Change had been brewing in Hawaii travel for years. Covid was the catalyst to fast-forward the inevitable.
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133 thoughts on “Hawaii Travel Re-Boot Underway: Will This Work?”
Change had been brewing in Hawaii travel for years. Covid was the catalyst to fast-forward the inevitable.
Get Breaking Hawaii Travel News
Went to Hawaii 2 weeks ago, Kauai . Simply beautiful great place. I can understand your tourism problems.
I fell in love with the islands during my first trip. Beautiful beaches, majestic sunsets and a breeze that smelled like flowers. 23 years and many trips later, i am disappointed. Locals were always friendly and treated me like an old friend until this trip. Post COVID Maui was cold and there was no aloha. I respect the locals and the island because i planned to someday make it my home. I understand the animosity towards some tourists but some of us love and want to preeserve Hawaii!
This is one of those cases where a few bad apples have ruined it for everyone.
Just came back from 0ahu on December 10th, flying was awful, I will not fly again until they remove the mask mandate. The locals were mixed some very rude and others okay. If they do not want me there there us plenty of other islands to see. Never going back
Lower hotel prices. Rooms doubled after Covid. I stayed in Maui pre-Covid and paid $300 per night. That same room is now $600 per night. Once resort fees are added it’s about $5,000 for 7 nights! And that is Just for hotel. Getting way too expensive. Sad because I love visiting Hawaii 😥
We go to Hawaii every year with the goal of finding new areas along the coasts to enjoy the beaches, walk trails and understand the the history and use of the islands. Our only concern is the homeless and their impact in these areas. Nationwide we need solutions for people who can’t seem to help themselves.
I hope that Hawaiian tourism will focus on a commitment to sustainability; Anyone traveling here will give back to the islands in equal measure to the bountiful gifts they receive by being allowed passage here. This can take many forms, but it should be the cornerstone of the tourism industry on these beautiful finite islands which define the ethos of “paradise”.
Do not continue to rely on tourism only, the State needs to look at diversity. The Pandemic brought many challenges yet also many new opportunities. We also need to expand our agricultural land and be less dependent on mainland imports.
Sorry Carol. I absolutely love Hawaii but the agriculture ship has sailed. Things that were once profitable like pineapple and the like just don’t have the profit margin anymore. I think it would be a wonderful place for institutions of higher learning for the rich but you will once again be subserviating the native population. Tourism breeds a variety of jobs (music, dancing, diving, surfing) where most other businesses require just worker bees. Once a place is popular it’s hard to go back.
Although tourism is important to the islands, it is also important to recognize the needs and respect for the local residents. Those of us who are residents are now seeing changes in the type of tourists coming, disregard for our land and culture as well as disregard for residential property. Our traffic is impacted, trails, beaches etc. The pandemic brought a huge awareness when no one came. Beaches and trails renewed. Travel companies need limit numbto control where they bring tourists.
As a former resident and frequent visitor who loves Hawaii I totally agree with Carol here. On the mainland they have game wardens to protect the animals and vegetation of both public and private land. One thing I hope everyone here will agree on is that we would welcome game wardens to protect the trails, flowers, and animals from tourists (and some locals) who either don’t know or don’t care about the damage they are causing. Aloha
Thank you!
I’m on Kauai currently, vacation. I swore in 2019 that was my last time. Always Stay in Ka’paa. The traffic!!! Horrific. And already so bad again. This little island can’t handle all these cars. I probably won’t come back.
2ndly, the price of food, prepared or not. Wowzer! Another reason not to return.
Thanks for your input Donna. Agreed…if you can’t propose and be part of a solution, don’t plan to come back. 🙂
Hi Donna, you should try staying in the sunny Poipu area. Traffic isn’t much of an issue unless you want to get to the north shore through Ka’paa… Also, you can almost always swim on the south shore any time of year! Yes, things are expensive but stay in a vacation rental and buy food for most meals and maybe go out for a treat now and then. Works for us!
Sorry Steven. I am fully vaccinated but also realistic to the fact that it is doing nothing to stop me from getting or spreading the Covid virus. I wish it did but results show it just doesn’t. A test before getting on the plane is the most reliable method.
