Editor s Message Aloha! VOL.26 March 7, 2014 During the month of February, Hawaii Tourism Japan has conducted Seminars in Hiroshima and Kagoshima with Hawaiian Airlines. In preparations for the first year anniversary of direct service offered by Korean Air, Korean Air hosted four day FAM tour. We humbly ask for all of your continuous support as we continue to expand Hawaii tourism opportunities in Japan. You are more than welcome to contact us regarding any questions, suggestions and/or updates. Market Conditions and Trends Economy Mahalo nui loa! Value of the yen during February maintained between 101 & 103 JPY to USD, which continues to provide slight booking challenges compared to previous year Unemployment rate maintained at the lowest rate in six years at 3.7% for January with increase of 0.5% of number of employed people Outbound Travel Market and Competitive Environment Despite 17% decrease from previous year, many visitors are interested in returning to Thailand supporting Tourism Authority of Thailand s goal of 2% increase to 1,550,000. It is also named top destination for 2014 travel by 4travel survey Take and Give Needs (T&G) developing chapel in Bali with beach club Blue Heaven to stimulate overseas wedding Lunar New Year stimulate travel to international destinations such as Hong Kong which hosted and broadcasted Lunar New Year International Night Parade Italy Tourism Authority launched a new website aimed at Japanese traveler which provides recommendation to Japanese tourists and will expand to include world heritage site information in February and March In addition to 4travel survey mentioned earlier, Spain and France were tied for second most desired travel destination and Germany was tied for fourth with America H.I.S. will be looking to expand the effectiveness of their nine cruises between Costa Rica and Victoria from previous year that totaled 14,000+ pax H.I.S. will conduct similar cruises during 2014 Golden Week holiday and appealing to larger demographic including younger generation and family demographic 1
Media and Consumer Trends According to Dentsu, the amount of money Japanese companies are spending on advertising has a two year increase with this year being 1.4% higher than 2013. Greatest growth was seen in internet advertising with as much as 8.1% growth compared to previous year Magazine companies also finding an increase need to provide gifts such as bags, calendars, and makeup to entice increase readership and add-value to the customer experience In preparation for upcoming consumer tax increase, Rakuten Research conducted a survey of what people are already saving money for and travel resulted at sixth with 48%. Besides travel, top 3 items included dining out (58.6%), water and heat (55.4%), beauty and fashion (54.1%) Survey conducted by Club Tourism revealed Japanese seniors enjoy spending time traveling domestically (71.8%) and abroad (33.3%) Despite upcoming tax increase, 72.3% said they would be willing to spend money on travel Survey conducted by Hakuhodo indicated Japanese smartphone usage has surpassed 50% throughout Japan. Online shopping was a major smartphone usage at 60% and purchasing travel tickets also surpassed 20% SNS Line on smartphones continues to grow in popularity amongst University students at a 84.4% usage while Twitter was second at 64.9% and Facebook at 59.0% Airlift Announcement from Hawaiian Airlines the dropping of the Fukuoka Honolulu Route effective end of June. Results in Annual 96,360 reduction in air seats Thai Airways will be stopping seasonal service between Bangkok and Sendai with loss of 299 daily seats. Reduction in service most likely picked up from other SE Asian destinations including Guam, South Korean, and Taiwan Impact on Hawaii is that, Thailand products pricing is approximately $200 more than Hawaii so it is easier to compete with this destination on price In celebration of KIX 20 th anniversary, planned summer charter between Osaka and Edinburgh between July 2-9 Product being sold by five travel agents, JTB West Japan, Kinki Nippon Tourist, NTA, Hankyu, and JALPAK, that will utilize Boeing 777-200 with 235 seats Trade Events HA/HTJ Hawaiian Seminar in Hiroshima and Kagoshima (2/19-2/20) Total of 48 participants representing high level department heads and counter sales staff attended these seminars hosted by Hawaii Tourism Japan and Hawaiian Airlines (Hiroshima: 24; Kagoshima 24) First time for Hawaii Tourism Japan to reach travel agents in this region to provide more support in the Fukuoka Area through introduction of educational tools and resources like Aloha Program and Hawaii-TV Despite the announcement of eliminating the direct Fukuoka route by Hawaiian Airlines, this gave opportunity to arouse demand for neighbor island travel 2
