Starting Monday, the Covid requirements on Maui have again changed. In a sudden reversal, Maui just dropped its recent booster requirement in determining what is considered fully vaccinated. But what does that mean for Hawaii visitors and the Safe Travels program with which all visitors must comply?
Will boosters still be required for Hawaii visitors?
Hawaii’s Governor Ige has again gone radio silent on his latest plans. Ugg. About two weeks ago he confirmed without ambiguity once again that boosters would soon be required. At that time, neither the governor nor the Lt. Governor, however, addressed exactly when that would happen. But Honolulu mayor Rick Blangiardi spoke up instead, announcing “the targeted date for that is February 18.”
Boosters, Quarantine + Testing In Question As Hawaii Looks For Viable Model
Starting February 18: Hawaii Safe Travels Booster Requirement + More
Are more changes afoot as Hawaii covid cases plummet?
When last we heard from the governor, he said the hold-up was due to the complexity of implementing the booster requirement within Safe Travels. Ige said then the state was “working through what the requirements would be to allow us to identify whether an individual is up to date in their vaccinations..and what would be required to manually evaluate that status, and looking for ways to automate the assessment of whether someone has gotten all of their vaccination shots, including their boosters.”
Ige has said repeatedly that he would afford travelers two weeks’ notice of the booster shot requirements. But all that was before Omicron appeared to peak then began its decline. So now, it is completely unclear what Hawaii will be doing.
Until further notice, Hawaii requires only either 1) a primary dose of vaccine or 2) a PCR test within 72 hours of the transpacific flight, to avoid quarantine in Hawaii. The testing exemption should continue to be available even after boosters are added to the vaccination exemption. All travelers must comply with the specific testing and trusted partner requirements of its Safe Travels program.
Maui reversal was announced yesterday with three days’ notice.
The Maui mayor cited a reduction in cases and fewer hospitalizations for his change in plans that take effect on February 7, saying, “the showing of proof of updated vaccinated including boosters to dine in restaurants will no longer be required.”
Since the change to require boosters was announced last month, it became mandated for those dining indoors at restaurants and bars and exercising at gyms. Now, the only requirement will be the primary vaccination series.
The number of Covid cases in Hawaii has been on a rapid decline, down from its recent highs by 80% or more.
Honolulu retains requirements for restaurants, bars, and gyms.
Honolulu is the other county that has vaccination requirements. The Safe Access Oahu program mandates that customers at restaurants, bars, gyms, theaters, and other businesses must either provide proof of primary vaccination or negative COVID test results in the past 48 hours.
Boosters, Quarantine + Testing In Question As Hawaii Looks For Viable Model
Starting February 18: Hawaii Safe Travels Booster Requirement + More
What do you think is coming next?
It just isn’t clear whether the state still intends to implement a booster requirement for Hawaii visitors. Or, will that plan now be scrapped.
Get Breaking Hawaii Travel News
I read through most comments and it did not appear that – “So many comments here state that they won’t visit Hawaii because of the covid rules”. Yes many comments are critical of the Government mandates, but very little on not visiting Hawaii because of them. Just wanted to make that clear. Mahalo!
‘Continue to grow’ means they are an increasing number of visitors. If I’d meant they were at or above pre-covid rates I would have said that.
I fail to see what this has to do with being in the US. I was actually born on Oahu when it was a Territory. I’ve been following this for a few years.
So many comments here state that they won’t visit Hawaii because of the covid rules. Yet, the number of visitors keeps growing. Perhaps these comments don’t actually reflect potential tourists but are merely people who have a need to sound off and have found an easy venue.
I appreciate the information that BOH provides, even if it has a definite slant every now and then (what doesn’t?)
You can not tell me that the numbers that you say “continue to grow” are any where near the pre-covid years. People have a right to make whatever comments they choose, as long as they are within the parameters of the sites guidelines. Hawaii is still part of the United States of America! Or have you forgotten that?
Hi Thanks again for your valiant attempt top keep us updated on the requirements for travel to Hawaii. So for clarification, my conclusion is that the current requirement either single dose /or Covid test 72 hours in advance of flying will work. The family does no travel until July, but some of our teenagers got Covid and are reluctant to get the Booster.