We live in an area on the “Mainland” that’s been “discovered” for its natural beauty (since people can’t easily travel outside of the US). We are returning to Hawaii for our umpteenth time in May, and have no issue with the reservation systems for areas that can be overrun. Folks in our area are priced out the housing and rental markets because of non residents buying homes as ‘investments’ for vacation rentals.We are more than willing to spend $ to support local businesses, taxes and fees.
Given hi has good geothermal resources and good sources of water the state could be very competitive in the green hydrogen mkt which could produce billions in rev and thousands of good paying jobs. So no I don’t think tourism is the be and end all.
Plus hi faces competition from other pac isl that offer higher levels of services up and down the price pts. So really like an airline the bulk Travel pays the bills and premium makes the profit in terms of max tax rev vs costs.
I love your creativity, TD, but like solar geothermal is VERY expensive to implement and isn’t something you can just “do” for a population the size of Oahu.
I think the people who are vaccinated should be able to board by showing vaccine card instead of the extensive travel form.
I first visited in 1975 every year since 1989 for two months. The sanitation and maintenance crews can’t possibly keep up with the amount of people landing every day in Honolulu. The homelessness the filth And crime has become a deterrent. I will be resuming myvisits next year but not Waikiki. Kalakaua same as Rodeo Drive, not a plus. Today’s Room and board $ has cut my stay in half. I paid for my 2 mos in 2019 for 2020 when the airline stopped flying forced to cancel no condo refund $10K
Burn your money and stay where you are instead of going thru hell at the airports in order to come all the way here to do the same thing.
Yeah, the climete is great. As for aloha- dream on.
Hawaii is the “only” tourist destination where the local bus system does not accommodate or cater to tourists. Meaning no direct line to the airport from Waikiki or other neighborhoods across the island. And even more so no space for your luggage on airport specific bus lines? Most other countries have airport buses to and from the airport and city center were you can haul your luggage onto
The bus and either store it on a rack or keep it next to you. Not Hawaii!
As far as Covid, require tourists and cruises to be fully vaccinated and open up. There is no reason to remain shut down for vaccinated people.
Face it, Steven, vaccination does not do anything to prevent you from getting or spreading Covid. It’s supposed to make it easier on you if you should but I have a few vaccinated friends who suffered a lot when they got it. Please don’t spread the lie. Testing is the best method to prevent spreading of Covid.
I love Maui and Kauai. The Aloha spirit. When we travel there we decompress. We explore the beauty of the island. Loke to support the local economy. The ABC stores remain a favorite.
Traveling there in April.
“1/4 million direct jobs, and far more in related areas. With close to $20 billion in visitor spending”
Just want to run those numbers 20,000,000,000
÷ 250,000 = 80,000.
Someone is making huge profits off labor as the median salary from a tourism job is not 80k a year. If it were, locals would be doing better financially.
Cheap airfare encourages weekend hops and increased invasion of the Islands. It destroyed the charming traditions of Bermuda. Gone are Hamilton traditional department stores and charming Hamilton. Those who knew it not before cannot realize what has been lost!
Keep up the cheap tickets and the Hawaii of old is gone.
Ex-resident reading negative views about
visitors, yet their spending props up a
lousy state economy. There is nothing else
existing that does that! Put blame on the
airlines for super low fares that entice
the non-wanteds to sightsee HI! Grow crops
on former sugar & pineapple ag land before
they are subdivisions. Look within to see
lots of failures from local govt & how $$
are spent.Ridiculous that visitor tax fees
so high yet lousy roads & homeless people
roam around.
Lower prices on housing, hotels, restaurants, rental cars, airfare.
Molokai shows the tourism/local economic choices in stark contrast. Change is constant, so why not focus on a balance that moves towards sustainable based growth w/support for the tech & literacy that is required to make it happen? Let people come, enjoy and not adversely hurt the environment. Do so utilizing the fundamentals of building sustainable/low cost, efficient infrastructure.
Letting greed from distant Business interests run over your home is wrong. So is a polar opposite head in the sa
Hawaii may achieve all of the reduced tourism it desires.
