Ige: Visitors… will not have the typical kind of (Hawaii) holiday they expect.” Important Hawaii travel news.
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177 thoughts on “Updated: Governor Asks That Visitors “Stop Hawaii Travel” For Now”
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Ige: Visitors… will not have the typical kind of (Hawaii) holiday they expect.” Important Hawaii travel news.
Get Breaking Hawaii Travel News
Comments are closed.
We are supposed to fly from Seattle to Oahu on Wednesday the 1st of Sept. What are the hotel resorts looking like, pools beaches restaurants, luau’s? Hawaiian airlines working with people to reschedule? 🤦🏼♀️😢 😫
I’m already scheduled to fly on Sept 12 on Hawaiian Airlines. I’ve purchased my air b&b and have a car reserved.
My party of three are all vaccinated. We believe in wearing our masks. We believe in social distancing.
Barring a state-imposed shutdown, I will visit as planned. I will be as respectful as I have been since I first started coming to Hawaii 24 years ago.
The Governor really ought to focus on the heart of the problem: community spread. If 2% of the cases are from visitors, then Hawai’i really needs to take a long look in the mirror. Scape-goating the tourists won’t solve the problem and neither will harming small businesses whose livelihoods depend on tourism dollars.
I cannot wait until this awful pandemic is over. Vax, mask and social distance, good people!
Mahalo!
Mahalo for respecting the practice of wearing your mask (my mask protects you – your mask protects me) and 6 ft. social distancing. You are the visitors that are appreciated when they come to the islands. Mahalo for spreading aloha.
Totally agree with you! Its the locals that the governor is speaking about. 2% of COVID is visitors, not a lot to ask us not to travel.
I waited 25 years to come back and will do what is required (I am vaccinated, wear my mask, try to stay social distancing when possible) I will test before I leave and when I return.
I’m praying for all the healthcare and front line workers since they are dealing with a lot.
Please everyone stay safe!!!
Mahalo!
Thanks for the update. What is the current guidance for those of us in the middle of our vacations?
Hi CL.
There was no guidance offered.
Aloha.
Please understand hawaii’s medical facilities and residents are stress. Visiting now would not be a vacation.
I am in shock right now! We had to cancel our Aulani trip last September. Then rescheduled this past June, because things were getting back to normal. Now this? We have reservations at Aulani for Sept. 30 thru Oct. 5, and I can’t believe we are faced with possible cancellation again!!!! What do I do?
We have a trip already scheduled to visit three islands in two weeks from today. I looked at what the same trip would cost in October or November or further down the road and it is several thousand dollars more expensive. Not sure what I should do at this point. This trip was a reschedule from last year’s lockdown.
I had to fly interisland for surgery. I was very uncomfortable with the long TSA lines, being required to check in,3 hours ahead and being by,chef together in the tea line ups with No Social Distancing Allowed.
Not the timetotravelto Hawaii at any savings.
This article saddens me. It is no person’s fault. It is the fault of the disease. In June 2020 I had to cancel my visit to Oahu – I was going to visit my Aunty and celebrate her 100th birthday. I promised I would be there to celebrate 101. I had to break that promise too. I would like to visit her sooner than later but I won’t take the chance and jeopardize her or my family on Oahu by potentially carrying the disease to the island. I wish others would do the same. I wish Hawaiians would remain in Hawaii so as not to perhaps bring the disease back when they return. But all traveling would be safe if everyone would get vaccinated. Mahalo for letting me vent.
Well said Sue…it’s the individual stories that have come out of this Pandemic
that sadden me the most, and now the people that were excited about coming to Hawaii after a rough year and have had that dashed is terrible. The kids that are having so much of their youth compromised, and the so many people who have died or had some close to them die. Sad situation all around.
Best to all and this will pass at some point…..
Whether you’re vaccinated or not, the virus can still infect you and you can be asymptomatic and spread it to people without even knowing it. That’s why it’s so important to limit your travel, unless it’s absolutely necessary. Anyone willing to travel during the pandemic assumes the risk that your travel plans may change and be derailed. I don’t feel bad that people’s travel plans are impacted. I feel bad that people don’t realize that there’s something more important happening around them and that they should be helping to stop the spread of the virus by not traveling.
