Surge in Hawaii Vacation Rentals Year on Year

Hawaii vacation rentals statewide reported substantial increases in supply, demand, occupancy and average daily rate (ADR) in September 2021 compared to September 2020. However, in comparison to September 2019, ADR was higher than September 2021, but vacation rental supply, demand and occupancy were down.

The Hawaii Tourism Authority (HTA) issued today the Hawaii Vacation Rental Performance Report for the month of September utilizing data compiled by Transparent Intelligence, Inc.

In September 2021, the total monthly supply of statewide vacation rentals was 606,900 unit nights (+51.2% vs. 2020, -33.6% vs. 2019) and monthly demand was 361,000 unit nights (+918.8% vs. 2020, -42.0% vs. 2019) (Figures 1 and 2). That resulted in an average monthly unit occupancy of 59.5 percent (+50.7 percentage points vs. 2020, -8.7 percentage points vs. 2019) for September. Occupancy for Hawai‘i’s hotels was 55.2% in September.

The ADR for vacation rental units statewide in September was $245 (+28.2% vs. 2020, +26.3% vs. 2019). By comparison the ADR for hotels was $304 in September 2021. It is important to note that unlike hotels, units in vacation rentals are not necessarily available year-round or each day of the month and often accommodate a larger number of guests than traditional hotel rooms.

In September, legal short-term rentals were allowed to operate in Maui County and on Oahu, Hawaii Island and Kauai as long as they were not being used as a quarantine location.

In September 2021, passengers arriving from out-of-state could bypass the State’s mandatory 10-day self-quarantine if they were fully vaccinated in the United States or with a valid negative COVID-19 NAAT test result from a Trusted Testing Partner prior to their departure through the Safe Travels program. On August 23, 2021, Hawaii Governor David Ige urged travelers to curtail non-essential travel until the end of October 2021 due to the Delta variant resulting in the state’s health care system being overburdened.

The data in HTA’s Hawaii Vacation Rental Performance Report specifically excludes units reported in its Hawaii Hotel Performance Report and its Hawaii Timeshare Quarterly Survey 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 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 September, Maui County had the largest vacation rental supply of all four counties with 219,200 available unit nights (+44.7% vs. 2020, -29.9% vs. 2019). Unit demand was 138,400 unit nights (+1,598.5% vs. 2020, -38.8% vs. 2019), resulting in 63.2 percent occupancy (+57.8 percentage points vs. 2020, -9.1 percentage points vs. 2019) with ADR of $275 (+16.4% vs. 2020, +20.8% vs. 2019). In comparison, Maui County hotels reported ADR at $488 and occupancy of 59.2 percent.

Oahu vacation rental supply was 163,000 available unit nights (+66.4% vs. 2020, -32.6% vs. 2019) in September. Unit demand was 90,700 unit nights (+540.3% vs. 2020, -48.4% vs. 2019), resulting in 55.6 percent occupancy (+41.2 percentage points vs. 2020, -17.1 percentage points vs. 2019) and ADR of $189 (+17.5% vs. 2020, +18.2% vs. 2019). Oahu hotels reported ADR at $212 and occupancy of 51.8 percent.

The island of Hawaii vacation rental supply was 137,700 available unit nights (+53.3% vs. 2020, -37.2% vs. 2019) in September. Unit demand was 78,500 unit nights (+716.1% vs. 2020, -38.6% vs. 2019), resulting in 57.0 percent occupancy (+46.3 percentage points vs. 2020, -1.3 percentage points vs. 2019) with ADR of $208 (+24.2% vs. 2020, +42.3% vs. 2019). Hawaii Island hotels reported ADR at $307 and occupancy of 56.0 percent.

Kauai had the fewest number of available unit nights in September at 87,000 (+40.0% vs. 2020, -37.6% vs. 2019). Unit demand was 53,300 unit nights (+1,424.2% vs. 2020, -42.5% vs. 2019), resulting in 61.3 percent occupancy (+55.7 percentage points vs. 2020, -5.2 percentage points vs. 2019) with ADR of $315 (+15.4% vs. 2020, +30.6% vs. 2019). Kauai hotels reported ADR at $316 and occupancy of 66.1 percent.