In November 2020, the total monthly supply of statewide vacation rentals was 555,000 unit nights (-34.5%) and monthly demand was 175,400 unit nights (-69.9%), resulting in an average monthly unit occupancy of 31.6 percent (-37.0 percentage points).
In comparison, Hawaii’s hotels had an average occupancy rate of 22.1 percent in November 2020. It is important to note that unlike hotels, condominium hotels, timeshare resorts and vacation rental units are not necessarily available year-round or each day of the month and often accommodate a larger number of guests than traditional hotel rooms. The unit average daily rate (ADR) for vacation rental units statewide in November was $230, which was on par with the ADR for hotels ($230).
Beginning October 15, passengers arriving from out-of-state and traveling inter-county could bypass the mandatory 14-day self-quarantine with a valid negative COVID-19 NAAT test result from a Trusted Testing and Travel Partner. However, a new policy went into effect on November 24 requiring all trans-Pacific travelers participating in the pre-travel testing program to have a negative test result before their departure to Hawaii, and test results would no longer be accepted once a traveler arrives in Hawaii. The counties of Kauai, Hawaii, Maui, and Kalawao (Molokai) also had a partial quarantine in place in November. In addition, Lanai residents and visitors were under a stay-at-home order from October 27 to November 11.
In November under Tier 2, legal short-term rentals were allowed to operate on Oahu. For Maui County, travelers awaiting their pre-travel test results were allowed to stay at a vacation rental as their place of quarantine. On Hawaii Island and Kauai, legal short-term rentals were allowed to operate as long as they were not being used as a quarantine location.
The Hawaii Tourism Authority’s (HTA) Tourism Research Division issued the report’s findings utilizing data compiled by Transparent Intelligence, Inc. The data in this report specifically excludes units reported in HTA’s Hawaii Hotel Performance Report and Hawaii Timeshare Quarterly Survey Report. In this report, a vacation rental is defined as the use of a rental house, condominium unit, private room in private home, or shared room/space in private home. This report also does not determine or differentiate between units that are permitted or unpermitted. The “legality” of any given vacation rental unit is determined on a county basis.
Island Highlights
In November, Maui County had the largest vacation rental supply of all four counties with 224,200 available unit nights (-20.8) and unit demand was 65,500 unit nights (-69.6%), resulting in 29.2 percent occupancy (-46.8 percentage points) with an ADR of $239 (-32.1%). Maui County hotels were 20.2 percent occupied with an ADR of $375.
Oahu vacation rental supply was 122,300 available unit nights (-48.8%) in November. Unit demand was 42,200 unit nights (-73.8%), resulting in 34.5 percent occupancy (-33.0 percentage points) and an ADR of $194 (-19.4%). Oahu hotels were 22.6 percent occupied with an ADR of $167.
The island of Hawaii vacation rental supply was 116,900 available unit nights (-43.4%) in November. Unit demand was 36,200 unit nights (-70.8%), resulting in 31.0 percent occupancy (-29.2 percentage points) with an ADR of $215 (-14.4%). Hawaii Island hotels were 20.4 percent occupied with an ADR of $217.
Kauai had the fewest number of available unit nights in November at 91,600 (-23.2%). Unit demand was 31,500 unit nights (-61.2%), resulting in 34.3 percent occupancy (-33.7 percentage points) with an ADR of $278 (-26.3%). Kauai hotels were 28.0 percent occupied with an ADR of $215.