Thanks again, Mark Z
Hi Mark.
That’s either “primary” dose or 72 hour testing per specific requirements of Hawaii Safe Travels. For now.
Aloha.
With all of the uncertainly regarding Safe Travel requirements I would think that the State loses quite a bit in taxes from people, and businesses who would be big spenders who decide pick other locations for their events,( A travel agent told me that early months of the year are very busy for bookings, so Hawaii may miss a big opportunity for $$)..
If they don’t cancel Ironman in October, which reportedly brings in thousands of people, I wonder how they’ll handle that.
We flew into Honolulu Jan 25 and came to Maui 5 days later. We fly back to MN Feb 8. We jumped through many hoops to get here. We are both vaxxed & boosted and are fine with whatever safety measures Hawaii has. It’s a pandemic! People need to deal with it.
Aloha. Dave from Seattle area here. We were in the Kona area recently, followed all the requirements (which were very similar to where we live) and still had a very nice time. Yes, we are looking forward to post-pandemic days, would love to shed the masks, but will respect the local guidance that is in place. Aloha all
Why can’t the Safe Travel Program pull data from the National Vaccination Database we got enter into when you got each shot??? Seems like a simple program change could accomplish this. This still needs to be done to prepare for another variant that will eventually occur because of the unvaccinated in worldwide.
Because this is Hawaii. Nuff said.
Read this and you’ll understand why that won’t work:
cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/reporting-vaccinations.html
If Hawaii wants to require three shots instead of two, then just add a further entry for the third shot to be entered by the traveler for the quarantine exemption request on safe travels.
And the the fourth shot, fifth shot, and so on. Or if shots expire every 6 months, then just your most recent two shots. Or maybe just unplug it.
This kind of chaos is exactly where we’re having so many problems with tourism. We need to fully open up like Florida has and start pulling in the tourism industry again. If we don’t open up our economy is going to be in even more trouble than it is now.
We were just in maui for the past two weeks and the enforcement of the the vaccine / booster requirement to sit in a restaurant was very lax anyway. If they wanted to see a Vax card… they still didn’t require ID… so the pic of the card could have been of anyone’s card. Employees that did check seemed to be annoyed doing it. Kihei actually the strictest area of the island from what we experienced.
The current visitors do not want to follow any of Maui County’s Covid mandates.
They do not understand that Maui has one hospital with at serves 3 islands. They feel no responsibility. No social distancing, trespassing and maskless. Even other travellers are complaining. Aloha also means goodbye 🌺
I’m sorry to hear that some visitors continue to disregard and disrespect the mandates in place that help to keep the residents of Maui, and the other islands, safe and healthy. It’s a privilege for those lucky enough to have the financial resources and the time to travel to Hawaii. There are many other beautiful places that people can choose to visit. So if you are angered by these restrictions, my suggestion would be to postpone your vacation to Hawaii until COVID is a non-issue.
Keep me updated if the booster shot requirement gets added to the safe travels website
Thank
You
Do travelers leaving for AZ.need a booster vaccine?
I know that Ige has said several times in the last few months that, he would like to do away with the Hawaii safe travel program. I think Lt Gov Green has determined at this time that, the Hawaiian hospitals are no longer in danger of being overrun with the covid virus. IMO, they are both wanting to get a better look at what’s going on in the hospitals. But, it wouldn’t surprise me if Safe Travels was to be gone soon.
Aloha Guys
I personally wish Maui would of left the booster requirement in place. We are going to be on island in a few weeks and had hoped that requiring the covid booster would mean less tourists to contend with. We are proudly boosted and support it being required to enter any of the Islands of Hawaii
A recent report in the Wall Street Journal indicates those who have contracted covid have a “natural immunity 2.8 times as effective in preventing hospitalization and 3.3 to 4.7 times as effective in preventing Covid infection compared with vaccination” Hawaii is governed by fear masking as “science”. In the meantime, businesses are shuttered, good employees are fired, and the states covid policy is run like an idiotic driver with his right foot on the gas & left foot on the brake!
