Hawaii’s leading airline today became a tourism ambassador and joined the initiative by the Hawaii Tourism Association (HiTA) to attract new developing markets to the state to further tourism and business travel.

Hawaiian Airlines joins tourism ambassadors and friends of the media from Singapore, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, India, Russia, Austria, Slovenia, Colombia, and Nepal. HiTA tourism ambassadors produce arrivals from their market on a daily basis and work closely with visionary and proactive businesses in Hawaii to benefit from this business. Among these visionaries are Sun Island Tours, Turtle Bay Resort on the Oahu North Shore, and Under Sea Adventures.

HiTA President Juergen T. Steinmetz said, “We’re pleased to have Hawaiian Airlines, as a leader in the industry, see our vision and support us with our program, as well as receive additional passengers from this activity.”

HiTA recently hired Lisa Shipley as their VP of Membership Development. Lisa is from Maui and is familiar with the Hawaii tourism industry and its needs. She will represent HiTA at the upcoming POW WOW event in Los Angeles. POW WOW is a yearly event organized by the US Travel Industry to attract overseas buyers. HiTA ambassadors from Qatar will be bringing a group of 40 decision makers and travel professionals from Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Oman, and Saudi Arabia to the event. The HiTA Ambassador based in Linz, Austria, is also bringing a small group of Austrian agents.

HiTA is inviting other stakeholders, including hotels, attractions, transportation companies, and restaurants to join their organization.