62 thoughts on “Who Pockets Hawaii Visitors’ Money May Surprise You”
JR
Buy Local is Economic Illiteracy. Educate yourself and get better insight on this misguided philosophy
“From the start, a conceptual challenge arises when defining “local.” Does it refer to one’s town, city, province or country? Regardless of the designation method, you are bound to randomly include some places and exclude others. Furthermore, if a good is to be classified as local, does that mean all the production inputs should be local as well? If I buy locally sourced carrots, but the fertilizer, tractor and other equipment used to produce those carrots were made elsewhere, do my carrots still count as local? Even if a consumer only buys from local producers, it is likely those producers are not all buying local themselves.”
Local politicians must be the ones benefiting from the out of state corporations. Look at Hilton adding another tower. Who approved that? I have been visiting Hawaii for 50 years stayin a month or longer. It was easy to support local businesses the first 25 to 30 years. There were only a few out of state corporations controlling everything. Each year it is more difficult. Blame the politicians that sold out the residents of Hawaii.
Still, the ‘room tax’, etc., collected by the HI government, where does it all go?????
We still don’t get any answers. And, I still say, dump the Hawaii Visitors Bureau and take their Millions budget and feed it back into the economy! HI doesn’t Need to advertise! Everyone knows it’s here!
Corporations are buying up the little guys = high prices. When I go to hawaii or travel, I seek out owners. But it is getting more difficult on the island of Maui. I’m fearful of renting direct as may land to find there is no rental. Car rentals are another thing. I know that is corporate greed. the high prices we are all experiencing on Maui, is sad and I dont see an end to it since a few corporations are buying up everything. This world is not the same as we once knew. There are just too many people in the world anymore.
Truth, “corporate hotels return far less to the local economy,” and yet we’re allowing the Hotel Lobby shut Airbnb’s down. Airbnb gets paid thru host and guest fees, nothing more.
I wish the state would come down hard on “bad” hosts, so those hosts don’t spoil a wonderful way to lodge for the rest of us.
In DC, council members, who no doubt got kickbacks from the Hotel Lobby, just severely restricted Airbnb’s there. The city has lost 85 MIILION in taxes because of that. Vacation renters spend more money in the local neighborhoods than people staying in the hotels. Please let’s address the real bad guys.
And with that non-resident owned AirBnB, driving up demand for housing, pricing the residents out of home ownership, and how many people is the AirBnB employing vs. the Hotel?
I mostly stay in vacation rentals when I travel, because I prefer experiencing the culture, instead of the typical tourist things.
And as a host, I’ve offered clean, safe, peaceful accommodations for visitors to enjoy a new place at the neighborhood level. Since 2013 I haven’t had one complaint from my neighbors, because I vet the hell out of potential guests.
It is my dream to retire in Hawaii. For now, it is my dream to live here 7 months each year.
I purchased land in Hawaii. When I get enough $ for a down payment, I”ll get a construction loan in Hawaii to build. I’m using a local builder. I will furnish with items purchased in Hawaii. I will employ a caretaker, housekeeper and gardener, all locally. All that money stays in Hawaii.
Please, no disrespect. but I don’t believe that is true. There are so many women my age (64) who have finally found a way to rent our homes so that we can have a little extra income. We employ caretakers, handymen, housekeepers, and lawn service, and all that money stays local. Airbnb charges guests and hosts a small fee, nothing more.
You could say the same for any resort area in the world. Very few hotels, car rental companies, grocery stores are owned by companies where they are located. So why is Hawaii different?
And does Hawaii not have special rates (lower) for residents. Is that fair??
They used to. Back in the day, Hawaiian and Aloha Airlines had very cheap packages so that locals could vacation on the other islands. Also, the major airlines, ie:NW, PanAm, United, Continental had cheap fares To the mainland for Hawaii residents during the holiday season.. That was dropped because of prejudicial accusations from the visitors.
Interesting article. The one exception I want to point out are the monstrous extra fees and taxes on rental cars, of which most one would assume, stay in Hawai’i. The percentage of fees and taxes have continued to massively increase and now make up a large percentage of the amount of car rental cost.
Since most of the money is leaving the state to the big conglomerates,
the car rental fees and taxes are one of the few ways Hawaii can generate
tax revenue without extremely high Income Tax Rates on the local residents.
Paul Kosasa is the President and CEO of the locally-owned ABC Stores. His parents Sidney and Minnie started the company with a single drug store in Kaimuki in 1949.
There is a lack of understanding of basic economics principles underlying this article.
May i just gaining some insight from one more versed in economics.
