On a flight from Chicago to Los Angeles, on our way home to Hawaii, we overheard three strangers seated in front of us talking about future trips. It was a casual yet unforgettable conversation until someone mentioned Hawaii. Another one shut it down immediately. “F them,” he said. “They don’t want us there anymore.” We were surprised to witness these feelings first hand.
Nobody was talking about rules or restrictions. Nobody mentioned the price, hotel costs, or a bad trip. Hawaii was treated as off the table for an entirely different reason. Not because they could not go, but because they felt they were not supposed to go.
It did not turn into a debate. Hawaii was not seriously compared with anything else, even as we heard French Polynesia and the Caribbean discussed. It was crossed off by all three, on instinct, as the decision had already been made somewhere else, long before that casual conversation ever happened.
This is not about price anymore.
It is also not another story about airfare spikes, resort fees, or whether Hawaii costs more than it used to. Those debates are familiar and constant. This is about something different. A decision that happens before research starts, before price comparison, before curiosity even kicks in.
In the past, travelers complained about cost but still shopped the destination. They looked for deals, shifted dates, downgraded hotels, or talked themselves into it anyway. That step is disappearing. More people are skipping straight to no.
We see this in reader comments. Instead of explaining why Hawaii was too expensive, people say they never checked. The tone is not angry. It is resigned. Hawaii is not being rejected after comparison. It is being dismissed before comparison.
How Hawaii taught travelers to assume no.
For years, Hawaii has sent increasingly complicated signals about tourism. Residents were noticeably frustrated. Infrastructure was badly strained. Overcrowding was real. Conversations about visitor caps or access limits, parking enforcement, new fees, and managing numbers became hard to avoid.
None of those issues was imagined. But messaging added up. Individual stories somehow blur into a single takeaway, and for a growing number of travelers, that takeaway is simple: Hawaii does not really want you here.
The response has not been outrage or boycotts. It has been different than that. Hawaii just stops making the final cut.
Stories about overcrowding, visitor conflict, enforcement, access disputes, and rising fees tend to reinforce one another. Even when each story is accurate, the cumulative effect reshapes perception. Travelers who have never had a bad experience in Hawaii begin to assume somehow they will.
Many of the state’s and counties’ messages were meant to encourage better behavior or make tourism more sustainable. And individually, those goals make sense. Taken together, they resulted in a different lesson, perhaps intended, perhaps not. That message was not “come, and be thoughtful.” It became “maybe just don’t come.”
That is the part Hawaii still seems slow to grasp. A lot of travelers are no longer making a case against Hawaii vacations. They are skipping the process entirely. They are not sitting down and comparing Maui with Tahiti, Kauai with the Cook Islands, or Oahu with Mexico. They are writing Hawaii off before any of that ever starts.
Once that happens, the usual fixes have little impact. It is not enough to simply tweak value, create an airfare or hotel sale, or promise a better experience. Those things only work when someone is still open to being sold.
Why Hawaii marketing is missing the real objection.
Hawaii’s tourism messaging has struggled to adjust to this shift. The marketing still leans on beauty, hotels, upgrades, and experiences. The product is still strong. The scenery is still spectacular. None of that is the problem.
At the same time, none of that addresses what is actually forming in some people’s minds. You cannot sell a resort credit or an upgrade to someone who has already adopted the belief that they are not wanted.
Competitor destinations are benefiting without trying to. The Cook Islands, Tahiti, and parts of Europe feel easier by comparison. That has been told in hundreds, if not thousands, of our comments. The tone is different. The friction feels less. Travelers who feel pushed away from Hawaii are finding places that feel more relaxed, even when overall prices are similar.
This shift is most visible among first-time and middle-class travelers. These are not repeat visitors who already get how Hawaii works. These are people deciding where to go next, influenced by headlines and even more so by social media. When they hear about fees, restrictions, and tension, they do not perceive nuance. They see a warning sign and keep scrolling past Hawaii.
That is a real problem because those travelers used to be a big part of Hawaii’s future pipeline. They were the people who tried Hawaii once, came back years later, and sometimes even turned into repeat visitors for life. That was actually the most common visitor at one point. The frequent one. So when they opt out before the first trip, Hawaii does not just lose one booking. It loses the chance to build a lifelong relationship at all.
It also changes the kind of slowdown Hawaii gets. If the people leaving first were only bargain hunters or one-time low spend visitors, that would be one thing. But that is not how this appears. The people who are peeling away are often the ones who can afford it and are otherwise open, flexible, and still deciding. And they are too easy to lose.
Hawaii got fewer visitors, just not the ones it expected.