This is a short-sighted perspective. We were recently at Maui Memorial after a car accident. Even with the recent decline in COVID cases, they are stretched very thin to treat all of the COVID patients on top of their normal load of traumas, strokes, heart attacks, etc. It’s very selfish of you to care more about businesses making money than the health and lives of the people of Hawaii. Also, the research shows that esp w omicron, natural immunity is at best equal to or worse than vaccination.
Carol and I dine out at least once a week. While we have both been vaccinated, including boosters, and strongly believe in the science behind inoculations, we are shocked at how few restaurants ask for vacc card. There is a huge disconnect between the rules and enforcement. Maybe it’s partly due to the reduced police force, down 25% in manpower?
Maybe the police force is out chasing down real criminals, Jim B.
Not sure about Maui/Oahu, but Kauai intimidates restaurant/store employees by threatening to fine them if customers do not obey mask theatre (“distancing” has been dropped). The enforcers are health inspector types, not LEO. I have yet to go any business that demanded to inspect a vax card (anywhere; not just on Kauai). The blog guys have identified a few, which are easy enough to avoid or to seek out, depending on your preference.
Hawaii is still running dinosaur policy of 2 jabs vax requirement. 2 jabs people already don’t have protection. And you let them fly to Hawaii without 72hr covid test. While unvaxxed need to do covid test. Hahaha. Unvaxxed actually offers safer public health protection than vaxxed!!
Questionable which one is worse, dinosaur 2 jab vs no vax tested, but you are 100% right 2 jabs is silly. Vaccine is everywhere, just require the booster already. Even if it prevents 1 Hawaiian from getting COVID it is worth it.
I wish everyone would quit whining! I got the booster a long time ago and it was no big deal.
😎🤙
Good for u but doesn’t mean it has to be forced.
Yeah but what about all of those that it was a big deal for? Selfish on your part.
I just went to lunch at a packed restaurant in Roseville California a masking state, no one was masking or social distancing. Put a fork in the pandemic it’s done.
Yet next Sunday at the Super Bowl in LA they’re going to hand out N95 masks and throw anyone not wearing one out of the stadium.
Crazy
Completely location dependent. No masks in our mainland location (Wydaho). But Kauai is still requiring (cloth) masks in stores and from doors to tables in restaurants. Lots of tourists wear them outside. We drove through Calif this past fall. Not many masks down in OC, but they were mandatory in LA, then none in Kern Co., back to mask theater in San Jose. Wedding in Sac, no masks. The Kauai Toyota dealership still has a basket for “used” pens and still takes your temp to walk inside (I don’t).
Sadly Orange County thinks rules and mandates don’t apply to them
If only they would obey!
Our local city government in Wydaho tried to reinstate a “face cover” mandate during the Delta wave, and maybe 10-15% of the populace complied. But, that same 10-15% was wearing them anyway. Notices posted on all the doors, but that’s as far as it got. The Omnicold wave was over before the Apparatchiks could post any further notices to be ignored.
True I live down town hb and they think their invincible 🤷🏻♀️
Hi Mike 70 yrs old active senior. I have.Two shots”* .I live in OC. Glad our sheriff does not care.
Great. I did as well. That was our choice. Others have reasons for not getting the booster or the vaccine, e.g., getting infected. They have the right to make their own personal choices without being judged by you, me, or anyone else.
Daily death count in Los Angeles County is still high, between 50 and 90 humans per day. We care about our residents and want to keep them and visitors safe. Un-vaxed people are the majority of victims of the virus.
The people that get sick and end up in the hospital, can take several weeks or longer to actually pass away. And for that reason the covid death numbers lag behind the surge numbers. From what I understand, if you end up in the ICU your change of survival is very poor.
Everyone is either vaccinated or got the virus (in many cases both), the health risks to the general public is no different than the flu. Those who feel at risk. please keep taking the shot and mask up, those who don’t please live your life freely; I believe that is what most Americans are/have been feeling and saying for a while. I think our Government in control is finally either, hearing it loud and clear, or just taking a break until after the midterm elections. So I expect loser regulations
Ridiculous! Everyone I know who was Vaxxed was very sick with Covid! Maybe they worked on the original Alpha but not anything else all data is showing…and I mean they are super spreaders as well -All of them …Hawaii best follow Florida & let humans choose if/when/what to permanently put into their bloodstreams… thanks BOH as always
Ps…I am typing this on a fabulous beach in Maui & we have purposely avoided any restaurant that asks us to “show your papers”! We still live in America.
