Hawaii visitor arrivals last month matched the largest percentage increase this year and spending surged 24.7 percent as the state’s tourism industry continued to rebound strongly from the recession.

Total arrivals rose 13.6 percent to 574,425 with the U.S. West leading the way with a 21.4 percent increase. Canada also was strong with a 17.2 percent gain while the U.S. East rose 6.1 percent and Japan edged up 1.6 percent.

Arrivals have risen every month this year and through October are up 7.8 percent to just under 5.9 million. The last time arrivals rose as much as 13.6 percent was in June of this year. 

A 9.6 percent increase in average daily visitor spending resulted in double-digit growth in expenditures in all the major sectors. U.S. West spending was up 25 percent, U.S. East rose 12.8 percent, Japan gained 11.9 percent and Canada was higher by 10.7 percent. Overall spending was $961.5 million.

"While the trends are positive, we have not yet fully recovered," said Mike McCartney, president and chief executive officer of the Hawaii Tourism Authority. "Therefore, we need to continue our efforts to aggressively market Hawaii to help drive demand."