Hawai'i Reopens - Sort Of

Koolau said:
I'm just afraid some of the "flavor" will never return when larger companies swallow up the defunct smaller ones.
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That would, of course, be the worst case scenario. I, too, hate progress.

It would, however, continue the trend since we first visited Hawaii in the early 60's (remember the Honolulu pedicabs?... walking bar to bar in Kona?) which I am sure had lost a lot from the 50's and more so, I suspect, from the 40's.
 
RonBoyd said:
Except for those 0-3, of course... and anyone they met prior to becoming a "case."
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I suppose if that is the way we look at it, none of us would go anywhere or do anything. Due to my age and underlying conditions, I am acutely aware of risks and do what I can to limit exposures. But, I refuse to adopt a bunker mentality when our case counts are so low. One could take the same attitude toward driving or even walking. Accidents do claim a fair number of lives each year, yet we still drive because we need to get someplace or we want to get someplace. I understand that the numbers are different, but in many ways, the analogy holds up. Most accidents are preventable with defensive driving. I take the attitude that we make our own "luck" with Covid as well.

We mask up, socially distance, limit our time indoors with "strangers", wash our hands 'til the skin sloughs off, get tested before travel, avoid 'hot spots' (you know, raves, funerals, halloween parties, etc.) and remain aware of our circumstances.

None of us gets out of here alive! But between birth and death, we all need to do our best to look out for ourselves and each other - but also live our precious one-time-gift of life. I was just thinking: I won't risk my health to travel to the mainland right now, BUT were I still living on the frozen tundra of the midwest, I WOULD risk my life (with Covid, air travel, car travel, etc.) to come to the Islands.

This is very much a YMMV subject so, well, YMMV.
 
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Koolau said:
I suppose if that is the way we look at it, none of us would go anywhere or do anything. Due to my age and underlying conditions, I am acutely aware of risks and do what I can to limit exposures. But, I refuse to adopt a bunker mentality when our case counts are so low. One could take the same attitude toward driving or even walking. Accidents do claim a fair number of lives each year, yet we still drive because we need to get someplace or we want to get someplace. I understand that the numbers are different, but in many ways, the analogy holds up. Most accidents are preventable with defensive driving. I take the attitude that we make our own "luck" with Covid as well.

We mask up, socially distance, limit our time indoors with "strangers", wash our hands 'til the skin sloughs off, get tested before travel, avoid 'hot spots' (you know, raves, funerals, halloween parties, etc.) and remain aware of our circumstances.

None of us gets out of here alive! But between birth and death, we all need to do our best to look out for ourselves and each other - but also live our precious one-time-gift of life. I was just thinking: I won't risk my health to travel to the mainland right now, BUT were I still living on the frozen tundra of the midwest, I WOULD risk my life (with Covid, air travel, car travel, etc.) to come to the Islands. Well, also the "we are all dying"

This is very much a YMMV subject so, well, YMMV.
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I completely agree with all of that. Particularly about the to Hawaii vs the other way. It is in the 70's here today and the majority of the days last month was above 80° so that is not an option. Well, also the "we are all dying" part.

Bottom line: I envy you.
 
We have plans to go in April for 2 weeks. Hopefully the process will be smoother then, test or no test here we come.
 
Vacation4us said:
We have plans to go in April for 2 weeks. Hopefully the process will be smoother then, test or no test here we come.
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Let us hope for an effective vaccine by then. We really do need the tourists to return to our Islands.
 
I just saw some unemployment statistics that caused me to scratch my head. That is, Hawaii's unemployment got as high as 20%, but then subsided to 11% recently.

Given that the hospitality businesses got totally shut down, the 20% number is not surprising. But it does not look like travel has reopened sufficiently to help improve the unemployment that much. People can go find other work, but what? Or they just drop out of the work force, and stop being counted as unemployed?
 
