134 Hawaii Tourism Statistics for 2026

How many tourists visit Hawaii each year?

Hawaii gets close to ten million visitors a year, almost all of them by air. Arrivals recovered quickly after the 2020 collapse but have barely moved since 2023 and are still below the 2019 peak.

View data table

Visitors arriving by air and staying overnight or longer, 2015 to 2025, on DBEDT's restated series. The 2020 collapse and the flat line since 2023 stand out.

Period	Value
2015	8.56m
2016	8.82m
2017	9.28m
2018	9.76m
2019	10.24m
2020	2.68m
2021	6.78m
2022	9.14m
2023	9.50m
2024	9.53m
2025	9.50m

• Air arrivals peaked at 10,243,165 in 2019 on DBEDT's restated series; 2025 air arrivals were 9,495,620, down 0.4% on 2024. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• In 2020 air arrivals fell by almost three-quarters to 2,678,073, and the number of visitors in the islands on an average day dropped to 77,915, from 245,733 in 2019. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), 2021)
• Visitors spent 83.5 million days in the islands in 2025, down 1.1% from 84.5 million in 2024. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• The average stay in 2025 was 8.66 days, slightly shorter than in 2024. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• On an average day in 2025 there were 228,900 visitors in the islands. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• 7,841,089 air visitors arrived on domestic flights in 2025 and 1,654,531 on international flights; international arrivals were 45% below the 2019 level of 2,989,359. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)

The chart uses one series for every year: the restated air-arrivals table in the 2025 annual report, which revises some totals first published in earlier reports. It counts air visitors only, so it sits below the total that adds visitors on out-of-state cruise ships. Flight origin is not nationality: many Canadians and Europeans fly via the US mainland and count as domestic-flight arrivals.

How much do visitors spend in Hawaii?

Visitors spend more in Hawaii each year even though arrivals are flat, because daily spending keeps rising. Lodging takes almost half of every visitor dollar.

1. 1 Lodging $10.03bn
2. 2 Food and drink $4.72bn
3. 3 Shopping $2.15bn
4. 4 Transport $2.08bn
5. 5 Entertainment and recreation $2.06bn

• Adjusted for inflation with DBEDT's Hawaii Tourism Price Index, visitor spending rose 4.3% in 2025. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• The average visitor spent $2,255 per trip in 2025, up 6.3% from $2,121, not counting the airfare to Hawaii. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• Lodging was the largest spending category at $10.03 billion, up 5.1%, followed by food and drink at $4.72 billion, up 8.0%. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• An air visitor's $261.65 a day in 2025 broke down as $120.99 on lodging, $56.81 on food and drink, $25.79 on shopping, $24.87 on transport, of which $17.77 went on rental cars, and $24.54 on entertainment and recreation. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• In 2019 the average visitor spent $196 a day, down from $198 in 2018. (Hawaii Tourism Authority, 2020)
• Visitors from the US mainland spent $17.11 billion of the $21.68 billion spent by air visitors in 2025, or 79%. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)

These are nominal dollars spent in Hawaii, which leave out most of the airfare to get there. DBEDT's economic-impact tables use a wider total, visitor-related expenditure ($23.91 billion in 2024), which adds part of overseas airfares and cruise-line purchases. The two are different measures and are not compared on this page.

Where do Hawaii's visitors come from?

The US mainland sends most visitors, led by the western states. Japan, once the largest overseas market by far, has recovered only partly since the pandemic, and Canadian arrivals have fallen two years running.

1. 1 US West 5.00m
2. 2 US East 2.41m
3. 3 Japan 0.75m
4. 4 Canada 0.39m
5. 5 Other Asia 0.24m
6. 6 Oceania 0.17m
7. 7 Europe 0.11m

