WASHINGTON -- Honolulu International Airport is among 20 airports across the country where U.S. Customs and Border Protection will improve the process of clearing and welcoming overseas travelers to the United States.

The efforts include a new video, currently available in Spanish, French, German and English, that helps travelers through the customs and immigration process, customs said.

Other improvements include a "Welcome to the U.S." brochure and a variety of new bilingual direction signs. In the future, Honolulu and the other airports will be equipped with more video monitors, a welcome message and information on the entry process.

As part of the $40 million "model ports" program, the Customs Service also wants to put together groups of private and public officials to come up with ways to create a better overall passenger experience.

"Improving the U.S. entry experience for arriving overseas travelers will help show the rest of the world that America is a welcoming nation," said Roger Dow, president and CEO of the Travel Industry Association.

The Customs program is part of an ongoing effort to combat a drop in overseas visitors in the face of stricter entry rules after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Travel industry officials have said the number of overseas visitors coming to the United States is 11 percent below the 26 million arriving in 2000. They point to surveys that show international travelers believe that the U.S. entry process is the "world's worst."

"Security is extremely important and critical to this industry, but you can have great security and a welcoming attitude," Dow said. "They're not mutually exclusive."

Customs said it selected airports with the largest number of foreign visitors annually for the new program.

In addition to Honolulu, they include New York, Miami, Los Angeles, Newark, Chicago, San Francisco, Atlanta, Dallas-Fort Worth, Orlando, Detroit, Boston, Las Vegas, Seattle, Philadelphia, San Juan, Fort Lauderdale and Sanford, Fla.

They join George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston and Washington Dulles International Airport, which piloted the program last year.