In now my 10th trip to Oahu, I was only recently aware from this past visit over Thanksgiving that the proceeds from the sales at the Aloha Stadium (soon to be “former Aloha Stadium”) Swap Meet do not go directly to the folks running the booths. It seems to be owned by some corporate entity. At least that’s what the credit card charges indicate as well as what one of the shopkeepers blurted out when she got tired of us haggling over some luau apparel. The lack of ability to bring things in at a reasonable cost will exacerbate this situation. Alaska is in the same boat and they just price their goods at double the Lower 48’s.
I think this article’s intent would have been better served if it had been stated at the outset how much of a given expenditure in, say, a hotel bill remains in Hawaiʻi by virtue of labor costs, energy and water costs, and other ancillary costs which always remain here. If hospitalitynet.org is to be believed, just over half the hotel bill goes to compensate those local laborers who serve our guests. And then there’s the energy bill, taxes; once all of these are added up, my guess is that relatively little of non-Hawaiʻi-owned hotels actually leaves Hawaiʻi. That’s not to say that it’s a bad idea to look for local hotel ownership, I’m just saying that to get a proper perspective, we must first provide a wee bit more fine print, if you will.
I travel to Hawaii alot for work, is there any book that you know of that would tell of some of the locally owned businesses. In Kauai I eat at Duke’s and Rob’s
Not that we are aware of. Searching online yields the best results. We’d actually forgotten, for example, in terms of the grocery stores, where they were owned. The two you mentioned are, of course, owned in Hawaii.
Thanks Rob and Jeff for always keeping us informed. We always try to eat at local restaurants. Unfortunately, many of our favorites have closed… Hanalei Mixed Plate (many years ago) and more recently, Dani’s. We always shop farmer’s markets.
Hi guys! Mahalo for your thoughtful and insightful research.
I love Beat of Hawaii and read everything you write. I’ve been enjoying your articles so much!
As far as keeping the currency in our islands, I always do.
I love Foodland, ABC stores and my favorite food trucks.
I think that our island visitors need to be more informed about the places we locals frequent.
Local restaurants like Thai Chef on Maui, family owned, and so many other favorites. For some of the best, local made fragrance and soaps, try Maui Excellent.
I always send my mainland friends and Ohana gifts from local businesses. Maui Cookies, Honolulu Cookies, and handmade gifts from local vendors at the craft fairs.
All gratuities stay local!! Tip your servers.
Aloha 🌺🌺
Buying local is always good but as the article says not always.
Hawaiian airlines has there call center in a foreign country why?
Hawaiian airlines maintenance is done in a foreign country- why
Jay, this is due to minimum wage laws and other policies we have in place that prevent people from working. It is far more affordable to have call centers and maintenance done in foreign countries as their governments allow people to work without restriction.
This is an article that seems to lack a good understanding of basic macroeconomics. It perpetuates prejudices and provincialism by presenting information that promotes further prejudices of locals and Hawaiians against visitors. In economics, there is something called the balance of trade. Please educate yourself and stop this myth from perpetuating.
My understanding of economic theory pretty much starts and ends with the concept that I would like more money, but I did read the article and didn’t notice the part where it perpetuates prejudices and provincialism by presenting information that promotes further prejudices of locals and Hawaiians against visitors. (I like the alliteration, though.) It doesn’t blame tourists for anything that I could tell. The goal seems to be more to let people know little-known facts so they can make more educated decisions that are in line with the author’s preferences and perhaps also with their own.
What a wordy and unnecessary vitriolic comment.
The fact that anyone would give a thumbs up to you is beyond me.
Being a local, I can tell you that you epitomize the type of tourist mentality that’s causing others to dislike hosting you.
That being said. I hope you have a blessed day and find your chi.
Seriously dude, thatsalotta P words.😂
Mahalo Nui Loa Beat of Hawaii, for allowing this type of whitty banter.
Aloha and blessings always 🌺
Hawaii businesses all want to play monopoly.
You always feel like a tourist when you get hit for huge bills for ac repair or
auto work. Nothing is cheap. If you’re new here you will feel like a tourist.
Anyone who thinks the prices are normal is either rich or already used to it.
The locals may work more than one job, or live in multigenerational homes.
Middle class is that comfort zone between rich and poor. It just takes good luck
to be middle class in Hawaii, you might be born into it, but you can’t easily buy
in if you don’t have real money.
Buy Local is Economic Illiteracy. Educate yourself and get better insight on this misguided philosophy
“From the start, a conceptual challenge arises when defining “local.” Does it refer to one’s town, city, province or country? Regardless of the designation method, you are bound to randomly include some places and exclude others. Furthermore, if a good is to be classified as local, does that mean all the production inputs should be local as well? If I buy locally sourced carrots, but the fertilizer, tractor and other equipment used to produce those carrots were made elsewhere, do my carrots still count as local? Even if a consumer only buys from local producers, it is likely those producers are not all buying local themselves.”
I didn’ see anything about the wages paid to All the workers.