The Governor thinks, the Governor “asks”.
That’s a first.
In my humble opinion a slow down is a good idea, but not slamming the brakes on.
Covid variant Delta is crazy on fire everywhere.
We cannot return to the way things were in the first Covid lockdown.
It’s proven that the vaccines and distancing work.
If anything, distancing should be first, before rolling back the numbers of people gathering together.
Having Ohana on the BI right now, the locals and visitors are all masking and distancing. Not everyone is reckless.
Please be safe and stay blessed.
Most of all be kind to others.
Mahalo Beat of Hawaii. You guys are incredible and we’re thankful for you and all you do for others.
🌺
Hi Pam.
Thanks. We appreciate you hanging in there with us through all of this and your thoughts on today’s announcement.
Aloha.
Well said also.
Maybe the Gov should ask residents to stop gathering at back yard parties and entertaining family in thought quarters as well.
Thank you for the excellent job of keeping us informed, we are scheduled to fly to Maui on Sept 21. Can you tell us if Hawaiian Airlines is going to loosen their policy regarding changes, I know United has done so and Southwest never had such restrictions. Any info would be helpful, Mahalo
Rich
Hi Rich.
Thanks. That’s a good question and one we’ve wondered about in terms of all the airlines that aren’t allowing changes. Not sure if anything will change now with that or not.
Aloha.
So please explain why it makes sense to ask visitors that are vaccinated to stay home instead of making residents traveling home to the islands to be vaccinated. All non residents traveling into Hawaii have to show proof of vaccination. Why don’t residents traveling into the islands have to show proof of vaccination to travel into the state?
Margaret,
Returning adult residents have to show proof of vaccination and children under 12 have to have a recent negative COVID test before they can fly home, at a cost of $165.
Not if they choose to quarantone which I doubt is happening
Jon D,
Yes, children under 12 DO have to have a negative COVID test within 72 hours before they can fly from the mainland back to Hawai’i. It cost $165 for each child two weeks ago. QuarantIning doesn’t have anything to do with it.
BOH,
Thank you for all you do in keeping us informed. You are the best!
Hi Nancy.
Thank you! We appreciate your many comments and your being helpful to others.
Aloha.
Nancy M – What you said is patently untrue. No one has to be vaccinated or show a negative test to fly home to Hawaii. Returning residents merely have to “say” they will quarantine for 10 days after returning home in order to not test. I seriously doubt many do, or else the cases in Hawaii would not be exploding as they are now.
Ed C,
Two weeks ago our daughter and her family returned from Portland to Maui on Hawaiian. The adults had to show proof of vaccination and the kids had to be tested within 72 hours.
Nancy M – You misunderstand. The only reason you have to be vaccinated or show a negative test is to avoid quarantine. You do not need either one to travel to Hawaii if you are planning on “quarantining”.
I suggest you go to hawaiicovid19.com/travel/getting-to-hawaii so you can read it for yourself. Scroll down to the “Quarantine Guidelines” section.
I will say it again. The ONLY reason you have to be vaccinated or show a negative test result is to avoid going into quarantine for 10 days when you arrive in Hawaii.
because vaccination does nothing to stop infection and spread. If youre not testing before travel you are part of the problem
Mahalo for this detailed news. What a racket this must be for travel insurance companies. I’m finding vacation rental companies are selling and pushing travel insurance. I don’t think most travel insurance covers you except in somewhat extreme circumstances, which I believe this announcement should count as such, yet it won’t because it is only a request. Wasn’t it just a request visitors cancel or leave in March 2020 too though? I got refunded everything then. Near-term visitors sure seem stuck between a rock and a hard place if they can’t move their travel plans. This variant is a major problem. We need more to get vaccinated and we need to approve it for children under 12 to alleviate the healthcare system.
