In the never-ending Hawaii travel news cycle, here’s’ the latest.
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304 thoughts on “Updated | Kauai Now Proposes 4 Day Quarantine – Will You Bite?”
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In the never-ending Hawaii travel news cycle, here’s’ the latest.
Get Breaking Hawaii Travel News
Comments are closed.
I own a condo in Poipu Beach and would not want to be stuck on another property for three days. My time is too valuable when I am on island working.
No! Not without going sometime with out changing the rules. I understand what we are going through and the limited infrastructure Hawaii, but you can’t change the rules every couple days.
As I read some of the other posts, it’s clear a large percentage of the residents don’t want visitors. My wife and I have made one or more trips per year for a long time – we love decorating the islands and volunteered doing a number of things over the years and I’m not sure when or if we will be back.
As I have said before, a pre-travel testing requirement is meaningless! You can test negative one minute and get exposed to the Chinese flu the next. One never knows.
btw, do you know how this new Kauai requirement that “might” start soon affect returning residents?
Thank you for any help.
Eddie
Hi Eddie.
Thanks. We would assume (which probably isn’t a good idea), that the same will be true for returning residents.
Aloha.
It’s COVID-19.
It’s not the “Chinese flu.” How insulting (at the least) to a lot a Hawaii residents of Chinese descent, not to mention an entire country.
Obviously Kawakami was holding out for this, and perhaps Ige finally caved.
The only way to find out if this will restore some semblance of tourism on Kauai will be to try it. We can speculate all we want, but until it is tried, who really knows. Many commenters on this site have said they would not stay at a resort bubble. But, these places exist, five of them (I think?), so somebody must be staying at them. Or are they empty?
Also, Kawakami has been lamenting since well before the virus panic that there needs to be less tourists on the island, so this fits in nicely with that goal, although the 10 days quarantine does the job already.
And maybe the vaccine(s) will pan out, and this particular policy will soo be replaced by something else in February or March. In the meantime, if you don’t want to get locked up at the Tip Top, go elsewhere. Try a different island/state/country. The Carolinas-Georgia-Florida coastal areas are pretty nice at least through the end of March. Heck, even South Texas. And you can drive. I would have thrown in SoCal, but their Governor Hair Gel has them closed down.
No visit to Kauai for us as long as there are mandatory quarantines. It’s already expensive to travel there. Why on earth would we want to spend four days locked up in a hotel? We won’t. Maybe see you in 2022? Or, maybe never if vaccine passports are required.
Lots of questions here:
– After quarantining for 3 days, would a visitor have to leave his/her hotel (or resort bubble) to get the on-island test?
– If visitors aren’t allowed to rent cars, how do they get to the testing site? Uber? Hotel shuttle bus? Or does the tester go to the quarantine location? Or would it be a self-administered test?
– What kind of test is planned? How long before the result would be known? If the plan is to release the visitor from quarantine on Day 4, it would have to be a rapid test.
– Will the test kits be whatever remains of the 15,000 rapid test kits Kauai purchased with CARES funds?
– Will the visitor be charged for the on-island test?
– How many people would be willing to go through this “short form” quarantine in a hotel or resort bubble? (This is the biggest question).
I would not be willing to quarantine. Our vacation that was cancelled, and rescheduled was only 7 days. Quarantining for any of that is not desirable. All the money for flight, living expenses, food, rental car, etc…it just seems like such a waste to come clear over and be stuck inside without enjoying the beautiful islands, local foods, and activities. I’m disappointed, but may not come until the quarantine is lifted.
I miss you all and the beautiful atmosphere. 🥲
We have tickets and a VRBO for Kauai the first week of April. We will cancel all of the above if there is any quarantine.
I am waiting for the vaccination policy. I can visit in summer after I get vaccinated. I am in Canada.
Aloha,
Thanks for keeping us in the loop. I don’t know about others, but I Only use vacation rentals – hotels are just too expensive for me. To couple an expensive hotel with an inability to leave the property, or go to the beach, well, that would just be a hard pass for me.
