HAWAII’S BIG ISLAND SAYS “E KOMO MAI” (WELCOME) TO DELTA VACATIONS AND DELTA AIRLINES
Hawaii’s Island of Adventure welcomes an inaugural Delta flight, improving the island’s year of record-breaking growth in tourism numbers.
KONA, Hawaii – December 16, 2005 – Hawaii’s Big Island welcomes Delta’s inaugural flight to Kona, Hawaii from Atlanta, Ga. with one stop in Salt Lake City, Utah and no change of planes. Passengers will be greeted at Kona International Airport at Keahole with hula dancers, leis and a warm welcome from the Big Island Visitors Bureau. This flight offers a new route of access to Hawaii for visitors from the continental United States. Year to date arrivals to Hawaii’s Big Island are up 16.7% (through October 2005).
“We’re thrilled to partner with Delta Vacations and Delta Airlines for this momentous occasion,” said George Applegate, executive director of the Big Island Visitors Bureau. “2005 was a year of record growth for the Big Island and it is an honor to have the opportunity to introduce our beautiful island to even more visitors. We take pride in showing them the authentic meaning of “Aloha Spirit.”
Delta flight 343 is scheduled to set down shortly after sunset on Hawaii’s Big Island. During their stay on the Island of Adventure, passengers have the opportunity to explore the diverse activities the island has to offer including tours of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, snorkeling with sea turtles, horseback riding through rain forest trails and scenic waterfall terrain in the Waipio Valley, stargazing atop Mauna Kea and SCUBA diving to name a few.
Delta Vacations has a long and distinguished history of providing value-priced vacation packages to the world’s most popular leisure destinations. A mainstay on the Hawaiian tourism scene for nearly 50 years, Delta Vacations offers air-inclusive vacation packages to some 68 resorts, including the popular Outrigger, Marriott, Hyatt, Radisson and Starwood chains. For reservations and more information, visit www.deltavacations.com.
Photographs and video B-roll of the hula greeting and arrival of Delta’s inaugural flight from Atlanta to Kona are available upon request.
Media Contacts:
Keely Baribeau
Novom Marketing
kbaribeau@novom.com
Janel Moncada
Novom Marketing
(323) 882-8333
jmoncada@novom.com
For more information on Hawaii’s Big Island, please visit www.bigisland.org