My husband and I have plans to visit November 10-23. He is adamant that we go, but I am very hesitant. He is in his early 70’s I am in my late 60’s, both fully vaccinated and awaiting a booster.
Any suggestions?
We have a trip planned for Oct 16 to 29 to main island. I want to respect the governor’s guidance but still hope 6 weeks from now it will be better. Thoughts?
I have a question BOH:
I know for a fact that a vaccinated friend and her husband who are traveling to the islands in the next couple of days went ahead and took a 72 hour pretest to cover themselves. Well, the husband tested negative and the wife positive for Covid-19. She stated to me that she already put in their vax card info to the Safe Travels site and will be flying there anyway. How is this fair? She tested positive, is vaccinated yet she can still travel to Hawaii?
Hi Lisa.
That’s crazy. Thanks for your many comments.
Aloha.
its not crazy at all
its yet another example of how selfish people will exploit a broken system. you should report them if you care about saving lives.
I felt safe travelling to hawaii on long flights earlier this year when i knew that everyone was tested. Now its a total crap shoot that youre not in a middle seat with superspreaders on both sides
This is terrible! She will be on a plane contaminating other passengers! Is there any way you can report this to the airline anonymously fir the sake of others?
She will be sorry when she ends up being in quarantine or sent home.
This I’m sure would be a more common occurrence if people tested. As I mentioned in a prior post. The data started showing a spike in cases 7/12. 7/7 was the last day to be tested. Coincidence? Umm no. Israel data shows in June that vaccines where off radpidly month over month. We were fed a line that people wanted to hear and they were more than happy to go along with it.
I don’t think the major contributor was the change in testing requirements. The biggest changes in July were an increase in passenger count (more than 2x the passengers that arrived in May) and the Delta virus becoming more prevalent.
Keeping the testing requirements in place may have helped to some degree but with this many visitors and residents returning from the mainland, many passengers will arrive with COVID and not be detected because it takes 3 to 5 days for folks with COVID to shed the virus.
The reason people started showing up was because there were no testing requirements. More people bigger crowds more spread. People relaxed I’m vaccinated no problem.
When I had Covid (last winter) the city health department was calling me within a day of my positive test. I assume it does get reported and hopefully this woman either gets caught or decides to do the right thing!
I’m afraid that there’s the possibility that any of us who are vaxxed could test positive–breakthrough cases of Delta.
Aloha BOH Bro’s
You are on the ground on Hawaii what are your feelings on this matter?
By the way I’m sitting in a restaurant in Monterey over looking the bay. It’s packed….
Hi Richard.
We’re frustrated that more wasn’t done sooner since this has obviously been escalating for months. We wonder how tied the state’s hands are now in terms of doing much. Curfew, sure, limiting gather size, yes, but stopping flights, not likely. When the quarantine stopped being supervised at all (and frankly it wasn’t good even when it was quasi-supervised), that seems to have been among critical failures in all this too. Anyway, it’s easy to second guess it all, but it is frustrating and concerning all the way around at so many levels.
Aloha.
It may be helpful to some of you watch the Governor’s press conference. He is requesting that people not travel to Hawaii and for residents not to travel unless it is essential because there are no ICU beds . There is no option for setting up an additional overflow area because that requires federal money and every state is facing the same . Airline tickets do not have change fees . Car rentals from reputable companies do not have penalties. Hotels and condos may allow you to reschedule since Governor Ige has made this request. Ask yourself if a vacation is worth coming to Hawaii if you end up laying in a hallway and there is no ICU bed available for you, your child , or your loved one. That is the reason he made the request . If your answer is you are okay with that , then come on over and be as safe as possible . Make sure you buy travel insurance . If you do not think tourist have come here and died of covid , do some research . An 11 year old boy died of covid after traveling to Hawaii back in the spring . It was reported in the national news . Both parents were vaccinated .
USA Today
The Hawaii Department of Health said Tuesday that the boy is under 11 and had known underlying conditions.