• Visitors from the US West numbered 5,004,714 in 2025 and spent $10.48 billion, or $249 a day, over an average stay of 8.40 days. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• Visitors from the US East numbered 2,413,128 and spent $6.63 billion; at $292 a day they spent more per day than western visitors and stayed longer, 9.42 days. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• California was the largest single source, with 2,795,276 visitors, down 3.1%; Washington sent 710,596, Texas 334,290, Oregon 320,610 and Colorado 305,856, up 34.3%. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• In 2019 Japan sent 1,576,205 visitors, who spent $2.25 billion. (Hawaii Tourism Authority, 2020)
• Japanese visitors spent $1.11 billion in 2025, or $244 a day, and stayed 6.05 days on average. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• Canadian arrivals fell 12.7% to 389,241 and their spending fell 9.5% to $987.9 million; DBEDT put the fall down to sociopolitical issues. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• Visitors from Other Asia numbered 239,126 and spent $326 a day, the most of any major market; Korea sent 171,766, up 14.2%, and China 49,857. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• Arrivals from Oceania fell 14.7% to 173,635, with 141,700 from Australia and 31,935 from New Zealand. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• Europe sent 108,424 visitors, down 8.1%, who stayed 13.07 days on average, the longest of any market; Germany sent 33,833 and the UK 30,360. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• From January to September 2026 arrivals from the US East rose 9.3% to 2,001,918, the fastest growth of any major market, while the US West was up 0.3% and Canada down 5.0%. (DBEDT (monthly visitor statistics), Oct 2026)

Market figures are air visitors. US West means the Pacific and Mountain states; US East is the rest of the mainland. State counts cover visitors on domestic flights only. The 2026 figures are preliminary.

Who visits Hawaii, and how do they rate it?

Most visitors have been before, come on holiday and book their own trip. They rate it highly, while residents have grown less sure that tourism does more good than harm.

1. 1 Pleasure or holiday 7.62m
2. 2 Friends or relatives 0.91m
3. 3 Meetings and conventions 0.43m
4. 4 Honeymoon 0.35m
5. 5 Getting married 0.06m

• Repeat visitors made up 71.2% of air visitors in 2025 and first-timers 28.8%; repeat visitors had made 5.7 trips to Hawaii on average. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• Pleasure was a reason for 7,621,871 air visitors; 908,601 came to see friends or relatives, 430,383 for meetings, conventions and incentives, and 58,303 to get married. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• Honeymooners were 3.7% of air visitors, 348,127 people, but 21.9% of Korean and 10.8% of Japanese visitors. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• The average air visitor was 46.2 years old and travelled in a party of 2.3 people. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• 17% of air visitors bought a package trip and 3% came on a group tour; 82% travelled independently. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• 88.4% of US West visitors, 90.2% of US East, 84.9% of Japanese and 86.6% of Canadian visitors rated their 2025 trip excellent; visitors from Oceania were the least satisfied, at 76.4%. (DBEDT (visitor satisfaction survey), 2026)
• Agreement among residents that tourism brings more benefits than problems peaked at 80% in 2009; the lowest reading was 49%, in autumn 2021. (DBEDT (resident sentiment survey), Jul 2026)

Visitor profile figures come from DBEDT surveys of air visitors. The satisfaction share is the proportion rating the trip 7 or 8 on an 8-point scale. The resident figure counts ratings of 6 to 10 on a 10-point scale, the basis DBEDT has used since 2009.

Which Hawaiian islands get the most visitors?

Oahu gets more visitors than any other island, but those on Maui spend more per day. Many visitors see more than one island, so the island counts overlap and add up to more than the state total.

1. 1 Oahu 5.67m
2. 2 Maui 2.53m
3. 3 Hawaii Island 1.72m
4. 4 Kauai 1.41m

• Oahu had 5,665,698 air visitors in 2025, fewer than in 2024, with 107,479 visitors there on an average day. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• Visitors spent $9.35 billion on Oahu in 2025, or $238 a day each. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• Maui had 2,531,472 air visitors, up 7.6%, and 54,500 on an average day; at $305 a day, its visitors spent the most of the four main islands. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• Hawaii Island had 1,724,952 air visitors, down 0.6%, who spent $3.20 billion, or $246 a day. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• Kauai had 1,407,632 air visitors, up 1.0%, who spent $2.94 billion, or $282 a day. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• Lanai had 32,911 visitors, down 27.6%, but at $629 a day they spent more per day than on any other island; Molokai had 23,482 visitors, who spent $26.9 million. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• 1,426,855 visitors went to more than one island in 2025, up from 1,348,031 in 2024. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• Repeat visitors were 73.2% of visitors to Kauai, 72.7% on Maui, 70.5% on Hawaii Island and 64.6% on Oahu, which draws the most first-timers. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)

Island figures are air visitors to each island and spending made on that island. Maui figures are for the island of Maui, not Maui County, which also includes Molokai and Lanai. The Lanai and Molokai figures come from small survey samples.

How has Maui tourism recovered since the 2023 wildfires?

