Hawaiʻi's hospitality industry is hoping for a seasonal boost this summer, and so are major tourism destinations across the Asia Pacific. But there are some challenges ahead.

The world's busiest international travelers are the Chinese, according to the United Nation's tourism agency. The UN says Chinese overseas travel bounced back last year after falling behind the U.S. in 2022.

Reuters reported that the pace of Chinese travel is now slowing as we get into the summer — and that trend may linger.

The news agency quotes an official of the tourism branch of the China Society for Futures Studies as saying China's international travel might not return to pre-pandemic levels for another five years.

Domestic travel is more popular, along with short trips to countries that have visa-free arrangements with China — including Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand.

The travel reservation system Sabre predicts other regional markets that should grow further for Chinese visitors this year, including Australia and Japan.

As for Japan, outbound travel is growing, but slowly, as domestic trips remain more popular.

One familiar issue for Hawaiʻi destinations seeking Japanese visitors is the exchange rate, which remains near 160 yen to the dollar.

That effectively knocks more than 45% off the purchasing power that Japanese travelers to the U.S. had in the pre-pandemic summer of 2019.