“While we mourn all victims of COVID-19, today’s announcement of the death of a child from this virus is especially heartbreaking,” Gov. David Ige said in a statement. “Dawn and I express our deepest condolences to the family and loved ones of this child.”
It was the first coronavirus-related death of a child in that age range in Hawaii.
Thanks. Solid post.
And ur point? I’ve has still mismanaged this from the start
I just returned from the islands in July. We had a wonderful vacation. I’ve been to Hawaii several times and other than putting on a mask to shop and to get inside a restaurant it was really no different on Oahu. Big Island was a little more strict, but not aggressively so. Because my sister lived there for a number of years, I know many of the locals. All most all of them are sick of masks and have had it with mandates. As a regular visitor to Hawaii, I am very grateful that I made it during the time where mask requirements were dropped for outside and some of the precautions were not as intense. My vacation was cancelled last year and this was a makeup trip because I could not get all of my money returned (airlines mostly). Therefore, I understand people who can’t get a refund. However, I am honestly telling you that if you have insurance and you can get a refund then, DO NOT GO TO HAWAII!!! They do not want visitors there. Hawaii is not what you think it will be. This is by design of the governor. Honestly, I was treated nicely by the majority, but the really ugly mean and nasty people were the VISITORS themselves! Be careful getting on the elevator! Elevators seem to be a haven for rudeness and I can see how it could turn very ugly quickly as I was often scared. Having said all of this, I love Hawaii, but it just isn’t worth it right now. I truly believe if there really is a major Covid outbreak in Hawaii it is because the locals are going to Vegas. Not to be rude to the locals, but Vegas is all they talk about and I don’t hear Ige addressing that at all! I also believe that they are scaring people to death so that they get the vaccine. I am vaccinated because I wanted to be. If you don’t want to be then it is your choice and our government needs to stop with the scare tactics. Ige is ruining peoples lives in Hawaii. There are not enough workers now to handle the tourism and that’s another reason why they don’t want visitors there!
Amy, as a Big Island local I really like your post. You describe the situation really well — the problems with Vegas, rude and entitled visitors. There is one more area I’d like to add: I think all of us locals had been very very tired of excessive tourism before Covid even started. Yes, tourism is our economic engine, sure, but look at the changes it brought to our island even before Covid even started? No offense intended, but our Kailua Kona area, for example, used to be “Country” and now it is American suburbia, a jungle of highways, homelessness, generic shops & gas stations, Big Box stores, parking lots, constant noise. We can all remember how it looked like just a few years ago, when it truly was a paradise on earth and luminaries like Steve Jobs would think it low key enough to vacation here. Those days are gone! Tourism and part time residents bying real estate away from locals had been increasingly impacting our lifestyles for a long time, altering it to become nearly unrecognizable. Many of us are very frustrated because our local government has often been part of the problem by allowing this to happen, even encouraging it. Vegas is for many of us the only escape from a terrible situation where life has been upended by large scale industrialized tourism.
Leilani,
Thanks for your kind response. I can see why the locals would be upset. You have a beautiful island….its my personal favorite. I’ve tried to convince my sister many times to move there, but she likes Oahu and has said she would only consider moving if it were to Maui, otherwise she is happy. I suppose that is what makes people different. I would hate to see Big Island get any more commercialized. I blame a lot of this on the airlines, but you have made some excellent points that I agree with. Take care and stay safe. BTW- I am drinking coffee that I got from one of my favorite little coffee farms there…. 🙂
I’m a local and I don’t know a single person going to or obsessed with going to Vegas. Perhaps your sister’s crowd, but it is NOT EVERY LOCAL.
Diana J,
I apologize. I didn’t mean to offend and you are correct, it is NOT every single local obsessed with Vegas. The point I am trying to make is that things have changed in Hawaii. It is wall to wall people and it has an air of rudeness that is coming from the visitors. This last trip was the worst I have ever seen it. If visitors aren’t nice to other visitors then I can’t image how they are to locals who have to deal with it and can’t get away from it. There are more and more people coming to the islands perhaps because of the low airline prices and all of this is scary in a covid world. I accept that I am part of the problem and now that I don’t have to worry about losing money, I won’t return. I will live with my happy memories. Again, I apologize.
