Twelve people were supposed to be shaping Hawaii’s visitor future. As of last week, all of them have quit. At the insistence of Hawaii’s governor. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? We aren’t sure yet ourselves. Are you?
That includes the entire Hawaii Tourism Authority board, once responsible for directing how Hawaii talks to the world—its travel branding, promotion, and policies. Every member resigned following a formal request from Governor Josh Green after new legislation stripped away the old structure and placed complete control directly under the governor’s office.
And it didn’t happen in a vacuum—this follows months of internal firings, staff placed on leave, and a growing sense that the agency had lost its grip. We reported on that earlier as Hawaii began tearing up its travel playbook in full public view.
There’s no replacement board. No marketing director. And no public roadmap for what comes next. All of it now falls under the governor—who, by many accounts, including countless comments here, hasn’t shown much interest in supporting U.S. mainland travelers.
His past remarks about reducing visitor numbers, combined with silence on significant changes affecting when, where, and how people visit, haven’t exactly inspired confidence. Communication breakdowns during recent crises—especially the Maui wildfire response—left many travelers confused or simply unwelcome.
For travelers, this might seem like background bureaucracy. But the effects could be anything but quiet.
No one is steering, and it shows.
You could argue that this board hasn’t had much of a helpful presence in the day-to-day visitor experience for a while now. More often than not, when we’ve heard about the agency recently, it’s been about controversy, confusion, or public missteps—not anything travelers could use. Still, there was someone officially responsible for shaping how Hawaii presents itself. There was structure, even though it was far from perfect.
Now it’s gone. No board. No clear plan. Eventually, a new commission will be appointed by the governor. But for now, there’s just silence.
There’s still no clear voice guiding travelers on developments such as new fees, reservation systems, or even the type of visitors Hawaii wants to attract. There is no guidance on which parks will require booking next. No one is explaining changes to beach access, trail rules, or how Hawaii plans for it all to fit together. And after a wave of corruption headlines earlier this year, many visitors told us they had stopped trusting anything official. One reader summed it up as a “cash grab run by clowns.”
That silence and confusion feel sadly familiar. So do the consequences. In March, we reported how Hawaii’s visitor strategy was already unraveling. Not much has changed since then. Except now, the people who were supposed to fix it have all just left.
Everyone’s gone, but the questions keep coming in.
Boards don’t usually disappear all at once. But this one did—no transition, no bridge, no one left (so far) to explain what happens next.
The governor’s office says this will make things more efficient. Maybe. We hope so. But without a team in place, there’s no one publicly steering the ship. No one is clarifying the policy. No one is explaining what this means for the people planning trips to Hawaii right now. Once again, travelers are left to guess.
What does this mean for your next trip?
No, Hawaii isn’t falling apart. Flights still run. The beaches are still here. However, with no clear leadership, things can become murky quickly, especially when the rules change without clear guidance on how, when, or why.
For travelers who plan ahead or return often, that kind of uncertainty is frustrating.
So, who’s in charge of Hawaii travel now?
This isn’t just about a dozen board members stepping down; it’s about the entire organization. It’s about who is actually leading the conversation about Hawaii’s future with its visitors.
Perhaps this is an opportunity to rebuild on better terms, for both residents and visitors. However, right now, there’s no visible roadmap, timeline, or clear direction at the helm.
Will this new setup bring absolute clarity and direction? Or will it just be more reshuffling under a tighter grip from the top down?
Right now, all we know is who’s gone. What we don’t know is what’s next.
Please share your thoughts!
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So HTA ended, and nothing changed. Tourists are still coming.
This means the HTA budget of 60 + million was being wasted.
From now on, let’s use the TAT to maintain public restrooms, etc. and not waste it on advertising Hawaii to people who will come anyway.
Firing people with no transition or actual plan sounds like failure to me. It is not how you effectively manage groups, let alone something as important as this.
Especially since the person now in charge (the governor) has never struck me as pro tourist, instead he seems to prefer pandering to locals.
While the management of Hawaii tourism needs some form of leadership, events since the pandemic have shown that mainland visitors come to Hawaii regardless of specific messaging.
While travel is down marginally to Hawaii, it’s down globally at the moment due to the chaos and confusion being sown in DC. I work in tourism and know first-hand that people defer spending whenever there is economic uncertainty.
So, maybe take a breath, and perhaps commenters can spare the unfounded accusations, and just let things play out.
