Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority to resume work in Europe as a visitor market for Hawaiʻi

The Hawai‘i Tourism Authority, the state agency responsible for managing tourism and The Hawaiian Islands brand, is resuming its work in Europe as a visitor market for Hawai‘i. HTA has issued a Request for Proposals to procure visitor education and brand management and marketing services for the Europe major market area.

As part of its strategic plan, HTA began providing support in the Europe market in 1998 when the organization was established. Due to the global COVID-19 pandemic, HTA ended its contract for Europe in 2020 when tourism was at a near standstill.

In 2019, visitors from Europe spent $268.1 million, generating $31.29 million in state tax revenue (directly, indirectly and induced) for Hawai‘i, according to the HTA.

HTA, with the support of its board of directors, will resume its focus on Europe in 2024 with a new contract that will complement the current visitor education, brand management and marketing efforts of HTA’s Global Marketing Team in the United States, Canada, Japan, Korea, China and Oceania (Australia and New Zealand).

This decision was based on input from HTA’s leadership team and Hawai‘i industry partners, as well as data from the Tourism Economics Marketing Allocation Platform, which synthesizes information and provides recommendations based on realizable return, market costs, market risks, and constraints.

Another key emphasis will be to drive visitor spending into Hawai‘i-based businesses as a means to support the economy, including supporting local businesses, festivals and events; purchasing Hawaiʻi-grown agricultural products; and promoting Hawai‘i-made products in-market in partnership with HTA, the state’s Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism, and the private sector.

The brand marketing will be targeted to mindful travelers with an emphasis on lifetime trip expenditures and increasing per person, per day expenditures in alignment with the Key Performance Indicators established in HTA’s 2020-2025 Strategic Plan: increased average daily visitor spending, increased total visitor spending, increased visitor satisfaction, and increased resident sentiment toward tourism.

The contract will commence on Jan. 1, 2024, and will end on Dec. 31, 2025, with an option to extend for an additional three years or parts thereof. 

Interested applicants are strongly encouraged to participate in HTA’s pre-proposal conference via Zoom to be briefed on the procurement process and to ask questions. The pre-proposal conference will be held at 8 a.m. HST on July 28. Proposals are due to HTA by 2 p.m. HST on Aug. 25.

HTA will use the Hawaiʻi State eProcurement System (HIePRO) at hiepro.ehawaii.gov to issue the RFP, receive all offers, and issue any addenda to the RFP. Inquiries regarding the RFP should be directed to procurement@gohta.net.