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| Hilo, Hawaii News, Sports, & Information |
Thursday, May 23, 2013 |
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Back to Hawaii News index
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Posted: Friday, January 25th, 2013 9:33 AM HST
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Record numbers of tourists come to Hawaii in 2012
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HONOLULU (AP) — A record number of tourists came to Hawaii last year and spent more money here than ever before.
The Hawaii Tourism Authority said Thursday nearly 8 million travelers visited the islands in 2012 — an increase of nearly 10 percent.
This breaks the previous record of 7.6 million visitors marked in 2006, before the financial crisis and recession hit.
Travelers spent a total of $14.3 billion in Hawaii — nearly 19 percent more than they spent in 2011. This breaks the annual spending record of $12.8 billion marked in 2007.
Hawaii Tourism Authority CEO Mike McCartney says a recovering global economy, the strong yen, the start of new direct flights to the islands and marketing efforts boosted the numbers.
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