Tourism

... Hawaii risks being left out in the cold unless its delegates to Congress act quickly to help reform the 1886 Passenger Vessel Services Act ....

... total spending by visitors who came to the islands in September 2021 was $1.05 billion ....

... Hawaii is still in a state of emergency, tourism has slowed, businesses are closing and unemployment is high. The economy will take years to recover ....

... When compared to September 2019, statewide ADR was higher in September 2021 but RevPAR was lower due to less occupancy ....

... a difficult obstacle stands in the way of achieving the HTA action plans:  “HTA lacks authority over state and county agencies.” ....

... The memo concludes that the State did not have the power under the Hawaii Constitution to provide for four extra HART board members.  Thus, we can basically ignore the extra folks and conduct business as if they weren’t around ....

... Six board members voted to deny the FEIS, and one abstained ....

"If you’re in the wrong place at the wrong time you might suffer the scorn of residents, you could get cited, and there are 'other things' that can go wrong.”

"...The RFP’s scope of services has been modified to include destination management services, in alignment with HTA’s new vision of Malama Kuu Home (caring for my beloved home) through the principles of regenerative tourism. HTA’s objective is to help empower the community to have a greater voice in tourism’s future, with a focus on regenerating the environment, perpetuating the Hawaiian culture, recognizing Hawaii’s multiethnic cultures, and supporting responsible economic outcomes...."

... In anticipation of the new tax, the council also passed on first reading today a bill to increase anticipated revenue for the Open Space Fund ....

... A total of 722,393 visitors arrived by air service to the Hawaiian Islands in August 2021 vs 926,417 visitors in August 2019.....

... In August 2021, the total monthly supply of statewide vacation rentals was 616,900 unit nights (+73.0% vs. 2020, -32.7% vs. 2019) ....

"... we are in for a period of weakness before growth resumes late in the year. The end to federal fiscal support will weigh on recovery going forward, and a full return to pre-pandemic conditions remains several years down the road ...."

... Members from the HDOT, U.S. Army, Congress, Executive Office, Legislature, Aircraft Owners and Pilot Association (AOPA), tenants and community members have been meeting every few weeks for the past nine months as a collaborative effort to help save the airfield ....

... In August 2021, passengers arriving from out-of-state could bypass the State’s mandatory 10-day self-quarantine if they were fully vaccinated ....

... this is a sales pitch for less tourism ....

... HB 862 makes no provision whatsoever for joint collection. The counties are on their own ....

... The community-based plan is part of HTA’s work toward Malama Kuu Home (caring for my beloved home) and its accelerated efforts underway to manage tourism in a regenerative manner ....

... Visitor spending decreased compared to $1.70 billion (-6.8%) in July 2019....

... Compared with July 2019, RevPAR was 16.9 percent higher, driven by increased ADR (+21.0%) which offset slightly lower occupancy (-2.9 percentage points) ....

... tourist fails to uphold traditional Hawaiian cultural practices ....

... would not allow any new STRs in residential areas, but allow STRs adjacent to existing resort areas ....

... Hawaii is more than happy to tax the golden goose of tourism. But when it comes to feeding, caring for and cleaning up after it, we can’t seem to get on the same page ....

... Both platforms will now require host-provided tax map key numbers to appear on online listings ....

... Blaisdell Center was recently awarded $3,056,261.58 ....

... Compared to June 2019, visitor spending decreased 11.9 percent from $1.63 billion ....

... but down 32.9% vs. 2019 ....

... an effort to accommodate local residents, while maintaining the improved marine environment ....

... Moody’s cites the Aa1 rating “reflects the continued economic recovery of Maui driven by the rebound of tourism-related activity” ....

... Hawaii’s bars might be among those that have suffered the most under the confusing COVID-19 tier system ....

"... concerned about unintended consequences such as pushing hospitality developments into communities outside of Maui’s resort areas ...."

... The HSP Master Plan caps daily visitation at Hāʻena to 900 people ....

... Some old laws have withstood the test of time. Some haven’t ....

... State lawmakers and DLNR leaders believe the 2021 legislative session was the most productive and effective for natural and cultural resources protection and support of any in recent decades ....

"... I was asked to release all my medical records from Kaiser Permanente to CLEAR, not just the results of the vaccination ...." 

... If you want to find something that perfectly captures Hawaii’s schizophrenic tourism policy, you couldn’t do much better than House Bill 862 .... 

... HDOT announced in a press release on June 10 that it has installed approximately 70 “no parking” signs on Hana Highway ....

... The Senate will reconvene on Thursday, July 8, 2021 at 3:00pm to reconsider a potential veto override of HB53 and vote on proposed floor amendments to meet the Governor’s objections in his veto message for HB54, HB1299 and SB589 ....

... Ige announced that he has vetoed 26 of the 28 bills on his Intent to Veto list ....

... Electric foot scooter bill signed into law (Act 174) ....

“Just when you think we’d reached the prize, somebody moves our cheese. But what that really shows is a lack of transparency about the tier system.”

... The Safe Travels digital platform is now allowing vaccine document uploads for trips arriving in Hawaiʻi on July 8 and beyond ....

... $25 entrance fee effective July 1 for non-locals 13 years and older ....

... According to the U.S. Travel Association, fourteen state tourism offices are funded either partly or entirely by a statewide lodging tax ....

... When compared to 2019, visitor arrivals in May 2021 were down 25.7 percent from the May 2019 count of 847,396 visitors, and visitor spending decreased 22.2 percent from the $1.41 billion spent in May 2019 ....

... Repeat visitors were more likely to be fully vaccinated along with college graduates and those with household incomes above $100,000 ....

“...the coronavirus pandemic has challenged the County to make many unprecedented decisions. One such decision was to reduce the Assessed Values of Hotel and Resort properties due to the catastrophic drops in occupancy experienced by that industry....”

... the highest percentage of respondents who said they do not think tourism is worth the issues came from residents ... who have lived in Hawaii for less than one year ....

... Gov. David Ige announced that effective July 8, the State of Hawai‘i will eliminate its pre-travel testing/quarantine requirement for domestic travelers to Hawai‘i who have been fully vaccinated in the United States ....

... Hawaii - Tahiti flights begin Aug 7 ....