For years, officials and residents talked about reducing volume and attracting the “right” kind of traveler. What is happening now looks like fewer visitors, but not in the way anyone had planned. The people opting out first are not the wealthy or the deeply committed. They are the curious, the undecided, and the flexible.
Hawaii cannot market itself back into someone’s vacation consideration once they believe the destination itself has closed them out.
That comment on the plane was not angry or dramatic. It was casual and final, the way people talk about places they believe no longer apply to them. Hawaii was not debated. It was entirely dismissed.
That is the bigger issue here. Not that travelers ran the numbers and decided Hawaii just costs too much now. Not that they researched everything and picked somewhere else better. A growing number are ruling the islands out before any of that. Hawaii is losing people before the shopping phase even begins.
That is actually a much harder problem than high prices. High prices can sometimes be explained, justified, or worked through. This, however, is different. This is a perception problem that has settled in early enough to stop the whole decision-making process.
And once people start talking that way to each other, it can spread fast. Not through anything official or even major headlines, but through ordinary conversation and social media. A friend says Hawaii does not want visitors. Someone else hears it, half believes it, and repeats it later. After a while, that coconut wireless becomes its own reality, whether it is fair or not.
That is where Hawaii now seems to be getting hit. Not by any single message, policy, or bad story, but by years of accumulation. After enough friction, enough conflict, enough public resentment, enough odd messaging, and enough talk of cost that some travelers have boiled it all down to just one conclusion: don’t bother with Hawaii.
That should worry anyone who depends on Hawaii travel, because a destination does not stay top of mind automatically. Not even one as iconic as Hawaii. It stays there because people keep re-imagining themselves here. Once they stop doing that, once Hawaii becomes the place they assume is too expensive, tense, restrictive, or unwelcoming to even check, the damage is already well underway.
Hawaii may be getting fewer visitors, but not just because travelers ran the numbers. Have you heard people talk about Hawaii this way? Please share your comments.
Lead Photo Credit: © Beat of Hawaii at Waikiki.
Get Breaking Hawaii Travel News
I don’t say this meaning that it’s intellectual or calculated, but Maui is complex. You have a bunch of former service workers who have been minimum wage earners all the way into adulthood steering a government who is more than happy escorting short term rentals and their clientele off the island so that the big campaign donors…..erm, I mean hotels can double their rates and add on new fees every couple of years. Mayor Bissen is the archetypal lawyer, narcissistic, arrogant and over confident. There are all sorts of laws that he’s unaware of. The one of unintended consequences will soon land squarely on his lap, and he won’t be in his chair holding a gavel when it does.
That may be true, but why have the courts not already thrown out Bill 9 based on the 2 lawsuits that were filed?
This is the 80/20 rule. 20% of the Hawaiian people do not want tourism and they are letting it be known in their attitudes, dis-respectfulness, graffiti, and overall how they treats visitors. It is on full display in how they treat their islands and Papahānaumoku. Litter, garbage, homeless. It is not the tourists who disrespect the islands, it is the 20% of locals who do not care and then complain about tourists ruining the islands. So sad. I truly hope the people they put in charge of tourism recognize these issues with local culture and make some long-term changes. Now – having said that…. for the 20% of visitors who are rude, condescending, and disrespectful….. they should be ashamed and look at changing their ways. Hawaii is a wonderful place; worth visiting, worth appreciating the local culture, worth experiencing the sites, worth vacationing at!
We own timeshares in Kaanapali and have traveled there every year since 1992. Leadership’s messaging has been mixed, confusing and negative. State leaders have transitioned from welcoming visitors to complaining about over-tourism. During the Lahaina fires, the message was to stay away. Their recent decision to focus only on wealthy tourists is discouraging middle-class visitors who have been the lifeblood of the economy. The ban on STRs is discouraging middle-class owners. While Maui residents need homes, can they afford a $4-5K rent/house payment for a property too small for their families? The loss of tax revenue and jobs because of the STR ban will have long term implications for Hawaii’s economy. How can those who live and work in Hawaii offer the Aloha spirit when their jobs are in jeopardy and their basic needs are not being met? Encouraging all visitors, lowering fees/costs and providing for the basic needs of Hawaii’s residents should be Job One.
They say the opposite of love isn’t hate – it’s indifference. That’s the way I feel about Hawaii now. I don’t hate it – I’m just indifferent and choosing to spend my travel dollars elsewhere.
My husband and I have been to Hawaii more than a dozen times since 2005. This past November, we decided to give Hawaii, specifically the Big Island, one last chance after having terrible experiences in 2021 (Maui) and 2022 (Oahu). We thought it was due to COVID recovery pains, but our last trip was the last straw. Rude people, terrible service (when you could even Get service), the cost of everything in the stratosphere, and nickel-and-diming on top of the high prices.