NW-Bound said:
Hawaii's unemployment got as high as 20%, but then subsided to 11% recently.
People can go find other work, but what? Or they just drop out of the work force, and stop being counted as unemployed?
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By my search, Hawaii is at 15.1% for September and reported as of October 19th. I do not find anything posted for October unemployment rates for Hawaii. Interestingly, the national unemployment rate has fallen to 6.9% for October. That's only around 3% off for the year's all time low of 3.5% back in February. (I found my stats on the U.S. Bureau Of Labor Statistics web site)
My guess is that unemployment stats are based on counting those who are applying for unemployment. Once the benefit runs out, 46 weeks for California where I live, then they fall off and are no longer counted. However, federal and state extension here is another 20 weeks of benefits. I do not know if or how those folks are counted against the unemployment numbers. All that it takes to get the 20 additional weeks is just keep filling out the bi-weekly report required to stay on unemployment. Based on this, anyone in California out of work due to CV-19 related causes will be able to stay on unemployment quite a bit longer than a year; 66 weeks. Currently, California unemployment rate is at 11%
 
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NW-Bound said:
I just saw some unemployment statistics that caused me to scratch my head. That is, Hawaii's unemployment got as high as 20%, but then subsided to 11% recently.

Given that the hospitality businesses got totally shut down, the 20% number is not surprising. But it does not look like travel has reopened sufficiently to help improve the unemployment that much. People can go find other work, but what? Or they just drop out of the work force, and stop being counted as unemployed?
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I'm not sure if this has anything to do with it, but a lot of tourism industry folks here work for cash, and their employers don't pay unemployment insurance. These folks can't claim benefits. Many construction and tourism employees often return to the mainland when the economy tanks!
 
skipro33 said:
By my search, Hawaii is at 15.1% for September and reported as of October 19th. I do not find anything posted for October unemployment rates for Hawaii. Interestingly, the national unemployment rate has fallen to 6.9% for October. That's only around 3% off for the year's all time low of 3.5% back in February. (I found my stats on the U.S. Bureau Of Labor Statistics web site)...
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I found again that article on Yahoo, which has some cool animated graphics with data from July 2020 to mid Oct 2020.

See: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/thes...he-pandemic-recovery-continues-210806433.html

My state of Arizona was never on this "Top 10" list. The most recent unemployment number available is for Sep 2020, and at 6.7% which is lower than the national average of 7.9% then. Indeed, that national average has gone down to 6.9% for October.


HI Bill said:
I'm not sure if this has anything to do with it, but a lot of tourism industry folks here work for cash, and their employers don't pay unemployment insurance. These folks can't claim benefits. Many construction and tourism employees often return to the mainland when the economy tanks!
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That probably is it. As the dearth of tourism has no clear ending, a lot of workers could not afford to just sit around and wait, and probably left for the mainland.
 
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We Love Hawaii. We go there almost every year. We have a time share that we actually use on Maui for the past 28 yrs. My daughter was supposed to be married there in Oct. When the Governor kept moving the dates we made the decision to scrap the Maui Venue which was a good call even though my daughter was dissapointed. I'm glad we did because it sounds its not the Hawaii that we come to love.

Masks on the beach what a bunch of BS. My happy place ruined but that's nothing compared to the people's livelihoods that depend on tourism.
 
You have to dig a little deeper into the mask rules. Masks are not required on the beach, or actually anywhere in public, where 6 feet of distance can be maintained.

“The Hawaii that you have come to love” is alive and well! Don’t let the naysayers give you a false picture of reality. Some locals had been enjoying a Hawaii without tourists, and are also terrified of visitors increasing Covid case counts. This is understandable, although thousands of tourists have now arrived since October 15th, when the islands allowed skipping quarantine with a 72-hr Covid test, and the islands are still one of the few places in the US where Covid cases are not rising.
 
LaDolceVita said:
You have to dig a little deeper into the mask rules. Masks are not required on the beach, or actually anywhere in public, where 6 feet of distance can be maintained.

