TOURIST TRAFFIC

Evening Post, Volume CVIII, Issue 122, 19 November 1929, Page 10

TOURIST TRAFFIC

GREAT POSSIBILITIES

A LESSON FEOM HAWAII

Eotarian George \T. Armitage, of the Honolulu Club, was the. guest of honour at the Wellington Eotary Club luncheon this afternoon, at which Mr. J. M. A. Ilott (president) presided over a large attendance.

Mr. Armitage, who is the executive secretary of the Hawaiian Tourist Bureau, spoke on ' what tourist traffic means to a country. Statistics showed, he said, that nearly 500,000 Americans went abroad last year on ships, and that 3,000,000 American cars went into Canada. It was estimated that the Americans spent on travel each year, in their own country and abroad, 1,300,----000,000 dollars. The amount spent by them abroad only was 818,000,000 dollars a year, but, if they had figures as to what they spent in and around the Pacific, they would, he feared, be pitifully small in comparison. But tho Pacific area, .either in this generation or the next, was bound to be the greatest area in the world, and if they wanted to have a lot of that tourist traffic and expenditure to the Pacific .it was in their power to do so. (Applause.) The railways and hotels and the services of the Tourist Department in New Zealand was managed very well indeed, and if Eotarians and other business men would back up the Government Publicity Department with plenty of fuhds, in time—perhaps not next year, but a , year or two later — that money would be returned many, many times over. The tourist traffic, their third great industry in Hawaii, brought into their islands last year 10,000,000 dollars. That money circulated throughout Hawaii, and everybody benefited by it sooner :or later. They advertised Hawaii largely, tho Government providing 100,000 dollars for the purpose every year, the business men putting up another 100,000 dollars, and the shipping companies also 100,000 dollars, and they were all well satisfied with the return therefrom. (Applause.)