Maui Tourism Thrives: Visitor Expenditure Surpasses Pre-Wildfire Figures
Fifteen months subsequent to the catastrophic wildfires of August 2023, Maui’s tourism sector is demonstrating robust signs of recovery. Visitor spending is now surpassing pre-pandemic levels. As per the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, Maui welcomed 197,622 visitors in November 2024. This marks a 21.6% increase from November 2023.
More importantly, visitor spending soared to $435.7 million in November 2024. This is a 15.2% increase from the previous year and 15.3% higher than the levels of November 2019. DBEDT Director James Kunane Tokioka highlighted that U.S. visitors made up 77.1% of total arrivals. This is 10 percentage points higher than the same period in 2019.
Despite visitor numbers being approximately 15% below November 2019 levels, the increased spending per visitor underscores the island’s allure for quality tourism. The recovery is particularly remarkable considering the hurdles faced by the destination in the aftermath of the tragic Lahaina fires. These fires significantly impacted the island’s tourism infrastructure.