We went to Mexico last month, and we’re planning a Caribbean trip this November. Coming from Seattle, we’ll essentially be “wasting” three days of vacation just to travel to and from there, but after what we experienced on our last three trips to the Islands, we feel it’s worth it.
Absolutely true. And for a long time the message boards about Hawaii topics have been and are still heavily trolled by “locals” or “natives” that are rude and dismissive to just about any inquiry. I’m a former resident of the big island and for my recent 23 day car rental there were fees upon fees, made all the more punishing by the deplorable road conditions over most of the 1600 miles I drove, particularly most of Highway 11. Aging infrastructure, more and more visible homeless problems, feral cat population explosion were just some of the issues on parade everyday. Clearly the HVCB has lost the cooperation of just about every local agency and small business. If all the politicians can do is propose and pass more fees and “pono pledges”, the Aloha Spirit has fled.
After a career in the travel industry, i know what attracts tourism. It is not high hotel costs, parking fees, access limits, and fees, fees, fees! Fees added to everything tells me I am no longer wanted. 50 trips to the islands for me & I am looking for other places to go. What a shame!
Aloha to all.. And Mahalo to the locals! Our family first went to Waikiki starting in 2002. Now being semi-retired, we go twice yearly from Canada.. .. for appx 3 weeks each time.. In fact later this year, we are taking our kids and grandkids.. 15 of us! Although some people on some islands may have experienced poor aloha.. or lack of aloha.. from experience we can say that our last trip in February contained not only our normal enjoyment of the island, but on separate occasions, had not 1, not 2, but 3 people specifically and remarkably offering us a “Thank you for coming to Hawaii”!! Maybe its an Oahu thing, but we were impressed, thankful and joyed by the positive reaction from everyday locals.. perhaps the politicians and the bureaucrats could learn a thing or two from locals like that!! Maybe it’s time for a change in attitude from the bureaucracy and politicians.. if they cant or wont change.. maybe that is a sign that another type of change should happen!!
Wow Frank!
That’s so great to hear!
Mahalo Nui to you and all your family.
Have a super wonderful trip, all 15 of you, on your next trip to the islands!🤟😎
Aloha to all.
As one who use to go to Hawaii almost every year since 2005, I fell in love with Honolulu the first time I arrived there. But as time went on I noticed pricing skyrocketing and tourists be Nickle and dim ed for everything. Unfortunately, it’s the same politicians that the people of Hawaii keep voting in who always see the answer to Hawaii’s problems as “increase or add a tax to the tourist”. Governor green is the perfect example. A word to the residents of hawaii, when tourists stop coming, you’re the ones who’ll pickup the tax tab. You asked for this!
Marty
Canada
Hawaii is overpriced and offers nothing unique. Asian tourists are better off going to Guam or Saipan, as flights are cheaper and weed is legal. Mainland tourists are better off going to the Caribbean and Latin America, where you get good value, due to exchange rates, and in certain countries coke and brothels are legal.
What does “right” visitor mean or imply?
I feel sorry for the Waikiki traveler or tourist who spends $$$ for a souvenir made here hopefully, not a bunch made somewhere in Asia.
Face it, Hawaii simply is not the “right” destination for those with discerning tastes. I hope they’re visiting the South Pacific islands, especially Bora Bora, whose resplendent beaches, sunsets and villas feel truly paradisal.
As a resident, Hawaii feels hellish, and if asked by friendly travelers, I’d say spend your $$$ elsewhere.
Maybe it’s just me but I think part of the problem, not just here, but globally is that people who shouldn’t be traveling, are.
Too many people are happy to live well beyond their means. Put everything on a credit card and worry about it later.
Maybe that’s why you see in some countries the anti tourist backlash is much worse than some feeling the Hawaii “doesn’t want me”, well for me, mostly yeah, I don’t want you here…..
I have been coming to Hawaii for 50 years and have a timeshare. Hawaii is my paradise and I spend more than I should. Friends are surprised I go so often but I want no regrets. While I am physically able I will plan and enjoy my vacations. Life is too short. 🌴🐠
IMO which is better? Hearing the F-bomb or seeing the Here’s Hawaii number one middle finger salute? With Hawaii collecting all the tourist taxes, fees, and all the federal assistance when will Hawaii right off all tourists? IMO everybody can live off state unemployment, social security, disability, and welfare. IMO with all the money Hawaii collects versus pay out they can support their residents for years down the road. Who needs to work if everybody just sucks off the state and federal government? Think about it. Is this the future reality or is it planned by the state?