Local politicians must be the ones benefiting from the out of state corporations. Look at Hilton adding another tower. Who approved that? I have been visiting Hawaii for 50 years stayin a month or longer. It was easy to support local businesses the first 25 to 30 years. There were only a few out of state corporations controlling everything. Each year it is more difficult. Blame the politicians that sold out the residents of Hawaii.
Still, the ‘room tax’, etc., collected by the HI government, where does it all go?????
We still don’t get any answers. And, I still say, dump the Hawaii Visitors Bureau and take their Millions budget and feed it back into the economy! HI doesn’t Need to advertise! Everyone knows it’s here!
I just rented a car from Avis on Kauai and there is a $6 a day “highway surcharge”. I am sure that money stays on Hawaii.
Corporations are buying up the little guys = high prices. When I go to hawaii or travel, I seek out owners. But it is getting more difficult on the island of Maui. I’m fearful of renting direct as may land to find there is no rental. Car rentals are another thing. I know that is corporate greed. the high prices we are all experiencing on Maui, is sad and I dont see an end to it since a few corporations are buying up everything. This world is not the same as we once knew. There are just too many people in the world anymore.
Thank you for your hard work on all our behalf.
Truth, “corporate hotels return far less to the local economy,” and yet we’re allowing the Hotel Lobby shut Airbnb’s down. Airbnb gets paid thru host and guest fees, nothing more.
I wish the state would come down hard on “bad” hosts, so those hosts don’t spoil a wonderful way to lodge for the rest of us.
In DC, council members, who no doubt got kickbacks from the Hotel Lobby, just severely restricted Airbnb’s there. The city has lost 85 MIILION in taxes because of that. Vacation renters spend more money in the local neighborhoods than people staying in the hotels. Please let’s address the real bad guys.
But the large majority of the AirBnB owners don’t live in Hawaii
so that money plus the AirBnB fees are leaving the state.
The labor aspect of all the businesses you mention, other than airlines, is all local expense, wages paid to residents. So, that stays here.
And with that non-resident owned AirBnB, driving up demand for housing, pricing the residents out of home ownership, and how many people is the AirBnB employing vs. the Hotel?
I mostly stay in vacation rentals when I travel, because I prefer experiencing the culture, instead of the typical tourist things.
And as a host, I’ve offered clean, safe, peaceful accommodations for visitors to enjoy a new place at the neighborhood level. Since 2013 I haven’t had one complaint from my neighbors, because I vet the hell out of potential guests.
It is my dream to retire in Hawaii. For now, it is my dream to live here 7 months each year.
I purchased land in Hawaii. When I get enough $ for a down payment, I”ll get a construction loan in Hawaii to build. I’m using a local builder. I will furnish with items purchased in Hawaii. I will employ a caretaker, housekeeper and gardener, all locally. All that money stays in Hawaii.
Please, no disrespect. but I don’t believe that is true. There are so many women my age (64) who have finally found a way to rent our homes so that we can have a little extra income. We employ caretakers, handymen, housekeepers, and lawn service, and all that money stays local. Airbnb charges guests and hosts a small fee, nothing more.
You could say the same for any resort area in the world. Very few hotels, car rental companies, grocery stores are owned by companies where they are located. So why is Hawaii different?
And does Hawaii not have special rates (lower) for residents. Is that fair??
They used to. Back in the day, Hawaiian and Aloha Airlines had very cheap packages so that locals could vacation on the other islands. Also, the major airlines, ie:NW, PanAm, United, Continental had cheap fares To the mainland for Hawaii residents during the holiday season.. That was dropped because of prejudicial accusations from the visitors.
Interesting article. The one exception I want to point out are the monstrous extra fees and taxes on rental cars, of which most one would assume, stay in Hawai’i. The percentage of fees and taxes have continued to massively increase and now make up a large percentage of the amount of car rental cost.
Since most of the money is leaving the state to the big conglomerates,
the car rental fees and taxes are one of the few ways Hawaii can generate
tax revenue without extremely high Income Tax Rates on the local residents.
Turo is an option…
From what I’ve read, ABC Stores is owned by a local family (the Kosasa family).
Hi Paul.
Thanks so much for that. We’ve updated the article.
Aloha.
Who owns ABC store?
Paul Kosasa is the President and CEO of the locally-owned ABC Stores. His parents Sidney and Minnie started the company with a single drug store in Kaimuki in 1949.
There is a lack of understanding of basic economics principles underlying this article.
May i just gaining some insight from one more versed in economics.
In now my 10th trip to Oahu, I was only recently aware from this past visit over Thanksgiving that the proceeds from the sales at the Aloha Stadium (soon to be “former Aloha Stadium”) Swap Meet do not go directly to the folks running the booths. It seems to be owned by some corporate entity. At least that’s what the credit card charges indicate as well as what one of the shopkeepers blurted out when she got tired of us haggling over some luau apparel. The lack of ability to bring things in at a reasonable cost will exacerbate this situation. Alaska is in the same boat and they just price their goods at double the Lower 48’s.
