More taxes are confirmed for your Hawaii hotel or vacation rental. Prepare for some sticker shock.
230 thoughts on “Honolulu Latest to Hike New Accommodation Tax: Highest in US”
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Why have the HTA spend $100 million to encourge tourism, then, at the same time be looking for ways to limit the number of tourists? Hawaii is the most screwed up place I can think of.
Maui may be pricing many people out of range for a vacation there. East coast travelers may indeed decide to stay and travel to Florida or the Caribbean since it is much closer with not much need of a rental car.
I find it disheartening that the state continues to raise the cost of travel to the hawaiian islands. It seams as though they don’t want travel to resume. I love going to Hawaii but they are pricing my family out of their state. Thank you for the wonderful memories.
Same here😕
Every government agency in Hawaii is either completely incompetent, corrupt, inept, wasteful–or in many cases–all of the above. The HTA is no different. The state and counties’ complete (mis)handling of the recent epidemic simply highlighted the same basic problems that plague EVERY Hawaiian state and county agency. When you live off tourism for decades, frankly, you just get lazy, stupid people in every key government position. And Hawaiian voters are well-known for electing officials who simply promise and /or deliver more free hand-outs.
Unfortunately this race to the bottom won’t end until the state and counties have crumbled to the ground completely and have been buried in debt. (The state was over $10,000,000,000 in debt BEFORE the pandemic… that number is proably more like $12 to $13 billion now.)
For as long as there have been tourists and travelers and pilgrims there have been thieves and highwayman to waylay and rob them along their journeys. In some places they use guns and knives… in Hawaii they use taxes and fees.
Hawaii is pricing themselves out of the travel market with the added taxes. With the influx of people coming to visit now that should help a lot. Hawaii says it is overwhelmed with tourists. Shouldn’t that help recover from the loss during the pandemic? We love to come and truly love Hawaii. I hope that the extra taxes will go to help the working people who are struggling. Will that happen? Will they help keep the hotels and other accommodations open?
Mahalo for the article, I hadn’t understood this from the Maui Now’s article. Yesterday I was looking at some condos on VRBO and was surprised at the “resort” fees, “admin fees”, this on top of the VRBO service fees and cleaning. A 4% tax raise should really the least of people’s worries, imho.
Lanell
Seems like it would be aot simpler to just put up “NO TOURISM” signs! With special tourist only fees for parking and entering sightseeing locations, ridiculous car rental rates, and now an increased accommodations tax, it is clear that the State is becoming very anti-tourism.
If you don’t want us or our money, why not be up-front about it and say so. The state can use a those empty hotel rooms to support the many new homeless they will create.
Totally agree. As far as I’m concerned, it’s sanctioned extortion of tourists. It’s also astounding to me how the fees keep going up and yet there is no sign of it helping those who need it most. The homeless population (at least on Oahu) is exploding. It is horrible & immoral that none of this revenue seems to be used in a way that can alleviating the suffering.
We were charged 18% tax on our hotels in the Caribbean Islands over 30 years ago. It’s part of traveling.
Its obvious Hawaii wants to return to its uncivilized, primitive private little islands. The state has demonstrated that again and again by taxing the heck out of tourists and making it difficult for them to tour Hawaii. The governor has forgotten that HawIi IS part of the USA and that in the USA we are free to travel between states as we desire. Hawaii complained during covid that there was no income from tourism. Now they are complaining because they think there is too much tourism.
Now the state is trying to make it impossible for people to afford visiting the state by increasing fees and taxes. Shame on you all over there!
Wow, can’t imagine want they’d not want you to visit. /s
Florida is calling!
I just can’t let this comment go. Your sense of entitlement is breathtaking.
“Uncivilized, primative”? please stay home and keep your hateful attitudes with you.
Peggy I live in Michigan and since GM has pulled most of their business out of the state, we rely more and more on tourism dollars, yes sometimes it feels like one more festival or traffic jam will be to much; but it is a beautiful state surrounded by water and we love to share its beauty. I would welcome you here anytime.
If COVID-19 taught us anything it should be the aloha spirit that should be shared across the world.
Creed should not take over or our lesson was not learned. We are better together!
Together is definitely better, that is why I was so taken aback by this sentence:
“Its obvious Hawaii wants to return to its uncivilized, primitive private little islands.”
It’s depressing to read this sentiment in this day and age.
For my family, visiting Hanauma Bay is now out of the question. It’s just too expensive, so we’ll search for other locales on the islands to explore. If they bite the hand that feeds them, HTA and counties may get more money through the accommodations tax, but the trade off may be less discretionary money spent at the local businesses. Sad. My frustration is that not all locals pay an amount in taxes that would equal the add-ons costs that are being placed on the tourist. The line that ‘locals are free and visitors pay’ doesn’t set well. There are many beautiful third-world places in the world. Hawaii should quit striving to become one of them by alienating tourists. They need tourism more than tourists need Hawaii.
Well said