Maui visitors now spend more than before the August 2023 wildfires, but there are still fewer of them than in 2019. Arrivals are growing again in 2026, though shorter stays have held back spending.

• Weeks after the fire, DBEDT estimated Maui was losing $11 million a day in business and visitor spending, and passengers arriving at Kahului Airport had fallen more than 70%, from 7,000 a day to 2,000. (DBEDT (economic research), Sep 2023)
• Maui air arrivals in September 2023 were 93,027, down 57.7% on September 2022; August was down 57.3%. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), 2024)
• Before the pandemic, in 2019, Maui had 3,059,905 air visitors, who spent $5.13 billion. (Hawaii Tourism Authority, 2020)
• In 2024 Maui air arrivals fell 5.7% to 2,352,272 and spending fell 8.5% to $5.30 billion. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), 2025)
• From January to September 2026 Maui had 2,010,244 visitors, up 6.4%, who spent $4.71 billion, up 7.2%. (DBEDT (monthly visitor statistics), Oct 2026)
• In September 2026 Maui visitors rose 10.5% to 190,404, but spending fell 1.5% to $409.3 million because stays were shorter. (DBEDT (monthly visitor statistics), Oct 2026)

Maui figures are for the island of Maui, not Maui County. The 2019, 2023 and 2024 figures come from each year's own annual report. The $11 million a day loss was an early estimate made weeks after the fire. The 2026 counts are preliminary.

How full are Hawaii's hotels, and what do they cost?

Hawaii hotel rooms cost more than in any other large US market and are fuller than in most. Maui County has the priciest rooms and Oahu the fullest.

1. 1 Maui County $536.80
2. 2 Hawaii Island $443.56
3. 3 Kauai $416.69
4. 4 Oahu $284.12

• Statewide hotel occupancy was 73.9% in 2025, up 0.5 points, and revenue per available room was $271. (DBEDT (hotel performance), Jan 2026)
• Hotels earned $5.6 billion in room revenue in 2025, selling 15.3 million of the 20.7 million room nights available. (DBEDT (hotel performance), Jan 2026)
• Hawaii's revenue per available room was the second-highest of the top US markets in 2025, behind New York at $281. (DBEDT (hotel performance), Jan 2026)
• Oahu hotels were 78.6% full at an average $284.12 a night; Waikiki hotels were 79.4% full at $268.08. (DBEDT (hotel performance), Jan 2026)
• Maui County hotels averaged $536.80 a night at 64.4% occupancy; in Wailea the average was $758.30. (DBEDT (hotel performance), Jan 2026)
• Hawaii Island hotels averaged $443.56 a night, with $600.93 on the Kohala Coast, and revenue per available room rose 7.5%. (DBEDT (hotel performance), Jan 2026)
• Kauai hotels were 75.4% full, up 2.4 points, at an average $416.69 a night. (DBEDT (hotel performance), Jan 2026)
• Luxury hotels averaged $862.82 a night in 2025, and $1,220.62 in December. (DBEDT (hotel performance), Jan 2026)
• In the first nine months of 2026 occupancy rose to 75.6% and revenue per available room to $280, the highest of the top US markets. (DBEDT (hotel performance), Oct 2026)

These figures come from a monthly survey of hotels with 20 or more rooms, which leaves out vacation rentals and timeshares. The average rate is per room per night, and the 2026 figures cover January to September only.

Where do visitors stay, and what is changing for vacation rentals?

Hotels house most visitors, but vacation rentals take a large share of stays on Kauai, Hawaii Island and Maui. Maui County plans to phase out thousands of apartment-zoned rentals, which economists expect to cut visitor spending on the island.

