Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1916-01-17
TOURIST TRAFFIC
DEMANDS BETTER
SERVICE ASHORE
So Says Correspondent, Who
Declares That City Must
Give Accommodations
.ditor Honolulu star-Bulletin.

|
Editor Honolulu Star-Bulletin,
| Sir: Two great passenger, steamers
coming TO Honolulu during the Car
nival season will give the city the
| greatest opportunity of its career TO
commerciaIize the tourist
Will we do il, or will We hang on to
! the old-fashioned way of saying that
this is only a small country town any
way, and we wish tourists would not
all come in bunch and we are sorry
we have not the room, and let it go
at THAI
BY commercializing the tourist
| mean giving the tourist service-serr-
ice, mind you-aecommodation, sery-
zee all along the line, service that VII
0e paid for, service that will make
every one of them want 10 come again.
| made New Years resolution to
keep my mouth shut, but this pros
pect of the Northern Pacific and the
Great Northern at the same time is too
much for me.
The suggestion is that PASSENGERS
ON those ships at that time will stay
aboard the vessels That suggestion
L
had with Cal Stone while in San Fran.
cisco. He remarked that the accom-.
modations in Honolulu would probably
be crowded and the steamship people
would arrange to allow the passengers
to remain on the ship.
Now that is service.
But how much better would it be
for all concerned for the people, the
business people of Honolulu, to start
out on definite program of taking
care of those people ashore guaran-
teeing the accommodations, giving
those people Honolulu service and
thereby proving to the travelling public
that Honolulu knows how to CONNER
cialiZe the tourist business.
"Yes," someone says, "but how are
you going to do itf.
First make canvass OF the whole
city for every available respectable
and clean room.
/ Judge from my observation that
very good portion of the people coming
on such an excursion will prefer a
room, a clean room where they can
sleep comfortably, rest little, get a
bath-and eat where the eating hour
overtakes them / presume that the
Promotion Committee has complete
list of all the available rooms of this
character.
But II the plans of Honolulu for
bringing people here work to the full
capacity, this will not be sufficient.
"Tent City" Plan Desirable.
It seems to me that the time has
arrived for the businessmen of the city
to take up the tent city idea or an
enterprise akin to 1t and suited to the
peculiarities of our climate.
The first response to this will be
that taking care of people is private
enterprise and should be tackled by
private individuals. Up to a certain
point this is So But if it is apparent
that private enterprise will not engage
in such an undertaking then it be-
comes a subject of community inter.
est and especially of interest to the
retail men that these people be given
service.
The tent city has been put down
as impractical. Well, why not turn to
the tent city Made of wood, meaning |
by this the construction of city or
community of houses similar to those
inexpensive places of abode built by
the army for temporary quarters.
can hear someone snort that these |
places indicated by the experience of |
the people at Schofield are not desir-
able That is true for permanent
homes. But how about their value and
attractiveness as temporary headquar-
tiers? Is that a foolish custom?
Tt is no criticism Of steamer to
say that passengers coming to a port
want to live on land; they went to
get ashore. They have the same feel.
ing when they travel by train. When
thew travel they are willing to travel
and take 1t as a pleasure but when
they get to their destination they feel
much more kindly disposed towards
that port and they enjoy themselves
much more If they find provision made
for them to live on land. Many want
luxurious accommodations and are
willing to pay for them. A very good
want comfortable room,
4 comfortable bed and clean bath.
This can be offered in a tent city
made of wood.
Cost Easily Met
lit seems 10 me ludI ouOh O YIN
munity enterprise is well worth trying.
And as to the cost. / confess / do not
know. But can venture the assertion
that II every retail merchant of Homo
Iulu would advance his share of the
cost of such community business
venture the total contribution would
not equal the amount he has spent Id
little filters" in projects brought here
from the coast that were admittedly
rambles and had no possible relation
10 the upbuilding of the city OF Homo.
lulu and the Improvement OF us ser"
ice as a tourist center. II
This may be chfmerica. But ism I
i better to be chimerical in behalf oil
your own town than to allow people /;
q come here and go away with the
feeling that we have great things nere'f
n these islands but do not know how
= handle the people who want TO {
enjoy them? ;.
The tourists are coming. 1t means I