"May Day Waikiki - Beach Boys, Memories and Music," returns to the sands of Waikiki fronting the Outrigger Waikiki Beach Resort and the Royal Hawaiian Hotel on Friday, May 1 from 3-5 p.m. The HTA-sponsored event celebrates the history and tradition of May Day, as well as honors the Waikiki Beach Boys and those who made Waikiki Beach their final resting place.

This year, the event will recognize Waikiki Beach Boys Alex Apo and Richard Kapela Kauo. Apo worked on Waikiki Beach for 44 years and is one of the original Waikiki Beach Boys. As a surfer and master canoe paddler, he is considered an inspiration to the younger generation of Beach Boys.

Kauo, who passed away in 2013, will be honored as a legendary Beach Boy who pioneered the "hot curl" style of surfing. Working as a lifeguard and surfing instructor, he is perhaps most fondly remembered for spending his later years greeting visitors at Duke's Waikiki with his aloha and warm personality. Read more.

Resident Sentiment Remains Positive Towards Hawaii's Tourism Industry

The HTA recently conducted its 2014 Resident Sentiment Study, which shows that the general perception of tourism in Hawaii remains positive, with most respondents rating the industry an eight on a 10-point scale. The research conducted by QMark took a statewide sample from each island and was weighted to reflect the geographic proportion of adults 18 and older.

The HTA is committed to balancing the needs of both residents and visitors, and this study is an important tool that provides insight on how we can address issues and continue to work with the community to improve and sustain Hawaii's tourism economy.

While residents voiced concerns over the correlation between traffic and higher cost of living with tourism, the majority were still in favor of funding tourism efforts and believed that travel to their island should be actively encouraged.

Read more.

Promoting Career Development Opportunities to Hawaii's Youth

This year marked the fourth year that the HTA partnered with ClimbHI, a local non-profit organization, to support its LEI (Leadership Exploration, Inspiration) career development program, which provides high school students with an opportunity to learn about viable career options in the hospitality industry.

More than 800 high school students statewide participated in the one-day program held on Tuesday, April 7 on Maui and on Friday, April 10 on Oahu, Kauai and Hawaii Island. More than 75 industry partners participated in the morning sessions, hotel site inspections and career fairs on each island with more than 40 volunteers donating their time for either day, in addition to all of the hotel staff that donated their time during the hotel visits.

"Introducing students to many varieties of career options is an important step in attracting the best and the brightest to tourism, which helps sustain and enhance the visitor industry," said Jadie Goo, HTA tourism brand manager responsible for career development. "The HTA is committed to supporting career development programs like these that provide education and training opportunities and we encourage industry partners to participate and engage with our local youth." Read more.

HTA recognizes the use of the 'okina ['] or glottal stop, one of the eight consonants of the (modern) Hawaiian language; and the kahakō[ā] or macron (e.g., in place names of Hawai'i such as Lāna'i). However, HTA respects the individual use of these markings for names of organizations and businesses. Due to technological limitations, this current communication may not include all Hawaiian diacritical markings.