Hawaii is a highly sought haven for honeymooners

Hawaii is the second-favorite offshore and third-favorite luxury destination among U.S. honeymooners, according to the third annual Honeymoon Study by The Knot Market Intelligence.

The company is the research division of The Knot Inc., and the survey, conducted online at TheKnot.com and WeddingChannel.com late last year, attracted responses from 12,000 newlyweds who were married in 2010.

Hawaii is categorized as an international destination by the survey.

"We completely realize that Hawaii is a U.S. state," said public relations Director Jacalyn Lee. Whew!

"However, our research team categorizes the destinations that are ‘international’ if it requires travel outside of the continental U.S.," she said.

Overall, the top international destinations are reflected in the box herein, while among dream destinations we’re third behind Europe and the South Pacific.

Honeymooners traveling to so-called and actual international destinations are after sun, sand and surf, with 48 percent considering the three S’s a top-three feature, but they also want more than one spot to visit.

Those leaving the mainland for their honeymoon destination are nearly twice as likely to enjoy multiple locales as mainland-staying couples.

Not including travel time, the offshore-bound spend 8.7 days honeymooning, versus 6.7 days for transcontinental trekkers.

Ocean-crossing newlyweds are more likely to book a package, given answers from 44 percent of respondents, while a whopping 72 percent of just-wedded wayfarers booked extras.

About 60 percent of couples did not scale back their honeymoon budgets because of the economy, and while the average honeymoon cost $4,466, 21 percent spent more than $6,000 on their trip of a lifetime. Luxury honeymooners spend an average of nearly $10,000 for 11 days of newly joined jaunting.

Airwaves auction pau

Two new radio stations will launch within the next three years, following a just-concluded Federal Communications Commission broadcast spectrum auction.

New York-based Virtues Communications Network LLC won 94.7 FM in Hanapepe for a net winning bid of $23,350, while Wyoming-based Future Modulation Broadcasting LLC won FM 100.7 in Kihei for a net winning bid of $72,150. It is too early for call letters to exist for the dial positions.

The would-be broadcasters have essentially bid on construction permits to build the as-yet-nonexistent stations that they must have built and on the air within three years.

That didn’t happen for the would-be broadcaster that won the Hanapepe construction permit for $305,500 in November 2004. KEEI-FM 94.7 didn’t get built, and the permit was canceled by the FCC on March 18, 2005.

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Erika Engle is a reporter with the Star-Advertiser. Reach her by e-mail at erika@staradvertiser.com.