Hawaii Tourism Authority said that over 32,000 people arrived on Sunday as the peak of summer travel gets underway. Hawaii vacation numbers are back to just about the same strength as pre-Covid. In fact, next month, we will likely see some all-time tourism records broken.
The reasons are clear, Hawaii is wonderfully exotic yet safely domestic and is still relatively easy, while travel to Europe, for example, is still not. It seems like international travel is better postponed at least a little longer because rules are changeable and confusing at best.
But everything isn’t great. There are still some big concerns about Hawaii vacations, and they are not inconsequential.
When will testing stop: Lt. Gov. says it must be before July 4 holiday.
As you know, Hawaii is waiting to reach 60% fully vaccinated. That is when Governor Ige said he would drop the pre-travel testing program for mainland arrivals who are fully vaccinated.
As of the latest data, Hawaii stands at 57%. Ige said yesterday, however, that “The number of vaccines administered in the last week is significantly lower than the number of vaccinations administered two weeks ago.”
Yesterday, Lt. Governor and likely gubernatorial candidate Josh Green said that Hawaii must change the rules before the July 4 holiday so that “Hawaii not get a black eye by being unclear” and to prevent “a lot of confusion and a lot of large conflicts.”
Governor Ige remained non-committal regarding Green’s request but indicated he would work with the state health department to arrive at a date to be announced soon. He apparently does not share the same concerns as Lt. Gov. Green.
If testing doesn’t get you, then airline cancellations will.
Airlines from American and Southwest to United are canceling flights due to various reasons, the most notable of which is a lack of pilots. Both American Airlines and United Airlines have addressed this situation publically. Also, we saw two Southwest Hawaii flights were canceled just yesterday. So this raises a concern for Hawaii vacation-bound travelers. It is likely too soon to know how serious a problem this could become, but we are keeping an eye on it. Those airlines seemingly unaffected thus far include Alaska Airlines, Delta Airlines, and Hawaiian Airlines. And, all of this may be a call to consider trip insurance if you didn’t already have enough reasons.
Hawaii travel tries to keep pace with demand.
There’s no doubt about it. With a lack of staff, the entire Hawaii hospitality industry is struggling to keep up. And this is creating a lot of stress all the way around. If you ever wanted to work in Hawaii, this may be your chance!
We went from early March, with no visitors and deserted beaches, to an unexpectedly fast return to normal. No one was ready. In addition, many workers chose not to return to jobs at hotels, restaurants, etc. Businesses are unable to hire people to meet demand, and we hear this on the ground repeatedly. Those willing to work are working overtime, while those still on unemployment may consider themselves “retired” from the Hawaii travel biz.
Perfect storm Hawaii car rental crisis unabated. Creative choices do exist.
The car rental shortage with concomitant exorbitant prices continues. At least until August, cars are starting from $150 to $200 a day for the Hawaii airport locations we checked today Thereafter, depending on the island, prices “start” to come back down from the stratosphere, although it is looking like $100 a day may become the new base “normal” for Hawaii car rentals well into the future.
We recently spoke with a vacation rental manager who told us that they had secured 25 cars to create their own rental pool for guests. That may have saved those Hawaii vacation rentals from cancellations that might otherwise have ensued.
The bottom line here is to be creative. Read all the latest tips and tricks (plus nearly 400 visitor comments) on Hawaii car rentals. Then ask your accommodation provider if they have any leads on more reasonably priced car rentals. It can’t hurt to ask.
What happened to Hawaii vacation rentals?
There has been a run on Hawaii vacation rentals as well, and they are very hard to come by at the moment. Just saying. We’ll cover that in more detail soon.
Get Breaking Hawaii Travel News
Aloha, Things will be getting better on July 8th! However, today is not so good. American Airlines cancelled our daughters trip from Baltimore to Dallas to Maui. The tickets were purchased in March and American rescheduled twice. She was coming to visit us with her husband and children 2, 5 and 8 years old. They had their COVID tests in order, got up at 4:00a.m. to drive an hour to the airport. While on the airport parking shuttle bus they got word that their flight had been cancelled. After 2 hours of waiting in line and then on the phone they got a rebooked flight for tomorrow that will involve a longer ride and a hotel room in Washington D.C. The $700 in preferred seats that were purchased so they could sit together could not be transferred to the new tickets, only refunded in the next 10 days. Also their COVID tests have to be rescheduled and paid for again. So glad she is the kind of person who is flexible and can stay positive through the airlines debacle. American Airlines needs to do better. It is unconscionable that they continue to book so many flights and cancel with such little notice.