I’ve lived and worked here in Honolulu Hawaii for almost 26 years. I live in Waikiki.
I’ve seen a lot of changes, but recently, not for the better.
Prices have increased for everything you can imagine, homelessness is rampant and violent crime is on the rise.
It’s no wonder people don’t want to come here.
If I happen to be a visiting tourist and were to see what I see everyday, I would not be returning and I would be certain to not recommended my friends or family visit either.
I see a lot of comments here about how tourists are treated by the locals. It may not be entirely accurate because all locals aren’t treating visitors like invaders they don’t want here.
One thing for sure is certain though, Aloha isn’t what it used to be. Amongst locals it is alive and well, but it’s not shared with the tourists in the same way.
Tourists are shown what I like to call “fake aloha” and visitors can sense when they are unwanted.
We have been traveling to Maui for over 12 years and have never had a bad experience. It’s true there are lots of other wonderful spots you can vacation, but many are outside of the United States. We had planned a trip to Puerto Vallarta this year instead of Maui because when we were planning it last year Maui was just too expensive. We were supposed to be there when all the unrest happened, so we cancelled. We pivoted and are going back to Maui instead. The prices have dropped and it’s virtually the same price now.
I think everything has gotten more expensive. We are looking forward to returning to Maui.
This article is interesting but it leaves out the reason why I am not returning to Maui. That is local unfriendliness. People who live on Maui are unfriendly bordering on hostile. I spend my money, I am a polite person but it does not matter. When people look at you with hate in their eyes it is time to go some place else.
KHON2 news has a YouTube video today interviewing politician Sean Quinlan ordering not asking-” We don’t want any visitors to the North Shore…Stay in Your Hotels”.
The audacity of Hawaiian politicians is disgusting. Send back the Lahaina $1,600,000,000 if you don’t want to be part of the USA.
Aloha
He said that because of the storms. Everybody stay in their Hotels. The Kona storm is very serious with high winds and rain.
Flash flooding etc.
For your safety…..
Aloha to you,
It’s not just the message; it’s the mean, bullying, you don’t belong here attitude.
No aloha in Sean for subservient tourists.
It seems obvious mainland travelers resent paying thu the nose and being discriminated against. Vis a vie tourist pricing and being outrageous fees for stopping at a lookout. Bad attitudes by locals reeking of resentment as if we are the problem instead of the solution
Hawaii had ruined its sugar cane, pineapple, coffee industries. Now it is ruining the last bastion of industry; tourism.
Aloha and good luck with that.
I saw a comment suggesting those who aren’t feeling welcome are actually what Hawaii is trying to keep out. We have traveled to Hawaii every year for over 20 years. We have made friends with local store owners etc. There are some wonderful people in Hawaii. We always are very respectful to both the land and everyone we meet during our travels. Unfortunately we too have at times felt unwelcome and are considering traveling elsewhere. There is definitely some hostility towards visitors in general. Not just those who may not be the best visitors. Again there are still those who do express Aloha and welcome visitors warmly but then there are the others who ruin the wonderful experience. Just a fact.
While discussing this article and overall issue with my wife, she had a good point and one that was overlooked in the article. What if the people who are choosing not to come are the people Hawaiians don’t want there anyway. My wife runs a local free event that attracts thousands of participants every year. Since about 2020, it had been overrun by folks with a horrible attitude. My wife developed “kindness” checkpoints so some of the bad behaviors would be called out. The first year there was a lot of negative feedback but by the second year, the bad actors didn’t want to deal with the kindness and decided to stay away. Now the event has few attendees, but the quality of the attendees is so much better and everyone enjoys themselves more.
I have a feeling, once the “bad” tourist stop coming, the locals will be happy and kindness will rein supreme again.
Bingo!♡♡♡
The assumption is that if you are a good tourist then local people will be welcoming. Well I am a good tourist (polite, respectful, friendly) and I am seeing hostility from all kinds of locals regardless of cultural background.
Regarding 3 unhappy visitors … I’m not sure why this is so “hot.” 3 is a small sample and underlying there seems to be tension about “Oh we can’t scare them away”
Let’s look at a couple of things: do you really think that A&B’s going private and Wall Street venture capitalists are spending over 2 billion if that’s the case?
Perhaps we had better look at Kauai and Maui becoming “boutique islands only for the well-heeled?!
Infrastructure? Airports, roads, municipal services and the sheer volume do not create a “feel good” experience!!
Why do we love the Last Best Places to death?! That’s where the rubber hits the road!