Stone age culture sorry they are, loved them til I discovered this. Vegas?,,,,,rest my case
And they hate us, I knew IZ BUT that was ages ago, it’s awful now.
I am wondering what will happen if there is a lockdown and visitors have accommodations
reservations that are non-refundable ( ie VBRO). I am hoping to be on Oahu for the entire month of February to visit family. I have insurance but am still concerned about not being able to get my money back.
Hi, we are planning a trip over Labor Day weekend. We already had to postpone our trip last September due to COVID. With the Governor’s request to stop pleasure travel at this time, do you think the airlines are willing to provide a travel credit again, for an extended time? I am a little nervous about traveling to Oahu at this time, but certainly don’t want to lose my airfare from Hawaiian Airlines. I would appreciate your thoughts on this. Thanks in advance for your response back.
Hi Carla.
Here is where that stands as of today. https://beatofhawaii.com/airlines-again-offer-free-changes-on-all-hawaii-flights/
Aloha.
Thank You Beat of Hawaii for the updates, they have been very helpful. People need to realize that the vaccine is the way to keep yourself safe. Yes, you can still be infected with COVID, but chances of surviving is high when you are vaccinated. Hospitalizations will be lower and there will be ICU beds for those that cannot be vaccinated or have underlying conditions that put them at greater risk. These are the people that need the beds, not the people that are scared of a vaccine that is fully approved.
Stop the tourists for less than 2%? People need their heads checked. Cannot keep paying people for staying at home. Get vaccinated and do your part to save yourself.
We are schedule to leave in 5 days. It was hard to get the time off to go, and this is for a trip that was scheduled in March of Last year, rescheduled to August, then January and now August/September. We cannot reschedule at this point as this is as far as the reschedules will take us without 100% penalties. Our plans are to walk, hike, read and rest, no big crowds or gatherings. We have our vaccinations, we have our masks, and hand sanitizer and will socially distance as needed. They advised they would not make any more plans without 2 week notice, so we plan to go.
We are in the same proverbial boat. We plan to just relax and cook at the condo as much as possible. I am fairly confident that with vaccine and doing all the right things we should be safe. We are two days out from travel…. I just hope we aren’t on the same flight as the above mentioned woman who tested positive but is going to go anyway… oy.
Thanks BOH for this update —you guys are the best!
Hi Cindie.
Thank you. We appreciate your first time comment and hope to see you back soon.
Aloha.
So we paid for plane, place to stay, & activities- now what do we do? Thanks
Hi David.
Depending on the airline, you may be able to change (https://beatofhawaii.com/airlines-again-offer-free-changes-on-all-hawaii-flights/), that may or may not be the case with accommodations and activities.
Aloha.
People are selfish and should just stay put for now. That goes for visitors and kamaaina alike.
Use your downtime to understand that the world doesn’t revolve around you.
Agree!
Exactly, don’t understand this rush to go. I lived there 15 years on Maui and Oahu and have many friends but I’ll wait. Interesting how some say others must sacrifice but then they don’t.
Me and my wife have a vacation, planning to arrive in Kauai on September 7th for 10 days. It has been in the works since last summer and paid for since the first of June this year and a car rental reserved since April. Is what the Governor is asking something that is going to be enforced? Please let me know your thoughts
Thank you for all the BOH information
Bill
Hi Bill.
We don’t have anything more creative or informative to add at this point. Obviously, we’ll keep updating this as more is learned. What we already said is this. The governor suggests you don’t come during the next two months. We don’t have a crystal ball and honestly just don’t know what is going to happen or whether further restrictions could even be put in place. If you are able to reschedule that would certainly seem to be the very best plan.
Aloha.
Travelers don’t want to deal with rescheduling and no refunds.
Hawaii needs to bring back preflight testing and make it mandatory for all since the majority of new cases are resulting from residents traveling to the mainland then returning to spread Covid within their communities. Resident could potentially impact travelers on the same flight..