Mahalo
Hi Eve.
We definitely understand your feelings about vacation rentals. Thanks again.
Aloha.
Thanks again,always up to date!!- residents would quarantine at home,correct?
Have a relaxing Christmas!!!
Hi Jeanne.
We certainly think so. Thanks and you too!
Aloha.
Sure doesn’t seem very friendly or fun! We had to cancel our summer trip and will not re- book until it is back to normal. Too many other fun places that do not require all this ridiculousness!
We’re scheduled to be on Kaua’i for 5 weeks in April, so quarantining for 3 nights would be acceptable. But we have a rental car reserved from the first day. With all the numerous changes, I don’t know if I should make multiple car reservations for 1st day, 4th day, 10th day, 14th day….? All we’ve been doing is making and cancelling cars, flights, & timeshare stays. It’s really getting ridiculous! At least Alaska Air says they will be offering COVID tests @ San Jose airport with guaranteed turnaround results for $170. So if Kaua’i ever decides on a plan and sticks to it for awhile, we may be able to travel there next year!
No
Kauai mayor Kawakami acts more like a tribal chief of old rather than an elected mayor of a county in the United States.
He is causing great economic harm to us who own vacation rentals and to residents out of work – again.
No one will quarantine for any amount of time! We are about to cancel our January trip.
His rules fly in the face of fact and logic.
Studies show residents are five times more likely to spread the virus than tourists. No proof of why Kauai is in such bad shape. Show us the factual evidence.
Also, Hawaii’s positivity rate and case counts are going down despite tens of thousands of daily tourist arrivals.
Do we still live in America? I’m beginning to wonder.
Definitely. Acting like the kings of old. Wants to keep control of kauai without any input from the governor or Lt governor. Good grief. Ridiculous. Any tourist that comes in with a negative test should have the right to test out after 2nd rapid test. Does not need to stay at a resort bubble that provides the mayor a monetary kickback!! Rich and Shameless
With all due respects I do not recognize any of your “facts”. You sghould be called out on this and since no one has I am.
MAhalo
Why do you think he is “pushing” overpriced resort bubbles!!! They all got certified then he cancels tourism period. Only the rich that are willing to pay can test out! Not even his precious residents that live there that he says he is protecting. Why would he force residents into a resort bubble they cant afford ?? $$$$$$. Someones pushing this. Just sayin. Look at the facts. Hes not in any financial hardship keeping the island closed.
Hi Marjorie.
You have been creating your comments in all upper case which we do not allow. We’ve converted this and other comments but in the future those all upper case comments will not be allowed. Thanks.
Aloha.
Wow. Just wow. “Precious residents”? Everyone who resides in HI is affected by tourism, or the lack thereof, one way or another. He is “pushing overpriced resort bubbles” so that the people of Kauai do not end up with a broken hospital system, like so many places on the mainland right now. People here cannot just drive to another state line and get treated. Medical resources are scant on HI. Have some respect for the conditions people on HI live within.
No way would I go to Kauai,or any island, if I have to quarantine for any length of time. That’s a total waste of time and money. The waters off Cancun are just as clear and warmer. I like Hawaii, but when it comes to getting the most bang for my money I will chose Cancun (if I have to quarantine in Hawaii). You don’t go on vacation to be put in a “prison cell” for any length of time.
Being retired and having the ability to travel on the fly, I still won’t waste my time and resources on taking a trip an having to quarantine for any amount of time. My wife and I used to travel to Waikiki twice a year… looking for a new hotspot at this time.
We are cancelling our 3 week trip to Kauai in April 2021 because we are absolutely not willing to quarantine at all and will not waste our time and money with all the unknowns an uncertain terms and conditions!