Big hugs to Nita
Agree. I know at least 25 friends/family/co-workers who got Covid within the past 2 months, most, if not all of them, were vaccinated.
What should come next is our government to stop listening to and following advice from Fauci, etal. Everyone’s life would be much simpler if we could just live our own lives as we would during any cold or flu season. For whatever reason, there are always deaths attributed to the flu. As a matter of fact; our friend’s husband died from the flu 4 or 5 years ago. Someone who was healthy and shouldn’t have died???? God’s will.
Regarding COVID policy, the state leadership of Hawaii almost makes the the leadership at the federal level appear competent. That’s really hard to do and it’s not a compliment to either.
People have not been living in reality. I live in the Bay Area 5 minutes from SF and I’m not vaccinated because I got covid and built strong resistance but no one ever asked me for their vaccine status.
Online and government propaganda to instill fear in people to make them do what was wanted (otherwise everyone will do their own thing) which was lockdown.
Now SF will be lifting restriction like masking and SD soon as well.
Government doesn’t give back power though. It only takes.
What do I think is coming next? Not much. I think the federal government is pretty much over it. They are releasing (as soon as they find it) all their stored N95 masks for the public..not because they care; or because they want to prevent disease/death, but because they don’t need them anymore. Too little too late. Since the CDC has lessened their quarantine requirements to 5 days, with 5 days of mask wearing (if you “feel” like it); I think they’re signaling that we’re now in an endemic. Over.
We just returned yesterday from 10 days on Maui. During that time, and eating in restaurants at least once per day, we were asked for our CDC cards for proof we were boostered exactly one time.
The UK has dropped all mandates and vaccination requirements and have announced the end of testing on entry requirements for international travelers. Denmark has dropped all mandates and Sweden, Norway and other European countries have indicated they will do the same in coming days.
Mahalo, BOH!
Hi Ed.
Thanks. We hope you had a great time on Maui!
Aloha.
It was great as always. The whale watching was fantastic. Can’t wait to return next winter to Maui (we came home to 10″ of snow!)
Now, it’s planning for Kaua’i in September.
Aloha!
We can only hope common sense prevails and Covid insanity goes away but politicians love power
Covid is not a political issue! When did caring for and about your fellow humans go by the wayside?
Maui sudden change? People starting to wake up and figure out this is not about our health, the truth is coming out. Liars always get caught. The root of all evil, money, control and power.
Given HI “boosted” rate is 33%, the extra shot requirement probably cost Maui restaurants/gyms, etc., too many customers. Odd that Kauai mayor Kawakami went from being the most authoritarian mayor to one of the least.
LOL… gets kinda hard to justify ridiculous rules when there is a waning problem, just as I predicted! This state just can’t get its act together. Covid is here to stay and it has become mainstream obvious that the vaxx don’t stop it, so why bother. And why isn’t prof of antibodies acceptable? I have an 8.69 level and it has been 8 mi this since I had covid. Yet I carry the plague? Don’t think so!!!
Your proof of antibodies does not put a nickel into Pfizer’s of Moderna’s pockets.
Just spit-balling.
Ouch. Vaxx work & people should bother. Science, much? Just be happy we’re almost through it. Also, antibodies are complicated & measuring them won’t give you the whole picture, so why bother. Might want to look it up (somewhere other than Facebook) & grasp nuance. Also look up the Swiss cheese method. If more people had an idea of how viruses/vaxx/masks work; we probably could’ve gotten through this sooner. There will be another pandemic. Hope everyone gets educated before it gets here.
Amen brah🤙
We won’t be going anywhere that requires an illegal, ineffective Jab to go there.
That’s funny considering there is nothing illegal about it. Just because you think it is, doesn’t make it true. But please by all means, stay away. That way responsible people that respect the land and the people of Hawaii can go and enjoy themselves.
Who’s on first?
What’s on 2nd 🙂
“I don’t know…”. Lol!
Oh my, a glimmer of common sense!