I think this article’s intent would have been better served if it had been stated at the outset how much of a given expenditure in, say, a hotel bill remains in Hawaiʻi by virtue of labor costs, energy and water costs, and other ancillary costs which always remain here. If hospitalitynet.org is to be believed, just over half the hotel bill goes to compensate those local laborers who serve our guests. And then there’s the energy bill, taxes; once all of these are added up, my guess is that relatively little of non-Hawaiʻi-owned hotels actually leaves Hawaiʻi. That’s not to say that it’s a bad idea to look for local hotel ownership, I’m just saying that to get a proper perspective, we must first provide a wee bit more fine print, if you will.
Thank you, greatly enjoyed your article. In fact, I read every issue you send.
Hi Karen.
Thanks. We appreciate the feedback!
Aloha.
I travel to Hawaii alot for work, is there any book that you know of that would tell of some of the locally owned businesses. In Kauai I eat at Duke’s and Rob’s
Hi Kenneth.
Not that we are aware of. Searching online yields the best results. We’d actually forgotten, for example, in terms of the grocery stores, where they were owned. The two you mentioned are, of course, owned in Hawaii.
Aloha.
Thanks Rob and Jeff for always keeping us informed. We always try to eat at local restaurants. Unfortunately, many of our favorites have closed… Hanalei Mixed Plate (many years ago) and more recently, Dani’s. We always shop farmer’s markets.
I only ever shop for groceries at Foodland. And they have the best poke on Maui, bar none. It’s been scientifically proven!
Agree on Foodland Maui’s poke! Though Tamura’s just up the hill from the Lahaina Farms Foodland has some ono poke!
Hi guys! Mahalo for your thoughtful and insightful research.
I love Beat of Hawaii and read everything you write. I’ve been enjoying your articles so much!
As far as keeping the currency in our islands, I always do.
I love Foodland, ABC stores and my favorite food trucks.
I think that our island visitors need to be more informed about the places we locals frequent.
Local restaurants like Thai Chef on Maui, family owned, and so many other favorites. For some of the best, local made fragrance and soaps, try Maui Excellent.
I always send my mainland friends and Ohana gifts from local businesses. Maui Cookies, Honolulu Cookies, and handmade gifts from local vendors at the craft fairs.
All gratuities stay local!! Tip your servers.
Aloha 🌺🌺
Hi Pam.
Thanks for the input on local Maui and for your nice words.
Aloha.
Buying local is always good but as the article says not always.
Hawaiian airlines has there call center in a foreign country why?
Hawaiian airlines maintenance is done in a foreign country- why
Check for local store owners or franchise owners!
Jay, this is due to minimum wage laws and other policies we have in place that prevent people from working. It is far more affordable to have call centers and maintenance done in foreign countries as their governments allow people to work without restriction.
This is an article that seems to lack a good understanding of basic macroeconomics. It perpetuates prejudices and provincialism by presenting information that promotes further prejudices of locals and Hawaiians against visitors. In economics, there is something called the balance of trade. Please educate yourself and stop this myth from perpetuating.
My understanding of economic theory pretty much starts and ends with the concept that I would like more money, but I did read the article and didn’t notice the part where it perpetuates prejudices and provincialism by presenting information that promotes further prejudices of locals and Hawaiians against visitors. (I like the alliteration, though.) It doesn’t blame tourists for anything that I could tell. The goal seems to be more to let people know little-known facts so they can make more educated decisions that are in line with the author’s preferences and perhaps also with their own.
What a wordy and unnecessary vitriolic comment.
The fact that anyone would give a thumbs up to you is beyond me.
Being a local, I can tell you that you epitomize the type of tourist mentality that’s causing others to dislike hosting you.
That being said. I hope you have a blessed day and find your chi.
Seriously dude, thatsalotta P words.😂
Mahalo Nui Loa Beat of Hawaii, for allowing this type of whitty banter.
Aloha and blessings always 🌺
I have come to the conclusion Hawaii doesn’t want the middle class only upper class. That’s fine I don’t need to come there anyway.
Gilbert W.
Untrue, but…
Good.
Don’t.
Bye.
Hawaii businesses all want to play monopoly.
You always feel like a tourist when you get hit for huge bills for ac repair or
auto work. Nothing is cheap. If you’re new here you will feel like a tourist.
Anyone who thinks the prices are normal is either rich or already used to it.
The locals may work more than one job, or live in multigenerational homes.
Middle class is that comfort zone between rich and poor. It just takes good luck
to be middle class in Hawaii, you might be born into it, but you can’t easily buy
in if you don’t have real money.