This is better than 10 days but this still is not right. You are paying on your vacation to be in quarantine. If it were a modified quarantine maybe not so bad. If you already had a negative test on arrival you should be permitted to get food. Get a car. Ect. Then they better make sure they have rapid tests available to get people tested immediately on the 4th day so you can be out of quarantine. Still sounds like all the islands need to be on the same page. The mayors fears were unfounded. Safe travels works. You just need the 96 hour window. But the mayor acts like a spoiled child and if he does not get his way he refuses to play.
Just read kawakamis full proposal. Must stay at one if his resort bubbles. $$$$. If you dont then full 10 day quarantine and no chance to test out. What a jerk!! Is he getting a monetary kickback from these places??? Everyone rich or poor should be able to test out after the 3 days. The governor needs to step in and show him who the governor is and who makes the rules. Good grief. Enough. Goes to show with all the mayors yo yoing that he is not in his right mind
No thanks! I cannot imagine any visitor would knowingly book a trip to Kauai and agree to be locked in a bubble for 4 days. Is this proposal a joke? If the intention is a second test, perform it upon arrival ir dont do it all. People wont waste 4 days of vacation regardless of how long their stay is.
Nope. We usually go for 7 days. Not going through all that for a 4 day vacation.
Mahalo.
Hi Ed.
Thanks again. We appreciate the input.
Aloha.
Should have said a 3 day vacation after 4 days in quarantine. Math is hard. 😁
Thanks for using the “New Math”! 😉
Yep, this sounds like the same thing they tried twice before already. I’m sure locals would be happier with this but it still doesn’t help visitors or rental properties at all as you said. If they continue to push this ruling then we will continue to push our family visit out. I know locals feel all islands should be treated different, but the governor really needs to find a blanket set of rules that can continue forward for the near future everyone can grasp or confusion and frustration will not stop.
As the owner of a vacation rental in Kauai for over 25 years, a 4 day quarantine might be appealing to me, IF I could quarantine in my own unit. I do know of several other owners who would love to visit their properties.
I will not quarantine in a ‘bubble resort.’
Many, if not all of us, have not been able to visit their properties for over 10 months now. Being able to spend a couple of weeks in our property would give us an opportunity to do some maintenance, cleaning, etc.
Oh, by the way we would probably contribute a little money to the local economy.
Like other owners we have had practically no income for the last 10 months while still paying our mortgages, HOA dues and yes
our real estate taxes. By the way despite this negative economic impact, the County of Kauai has increased our Real Property taxes.
I luckily have the resources available to survive this crisis so I am not looking for sympathy. The real victims are the citizens of Kauai who are not benefiting from the usual tourist spending.
The 4 day quarantine will not bring tourists back if they have to quarantine in a ‘Bubble Resort.’
Love Kauai, Love the people and still have a grandchild living on the island. I sincerely hope for a safe but more flexible response
to the crisis than the current quarantine.
Mahalo,
for this forum.
Hi Patrick.
Thanks for the good input on this topic and all your other comments too.
Aloha.
Are you sure you cannot stay at your owned property? My understanding is that you can. You must either own or have a long term (6 months +) lease. The 6+ months lease was getting “abused” by folks to lease for quarantine, then breaking the lease. I think the county responded by not acknowledging another long term lease for the same property until the original 6 months was over. See “In Re Cult House” from this past September.
Kauai jacked up the prop tax rates this year since “they need the money”. If a property is designated “vacation rental”, your prop tax is raised another 50% because “business”. Trash service goes from $6 a month to $108. Then Kauai refuses to allow any of them to operate.
I will say this, we lost 14 months due to the flood/road-bridge repairs a few years ago, and Kauai did the right thing by re-designating our home as just residential and greatly lowered the value for the ensuing year, so at least we did not get hit with the extra prop taxes. But, that made this year’s increase over 100%!
