Tourism to Okinawa last year reached 93.9 million people, exceeding that to Hawaii

Tourism to Okinawa last year reached 93.9 million people, exceeding that to Hawaii

On April 29, 2017, the first day of Golden Week, tourists get off a ferry at Tokashiki Port Pier


February 2, 2018 Ryukyu Shimpo

The Hawaii Tourism Authority announced on February 1 that the number of tourists to come to Hawaii in 2017 was 9,382,986. Tourists to Okinawa exceeded those to Hawaii for the first time, by a margin of about 13,000 people. In 2017, the number of tourists arriving in Okinawa Prefecture was 9,396,200.

The number of tourists to visit Okinawa increased by 783,100 (9.1%) compared to the previous year and marked the record high for a fifth consecutive year, bolstered by the dramatic growth of foreign tourism and a rising number of port calls by cruise ships. Tourism to Hawaii also increased by 448,709 people (5.0%) compared to the previous year, and has reached the record high for a sixth consecutive year.

People in the tourism industry in Okinawa welcomed the news that the number of tourists to Okinawa exceeded those to the world-famous resort destination of Hawaii. They also expressed their willingness to further promote tourism, and mentioned their desire to be on-par with Hawaii in terms of the tourists’ lenth of stay and sum of expenditures.

Since hotel companies in Okinawa observed Hawaii as a model destination in 1968, parts of Okinawa have been developed to resemble the beach and hotel environment in Hawaii. The public and private sectors strategically worked together to create an image of “Resort Destination Okinawa.”

(English translation by T&CT and Megumi Chibana)　

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