• West Maui 2,194
• Rest of Maui County 3,933

• 5.63 million air visitors, about 59%, planned to stay in a hotel in 2025; 1.35 million planned to use condos, 1.03 million rental houses and 821,203 timeshares, and 1.00 million stayed with friends or relatives. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• Rental homes housed 19.2% of Kauai visitors and 18.7% of those on Hawaii Island, against 7.9% on Oahu, where 69.6% stayed in hotels. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• Vacation rentals statewide were 50.0% occupied in 2025 at an average $528 a night per unit, with 5.0 million of 10.1 million available unit nights booked. (DBEDT (vacation rentals), Jan 2026)
• Maui County rentals averaged $634.84 a night at 49.2% occupancy, Kauai $613.72 at 50.5%, Oahu $439.30 at 54.7% and Hawaii Island $430.39 at 45.5%. (DBEDT (vacation rentals), Jan 2026)
• The rental survey tracked 36,138 units with 63,714 bedrooms in December 2025. (DBEDT (vacation rentals), Jan 2026)
• In the first nine months of 2026 vacation rental occupancy was 52.1% and the average rate $519 a night. (DBEDT (vacation rentals), Oct 2026)
• Under Maui County's Bill 9, vacation rentals in apartment districts must stop on 1 January 2029 in West Maui and on 1 January 2031 in the rest of the county. (Maui County Council, Dec 2025)
• UHERO counted 6,127 apartment-zoned units operating as vacation rentals, out of 8,834 eligible; converting all of them would add 13% to Maui County's long-term housing stock. (UHERO, Mar 2025)
• UHERO's model found that ending all of them could cut Maui visitor days by 32%, visitor spending by about $900 million a year, jobs by 1,900 and real GDP by about 4%. (UHERO, Mar 2025)
• The county's Director of Finance estimated the bill could cut real property tax revenue by $61 million a year, and UHERO put the loss of county excise and accommodation tax at about $15 million a year. (Maui County Council, Dec 2025)

Vacation rental figures cover whole units listed on the main booking platforms, so a unit often sleeps more people than a hotel room and the nightly rates are not directly comparable. The rental report does not separate permitted from unpermitted units. Lodging shares can add up to more than 100% because visitors may use more than one type. The Bill 9 dates are from the bill text; the UHERO figures are model estimates made in March 2025, before the final version of the bill.

How do visitors get to Hawaii: airports and cruise ships?

Nearly every visitor flies in, and Honolulu handles more boardings than the other main airports combined. Cruise ships bring a small share of visitors, roughly half as many as at the 2007 peak.

1. 1 Honolulu (HNL) 10.43m
2. 2 Kahului (OGG) 3.45m
3. 3 Kona (KOA) 2.03m
4. 4 Lihue (LIH) 1.82m
5. 5 Hilo (ITO) 0.70m

• Honolulu ranked 30th among US commercial airports by boardings in 2025, with boardings down 0.18% on 2024. (FAA, Sep 2026)
• Kahului on Maui had 3,450,472 boardings in 2025, up 1.02%, ranking 54th in the US. (FAA, Sep 2026)
• Kona had 2,034,749 boardings in 2025, Lihue on Kauai 1,822,008, Hilo 703,669 and Molokai 74,970. (FAA, Sep 2026)
• Scheduled flights from outside the state brought 8,431,775 seats into Honolulu in 2025 on 34,659 flights, 2,427,647 into Kahului, 1,249,118 into Kona and 1,044,260 into Lihue. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• 266,675 cruise visitors came in 2025 and spent $599.2 million, down from 297,340 visitors and $636.6 million in 2024. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• Out-of-state cruise ships brought 95,309 visitors in 2022, 157,612 in 2023, 168,123 in 2024 and 149,542 in 2025. (DBEDT (cruise fact sheet), Oct 2026)
• The record year was 2007, with 503,019 cruise visitors, when three cruise ships were based in Hawaii. (DBEDT (cruise fact sheet), Oct 2026)
• From January to September 2026 out-of-state ships brought 115,246 visitors, up 14.9%, and 88,901 flew in to board the Pride of America, up 9.8%. (DBEDT (cruise fact sheet), Oct 2026)
• The Pride of America is the only US-flagged cruise ship based in Hawaii, and North American brands make up about 96% of the cruise lines that call. (DBEDT (cruise fact sheet), Oct 2026)
• 48.7% of cruise visitors in 2025 came from the US East and 30.6% from the US West, and they spent 5.26 of their 7.24 days on board. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)

Airport figures are enplanements, that is passenger boardings, from the FAA's final 2025 data. They count residents and inter-island hops as well as visitors. Seat figures count scheduled flights from outside Hawaii only. Total cruise visitors include people who fly in to board a ship, who are also counted in air arrivals; the out-of-state ship series counts only those who arrive by sea. The 2026 cruise figures are preliminary.

Which parks and sights draw the most visitors?

Hawaii Volcanoes is now the busiest national park site in the state, after a sharp rise in 2025. Some of the most popular state parks limit numbers and charge non-residents to get in.

View data table

Recreation visits to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, 2016 to 2025. The 2018 dip follows the Kilauea eruption closure and the 2020 dip the pandemic.

