Hawaii's Tourism Life Cycle: Past, Present, Uncertain Future

by Dexter J L Choy

Overview

Hawaii's success as a tourist destination always has been of interest to professionals and academics throughout the world. This is the first book that covers the historical development of tourism in Hawaii from the late 1780s to 2019. It offers a different perspective of the key factors that contributed to Hawaii's success. Hawaii is the most isolated island chain in the world. Hawaii is located near the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Honolulu is located 2,392 miles (3,850 kilometers) west of San Francisco, 4039 miles (6,500 kilometers) east of Tokyo, and 4,536 miles (7,300 kilometers) northeast of Australia. Given its remoteness, it is amazing that Hawaii became one of the most well-known tourist destinations in the world.

There have been numerous studies on Hawaii's tourism, but most published studies have been government funded or technical studies analyzing specific aspects of tourism. The business aspects of tourism typically have not been analyzed in previous studies of Hawaii's tourism. This book examines how Hawaii developed and grew into one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world. The analysis is provided from three perspectives: 1) a conceptual framework for analyzing tourism; 2) historical development of tourism with attention to key factors which influenced the growth of tourism, underlying patterns of development, and business strategies; and 3) Hawaii's experience within the context of world travel, especially the Asia-Pacific region.

The conclusions of the book raise questions about past actions in Hawaii that have not been successful, and options are offered on how to move forward in the face of an uncertain future. It is hoped the book will begin a discussion on what should be done to ensure that tourism contributes to the welfare and benefit of residents as the primary objective. The pause in tourism caused by the Covid-19 pandemic has created an opportunity for a new beginning for the future of tourism in Hawaii.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781737807520
Publisher:	Dexter J L Choy
Publication date:	01/28/2022
Pages:	260
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.71(d)

About the Author

Dexter J.L. Choy was born in Honolulu, Hawaii. His great grandfather emigrated from China to Hawaii in 1870 when Hawaii was still an independent nation. He graduated from Iolani School in 1965 and attended the University of Hawaii where he completed his undergraduate and graduate degrees. After completing his bachelor’s degree, he joined the Hawaii National Guard 29th Infantry Brigade and was called to active duty during the Vietnam War. After serving on active duty, he continued his graduate studies at the university and in 1973 began working full-time for the School of Travel Industry Management (TIM) at the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

Upon completing his doctorate degree, Dexter resigned from the TIM School to accept a position as an economist for the U.S. Department of Labor in Washington, D.C. He was asked to return to the TIM School in 1980. He has served in both administrative and instructional positions in the School. In addition to his university responsibilities, he has been an advisor and consultant on tourism development and travel / hospitality operations for Asian and Pacific countries as well as private corporations. Dexter retired after more than forty years at the TIM School and was awarded Professor Emeritus in the School of Travel Industry Management, University of Hawaii at Manoa.

Professor Choy’s research includes studies published in the top tourism journals, and he has coauthored two textbooks. He has been a project director and conducted studies on tourism in Hawaii, Asia and the Pacific islands. In addition to his university teaching, he has designed and taught executive seminars for government tourism organizations, professional associations and private corporations throughout the Asia-Pacific region. The topics have ranged from Strategic Planning to Strategic Marketing and Product Development in the travel industry. The venues for the seminars ranged from Pacific islands such as the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands; to Northeast Asia including China, Hong Kong, Taipei and Macao; all of Southeast Asia; South Asia including India and Sri Lanka and Vietnam in Indochina.