A visitor summed it up, stating, “Yes….This is a Hot Mess.” The deeper we all dig, the more problems that surface.
276 thoughts on “Latest Testing Rules Fail: Hawaii Vacations Upended”
Comments are closed.
A visitor summed it up, stating, “Yes….This is a Hot Mess.” The deeper we all dig, the more problems that surface.
Comments are closed.
I booked my flight from NY weeks ago and have been monitoring the Hawaii approved test sites and with the uptick in Covid cases it is nearly impossible to get an appointment for a test and most providers only offer 24 hour to 3 to 5 day results with Rapid testing being in short supply and that’s IF you can get an appointment, thanks
Hi Henry.
Thanks for the update.
Aloha.
Rapid tests are not accepted by hawaii.
That is not true. Rapid test are valid and I just used the one in San Francisco airport and had no problems getting the test and no problems entering Hawaii with a rapid test result. It was easy and simple. Please don’t make it seem more complicated than it is. Very simple process, and an added step to keep Hawaii safe.
Once the vaccine is here things will begin to seem normal for a change just keep the p eth with masks and distancing till then March or April it’s really that simple
On CFAR insurance, be aware that maximum reimbursement is 50% of total trip cost, with a maximum total trip cost of $25,000. There are exceptions to this rule, but this is where the major insurers have gone post- COVIS-19.
Hi Karen.
We need to point out that is incorrect information. Virtually all policies we can find with Cancel For Any Reason coverage, still provide 75% coverage up to 2 days in advance.
Aloha.
It is ridiculous residents of Hawaii are sick in the same mess if we want to travel to mainland. Only thing is we can’t take an additional 2 weeks off if our results are delayed I can see a day or 2 while waiting but not straight to quarenteen for 14 days regardless. We have a new cares money lab at the airport that does the rapid test that should have been on the approved list before it opened, come on government push that through if your really serious about opening the islands back up for residents and tourists. This whole crap about approved testing places its all about money and the state has to be getting a kickback from them on the tests they do. If you have a proper test from a hospital then that should be good, but if you come here with a screenshot of a test from some unknown clinic or place I can understand that. Come on state of Hawaii you have had almost 9 months to get this together you are holding us hostage in our homes
We came last Monday. Had everything in order and happened to have all required documents to meet next weeks requirements. Hoops for sure but well worth it. It’s to keep you and residents safe. For travelers who have been here before you know why you are coming back. Covid is real and if you don’t like the rules stay home. Hawaii needs you but not with an attitude or disbelief.
Totally agree, Mitch. We were on the Big Island November 7-18. The hoops weren’t too difficult to jump through. An added benefit–not as many tourists, so it was easier to get around. A couple of our favorite restaurants had not reopened yet, but hopefully they can reopen profitably soon. As a business owner myself, I am sad for the businesses that will not make it out of this.
Our arrival test in Kona took about a 1/2 hour for results–long enough for the rental car company to run out of cars, so we got a minivan instead.🤷♀️ No problem, we went back the next day and got a car. 😊
Mahalo Mitch
We have been responsibly isolating prior to our planned trip and are willing to jump through those hoops with all precautions gladly taken. But this week, meeting the requirements is simply impossible. Results are not guaranteed within 72 hours of boarding. We cancelled, with a significant lo$$. No attitude, just disappointed in the state’s unrealistic expectations.
I just checked Hawaii’s website and none of the testing done for American Airlines passengers are listed but on American’s website they list several options. Will these be accepted?
I had plans to leave for Hawaii on November 21 this past Saturday but had to cancel my whole trip due to test results coming back after the 72 hour travel deadline. I used Costco/AZOVA. Costco shipped overnight but when you call the middleman AZOVA to schedule the video call They did not have an appointment for 2 days which ate up 24 hours of the deadline. After emails and phone calls that were unanswered to AZOVA my test came in after I was actually supposed to be in Hawaii. If I chose to gamble on the results coming in while I was in the air I would have been in quarantine. Disappointed and extremely upset with that company! They will not refund the $139 And I believe they take the money knowing that they cannot comply with the deadline. Buyer beware!
I chose to fly Alaska Airlines to Hawaii because they partnered with Carbon Health in Seattle, WA to do pre-flight COVID tests. You can make an appointment online within the 72 hour time limit before your flight and get results in 1 hour at a cost of $134.00. However because I couldn’t upload anything to anywhere if my life depended on it, I waited 3 hours for a PDF hard copy to present upon landing showing “negative” results. When I landed the official first contested the validity of the test, then finally accepted it, but said since I hadnt uploaded my results to the Hawaii safe travels site I had to quarantine until I did. When I explained I couldn’t do that in a million years and had no one travelling with me, they first said, “too bad, you must quarantine then.” Distraught, I said” I’m 69 and don’t know how to upload, I’ll pay anyone to help me! I drive 399 miles roundtrip to get tested, paid $134.00, am negative, brought you hard copy proof, and did everything humanly possible to meet your criteria and keep Hawaii safe, and just because I’m not technologically astute you’re sending me to quarantine! What kind if Aloha spirit is that?” The official then asked for my phone and frustratedly uploaded my results by taking a picture if my pdf and pushing buttons in my cell phone (took him less than 45 seconds) and let me through for my on arrival retest. Lesson: Make Sure you upload your negative results to the Hawaii Dafe travels site before you fly. Dint rely on a PDF.
I have an appt with Carbon in January. What is the problem with uploading? I’m going to pay the $150 to ensure I get it in 24 hours but that’s going to be hard for people who just barely get results before they fly.
She’s not tech savvy; she said that in her comment.
Once again the Hawaiian brain-dead politicians are only screwing their constituents. Look around people of Hawaii. Homelessness, mentally-ill and meth heads everywhere. We need to manage this responsibly and not use these draconian measures that affect the working class. No work no food no rent. I guess those in charge will just keep their hands out for more free govt handouts. You can only rob Peter to pay Paul for so long.
We just got back last week from HI. We traveled with a party of 9: 4 were one family, 3 were our family, and 2 were my 75 year old parents. It was extremely stressful to go through the entire process of getting everyone tested, praying the test results come in negative for our entire party of 9 prior to departure. There was also a lot of worry about the proposed second test that they were dabbling with…it would have meant another $500 worth of covid testing for our family of three, and $260 for my parents (the family of 4 was kaiser, and their cost was covered by their insurance), paired with the same issues of the possibility of a single person in our party testing positive. We were glad we made it through the entire process, and were able to enjoy our trip, but holy smokes! It was a very tricky process! The majority of adults on this trip hold college as well as post grad degrees, and we were thankful to know very well the process of jumping through hoops one at a time to achieve a goal.
There is also an important piece of age discrimination that needs to be addressed for their testing and registration requirements. My 75 year old parents had no clue how first to register and pay online for their quest diagnostics drive through covid test, nor did they know what a QRS code is…not to mention trying to get them through the process of registering themselves on Hawaii’s Safetravels site (where they ask questions about specific cars you may have owned, colleges you may have attended, streets you may have lived on at any point in your life- this scared my parents to no end that the computer somehow had this knowledge, and my dad has memory issues on a good day anyways), and then 24 hrs prior to departure complete the health questionnaire and convert their covid test results into PDF form, upload that PDF form into the safe travels site, and then be presented with this magical QRS code that gets sent via email (which they don’t use either).