All Hawaii must exchange for a reduction in the numbers of tourist is for its residents to accept the resulting revenue reductions and step up to replace them from within.
Just continue to raise tourism related prices/taxes as the offset? Perhaps in a very short term and limited manner. Hawaii cannot unilaterally escape the economic model that holds tourism as a price sensitive commodity.
Having just visited Hawaii recently I was actually pleased with the amount of precautions and restrictions. I felt much safer dining out and being in public knowing that visitors can’t even leave the airport without proof of vaccination and negative tests. I wish my own hometown, state would take these same precautions.
When crafting regulations, fees, and laws regarding tourism all parties should be fair and consistent:
-Make all laws and fees apply uniformly for tourist and locals. “local” discounts at public facilities only confuse people and are widely abused.
-Remember, tourism supports 216,000 jobs and contribute almost 18 Billion to the local economy.
-Show our pride and love for the Islands and its people by acting responsibly. It is appalling to me that a local can steal a catalytic convertor (person
So, let’s not ignore the 800 pound elephant in the room here. The tourism industry in Hawaii has no interest in curbing the increase in tourists. They need to show increased profits every quarter, and that means more tourists than last quarter. Since that industry has a significant political influence, the solutions to the problem will be difficult for Hawaii to get past it’s politicians. The long term solution is to reduce Hawaii’s dependence on tourism.
Do not go to HI until all the draconian Covid rules are lifted. So many other places are open including FL, AZ and Mexico. Just got back from Cabo. It’s wonderful there! No testing because we walked across the border and back through CBX. Vote with your pocketbook and don’t put up with rules that no longer make sense.
Check. Thank you for not coming.
You’re certainly free to take your vacation wherever you feed comfortable. But the problem that’s being discussed is that Hawaii has too many tourists. this was a problem before the pandemic, and continues even now. So how do they address that? Certainly the anti-pandemic folks boycotting Hawaii isn’t solving the problem since travel to Hawaii is to near, or sometime above pre-pandemic levels.
I’m sure they are happy to not have people with your attitude.
It’s that kind of attitude that got the US to 50,000,000 cases and 800,000 deaths. Please do stay away from Hawaii I’m sure they will be pleased about that.
Wow, me, me, me anti rules that protect others. Probably not the type that gets Hawaii. Enjoy the other places.
Get rid of the VRBO and Air B&B which never existed 20 years ago, restrict travel accommodations to the resorts and existing hotels and you will see an automatic reduction of tourism, yet still have tourism. If people only owned homes to live in and not rent out, you would also see a resulting glut of housing become available to the people who actually live and work on the islands. Just my humble option.
That would also drive up the price of accommodations (supply vs demand) which would offset some of the lost revenue due to the reduction in the number of tourists. Like I said, fewer tourists that spend more…
You have to get rid of the super cheap flights at the same time.
The environment cannot sustain this level of over-tourism. Everything from the trash and sewage tourists generate, to traffic congestion, to ignorant tourists who harass seals and turtles, it really needs to be reduced if the environment is to remain in/be restored to a healthy state.
Hotel capacity strictly capped at present levels on all islands; ditto rental cars. Visiting Hawaii should be treated as a privilege, with pledges to respect wildlife, etc. and emphatic education before entry.
We’ve only made one trip to Oahu in 2016. During a bus tour of the island, we were alarmed at the piles of garbage, mattresses, tires, and furniture that were discarded on the side of the roads. It looked like a third-world country. I doubt that the tourists left those things behind. As I’ve said before, Hawaii is destined to become a playground for those that are wealthy and politically connected.
We are Wicked8lava and run electric Bikes and lava hiking tours.
IMHO, Hawaii made things worse by taking extreme measures with domestic travel from other US states. There should be no difference from going from one US state to another.
Remove the specific Hawaii travel requirement for domestic travel.
Your comment is the opposite of the problem. The problem is too MANY tourists, not too few.
In the middle of the ocean with limited Medical facilities. Great idea.
I’ve been going to Maui for years, my latest concern is pre travel testing. I’m fully vaccinated including a booster. A test within 72 hrs is doable but not convenient where I live, the possibility of a 1 day test is impossible where I live.