Period	Value
2016	1.89m
2017	2.02m
2018	1.12m
2019	1.37m
2020	0.59m
2021	1.26m
2022	1.58m
2023	1.62m
2024	1.43m
2025	1.88m

• Visits to Hawaii Volcanoes rose 31% in 2025 from 1,433,593 in 2024, the park's highest total since 2017. (National Park Service, 2026)
• Pearl Harbor National Memorial on Oahu had 1,534,226 recreation visits in 2025, down 3.4%, against a peak of 1,947,495 in 2017. (National Park Service, 2026)
• Haleakala National Park on Maui had 853,711 recreation visits in 2025, up 16.6%, still below the 1,263,558 of 2016. (National Park Service, 2026)
• The state parks division says Diamond Head draws more than 3,000 people a day; non-residents must book ahead and pay $5 to enter or $10 to park, while residents get in free. (Hawaii DLNR, 2026)
• Haena State Park on Kauai, the start of the Kalalau Trail, has daily visitor limits, and non-residents must book entry or parking before they arrive. (Hawaii DLNR, 2026)

A recreation visit is a park-service count of entries, not of individual people, and includes residents. The yearly totals are the sum of the park service's monthly figures. The Diamond Head daily figure is the parks division's own description, not a dated count.

What is tourism worth to Hawaii's economy?

Tourism supports about one job in five in Hawaii and a similar share of state taxes. These estimates come from DBEDT's economic-impact tables, which use a wider spending total than the visitor statistics and currently run to 2024.

View data table

Jobs supported by visitor spending, direct and indirect, 2017 to 2024. The 2020 fall shows how much of Hawaii's work depends on visitors.

Period	Value
2017	172,700
2018	176,300
2019	173,000
2020	50,400
2021	120,000
2022	172,100
2023	182,200
2024	170,300

• Counting only businesses that sell directly to visitors, tourism supported 145,400 jobs in 2024, 16.2% of civilian jobs. (DBEDT (economic impact), 2025)
• Visitor spending produced $2.20 billion of state tax revenue in 2024, 18.8% of state taxes, of which $1.57 billion came directly. (DBEDT (economic impact), 2025)
• Visitor-related expenditure, the wider measure behind these estimates, was $23.91 billion in 2024, against $20,459.7 million in 2019. (DBEDT (economic impact), 2025)
• State tax revenue from visitor spending fell to $566.8 million in 2020, then rose to $2,193.6 million in 2023. (DBEDT (economic impact), 2025)
• Waikiki alone accounted for 36.4% of visitor-related expenditure in 2024, 38.4% of visitors present on an average day and 62,000 jobs. (DBEDT (economic impact), 2025)
• Leisure and hospitality businesses had 120,700 jobs in Hawaii in 2025, out of 642,400 payroll jobs, with 40,200 in accommodation; the September 2026 figure was 121,500. (BLS, 2026)

The DBEDT estimates use visitor-related expenditure, which adds part of overseas airfares and cruise-line purchases to what visitors spend in the islands, so it is larger than the visitor spending total used elsewhere on this page. The 2025 tables are not yet published. The BLS figures count payroll jobs in leisure and hospitality, which include restaurants that serve residents, so they are a different measure from the DBEDT tourism-supported jobs.

How much tax do visitors pay, and what is the Green Fee?

Hotel and rental taxes bring in more most years, partly because the rate keeps rising. From 2026 the state added a Green Fee to the transient accommodations tax to pay for climate projects.

View data table

Transient accommodations tax revenue by calendar year, 2015 to 2025, in millions of dollars. Part of the rise comes from rate increases.

Period	Value
2015	$435m
2016	$485m
2017	$505m
2018	$592m
2019	$637m
2020	$282m
2021	$508m
2022	$830m
2023	$846m
2024	$812m
2025	$824m

• Act 96 raised the transient accommodations tax from 10.25% to 11.00% on 1 January 2026, until the end of 2030, and extended it to cruise fares. (Hawaii Department of Taxation, Jun 2025)
• At signing, the state projected that the Green Fee would raise $100 million a year. (Office of the Governor of Hawaii, May 2025)
• A federal appeals court blocked the tax on cruise fares on 31 December 2025, and the Department of Taxation told cruise operators it would not enforce that part; the higher rate on hotels and rentals took effect as planned. (Hawaii Department of Taxation, Jan 2026)
• Transient accommodations tax revenue rose 10.2% to $473.5 million in the first half of 2026, the first half-year at the higher rate. (DBEDT (economic outlook), Sep 2026)

The $100 million a year is a projection made when the Green Fee was signed, not a collected figure; no Green Fee-only revenue total has been published. The projection assumed cruise revenue that is not being collected while the court order stands. The tax rate rose to 10.25% in January 2018 and to 11% in January 2026, so part of the revenue growth comes from higher rates, not more visitors.

