A long-awaited and much-needed change in visa processing that simplifies repeat Hawaii trips by Chinese tourists should be celebrated as a potential boon to the Hawaii visitor industry.
But that advance also must be amplified by an aggressive marketing campaign to capitalize on this initiative and on other improvements in U.S.-China relations where they’ve been occurring. It’s a campaign that will involve Gov.-elect David Ige with his appointments to the Hawaii Tourism Authority board of directors.
Most directly, it will be the job of the HTA directors to find a capable and driven replacement for the outgoing HTA president and CEO, Mike McCartney, who is joining Ige as chief of staff. The interim CEO, to be named Nov. 20, will begin some of this work — preferably with some assistance from McCartney, who can help with continuity.
The turnabout in visa policy has been one of the bright spots for Hawaii to come from President Barack Obama’s Asia trip. On Monday, the president announced that both China and the U.S. would extend tourist and business visas from a year to a decade.
Additionally, student and cultural exchange visas were extended to five years. The failure at this point to loosen visa restrictions on journalists is unfortunate, given the need for more openness in the robust coverage of the Chinese government; efforts to improve those policies should continue.
But within the limited scope of Hawaii’s tourism interests, the extension, which began Wednesday, is an unmitigated win. HTA has worked for a decade to ease travel for the Chinese who want to add Hawaii to their travel itineraries.
The need for change was critical. In the competition among beachy destinations, Hawaii often lost out to China’s own southern island of Hainan, which often billed itself as "Hawaii of the East."
The problem was one of bureaucratic delays in visa processing, including the U.S. requirement for an interview. That requirement remains, but the longer term of the travel permit is seen as a way to encourage frequent travelers.
Hawaii’s industry leaders are clear that strong demand exists for expansion of the Chinese sector of the business — many of the Chinese with means to travel are ready for the real Hawaii, not a substitute. Improvements in airline lift from China have made travel to Hawaii, with routes that are more direct, more pleasant.
Even under less-than-optimal conditions, China delivered 128,792 visitors to Hawaii during the first nine months of the year, McCartney said. The change should help the state approach its goal of attracting 152,690 tourists this year.
Undoubtedly, though, ramping up will take time, but it will be worth the effort. The Chinese represent a lucrative market for Hawaii. HTA figures show that for the first four months of 2014, the average Chinese tourist spent $407 a day in Hawaii, while the average Japanese spent $280 — both categories ranking above the average American traveler in spending. Chinese aggregate tourism spending, $129 billion worldwide in 2013, ranks them tops internationally,
The industry has been preparing for the past few years to prepare staff to accommodate an influx of Chinese visitors, who have different habits and preferences from other groups — preparations that no doubt must accelerate now.
The new visa may not yield great gains immediately because, as some critics have noted, it won’t allow a traveler to stay in the U.S. longer than six months or remove the interview requirement.
But it represents a crucial first step in normalizing visitor exchange between China and the U.S., and the administration must build on that for further improvements.
In the meantime, Hawaii must communicate to the new guests that they are welcome.