Please focus all efforts so that it encourages sustainability and environmental health. From reefs to whales to farming take care of Hawaii. Demand this of tourists. Through communication and laws, travel taxes etc force us to see how we can contribute to Hawaii health. Move towards Hawaii as a holistic ecologically engaged experience
A few ideas:
Institute blackout periods within the year where travel is shut down for a week for all airlines. Gives locals a planned break.
Add high taxes for multiple trips per year. Everyone can come once at the low price, but it gets way higher to return same calendar year.
Tax all trips a little more.
Put ticketing systems in front of protected areas, similar to Haleakala.
All of your ideas would fall flat on their face and deservedly so.
As long as Hawaii depends solely on tourism to survive nothing will change. Focus on better education and the vast agricultural possibilities the islands provide. Give the people a reason to stay and the tools to make a livable wage in what could be a very lucrative agriculture industry and I believe you will see a major turn around. Right now children are basically destined to become waiters, waitresses and cleaning staff because that is what the islands are focused on. Give them hope.
Sheryl B –
This is spot on…
We have visited the islands at least 19 times over the past 35 years, and have seen changes. The last time we were there, was just as lockdown occurred. We were sorry to see that the Aloha spirit had disappeared. Signs were up-“VISITERS GO HOME”. It was disappointing to see. We love the people, the culture, and respect the land. We are hoping our upcoming trip will be a return to the true Aloha spirit.
Visitors should not expect the true aloha spirit to just appear for them that is not how it works. The visitors have to show respect in order to receive it. That means respecting our locals, following our rules so if a sign says do not go past even if you see others doing it you don’t do it. You don’t do illegal hiking trails just for the thrill of it, you don’t touch wildlife if you see them on the beach, you bring proper sunscreen so as not to damage our coral reef any further among others
and when we do this we’d appreciate not being yelled at, spit on, etc! we’ve been coming for 35 years and are good stewards of local businesses and environmental concerns yet almost without fail are treated badly by at least half of the people with whom we deal. I have seen the rude, unaware tourists mentioned here and they’re awful, but you can’t paint us all with the same brush…and not apply the same standard to the locals.
We were shocked t the homelessness in Waikiki. It was a deterrent from taking long walks on the beaches in the early mornings. Hawaii needs to address this issue!
I do not have any answers or ideas for you, but I do have a comment. We have been coming to Hawaii (mostly Maui) nearly every year since 1998, always in early December. I have never seen the beaches so crowded or as much car traffic as we have seen this year. I was expecting long wait times at restaurants, and slower service due to reduced staff, but the restaurants are doing an amazing job! We have tried to show our appreciation for fast, friendly service by tipping well
I’ve been visiting Hawaii for over 30 years. Pay me what I paid for my timeshare units, 30 years ago (this would be a great deal for you considering the increase in property values) . Release me from all (same) contract obligations. Then turn the resort into low income housing. I would happily walk away from the Islands and all those who don’t want us there. I would consider this a win-win for all concerned. There are many other places to visit on this planet.
Making HI accommodations, activities, and dining more expensive for visitors is the way to go. It’s called price elasticity of demand. Price increases will keep tourism down while maintaining the revenues needed for HI. We need to keep the locals engaged by having a kama’aina discounts on the aforementioned. Cease building new 1, 2, & 3 star accommodations, as Hawaii has enough of these. Airlines flying to HI should distribute info on HI – respecting the wildlife, coral reefs, and culture.:)
Why don’t you think that supply and demand is already in effect in Hawaii? Artificial restrictions on pricing will almost certainly backfire, and it is often noted that high prices can bring a sense of entitlement from those paying them. Pricing is already rising with demand, as recent accommodation and vehicle rental pricing shows. Hawaii is more accessible than ever, thanks to all-time low airfare, and that means more visitors. With limited accommodations, prices rise, and demand stabilizes.
Very good question! People might not mind spending a little extra money on Hawaiian travel and taxes if they know the funding will go towards keeping Hawaii beautiful. I think it’s time for the entire state to behave more like an eco-resort than like Disneyland. This way tourists will know they are helping to invest in Hawaii’s longevity.