Citing a surge in COVID-19 cases and the increasing burden on the state’s hospitals and health care facilities, Hawaii’s governor is calling on Hawaii residents and visitors to delay all non-essential travel through the end of October.
“Our hospitals are reaching capacity and our ICUs are filling up,” Governor David Ige said in an Aug. 23 media briefing. “Now is not a good time to travel to Hawaii.”
Gov. Ige added, “It will take six to seven weeks to see significant change in the number of COVID-19 cases. It is a risky time to be traveling right now. Everyone, residents and visitors alike, should reduce travel to essential business activities only.”
John De Fries, president and CEO of the Hawaii Tourism Authority added that even though visitor arrivals are starting to decline, which usually happens in the fall, visitors should still consider postponing their visits to Hawaii.
“Our community, residents and the visitor industry, are responsible for working together to address this crisis,” De Fries said. “As such, we are strongly advising visitors that now is not the right time to travel, and they should postpone their trips through the end of October.”
In early July, Hawaii updated their entry requirements to allow people who have been fully vaccinated in the U.S. or one of its territories to enter Hawaii without pre-travel testing or quarantine.
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