Pure Idiocy! Can you imagine trying to open a restaurant, schedule flights, call in employees, or make any plans whatsoever around this emotion (not “science or fact) driven policy! Good freaking Grief! I know we are supposed to be kind on this forum, but destroying peoples lives as the mayor is doing is bordering on criminal! I thought I would do a little research on the Kauis Mayor. Sure enough, mostly bureaucratic experience from a family of bureaucrats. Only real life business experience was managing a grocery story for 7 years (“Essential Industry”). Also married to a Public Employee. (Teacher) No surprise, both he and his wife are collecting full paychecks and his last semblance of real life business experience ended in 2011. Not surprisingly, he is a Democrat! This isn’t a very kind treatise on the Mayor Kawakami, but factual none the less. (Ref:derekkawakami.com/about-derek) If I were a restaurant, or other tourist related business owner in Kaui, I would park my butt on his doorstep with a sign demanding his pay be suspended till he acts like a real leader! He must consider ALL of those he serves, including business owners, tourist (island guest) and those suffering the deleterious effects of his awful, fear driven policies! Oh and did I mention he is a Democrat as well.
I appreciate your updates. My family will not visit Kauai or any vacation destination under quarantine. And as long as there is the threat of changing rules I will not make vacation plans. It is too stressful. We miss you Hawaii. We promise to spend our money there as soon as it is safe for our fellow humans and safe for my wallet. Aloha!
Nope! We went to big island in November and would have never gotten on the plane without a negative test. Wont take the risk of being stuck in quarantine nor on the islands if you are sick until you can fly home. Also don’t want to be responsible for putting others at risk.
Beyond belief!
My wife and I just returned from an 18 day stay on Hawaii Island. We had tested one day prior to our flight and were all set to go with all the “T’s” crossed and the “I’s” dotted. We had our QR code’s in hand and on devices. We knew we were going to have to take a second rapid covid test upon arrival with the possibility of a 14 day quarantine if the results were positive. We labored over the decision and traveled anyway. That said, we both decided that we would NOT do that again. We would not travel anywhere on the planet with the possibility, however slight, of a government mandated and supervised quarantine as a result of what would in all likelihood be a false positive test. We did not see such testing in progress at the Kona airport when we departed on 12/22 so I’m not sure that post flight testing is still ongoing on The Big Island. But it is surely being proposed for Kauai. So, to answer your question – No!
We would be in! Planning our elopement on Kauai has been up and down. After last nights word about Feb 20, we were contemplating changing islands, postponing, or doubling our trip cost and duration to include 10day quarantine. This would make our wedding/honemoon possible!! Hopeful this will happen!
Lets see! I make plans months in advance, pay for expensive airfare and accommodations, get a rental car, make reservations for a excursions, all based on the ideal that Kauai will only have a 4 day quarantine requirement that can and will change at any moment? No Thanks!
Hi Greg.
Appreciate hearing from you on this and for your many other comments.
Aloha.
No! I want to thank you guys! This is my go-to for the latest and greatest info for Hawaii (Kauai in specific).
Hi Greg.
Thank you. We appreciate the input and your many comments.
Aloha.
For us, it’s less about quarantine than overall safety. There’s nothing dealing with flights or folks prior to traveling. They need to partner with the airlines to create a better system and extend the Safety-net to the mainland. Until then, we are safer not traveling. Vaccinations are rolling out. We should see a better situation after that. Until then aloha and stay safe.
Aloha!
The answer is NO!!!! It would be like being in jail? Who pays for it? (the test?, the quartile hotel) and having food or groceries catered in is not cheap. I wouldn’t come if I had to quarantine for one day, much less three, especially if I couldn’t do it at the VRBO I was planning to rent or a other hotel that might not be a quarantine hotel.
Thanks for keeping us up to date with all these changes! Do you know about the testing they are talking about for all islands in January? Who will pay for that post arrival?
Mahalo!
Hi Janet.
Thanks for all of your comments. Our understanding has been that post-arrival tests will be paid for by visitors. We’re hopeful that might change.
Aloha.
Please remove all quaratine time frames. Few want to spend their visit/vacation time in quarantine.
In theory a long term visitor (2+ months) would say yes but knowing this could change again next week I’ll say no. I’ll wait until there is some stability. Merry Christmas and let’s hope for a much better New Year!