A plan. Has Hawaii ever had a plan? IMO the only plan that has ever been adopted and finished is to charge tourists more and raise taxes. Last HTA board 2 individuals resigned because of corruption and now after the new name and reorganization 12 board members suddenly resign. What’s the reason 12 individuals suddenly resigned? No director, no board. IMO all I can say is tourists watch out and especially residents. IMO just another reason to follow the $$$$.
Aloha,
Hawaii’s “approach” to tourism resembles a fatal helicopter crash.
Mahalo
A very interesting, lengthy article appeared in the July 6th Seattle Times page C5 regarding the large amount of housing being built on Maui for victims of the fire. It implies that much more building is in the pipeline. Based upon the scope of these plans it makes me wonder why proposition 9 is so very urgent. As an owner of an STR since 1995, I am perplexed that I have heard nothing of these developments. It makes me wonder why none of my newsletters or other Maui sources have spoken of these developments. How did it come to the attention of my local paper and why did they give it a 2 page spread?
The Hawaii Tourism Authority Board was a rudder-less ship and sank when it hit a hidden reef with a Captain, Hawaii’s good old Governor Josh Green, who does not have a clue on what Hawaii needs in marketing, the economy and the state overall.
Hawaii tourism has officially become the Theatre of the Absurd.
It’s kind of a joke to call it a tourism board. The last few years it’s been an anti-tourism board and pro hotel! I realize people want less tourists but now business is way down and the anti-tourism vibe is sending much needed dollars to Europe and other South Pacific locations that welcome visitors and the dollars they bring. Anti-STR and pro-hotel boards have made family vacations almost out of reach, that’s why they are going elsewhere!!! Be careful what we wish for !!
This is just another glorious example of the Governor displaying his total incompetence at governing anything. He’s a typical one party rule politician who ignores the needs to the citizens and answers only to the “fat cats,” special interests, and celebrity billionaires. Hawaii’s growing list of problems will only get longer until there’s wholesale change from top to bottom in both Hawaii’s state and local government.
How many Hotel owners and their money is Josh Green going to appoint to the new board? Just a rubber stamp for Josh Green.
HTA became a train wreck with a board. Without a board, it can’t be worse. Add to that Maui wanting to confiscate property owners’ ability to use their property, and what do you have. Chaos! Maui needs to figure out what they’re going to do first. Build more affordable houses is my suggestion (prefab units).
If the Hotels want business, pony up their money for the Convention Center roof leakage problem. Shut down HTA spending our money.
I hear the coccal shells, Hawaiians clapping, and a new aloha spirit. Rob and Jeff. Merge like the airlines and rename the operation Beat of HTA. IMO it’s the greatest thing you can do for the Hawaiian community and tourist’s alike. You’re right no board, no director just a news media couple running the show.
There’s been very little, if any, leadership til now, so nothing’s really changed. The previous board was a self serving bunch, and given the governor’s /mayor’s track record, don’t expect anything better in the future.
Is it possible there could be a Beat of Hawaii/HTA merger and as far as a Rob and Jeff 2 member board? You seem to have more information than most. Sorry IMO the corrupt need only to apply.
This might rule you out or maybe new blood to clean up this dirty mess.
Any time government gets involved the results aren’t pretty. Should be a fully independent board with as little input as possible from the state.
The Gov. has made it clear, he wants the uber rich. Both from the Mainland and the rest of the world, mostly Asia. If he could figure out how to get the Saudi Princes and the royal houses, the Russian oligarchy, or the Chinese upper class under Xi, he would be on it. Of course, this is a no win situation for Hawai’i. Killing the Golden Goose and thinking it’s good. He needs to be fixing the broken parts, rebuilding Maui and figuring out some kind of industry unique to Hawai’i other than tourism.
Josh Green is the boss. He wants to run everything. Again Hawaii gets what it votes for. Running the state like an ER room.
I found it interesting how you described all of the information that would not longer be available because of the HTA going thru the old shake and drop. Having said that, I have found that the Beat of Hawaii has already been the purveyor of all of that information already so I’m really not sure that having the HTA go away is that big of a deal. Maybe your group will be getting a call from Greenie. Just be careful that you don’t ruin a good thing by getting involved with Hawaii’s government without protections for what you have going on now.
And this is a problem how?
A new Gov. Green approved board will take it’s place as soon as he has received all financial bids from unions, environmentalists, government employees, well connected aunties and uncles who are looking for political points or a $$$$ side hustle.