Hawaii hotels were 73% full last week, compared to almost 80% full in the same week last year. But the real story is that Oahu was fuller while the other operating counties saw hotel occupancy down in double digit percentages. Take a look... Kauai, 75% full, down 11 points from last year. Oahu, 78% full, three points better than last summer. Maui, down 16 points to 69% full. Big Island, also down 16 points, to 64%.

It's time for another extremity-tingling edition of, Crisis at a Glance! In which we give the mainland economic news a proper airing while gently teasing those who would panic over every little thing.

It's time for another hair-pulling edition of, Crisis at a Glance! In which we enumerate the alarming economic stories from the mainland. First, the airlines. US Airways has decided that to save money it will stop showing movies on some flights. Now, Howard's rule of airline news is, the dumber a new policy sounds, the more desperate it means the airlines are to pay their soaring fuel bills.

The neighbor island home price figures are in from June. The Big Island, Kauai and Maui County realtors all report the number of single-family home sales down more than a third from June of last year. But the price picture is really different from one county to the next. Take a look.

Hospitality Advisors reports Hawaii hotels were almost 75% full in the seven days to last Sunday, down from 78% a year ago and also lower than occupancy in Los Angeles, San Diego and Orlando. Kauai was 81% full, even with last year, with room rates almost even at an average 226 dollars a night. Kauai is having a good summer for visitor traffic, and it's cushioning the cooling in other sectors.