All along I have not understood why the quarantine has to be in a hotel. Why not a short term rental where you can naturally be away from people? A hotel is so limiting and if you have no kitchen or at least a kitchenette, how do you get along for meals? If you could quarantine wherever you want it would be one more restriction lifted. We have canceled our plans to go to Kauai beginning Jan 3 for three weeks. Because we would have been there for a longer visit, I would have considered quarantining for three nights, but as much as I want to be there, the rules keep changing and I’m tired of changing around our plans. Maybe once we get vaccinated and there is a new rule around that we will be able to go back again. Of course, by that time it may be summer and we will instead wait for 2022 for our annual January trip.
Aloha! I’m speechless and says it all.
Hi Joan.
Got it. Thanks for your dozens of comments – we appreciate it!
Aloha.
Thank you for asking for our comments on the proposed 4 day quarantine on Kauai, after having tested negative within in 72 hours before embarking on a trip to Kauai. Although we always stay for at least 2 weeks, some of our guests that we share our timeshare with, only stay a week – which means they’d be in quarantine for half the time they’re there. They wouldn’t come, and neither would we.
Hi Donna.
Thanks for the input. Clearly, the comments are being heard.
Aloha.
I’m not going to be told what hotel I have to stay in for 3 days just to prove I’m negative. Nope.
What about residents – will they also have to stay in quarantine bubble hotels – that will go over real well! What about non-residents, but owners of their own vacation rentals? Why continue to penalize vacation rental stakeholders? We pay higher property taxes and have massive HOA fees.
Under the current quarantine rules, you can do your time at your own residence, even if you are not a full time resident. If you own the condo, so what if it is also sometimes a vacation rental? I asked the same question re returning residents a few minutes ago on a different thread. Three or four days/nights (I’m not following how three nights = 4 days???) at a resort bubble will set you back a minimum $2K once you factor in room/tax/$$ delivered food and at least two, probably four taxis – one to get there; one to get to location of second test; and one to get to LIH to pick up your actual rental car. Maybe a 4th to go back to hotel in the event you have to wait for test results. That is not affordable for most people, setting aside the lost time on top.
No – made our decision yesterday. Not going to visit Kauai this time.
Aloha-
No, no, no and no!
Mahalo
Hi Jon.
We appreciate your input on this. Thanks for your 50 comments! And happy holidays.
‘
Aloha.
Here are some other important key points from a very concerned Kauai business owner:
-If exposure is a concern then why not allow rental cars to be rented or a parked vehicle at airport parking for returning resident so that no third party driver is needed to be in the same vehicle?…if the concern is cost, the car rental company’s could offer a pick up fee of vehicle if on quarantine.
-Also vacation rentals are paying commercial zone higher tax rates and should not be discriminated against from being allowed to operate for quarantine if needed. Public travelers need to be given the right to choose on accommodation options whether hotel or vacation rental for quarantining.
Again if exposure is a main concern then how is it that going up to your room in a hotel elevator or interactions with hotel workers more secure then staying in a turn key vacation rental. There isn’t.
The argument of quarantined hotel guests have a one time opening of card door key so as to monitor, yet with the hotel bubble would allow in and outs and pool usage, hotel main floor lobby bathrooms, pool bathrooms etc. of sharing amongst other guests. What is this game being played on us tax paying business owners that has no end in sight?
In conclusion….
We the people of the United States Constitution need to be given back travelers and business owners our freedom and rights to do business immediately and not be discriminated against any further and to open back up and operate immediately in a safe manner, just as other big companies such as Walmart, Home Depot, grocery stores etc. are already being entrusted to do business with the public.
And finally a message to those leading,
If a person so chooses to stay home and be safe so be it but do not punish everyone else by discriminating and punishing against businesses from operating safely. So many small businesses were relying on December being open like the other islands. It’s time to open Kauai back up!
Yes! Thank you. These are such good points!
4 days? Ah no. No way. I’d rather stay home and go to work.