Unfortunately will not traveling to Hawaii in the next 2 years. Don’t think I’m alone. Have always respected the people, culture and land, but cannot handle the constant yo yo-ing. Praying this pandemic ends soon.
No one expected the surge of COVID cases. Especially me, when I booked our trip to Maui in March that is now only 10 days away. At this point, we are both vaccinated, work independently with social distance, and will continue with our plans. We will be, as a safety measure, have the 72 hr COVID test prior to our departure. Now, hopefully, rather than point fingers at the visitors (2%), the governor needs to work on aggressive measures to vaccine or protect the residents of their beautiful state.
Let’s be honest with ourselves – tourists are not the primary problem of the uptick in COVID (2% to 15% of the cases depending on how you measure and who you believe). This makes sense – the primary spread of COVID happens indoors especially in tight quarters. Tourists aren’t attending local churches and weddings and they are not bring the virus into the family home. Encouraging tourists to stay home will do nothing to solve the problem.
Hi Paul.
Thanks for all your comments! We appreciate it.
Aloha.
We had just made the decision to cancel our trip to Maui at the end of October, then saw your article. I guess we made the prudent, though upsetting, decision.
I feel for the people of Hawaii.
Thank you for the information.
Lanell
Hi Lanell.
Thanks. You, we know, we’ll see again.
Aloha.
Dear Lanell, I have decided to postpone my April (2022) trip until 2023. I just don’t feel comfortable traveling right now with the cases so high! Stay safe! You will go to Hawaii when it is meant for you to go😊 God bless you….psalms 91:11😇
I agree that right now isn’t a good time to travel anyplace that has very high cases. We as human beings need to do things to protect each other! Stay safe 🙏 be blessed!😇
If fewer than 2% of cases are traceable to visitors to the islands, it’s difficult to see how discouraging 2% of the problem from happening will have any impact. The Governor ought to be taking aggressive action to reduce the impact from his own residents – over whom he does have authority.
That is because they stopped testing visitors once we thought if you are vaccinated you are okay but that isn’t the case anymore
True that!
Whatever that action is, should apply to ALL. Just because tourist make up 2% of the cases, doesn’t mean it’s primarily the fault of the Islanders. It only takes one tourist to spread it to the locals, by visiting and interacting with people that live and work there. By the time they learn that they’re infected, they’ve already passed it around their local circle. That’s how the virus replicates itself. The virus doesn’t just manifest itself magically. It came from abroad.
I agree. That’s the only fair way to do it. It doesn’t really matter how many cases are attributed to returning residents or tourists. Just test us all. Every person not tested is a threat, and we’ll never climb out of this hole until we reduce that threat.
I presumed there had been efforts at contact tracing to verify incoming tourists had not started the chain of transmission – otherwise I don’t know that a percentage would be assignable at all. Regardless, discouraging tourism without concurrently addressing residents traveling and spreading the virus seems like a bandaid on a sucking chest wound.
Hawaii needs to test residents prior to flying to Mainland and again prior to returning. Too bad they can’t measure the infections coming from the 9th island – Las Vegas. Residents especially should also be tested for inter-island travel.
I felt safe going to Kona + Maui in April/May because I knew everyone on the plane had tested negative.
I was amazed at the local resort workers who felt no need to get the vax. ‘We’re going wait’ Yet Grandma was babysitting, kids on sports team had coaches who tested positive.
So perhaps the big resorts + timeshare companies – Wyndham, Diamond, Hilton etc should require the vax for employees.
Amen! I don’t see the governor doing anything to control the 98% of the problem. Do any of the local news organizations
ever ask any tough questions at these press conferences?
Shutting down tourism this time will really damage the local economy even worse that the previous shut down because
there will not be a federal ‘bail out’ coming from Washington .
Federal money encouraged some locals to ride things out enjoying the fact that there were no tourists on the roads or at the
beach. it will be a little uglier this time.
No visitor would ever get tested they’d be stuck there for 2 weeks in quarantine. They should never have stopped testing. Look at the data the week after the spike started.