Korean Air FAM (2/13-16) In preparations for the first year anniversary of direct service offered by Korean Air, Korean Air hosted this four day press tour focused on Oahu Of the seven participants, though most of them visited Oahu before, hardly any of them have experienced the Windward side of the island giving them a different perspective of what is available on Oahu HTJ only coordinated one day of the tour focused on Nuuanu Pali, Kailua, and Kualoa Ranch to further expand understanding of Oahu s activities and attractions Advertising Magazine Media Number Maquia Number Circulation 103,000 47,000 103,000 Island Kauai Kauai Oahu Media Exposure Print Media Media Lani Lani Hana Hou! Kelly Morning Hawaii Date Feb. 1 Feb. 1 Feb. 20 Feb. 1, 2014 Circulation 200,000 107,166 120,000 30,000 Demographic an Airlines Nagoya Residents Women in 20 s to 30 s Island Total Page of Exposure Quarterly magazine introducing neighbor islands popular spots Passengers Quarterly magazine introducing HTJ Hawaii-TV Monthly magazine introducing Hawaii travel with Boy men music group Hawaii Island, Maui, N/A Oahu Oahu and Kauai 4 page 1/3 page 1 page 2 page Three times a year magazine introducing night events in Hawaii 3
Online Media World Beach Guide Travel Voice Travel Journal Web Date Feb. 13 Feb. 13 Feb. 19 Page View N/A N/A 101,515 Demographi People who like world beaches General Travel Trade Media c Introducing Hawaiian Chocolate Introduce Japanese Introducing HTJ newsletter visitors 2013 and NTTdocomo s smartphone payment Island Maui Hawaiian Islands Hawaiian Islands Media Trippiece Figaro Risvel Date Feb. 2014 Feb. 28 Feb. 25 & 27 Page View 4,764 4,324,478 88,000 Demographic People who like to travel Women in their 30s General Introducing travel spots in Hawaii Introducing different aspects of Maui including hotels, golf, whale watching, and etc. Island Introducing Hawaii romance, and upcoming events in May including Mele Mei and Hawaiian May Fashion Event Hawaiian Islands Maui Oahu, Maui, Lanai 4
Radio Media I Heart Hawaii So Much More Hawaii Hawaii Hot Wave Motto Kigaruni Sekaijin Hawaiian Spec Radio Station Inter FM FM North Wave RKB Date FM Date/Time Feb. 1, 8, 15, 22 Feb. 2, 9, 16, 23 Feb. 2, 9, 16, 23 Feb. 6, 13, 20, 27 Reach 543,393 72,072 251,500 80,000 Circulation Kanto Area Hokkaido Area Kyushu Area Sendai Area information & Hawaiian Music Information information information & Hawaiian Music d Island All Islands All Islands All Islands All Islands Total Time of Exposure 120 min x 4 = 480 min 15 min x 4 = 60 min 10 min x 4 =40 min 10 min x 4 = 40 min HTJ Facebook Total fans reached nearly 28,200 (28,179) during February Continued effort of increasing the amount of reach and interaction from Japanese consumers bears results in February with +6.04% reach, + 4.29% likes, and +31.58% shares compared to previous month Allow for our fans to posts photos as comments, which contributed to the increase in interactions 5
Upcoming Events Travel Trade & Media Projects March 3/3-3/7 Hawaii Tourism Authority Spring Updates 3/6 Character Promotion Press Conference 3/10-3/14 TV Station & Production company media blitz 3/15-3/16 Nagoya Tabi Matsuri 3/24-3/26 Nagoya and Osaka Sales Blitz April 4/9 Caravan with Travel Trade & Consumer Seminar in Nagoya 4/11 Caravan with Travel Trade & Consumer Seminar in Takamatsu 4/14 Caravan with Travel Trade & Consumer Seminar in Osaka 4/18-4/22 Oahu and Maui Press Tour Radio Promotion (monthly) FM North Wave (Hokkaido) Every Sunday 15 min (9:00-9:15) RKB (Fukuoka) Every Sunday 10 min (17:50-18:00) InterFM (Tokyo & Yokohama) Every Saturday 120 min (8:00-10:00) Date FM (Sendai) Every Thursday 10 min (16:35-16:45) Thank you for reading our HTJ Newsletter! Should you have any questions, please refer to our contact information below. E-mail: hawaii@htjapan.jp Address: 1600 Kapiolani Blvd Suite 723 (Pan Am Bldg), Honolulu, HI 96814 Tel: (808)942-4200 Fax: (808)942-4202. 6