Hi Janet.
Thanks for sharing that very unfortunate situation that occurred.
Aloha.
We recently came back from a trip to Hawaii, Big Island and we got a good deal because we booked back in November. After returning the car, there was a normal amount of sand in the car. Nothing more that previous times we’ve been there. I got a letter a week later that they’re charging me $450 for excessive sand in the car. I think the car rental companies thought they could make some extra money that way. When I returned the car, the check in clerk never said anything about the car. He said it was fine and gave me my receipt.
Have a planed trip to Maui for Thanksgiving, there will be 10 of us going. (hopefully) Four of the traveling party have not been to Hawaii. What does not make any sense id hotels, condos can be at 100% but restaurants can only be at 50%. The math does not work out. Again when the state has the Governor and LT. Governor disagreeing on lifting restrictions, I tend to believe the Lt. Governor who is a MD before I will believe a retired engineer. Hope to see Maui in November.
Thank you for keep us up to date.
Hi Markr.
We too hope your trip to Maui at Thanksgiving will go perfectly. Thanks for your dozens of comments!
Aloha.
I made a car reservation on Costco almost a year ago for my January 2022 trip to Maui. I have a full size car for only $459. Do you think I have to be concerned about the rental company honoring that price? Any stories about people finding their long-held reservations not honored?
Does anyone really think Ige will lift the travel restrictions and capacity limits at 60 and 70%?
New variant, coming as the next excuse real soon.
we will be on Maui in November
Thank you for keeping us informed. I read them all. Thank You. MaryAnna
Aloha BOH, My family and I are just finishing up our 11 day vacation to both Oahu and Hawaii and would like to thank you for all the information that you have provided the last couple of months. We traveled from the Bay Area and although there were hoops to jump through, everything went flawless (Covid tested with Hawaiian Air partner, pre-cleared by Hawaiian at SFO, by passing the lines at HNL), and luckily traveled inter-island after 6/15, so no additional Covid test. Although it has been sad seeing that there are still businesses still affected by Covid, our stay has been very memorable, especially since we were finally able to see relatives again.
Mahalo, and please keep providing all that great information!
Hi Eric.
Thank you! We’re glad to hear about your Oahu and Big Island vacation and that things went well. Enjoy the memories.
Aloha.
This is basically information that you have disseminated previously and I feel that the current presentation is sensationalizing the various issues for the purpose of having something to report on in this issue. People do not need to be intimidated into being alarmed about the situation. That is not the kind of helpful or factual reporting which we have learned to rely upon you for.
I just came back from a week in Waikiki last night. I didn’t feel like I experienced any major problems that couldn’t be overcome with a little more patience and less expectation. I had no problems using the link Southwest partnered with for tests and we uploaded no problem and breezed through TSA in the early morning flight, so we were left waiting 2.5 hours early thinking there would be long lines and traffic. Even leaving Hawaii, we dropped off baggage early, drove off to eat lunch, and got back and went through TSA pre-checked like in 5-10 min. It was the crowds in tourist areas that got me “complaining”. Being with only 50% of workers, and 100% of ready to bust out of here tourists, makes for long lines every where. Plus it was Father’s Day weekend. My saving grace was having a condo rental in Waikiki that included parking and found a friend to rent me her car for a week. It was awful that the resorts charged $51 a day to park too in addition to the already exorbitant car rental fee of some $200 a day…even though I have relatives and friends in the islands, I don’t think I wanna go back until the workers come back…I think it should be better by Fall and Winter.
Thank you for being my go to for updates. We have a trip planned for November and I’m trying to stay cautiously optimistic that things will settle down some by then. Do you have any gut feelings on how the rest of this year will play out?
Hi Dawn.
Thanks. Things should slow down for fall we think. Then the holidays will pick up again.
Aloha.