What do you guys recommend? I am all for complying if I can get my money back on airline tickets and resort stays (Kauai: Hannalei Colony and Waimea Plantation) or better yet, delay another month (Currently, Oct 5-13).
Thank you so much.
Hi Babette.
The governor suggests you don’t come during the next two months. We don’t have a crystal ball and honestly just don’t know what is going to happen. If you are able to reschedule that would certainly seem to be the very best plan.
Aloha.
If Hawaii is open, people will come. Period. The Gov asking people not to travel to Hawaii is a complete and utter waste of breath. The Big Island Mayors request to reinstate pre-travel testing is under review … review of what? The pre-travel test program is not new, its a yes or no. How can there be legal restrictions when there were none before?
Thank you for keeping us informed
I’m just wondering there are some of us humans that can not have vaccines we should not be forced to do so .my body,my mind,my soul
And this testing. there are some of us that
Can not afford 300 dollars per test some of us Americans live on a low income and just want to go see our grandkids and family
If they are going to make testing mandatory the government should pay for it .
It just seems like this is all for people who have money to travel but not the rest of us normal folks. Some of us are willing to do the 10 day quarantine ill do 14 days and no some of us will not break that rule.
What is this country turning into…….
Thank you to all who have served and who are still serving bless you thank you and be safe ….Mahalo
So, what does a person do if scheduled 2 weeks on Kauai, starting mid September, past cancel date for lodging, $5000+ airline tickets, non refundable +/- $2000 for rental car??? Yes, I would love to heed the governor’s request, but cannot even afford to do that! HELP
Purchasing Trip Insurance should’ve been a priority, if you’re paying that much for everything.
If you read the fine print of most Trip Insurance Policies, pandemics are not covered. We found that out the hard way.
Aloha, I am in a similar predicament. I have rescheduled twice, which caused increased cost in airfare and I lost my original travel insurance, purchased it over again, but it covers you for a death in family, or if you actually catch covid. Not thinking this would be covered. It’s past cancel date for my lodging too. I don’t want to go and feel unwelcome, or end up with booked activities shut down. Can’t afford to lose my 2 weeks paid lodging. Such a predicament. We got fully vaccinated just to take this trip. We want to be considerate of the people of Hawaii, and of our hosts too. Mahalo for your advice.
Hi Carol.
Yes, it is a serious predicament all the way around. Repeating what we said to Babette, The governor suggests you don’t come during the next two months. We don’t have a crystal ball and honestly just don’t know what is going to happen or whether further restrictions could even be put in place. If you are able to reschedule that would certainly seem to be the very best plan.
Aloha.
$5000 airline tickets that are non-refundable, if you are willing to pay that during a worldwide pandemic it seems that you should be able to just forfeit it. It’s spent money so you could afford it apparently. You certainly have not paid for the car so that’s no loss. And, think of the money you will spend while in (always pricy) Hawaii. I’d suggest cutting your losses now.
Easy for you to say since you’re essentially anonymous, PM (no name)! Are you saying that if you purchased a new car (that you saved up years for), and the dealership said, “We’re just going to take your money and not give you a car”… that it wouldn’t be a hardship for people?! Yes, I get that loss of life is not involved.
For some of us, Hawaii is a Once-in-a-lifetime trip, or in our case, we were trying for “twice”. We were going to retrace our footsteps from our honeymoon 20 years ago. Just because we save up our money for 3 years, doesn’t mean we can just throw it all away and start over with nothing. I read many people on here saying, “I go to Hawaii all the time!” Maybe you should direct your comments to them. That is not the case for some of us. My husband and I are fully vaccinated and already signed up for the booster. We have been isolating, wearing masks, not gathering with family. We don’t eat indoors in restaurants. Haven’t spent a night away, let alone a vacation (last vacationed, 3 yrs ago) Have been doing all this for over a year. I’m shocked at how much of the country is disrespecting everyone everywhere by taking everyone’s lives so lightly… this is not just happening to HAWAII.
