232 thoughts on “Decline In Hawaii Tourism Starts According To State”
Diane L
Hawaii has priced people out of paradise. Hotel prices are outrageous….no one cleans the rooms, you have to chase after towels, toilet paper and soap. You have to haul your trash out. The services that we received pre pandemic are gone and the people who delivered these services were not tired back…all for the sake of the $$$$. Of course the Fall prices will drop….they always have as that is off season. The state and travel services are to blame…..other places on the globe are less expensive. Hawaii you did his to yourself
Yes, it’s all of that and more!! Too crowded. Too expensive. Too many homeless. Too much price gauging. Hard to live on the islands, local people suffering. Tourists are needed but a big nuisance; their driving, attitudes, and so forth. Hawaii no ka oi. 🤙🏽
Hawai’i was not made for the cheap and disregarding entitled visitors. Mindful travel is needed – it is getting expensive everywhere. The high cost of Hawai’i tourism industry was created by the same culture of people that is was meant to serve – stop blaming the local people and communities – this toxicity was created by the ones who are complaining.
So what are you saying, Hawaii is only for the rich? That’s not Aloha spirit, Bruddah. I have met plenty of very nice mainlanders who saved up for years to take their family here. And they are very respectful to the land. I have also seen the reckless wealthy who come here on a whim and do damage. I prefer the middle class who appreciate what they saved up for. They are better visitors.
We love the Big Island and have had timeshare units there for over a decade. However our most recent trip in May of this year really left us rethinking Hawaii. Food and gas were outrageous and $1200 for a weeks rental SUV was simply beyond belief. Many places have closed and for the first time we felt a bit unwelcome by locals. On Mother’s Day even the police set up a traffic trap at the bottom of a very steep hill in Hawi and wrote ticket after ticket to people for 10-15 miles over and hardly no other traffic anywhere to be seen. It just was no longer the Hawaii we came to love for all these years.,So while we are not selling our units just yet we may not return for a year or two.
Hawaii charges for every little thing now & the prices are crazy. You can’t go out to eat at a restaurant without booking 2 months in advance of your trip. 1 drink cost me $25 on my bill which shocked me at the Hula grill. Will never go there again. Car rentals too expensive. Food prices are exorbitant above before. Been traveling to Maui for 25 years now & will rethink future trips due to costs & all the added extra fees at hotels, restaurants & car rentals. Previous Amenities have been removed at many hotels/resorts & that’s what people want on vacation. Vacation is pamper/relaxing time with perks.
Prefer the way it was years ago. Welcome breakfast, complimentary happy hours and free activities at the resort that bring guests together.
Funny how every generation says that. Listen to the song Waimanalo Blues by the truly great 1970’s group Country Comfort, same message. Hawaii will always be Hawaii, some will find what makes it special, some will just see what’s wrong
We have gone to Hawaii every year at least once and many times twice, in the last 23 years.
However we have not been back at all since the pandemic. The hoops you had to jump through were tiresome. Also we found costs had risen, in some cases by 35 to 40% for accomodations and food. You could not rent a car at all and if you could it was an increase of 300% to 400%. There were curfews. We have been going to Mexico instead twice a year in the last three years.
“Cost is the number one reason Hawaii visitors won’t be coming back” is the reason I am unable to return right now. It is my dream for my last visit to the islands to enjoy and retrace my Hawaiian steps from the 70’s. But, I just can not afford the car rentals, and room rates. I don’t care about the food costs as I can eat one meal a day and be satisfied, but absolutely pray that tourism slows down.The tempers cool, the land heals, the airlines re-hire, tsa lines shorten and I can experience one more time the real aloha flavor from first steps off the plane to turning the key to the condo.Just one more time please!
We spent 2 weeks in May 2022 on the Big Island. Prices were double from our last trip in 2019. We love Hawaii but cannot afford the lodging and car rental rates. So disappointing
We are booked for our 8th trip in the last 10 years to the Big Island in 2023. It may be our last-sadly. We love Hawaii, but cost-$35 for two hours public parking in Kona- really? Car rentals doubled. And a lot of what is mentioned above, some of it reasonably unavoidable, but $700 for a standard room Waikaloa hotel? What was most disappointing in our February 2022 trip was a sense of the loss of aloha in the Hawaiians who seemed stressed- maybe understandably-and less congenial tourists. Maybe a year of recovery will help. We feel fortunate for all the time we’ve had in Hawaii.
Living on the west coast, I will return to Hawaii. If I lived on the east coast, I would go to Caribbean/Bahamas/USVI/PR instead. Hawaii accomodations, book a condo, no hotels or high end resorts. Only one fine dining, rest food trucks or cook myself. Will continue adventures and excursions, but may not do as many. Car rental the entire time is a must. Hawaii is not a location I can visit yearly, but rather every 2-4 years.