We had a vacation in Maui postponed 3 times and want to come in October. We have been vaccinated for this trip but now we need a Covid test and here in NJ it is $250 each but we have to travel to New York to get the test. We lived in Maui for 5 years. We were going back to visit friends we made over those years but it is almost impossible to meet the requirements Hawaii wants since the test center can not guarantee getting the results back so that we would arrive in the 72 hour. It seems useless for us to conform to Hawaiian rules.
I REALLY wanted to visit Hawaii once more before I die…..(plus use some of my Hawaiian Frequent Flyer miles)…..BUT….dealing with their goofy draconian “rules”…is just too much. Unless things change, count me out.
I wouldn’t call the rules draconian, they were put in place to save lives and not overwhelm a medical infrastructure that is limited. Without the rules your wish to see Hawaii one more time b4 you die could be a self profiling prophecy. (I’m joking)
The issue imo is how Hawaii through out the pandemic was clear as mud on their rules, and when they would be opening etc. Look at the rules right now, 100% capacity for hotels but 50% for restaurants. If mask mandate for outside has ended, and they are close to eliminating testing why not increase restaurants to 75%?
I have a trip booked for late Oct/Nov and the biggest contention between my family and friends who are coming is car rental.
Some my family is thinking they’d rather stay in the resort than pay that much for multiple cars as there will be around 5-8 of us depending on how things go. That and vaccine testing. If things get messed up your whole vacation can be ruined through no fault of your own. That’s a bit too risky and anxiety filled to be a relaxing and unwinding vacay.
We went to Kauai for two weeks in mid-May, and boy are we glad we did. 72-hour testing and QR codes were still in effect, but those were pretty easy to deal with. The roadblock at Hanalei Hill was also doable provided you planned ahead. That, combined with the parking permit process for Haena (I got 4 all-day passes for our stay of two weeks, simply by getting up at 3 am PST on the pertinent on-sale dates) resulted in us having the North Shore almost to ourselves Monday – Friday. It was a great situation for us, and a horrible situation for the local businesses, and we spent as much money as humanly possible there. Saturdays and Sundays, with the more open roadblock, were the only days some of the businesses opened. We used the weekend days to travel elsewhere on the island. We will probably not be back until next Spring and have already reserved the same house in Hanalei for that time frame. P.S. – Our rental car was ready and waiting for us, primarily due to the fact I was a Budget Fastbreak member; had I not been, the line at the counter was way longer than the supply of cars. The Fastbreak line consisted of myself and another gentleman in front of me.
I’ve kind of decided to stop listening to what the Lt. Gov. has to say, since I haven’t heard him say much of worth in quite a while. If he listened more to the people working for a living and less to Mufi Hannemann, he might realize that the problem won’t be “…a black eye by being unclear”, but a lack of people willing to work in the tourism industry. 60% vaccinated is perfectly clear to me. It is no less clear than setting a hard-and-fast date. When it comes to making decisions based on health and safety or on campaign contributions from the HTA, it seems we know which side Green comes down on.
After months of rock bottom airfares (<$200 round trip), cheap condo rental rates ($125/night for 1-BR oceanfront in West Maui), complaints about expensive rental cars and the cost of tests are a little hard to swallow. Hawaii isn't South Beach or the Jersey Shore (thankfully), but some parts are starting to look like it. An earlier commenter mentioned Waikiki as being overrun. You can probably add Front Street to that list. If you join the race to the bottom in pursuit of raw numbers, eventually you will get there.
American changed our okc-lih round trip for Sept/Oct to only be one way hnl-OKC. I got an email notification then waited 8 hours to talk to someone. The one-stop flights we had were not available for our days of travel. I am wary of trusting their alternative two-stop flight suggestions. We are getting a refund and have rebooked on Alaska. Fingers crossed!!!
Aloha Guys,
Things are just getting crazier and crazier. Mahalo for all your updates. We loved Oahu in early February with no crowds and low occupancy my mother and I were spoiled. We are coming back to Maui in October and we are telling ourselves every day it will be completely different and to expect long waits and traffic and to factor those in to our planning. We are trying to limit it to one or two things a day including eating out. I got a Jeep for a week for $900 I just hope it is there for me when my plane lands. Airfare and rooms have doubled in price since booking so i’m happy I followed your advice to book now.