How is Hawaii tourism doing in 2026?

Arrivals in 2026 are a little ahead of 2025, but visitors are staying fewer days, so fewer are in the islands on a typical day. Hurricane Lowell hit Kauai in September and pulled that month's statewide figures down.

View data table

DBEDT forecast of visitor arrivals, 2026 to 2029, by air and cruise ship. Growth of about 1% a year takes arrivals back above 10 million in 2029.

Period	Value
2026	9.73m
2027	9.82m
2028	9.92m
2029	10.02m

• From January to September 2026 Hawaii had 7,366,097 visitors, up 1.3%, who spent $16.62 billion, up 2.8%. (DBEDT (monthly visitor statistics), Oct 2026)
• In the first half of 2026 air arrivals rose 2.2% but visitor days fell 3.9%, as stays shortened. (DBEDT (economic outlook), Sep 2026)
• September 2026 visitors fell 3.6% to 672,990, and spending fell 9.0% to $1.41 billion. (DBEDT (monthly visitor statistics), Oct 2026)
• Hurricane Lowell made landfall on Kauai and Niihau on 7 September 2026; Kauai hotel occupancy that month fell to 47.2%, down 26.9 points, and revenue per available room fell 43.0%. (DBEDT (hotel performance), Oct 2026)
• Kauai had 60,224 visitors in September 2026, down 35.0%, and visitor spending on the island fell 44.3% to $105.4 million. (DBEDT (monthly visitor statistics), Oct 2026)
• Nawiliwili Harbor on Kauai closed from 7 to 17 September 2026, so three out-of-state cruise ships and two Pride of America voyages missed their calls. (DBEDT (monthly visitor statistics), Oct 2026)
• From January to September 2026 Oahu had 4,275,213 visitors, down 0.2%, Hawaii Island 1,323,029, up 1.7%, and Kauai 1,049,307. (DBEDT (monthly visitor statistics), Oct 2026)
• US West visitors spent $277 a day from January to September 2026, up 13.4%, and US East visitors $314. (DBEDT (monthly visitor statistics), Oct 2026)
• DBEDT forecasts 9.73 million visitors and $22.4 billion of spending for 2026, with visitor days down 4.5%. (DBEDT (economic outlook), Sep 2026)

Monthly and year-to-date 2026 figures are preliminary. The September 2026 release was the latest available when this page was checked. The DBEDT forecast was made in September 2026 from an earlier estimate of 2025 than the final annual report, so its 2025 base differs slightly from the final figures above.

When is the best time to visit Hawaii?

September is the quietest month, with the fewest arrivals and the fewest visitors on the islands at once, while March, July and December are the busiest. It is warm all year; the big difference between places is rain, which falls far more on the windward side.

View data table

Visitor arrivals by month in 2025, by air and cruise ship. March, July and December are the peaks and September the low point.

Period	Value
Jan	789k
Feb	768k
Mar	891k
Apr	820k
May	769k
Jun	834k
Jul	884k
Aug	818k
Sep	698k
Oct	754k
Nov	740k
Dec	881k

• March was the busiest month of 2025, with 890,972 visitors, ahead of July and December; September was the quietest, with 697,986. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• The number of visitors present on an average day peaked at 250,719 in December and was lowest in September, at 191,994. (DBEDT (annual visitor report), Sep 2026)
• In Honolulu the average daily high runs from 80.5F in January and February to 88.8F in August, and the airport gets 16.41 inches of rain a year. (NOAA, 2021)
• At Kahului on Maui highs range from 82.2F in January to 90.0F in September, with 16.21 inches of rain a year, wettest in December and driest in June. (NOAA, 2021)
• Lihue on Kauai gets 36.22 inches of rain on about 65 days a year, with March the wettest month. (NOAA, 2021)
• Hilo on Hawaii Island gets 120.39 inches of rain a year, with at least a tenth of an inch on about 186 days, and even its driest month, May, has 6.99 inches. (NOAA, 2021)

Weather figures are the official 1991-2020 climate normals for each airport station. Honolulu and Kahului sit on the drier sides of their islands, and Hilo on the wet windward side of Hawaii Island; mountain and north-shore areas can be far wetter.

