Earlier this summer, longtime visitor industry veteran Brent Lausterer took over as director of sales for the Maui Visitors and Conventions Bureau (MVCB). Now, he's heading up the organization’s group and leisure sales efforts across Maui, Molokai and Lanai.
Raised on Maui, Lausterer has spent more than 25 years in Hawaii’s hospitality industry, including sales and marketing leadership roles at The Westin Maui Resort & Spa, Kaanapali; Sheraton Kauai Resort; and a number of Hyatt hotels across the state. Lausterer most recently served as area group sales manager for Prince Resorts Hawaii.
We caught up with Lausterer to discuss how he hopes to assist travel advisors in his new role and how the island’s visitor business is performing, as well as address some of the lingering misconceptions about vacationing on Maui.
What should agents know about your new role?
For travel advisors, I'm really an ambassador, and I'm here to assist them in understanding the destination of Maui Nui (Maui, Lanai and Molokai) and to share info on the activities for the different travelers with whom they're working, be it honeymoon and romance travelers or family-, adventure- and culture-minded clients. I just want to help support advisors and make them look like stars so they have the details to bring the whole Maui destination alive.
We really have a great toolbox on our website, and I want to build awareness around some of those tools, such as the pre-travel guides and digital tools that agents can customize for clients, as well as other assets, like images and cultural and historical info. It's a great reference point for travel advisors about Hawaii overall, as well as each island individually.
And, of course, I can also help connect advisors with points of contact on the island at resorts, activities providers and restaurants if they want to do a deep dive and work on the details — the real nitty-gritty for their clients
How’s visitor business to Maui been performing so far, and what are you seeing for the rest of the year?
It's encouraging. The first half of 2025 had run behind 2024 in terms of reservations pace, particularly in West Maui. But for the second half, it looks like reservations and the bookings pace are up year over year from 2024 overall for the rest of 2025.
But it would be good to see continued strengthening of occupancy in particular, which has been down relative to 2019 and 2024.
In June, the Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau (HVCB) announced a $6 million marketing campaign to boost Maui’s travel business, which has been sluggish since the 2023 wildfires. Are you seeing some results?
I think the biggest thing is that there has been excitement around the launch, and it’s driving awareness about the offers out there through wholesale partners, which are valid for bookings by the end of this year for travel this year and next.
In addition to the offers, there are new videos and social media messaging going out that really highlight the people and the places that make Maui special. There are so many small elements of Maui that just grab people and take their breath away — that's why they keep coming back. We’re just really trying to highlight that emotional connection visitors have, share what’s available here, and show that the community is welcoming visitors.
It's too early to say, for example, how many specific room nights have been generated, but certainly longer-term, we're going to be tracking those metrics and seeing what the results are.
If you were speaking with a potential Maui visitor who mentioned concerns about the vacation experience available after the wildfires, what would you tell them?
I’d first say that their questions are understandable. There has been a lot of different information from different parties that has gone out since the fires in August 2023.
Most important is that lingering question: Are visitors welcome on Maui? And the answer is definitely yes. Visitors are very welcome on Maui, and I think they'll definitely feel that from the people with whom they interact on their trip, whether it's at the resorts or doing activities or dining. Feeling welcome is a really important part of the experience.
I would say, as is true with traveling anywhere, just having Aloha as a visitor is appreciated no matter where you are. Whether there's some confusion about something such as a car reservation, or if you're at a restaurant and they're hitting a busy stretch and service is a bit delayed — for the visitor to have Aloha goes a long way. If there's anything that Maui residents are looking for, it would be a sense that visitors have a similar respect for the Islands as they have for their own communities and neighbors at home.
Regarding the vacation experience overall, obviously Lahaina is a very precious place to so many people — so many memories were made there. But the west side of Maui remains largely untouched and unaffected by the fires. All the main resort areas in Kaanapali and Kapalua are fully operational, and many of the shops and restaurants that were in the fire-impacted areas of central Lahaina have relocated to other parts of West Maui, such as Whaler’s Village and Napili, or even to the Kihei and Wailea areas. More broadly, Maui overall remains accessible and essentially unaffected by the fires; the natural beauty, culture, adventures and dining that people love are all still here.
Are there new or improved Maui hotel products and attractions that advisors should know about?
Many resorts have completed upgrades and renovations, and some of those include the Fairmont Kea Lani, Maui; Grand Wailea; Wailea Beach Resort - Marriott, Maui; and Andaz Maui at Wailea Resort. In Kapalua, there’s The Ritz Carlton Maui, Kapalua, and in Kaanapali, Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa; The Westin Maui Resort & Spa, Kaanapali; Outrigger Kaanapali Beach Resort; and Royal Lahaina Resort & Bungalows. All these have finished significant improvements varying in scale and location, so the resorts look really fresh.
In Central Maui, Courtyard Maui Kahului Airport has also completed a recent renovation, and there is a new Hampton Inn & Suites on the bay in Kahului.
Maui Ocean Center, meanwhile, has two new evening events that I think are exciting and a little different than traditional luaus. One is Mele: The Hawaiian Music Experience; it's set in the new 360-degree sphere and uses incredible visuals to create a live music and dance event that's fun and energetic.
The other is Migrations: A Cultural Dinner & Dance Experience, which offers a dinner buffet that highlights all the local flavors of the different cultures that have migrated to Hawaii — Japanese, Filipino, Portuguese, Chinese, Korean and, of course, Hawaiian food paired with a rich variety of music and from those same cultures on an outdoor stage overlooking the ocean.