Against my better judgement, I scheduled this trip after the president told us all is well in July, “Take off your mask, travel, gather, and enjoy the 4th!”. I should’ve known better than to listen to He Who is Doing Little About This Pandemic.
What does this mean for schools? Universities in particular? My daughter is there at BYU Hawaii in Laie, do the number limits apply to classroom settings? Thank yoi
Hi Lorelle.
We don’t know the answer but suggest you check with the school directly.
Aloha.
This seems absolutely pointless. Especially if people are stuff with penalties for cancellation. We have a DVC membership and reservations for aulani. If I cancelled now, I’d lose the points. Without the government forcing it, some people won’t have the ability to cancel.
Make sure you check with your program on refunds. We were able to be fully refunded due to Covid. Many businesses, rental cars, etc. are refunding without penalties. If you cannot get a full refund, I would suggest rescheduling further out. That was also an option given to us. We never ever purchased insurance until this year. With so much unpredictable scenarios we decided to pay the extra for insurance. Good luck.
Thank you for the update. Oahu family and I keep trying to visit. 3rd try in 2 years. Aloha will wait for now. Being smart on the mainland. Being smart in the islands. Alpha Nui Loa.
We leave 3 weeks from today for Kaua’i. Is he going to reimburse us for our prepaid, non-refundable at this point condo reservation?
Yep… this. Exactly this.
SWA should be the first to pull way back…nothing personal but they have flooded the market in their efforts to break in to Hawaii…..
Thank you for the summary of today’s press conference. We are scheduled to travel in a few weeks to see family on Kauai and while we understand the Governor’s request and want to respect the wishes of the residents, it is too short notice to get refunds with just a government “request” (especially since we used a flight ticket from a 2020 covid-canceled trip). We’ve already gone into our own “lockdown” mode and are wearing masks when we do have to go out in order to ensure we travel virus free but I don’t think we’ll be able to cancel without losing a significant amount of money. It’s a tough situation.
Please stay home! We know it is inconvenient for many of you but it is the right thing to do
My wife and I are coming to Hawaii at the end of September to the big island. I m sorry, but I am not going to cancel our vacation. It is not my fault that the State of Hawaii has a substandard medical system and some of their residents choose not to get vaccinated. Since NY got rid of Cuomo and we here in CA hope to get rid of Newsom, maybe Hawaii should dump their imcompetent Governor as well. I am tired of those of us who are vaccinated being scapegoated and blamed for events that we had nothing to do with.
Yes staying home should be the thing to do.
Why book trips or rebook trips during a pandemic.???
Life and health is more important than a trip.
Always another flight or lodging etc .
We are not planning any trip any where until it is safe.
people traveling every where is why we are back where we are now.
Many many vaccinated people are getting sick and transmitting the covid to other travelers.
I would not want to experience PARADISE when it i s not like pre pandemic PARADISE.
it will be back let the islands recover.life and health is number 1 .
Dear Erika, I decided last week to postpone my April 2022 trip until 2023 because I just don’t feel comfortable traveling right now with the cases so high. I’ve waited all my life to come to Hawaii for my dream vacation trip, so what is alittle more time?! 🐢🐠🌺🌸🍍🥥🌏🛩🌈⛱🌊🌞🕶🩱🩴👒📅
This guy gets it.
nope. This will only destroy Hawaiian Airlines. All the other airlines are so large they can eat the Hawaii downturn.
In the end the State will have the same Covid end result but have destroyed the economy and its local airline.
This will allow SWA to take over Hawaii.
Enjoy the bed you’ve made Ige, Green et all
Yep, destroys economy, lives,.. Another problem: Since it is not a mandate, just a “suggestion”… Responsible people doing all the right things and not spreading covid, will comply and stay home. Those that have been irresponsible and doing whatever they want… (How many of you know people who refuse to get vaccinated, or wear a mask, or social distance, not go to weddings/funerals/parties/movies/restaurants/concerts, etc.?) … those are the people who are still going to show up in Hawaii. Seems like there could be a better option.