Hawaii is one of the nicest places to visit.

Today, Hawaii is known as one of the most desirable places to vacation in the world, a reputation earned through hard work and lessons learned from early mistakes. Hawaii transformed its economy from one based on plantation agriculture to a service economy driven by tourism in a little more than one generation.

Well into the 21st Century, tourism will continue to be the single greatest engine driving Hawaii's economy. Like other kinds of business, tourism is changing with technology and Hawaii tourism continues to move with the times.

Many experts who learned from Hawaii's tourism experience are now helping other nations develop their visitor destinations, drawing on the breadth and depth of Hawaii's experience and expertise.

In becoming a successful "destination," Hawaii has emphasized the components that are critical to ensuring visitors a positive experience, including land use and coastal zones planning, waste management, infrastructure development, transportation, and hospitality management.

Hawaii's natural environment - critical to sustaining world leadership in tourism - has been preserved through careful planning. The World Resources Institute has repeatedly ranked Honolulu first for the quality of its environment among U.S. cities with over 500,000 people.

With its growing maturity, Hawaii's visitor industry now focuses on opening new markets, enhancing the visitor experience and increasing visitor satisfaction.

Efforts to diversify Hawaii's tourism offerings have resulted in new visitor attractions, theme parks and recreational facilities. New opportunities abound in eco- and cultural tourism, techno tourism, edu-tourism, and health and wellness tourism.

The new $350-million Hawaii Convention Center offers the utmost in convenience, flexibility, and state-of-the-art features including simultaneous translation capability, fiber-optic communications, and satellite video conferencing hook-ups. All the six main islands boast superb meeting facilities, making Hawaii one of the world's best places to gather.

The development of new shopping and entertainment complexes has been a key element in broadening Hawaii's visitor appeal, adding to the allure of the beach, outdoor activities and sightseeing.

Hawaii retail outlets of national and international chains customarily have the highest sales per square foot of any store in the chain. The merging of shopping, entertainment, and other activities provides new business opportunities for the potential investor.

Hawaii's varied retailing revolution from traditional department stores to big box outlets to deluxe international boutiques has also improved the quality of life for those who live and work here.

Information above provided by:DBEDT "Hawaii Global Islands"