I could not agree more with those three travelers and applaud them for speaking candidly. We too have noted the obvious change and no longer feel welcome. I remain hopeful that Hawaii will eventually feel the pinch as visitors choose more welcoming destinations. Repeat visitors and new visitors were attracted to the welcome Hawaii once expressed but the Aloha welcome is no more. We used to encourage our friends to visit the islands and were happy to tell them about each one but this is no longer the case. Conversations are now about new and different adventures we’ve experienced where we’ve felt welcome! Hawaii is losing what once were annual visitors. But…. that is what they’ve wanted so I guess it’s a win for everyone! We’re exploring new places and they aren’t as crowded.
That article states my feelings exactly. We have been going to Hawaii for 30 years. In the beginning everyone was so friendly and welcoming. No more! The resentment towards visitors is real. We went to Kauai this past September and probably will not be back to Hawaii. No smiles or Ma halo at the stores. No friendly banter at the farmers market. I want nothing but happiness on vacation. I think you’ve bitten off the fingers of the hand that feeds you.
After reading comments, you can see how people are thinking.. I have been to Hawaii more than 40 times. And as I get home and talk about Hawaii most people ask go back.. With Mexico, cruises why go to Hawaii..As the Governor of Hawaii wants upper class and rich people, than average guy sees he is not wanted….
The phrase “they don’t want us there anymore” is a devastating one because of how it cuts through every positive tourism campaign with just one sentence. Hawaii can spend millions on marketing and still lose it all like this.
What stood out for me was that the men who were talking about Hawaii were complete strangers. That means it was not one person venting to friends or family but rather a shared assumption among random travelers. That is even more telling.
As a former repeat visitor, I can say that Hawaii is no longer competing against its own past. It is competing against every other place that to me now feels simpler, friendlier, and more worth it.
I think there is also a class issue at play here that nobody wants to say. Middle-class families hear all of this and conclude Hawaii is no longer meant for them. Maybe that was not the intention, but it is clearly the takeaway.
It is definitely the intention. Hawaii is way out of balance in many ways. Overtourism is just one of them.
I honestly hope the tourism industry on Maui continues to slowly decline until it basically disappears altogether. The local economy will adjust in one way or another, as it always does. People will just need to find different employment roles and opportunities. It will be painful in the short term, but overall the gains will outweigh the detriments. Tourism as a rule is demeaning to the local population and economy, no matter where in the world it exists. It’s colonialism, disguised as hospitality.
People will just need to find different employment roles and opportunities.
Like what?
With an attitude like that, I hope you get an opportunity to have your theory tested. I will help be your test case by promising to not spend another dollar on Maui.
It’s 2026! When are we going to put all this colonialism to bed! Hate America and expansion all you want, you are never going to stop it. Cook discovered the Islands hate the UK. Every bit of land every where in the world was “stolen” from someone else. At least in the USA you have the freedom to keep culture, religion, etc. And sure, it’s not perfect, but at least we own our mistakes. If it were Germany or Russia we wouldn’t be discussing this because all would have been exterminated. As far as being hated by locals nothing new for me, I grew up in Montana among many Indian tribes, and they all still hate us. But are they going back to the old ways? No, they like their iphones, Xbox, cars, fast food, etc. Sorry but at some point you have to let that stuff go, it was along time ago and most of us had nothing to do with it.
I still love Hawaii and probably always will, but I completely understand this reaction. No destination can live off old affection forever.
Nothing surprising here. I live on the mainland and hear this all the time now. Not hatred of Hawaii. Just a shrug. That may be even worse.
My husband and I were very longtime Hawaii visitors, but after the last few years we started looking elsewhere. At Portugal, the Cook Islands, Tahiti, and even coastal Canada. Not because they were dramatically cheaper overall, but because they felt easier and had fewer issues to contend with on our vacation.
There are still wonderful people in Hawaii and I’m happy to say we’ve met many of them. But visitors experience the total atmosphere, and Hawaii’s atmosphere now often feels defensive.
We are in the planning stages of what will be our 5th trip to Maui. It has been 11 years since we have been, although we have been to the Big Island recently. We are excited to come back to the island of our dreams! We are bringing our 2 boys and our 2 besties. It is 10 months out, but I am so excited to go back, I have already started planning. I do have to say I have a bit of sticker shock! We love to zipline, snorkel trip to Molokini, Luau and dinner crews, but after seeing everything has well more than doubled in price, what do you cut? We have never considered cutting Hawaii out of our lives, it is our happy place. We must be the lucky ones, in that we have never had an issue with locals or been robbed. Knock on wood! We equate it to, we are honored to be on their island and act accordingly. I hope it hasn’t turned into what we have read. I know alot has happened in 11 years, but we are looking forward to living the Aloha and spreading our own Montana love to the locals.