Tourism

... 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 ....

... The Legislature’s decision to strip the county’s share of TAT revenues is certainly a stark change from just a few years ago ....

"...I support HB 862 as it provides the City the option of restoring a revenue base which has been lost – allowing us to continue services to our people...."

... States Hurt the Most by the European Travel Ban -- Hawaii 5th ....

... Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) has introduced three bills to repeal and reform the Passenger Vessel Services Act of 1886 (PVSA), an outdated, protectionist law that harms American jobs and American tourism ....

... Social gatherings up to 25 people allowed outdoors ....

... The funds target preservation of Native Hawaiian history, heritage and culture programs ....

... Today, Gov. David Ige signed House Bill 1023 into law. It establishes and requires a marine recreational fishing license for all non-Hawai‘i residents ....

... Depending on tourism numbers, the user fee could generate anywhere from $14 million to more than $30 million over 15 years ....

... President Joe Biden recently issued two Jones Act waivers ....

... The governor also announced that beginning June 15, travelers entering the state who have been vaccinated in Hawai‘i may bypass quarantine without a pre-travel test ....

... A majority of residents favor limiting the number of visitors ....

... wait until the State of Hawaii has vaccinated at least 60 percent of residents before allowing higher occupancy ....

... A case of maritime-related common sense has broken out in Washington, DC. ...

... 484,071 visitors arrived by air service to the Hawaiian Islands in April 2021, down 43.0 percent from the April 2019 count of 849,397 visitors ... 

... DBEDT revised its economic growth projection for 2021 to 3.5 percent, up from 2.7 percent ....