Mahalo again guys,
Michael
Hi Michael.
Thank you. We too hope you have a great time on Maui this fall. Please let us know how the planning and trip turn out.
Aloha.
Which Southwest Airline flights were cancelled yesterday for Hawai’i? How does flight cancellations affect the pre-travel 72 hour COVID-19 Testing and flight rescheduling?
Thx for your timely advice ..keep it coming. In island now and will return in Sept. Mahali!
We have a trip booked and planned for July 6th. Thankfully, I booked a car in January but if I hadn’t we would have gone elsewhere and not paid these ridiculous prices! Honestly, despite being loyal visitors to the islands we are looking elsewhere for future vacations. Between the airfare, hotel, food and activities it’s not a cheap destination, and then the added insult of having to pay for covid testing at $200 despite being vaccinated. If this trip hadn’t been rescheduled 4 times due to covid I would have looked elsewhere.
Mahalo for all of your excellent updates and information! Your site is the only one we follow!
Hi Jan.
Thank you! Glad you will be able to return to Hawaii again shortly.
Aloha.
I just checked the price of a Mid-Seize Car at Hertz, Avis and Budget.
With a 35% discount they are offering a 2 week deal, pay now, for $2750 in October/November.
No more words.
Aloha-
I noticed you didn’t mention Alska in regards to pilot shortage. Have you heard what their situation is?
thanks
Hi Jon.
Thanks for that. We added them to the list of those companies that seem to be doing better in terms of cancellations.
Aloha.
Aloha, and mahalo for your wonderful updates!
We had our Alaska booking completely re-routed as they cancelled the direct San Jose to Lihue for our Sept dates. This affected several things for us. Alaska Airlines did not even notify us. I discovered it with a routine check of the reservation. When I called them, I received (3.5hrs later) a very snarky reply from an obviously burnt out agent. I was extremely cordial and tried to understand her situation, but she continued her rude responses to my questions. She repeatedly informed me I was welcome to look elsewhere. After 25+years of flying Alaska I have never encountered this. I eventually found a route, but with a red-eye return via Seattle back to San Jose. I remain grateful that I even get to return to Kauai and will take it with a grain of salt. Thankfully we still have a relatively reasonable 2 week car rental for $770.
I look forward to, once again, experiencing the beauty of Kauai, it’s people and culture. I am keeping a weekly watch on my flight reservation and advise the same.
Mahalo,
Laurie
Hi Laurie.
Thanks for letting us know about that unfortunate situation. Have a great time on Kauai.
Aloha.
Laurie, our direct flight from San Jose to Lihue in September still shows as confirmed. Hopefully only some dates were affected as I travel with a large service dog and need the large direct aircraft.
We were “stuck” in our Kauai condo for 8 months waiting for a direct flight out last October-May.
Thanks for the heads up. I’ll check frequently.
It’s really good news/bad news that visitors are returning in droves. Just returned from Waikiki where the crowds were unbearable and the noise was intolerable. My heart goes out to the locals…
Spoke with my son a few days ago who lives in Hawaii where he was born and raised. Even he was complaining about the amount of tourists there were. After a year of no crowds,traffic etc.it is very disturbing to see tourism return to levels higher than before the pandemic. Please respect the locals and aina (land). Mahalo.
Us locals here on the BI really enjoyed the heart of the pandemic. We could go anywhere and not see a tourist anywhere. It really was paradise. Unfortunately, we knew it would not last. Being retired, I am not worried in the least about the “tourist” economy.
We knew that tourists would return, but the islands are not ready for the amount of tourists that are here. As has been stated, businesses are having a really hard time finding employees. Pre-pandemic, businesses were properly staffed and ran very efficiently. Now, going to a decent restaurant takes a few weeks to get a reservation. Staff shortages have really made going out to dinner difficult.
People do not realize that those of us that live here have always taken a back seat to the tourism dollar.
My point to all of this is that if I am going to spend thousands of dollars coming here I want a streamlined experience ie good service, a rental car that I can afford and not having to deal with the idiotic Safe Travels Hawaii mess.