Hawaii has priced people out of paradise. Hotel prices are outrageous….no one cleans the rooms, you have to chase after towels, toilet paper and soap. You have to haul your trash out. The services that we received pre pandemic are gone and the people who delivered these services were not tired back…all for the sake of the $$$$. Of course the Fall prices will drop….they always have as that is off season. The state and travel services are to blame…..other places on the globe are less expensive. Hawaii you did his to yourself
Yes, it’s all of that and more!! Too crowded. Too expensive. Too many homeless. Too much price gauging. Hard to live on the islands, local people suffering. Tourists are needed but a big nuisance; their driving, attitudes, and so forth. Hawaii no ka oi. 🤙🏽
Hawai’i was not made for the cheap and disregarding entitled visitors. Mindful travel is needed – it is getting expensive everywhere. The high cost of Hawai’i tourism industry was created by the same culture of people that is was meant to serve – stop blaming the local people and communities – this toxicity was created by the ones who are complaining.
Yup funny how equity never seems to apply to those elitist that everyone serves.
So what are you saying, Hawaii is only for the rich? That’s not Aloha spirit, Bruddah. I have met plenty of very nice mainlanders who saved up for years to take their family here. And they are very respectful to the land. I have also seen the reckless wealthy who come here on a whim and do damage. I prefer the middle class who appreciate what they saved up for. They are better visitors.
We love the Big Island and have had timeshare units there for over a decade. However our most recent trip in May of this year really left us rethinking Hawaii. Food and gas were outrageous and $1200 for a weeks rental SUV was simply beyond belief. Many places have closed and for the first time we felt a bit unwelcome by locals. On Mother’s Day even the police set up a traffic trap at the bottom of a very steep hill in Hawi and wrote ticket after ticket to people for 10-15 miles over and hardly no other traffic anywhere to be seen. It just was no longer the Hawaii we came to love for all these years.,So while we are not selling our units just yet we may not return for a year or two.
Hawaii charges for every little thing now & the prices are crazy. You can’t go out to eat at a restaurant without booking 2 months in advance of your trip. 1 drink cost me $25 on my bill which shocked me at the Hula grill. Will never go there again. Car rentals too expensive. Food prices are exorbitant above before. Been traveling to Maui for 25 years now & will rethink future trips due to costs & all the added extra fees at hotels, restaurants & car rentals. Previous Amenities have been removed at many hotels/resorts & that’s what people want on vacation. Vacation is pamper/relaxing time with perks.
Prefer the way it was years ago. Welcome breakfast, complimentary happy hours and free activities at the resort that bring guests together.
The Old Hawaii is long gone
Funny how every generation says that. Listen to the song Waimanalo Blues by the truly great 1970’s group Country Comfort, same message. Hawaii will always be Hawaii, some will find what makes it special, some will just see what’s wrong
Places are closed hours are sporadic and cost are high. Still beautiful and will be back maybe not next year . Probably go to the Caribbean.
We have gone to Hawaii every year at least once and many times twice, in the last 23 years.
However we have not been back at all since the pandemic. The hoops you had to jump through were tiresome. Also we found costs had risen, in some cases by 35 to 40% for accomodations and food. You could not rent a car at all and if you could it was an increase of 300% to 400%. There were curfews. We have been going to Mexico instead twice a year in the last three years.
“Cost is the number one reason Hawaii visitors won’t be coming back” is the reason I am unable to return right now. It is my dream for my last visit to the islands to enjoy and retrace my Hawaiian steps from the 70’s. But, I just can not afford the car rentals, and room rates. I don’t care about the food costs as I can eat one meal a day and be satisfied, but absolutely pray that tourism slows down.The tempers cool, the land heals, the airlines re-hire, tsa lines shorten and I can experience one more time the real aloha flavor from first steps off the plane to turning the key to the condo.Just one more time please!
We spent 2 weeks in May 2022 on the Big Island. Prices were double from our last trip in 2019. We love Hawaii but cannot afford the lodging and car rental rates. So disappointing
We are booked for our 8th trip in the last 10 years to the Big Island in 2023. It may be our last-sadly. We love Hawaii, but cost-$35 for two hours public parking in Kona- really? Car rentals doubled. And a lot of what is mentioned above, some of it reasonably unavoidable, but $700 for a standard room Waikaloa hotel? What was most disappointing in our February 2022 trip was a sense of the loss of aloha in the Hawaiians who seemed stressed- maybe understandably-and less congenial tourists. Maybe a year of recovery will help. We feel fortunate for all the time we’ve had in Hawaii.
Living on the west coast, I will return to Hawaii. If I lived on the east coast, I would go to Caribbean/Bahamas/USVI/PR instead. Hawaii accomodations, book a condo, no hotels or high end resorts. Only one fine dining, rest food trucks or cook myself. Will continue adventures and excursions, but may not do as many. Car rental the entire time is a must. Hawaii is not a location I can visit yearly, but rather every 2-4 years.