How safe is the ocean for visitors?

Visitors drown at a far higher rate than residents, mostly while snorkelling or swimming, and rates are highest in Kauai and Maui counties.

1. 1 Visitors from the continental US 107
2. 2 All visitors 104.2
3. 3 International visitors 88.6
4. 4 Hawaii residents 13.5

• Visitors were 50% of drowning victims in Hawaii in 2019-2023, while making up about 12% of the people on the islands at any time. (Hawaii Department of Health, Jan 2025)
• The ocean drowning rate for visitors in 2019-2023 was 104.2 per 100,000, from 202 deaths, against 13.5 for residents, from 194 deaths, a rate eight times higher. (Hawaii Department of Health, Jan 2025)
• 91% of people who drowned while snorkelling were visitors, and drowning was the leading cause of fatal injury among visitors in 2021-2023. (Hawaii Department of Health, Jan 2025)
• Ocean drowning rates in 2019-2023 were 49.1 per 100,000 in Kauai County, 45.7 in Maui County, 24.3 in Hawaii County and 17.7 in Honolulu; visitors were about three-quarters of victims in Kauai and Maui counties. (Hawaii Department of Health, Jan 2025)
• Drownings peaked at 112 in 2019 and fell to 68 in 2020, when visitor numbers collapsed. (Hawaii Department of Health, Jan 2025)

These figures come from the 2025 Hawaii Water Safety Plan, which sets out Department of Health data. Rates are per 100,000 people present on the islands, not per 100,000 arrivals, and the rate figures cover ocean drownings only. County rates combine residents and visitors. The 2019 and 2020 totals count all drownings, in the ocean and elsewhere.

Methodology and sources

Figures come from the Hawaii Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism (DBEDT), which produces the state's visitor, hotel, vacation rental, cruise and economic-impact statistics, labelled here by report; from earlier annual reports published by the Hawaii Tourism Authority; from the Hawaii Department of Taxation, the Office of the Governor, Maui County Council and UHERO; and from federal bodies (FAA, National Park Service, NOAA and BLS). Each number links to the document that carries it, with the date. Measures that count different things are given side by side and not merged: visitor spending against the wider visitor-related expenditure in the economic-impact tables, air arrivals against air and cruise totals, island counts that overlap, boardings against total passengers, and hotel against vacation rental rates. Year-by-year visitor charts use one restated series throughout. Monthly 2026 figures are preliminary and the Green Fee revenue is a projection. The page is reviewed monthly and the date is shown at the top.

• BLS · 2026
• DBEDT (annual visitor report) · Sep 2026
• DBEDT (annual visitor report) · Sep 2026
• DBEDT (annual visitor report) · 2021
• DBEDT (annual visitor report) · 2024
• DBEDT (annual visitor report) · 2025
• DBEDT (cruise fact sheet) · Oct 2026
• DBEDT (economic impact) · 2025
• DBEDT (economic impact) · 2025
• DBEDT (economic impact) · 2025
• DBEDT (economic outlook) · Sep 2026
• DBEDT (economic research) · Sep 2023
• DBEDT (hotel performance) · Jan 2026
• DBEDT (hotel performance) · Oct 2026
• DBEDT (monthly visitor statistics) · Oct 2026
• DBEDT (resident sentiment survey) · Jul 2026
• DBEDT (vacation rentals) · Jan 2026
• DBEDT (vacation rentals) · Oct 2026
• DBEDT (visitor satisfaction survey) · 2026
• FAA · Sep 2026
• Hawaii Department of Health · Jan 2025
• Hawaii Department of Taxation · 2026
• Hawaii Department of Taxation · Jun 2025
• Hawaii Department of Taxation · Jan 2026
• Hawaii DLNR · 2026
• Hawaii DLNR · 2026
• Hawaii Tourism Authority · 2020
• Maui County Council · Dec 2025
• Maui County Council · Dec 2025
• National Park Service · 2026
• National Park Service · 2026
• National Park Service · 2026
• NOAA · 2021
• NOAA · 2021
• NOAA · 2021
• NOAA · 2021
• Office of the Governor of Hawaii · May 2025
• UHERO · Mar 2025