By Here is something positive for Hawaii considering how due to the recession tourism has been slumping for them:
Hawaiian Airlines Inc. said Wednesday it is launching service to South Korea as part of its ambitious expansion into Asia and to cash in on the fast-growing number of Korean visitors to the islands.
Hawaiian President and CEO Mark Dunkerley said service between Honolulu and Korea’s main airport of Incheon will start in January 2011 with flights four times a week. Tickets will go on sale later this summer.
“This is for us the next step in our strategic endeavor to make Asia an important source of traffic for Hawaiian Airlines,” Dunkerley said in an interview before the company made its formal annoucement.
He said Incheon will a key hub for Hawaiian because of its accessibility and proximity to other nations including China. [Star Tribune]
This growth in Korean tourism to Hawaii I think can probably be directly attributed to the US visa waiver given to Korea. I wonder if less Koreans are now visiting Guam and instead heading to Hawaii?
She hasn’t seen...
9:47 am on July 2nd, 2010 1
Korean Airlines also started new flights between Incheon and Honolulu ( 3 a week ?) a few weeks ago. That means there are 6 or 7 more direct flights between Incheon and Honolulu, than just a few months ago.
I bet less Koreans are going to Guam when the real deal (sorry Guam folks), aka hawaii, is available. Nonetheless I think more Koreans still prefer Southeast Asia such as Philippines as it's cheapter…