numbers to Fall Further in 2009

Hawaii’s 2009 visitor arrivals are expected to drop 1.9 percent, to 6.73 million, following a forecasted 10.1 percent fall in 2008, according to the state’s Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism.

DBEDT forecasts that Hawaii will draw 6.86 million visitors in 2008, down from 7.63 million the year before. Also, DBEDT predicted that 2009 visitor spending will inch up 0.7 percent, to $11.68 billion, after a 9.5 percent plunge in visitor spending in 2008.