Anywhere on the U.S. mainland, whether you are at a restaurant or retail store, you would most likely find instructions and directions in both English and Spanish.
In Hawai’i, that’s not the case.
Walking through the streets of Waikiki, right by the beach, you will find plenty of shops, including the prominent ABC Stores. These stores provide convenience to tourists, supplying them with toiletries, food, drinks, clothing and more. As you look closer at the items, you will find that many price tags feature English and Japanese instead.
Along with the convenience of these stores, you can find many Japanese-created tchotchkes embraced by Hawaiians. From Hello Kitty and Friends to Doraemon, there’s a sprinkle of Japanese culture on every Honolulu block.
This century-and-a-half connection between Hawai’i and Japan skyrocketed through tourism after flights became more accessible in the 1970s.
According to University of Hawai’i Professor Peter Fuleky, Japan’s economy is closely interlinked with Hawai’i’s and historically fluctuated in tandem.
The 90s [were] actually not good for Japan; it’s good for the U.S., but not good for Japan,” Fuleky said.
“Hawai’i itself suffered in the 90s because there were fewer Japanese [people] coming because the Japanese economy wasn’t doing great.”
Through the 2000s and 2010s, Japan proved to be still important to the tourism sector in Hawai’i. Unfortunately, after the COVID-19 pandemic, Hawai’i had not returned to the number of Japanese visitors it once experienced.
At the same time, the islands continue to become more expensive, with the cost of living exceeding prices far beyond those on the mainland.
“From a Japanese nationalist perspective, when they are looking at the cost of the trip, they are looking at it in yen,” Fuleky said. “Given how much value the yen lost compared to [the] dollar, it’s now extra expensive for Japanese [people] to come here.”
According to the Economic Research Organization at the University of Hawai’i (UHERO), its economic forecasts cite that “in the near term, an additional headwind will continue to be the loss we have seen in the purchasing power of the yen.”
As of now, the yen has only 60% of the dollar purchasing power it had in January 2020.
Not only are those who study the Hawaiian economy noticing a difference in the tourism from Japan, but local businesses feel the impact, too.
Pacific Island Beach Boys Surf Instructor Cody Harada said he noticed a significant decrease in tourism in Waikiki.
“It’s a lot slower,” Harada said. “Not too [many] Japanese [people] are coming into town — it’s because their money is down.”
According to data published by the Hawaiian Tourism Authority, Japan had a significant decrease in spending per million since the pandemic. From 2001 to 2019, Japan’s tourist spending fluctuated between $1.8 and $2.7 billion each year.
After the economic drop in 2020, Japan was significantly slow to climb back in numbers it once experienced pre-pandemic. While Japan’s tourism increased back to $1.05 billion, research shows that tourism from Japan will not go back to what it once was.
While the depreciation of the yen significantly affected the rebuilding of spending here in Hawai’i, there are other factors contributing to the major decline in visitors from Japan and their spending habits.
In recent years, Japan has had a population decline, with birth rates dropping from 10 births per 1,000 people in 1990 to just 6.98 births per 1,000 people in 2025. As the older generation becomes unable to travel, and the younger generation is much smaller in number, the quantity of Japanese tourists becomes lower.
“[A] combination of all of these means that we don’t expect Japanese travel to recover,” Fuleky said. “From here, we may see additional gains, but we won’t [gain] another 50%, we won’t get back to the pre-pandemic level.”
Even though the Japanese visitor rate has significantly declined and will not return to its former glory, the impact that Japan has on Hawai’i will always remain throughout the islands.
Ziggy Moon is a student in the Travel Journalism in Hawai’i program in the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication.
