Ka Hoku o Hawaii, Volume XXVII, Number 40, 22 ʻApelila 1936 — Tourist Business In Hawaii Booms As Result Of Publicity [ARTICLE]

Tourist Business In Hawaii Booms As Result Of Publicity

An iiulux ol' yisitors to the Hawaiian islands during thc past l'ew yoars revived many of ,thu interesting traditions and }>,"actices of OJd Hawaii. This paradox was recently pointed out by Percy A. Swift, manag-er oi' the merchandise department of Americau j^actors'

x>tu.,m a discussion of Hawaii's tourist iudustry. "An interesting sidelight of - the lrayei busīness here has heen the j way it iias e icouraged Island customs jand acti vities,"' he said. "The nourj ishing ināuenee of tourist interest | has give« added impetus to the lei | tradition, for example; and it lias re- | vived native - sports such as surfing i and outrJgger eanoe riding, whieh i were ou the point of dying out 15 years ago," t. He pointed to llie revival of eanoe building. at Kona aud in Honolulu; and said visitor-interest in distinctive Hawaiia.n souvenirs had resulted in a lauhala weaving "boom" afound Na-1 poopoo in the heart of "01d Hawaii." ! Man y of the Hawaiians in the Kona I section on the Big Island are finding | full time employment turning iauhula hats and mat.s and at the present -time they don't keep up with. the demand."

Swift, as a member of the Hawaii Tourist Burcan committee, has recently investigated tlie niatt.er of tour-

ist entertainment facilities; and he expresBed the opinion tliat. by building up the tourist trade the Territōry will automatically develop important new facilities—especially those tliat are Hawaiian in character, thereby encouraging allied native liandicral'ts and customs.

| "The camera era of tourism,hās inj tensified this salutary influence of [ t rave l in stressing tlie developmeiit | of loeal color," Swift declared. "Many ' globe-trotters toda y are camera fans and that mean.s that. more tlian ever, these vigitors are demanding auUiēntic loeal color. This again wo,rks to our advantage as tlie y take our iei sellers and surf-riders back home iu their movie ree] s to lielp advertise the Islands."

Swift j)redicted a record summer tourist season l'or Ilawaii, and dcclared that the eominuanee of an aggreasive travel' a.dvertising program will be the Territ.ory's. best procedure for Ihe develoj>ment of new facilities aml the encoaragement of old traditions.