“The Hawaii that you have come to love” is alive and well! Don’t let the naysayers give you a false picture of reality. Some locals had been enjoying a Hawaii without tourists, and are also terrified of visitors increasing Covid case counts. This is understandable, although thousands of tourists have now arrived since October 15th, when the islands allowed skipping quarantine with a 72-hr Covid test, and the islands are still one of the few places in the US where Covid cases are not rising.
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Great news! Glad to hear that. Thanks.
 
LaDolceVita said:
You have to dig a little deeper into the mask rules. Masks are not required on the beach, or actually anywhere in public, where 6 feet of distance can be maintained.

“The Hawaii that you have come to love” is alive and well! Don’t let the naysayers give you a false picture of reality. Some locals had been enjoying a Hawaii without tourists, and are also terrified of visitors increasing Covid case counts. This is understandable, although thousands of tourists have now arrived since October 15th, when the islands allowed skipping quarantine with a 72-hr Covid test, and the islands are still one of the few places in the US where Covid cases are not rising.
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In fact, many folks have been arrested on the beach for not wearing masks. I'm not certain what the current policy is since there have been no stories lately on the news AND I haven't been to the beach. However, it HAS been the law to wear masks on the beach.

It's true that the requirements have come and gone, so to speak. Here is the latest proposal that I'm aware of - and, as I read it, it would be effective on the beach.

https://www.thegardenisland.com/202...r-to-standardize-mask-mandate-across-islands/
 
That's a fascinating article mentioned above. I especially like this quote:
“Auntie makes their famous baked potatoes with cheese,” Ige said. “It’s everything that everybody looks forward to, and we can’t do that this year.”
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Weird, but I guess the point was he basically asked for no Thanksgiving either.
 
World Traveler said:
https://www.staradvertiser.com/2020/11/17/hawaii-news/masks-rules-clarified-ige-imposes-new-decrees/

This pretty much says it all. I won't be going to Hawaii anytime soon.

Headlines:

Gov. David Ige imposes new decrees for statewide mask mandate, clarifying previously confusing rules.

Seems to me Kings and dictators make decrees.
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Yeah don't get me started on decrees and the rail, etc. etc.

Whether you agree with Ige's approach or not, you will hear no opposition. There IS no official opposition in the Islands as there is literally only one party. One more cost of Paradise.

Of course, the good news is that we have a relatively low number of infections and, especially deaths because we originally simply shut down tourism. We've been averaging (IIRC) less than 100 new cases per day, 1400 active cases, maybe 1 death every other day in a state of 1.4 mil. Of course, we have one of the highest unemployment rates of any state. We are beginning to see an exodus of the unemployed. Most "tourist" oriented j*bs simply can not be done via the internet. YMMV
 
So people complain about a few mask rules in Hawaii while those of us actually hanging out in Hawaii are enjoying 80 degree sunshine, with a nice ocean breeze, in the spot with the lowest covid numbers in the country. Ya it sucks here. I am sure your weather is just as nice! It’s horrible here. Stay home! Lol.
 
WorldTraveler, I’ll say it one more time...

You have to dig deeper into the mask rules.

At the very link above, towards the end, it lists the various exceptions to the mask rules. One of the exceptions is:

“While outdoors when physical distance of 6 feet can be maintained at all times“

I think it’s very deceptive of this article’s reporter to not put the exceptions further up in the article.
 
CaliKid said:
So people complain about a few mask rules in Hawaii while those of us actually hanging out in Hawaii are enjoying 80 degree sunshine, with a nice ocean breeze, in the spot with the lowest covid numbers in the country. Ya it sucks here. I am sure your weather is just as nice! It’s horrible here. Stay home! Lol.
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Yep, I haven't been a tourist here for 15 years, so no big deal to wear a mask to Costco. I do feel sorry for folks who spend a bundle to come here and then are required to wear a mask that all but blows off your face due to Trades and land/sea breezes. I'm sure they wonder why, but YMMV.
 
Here is an interesting update. I strongly urge a few grains of salt as you read it/watch it. BUT I will say that Josh Green is the only local public figure who seems consistently knowledgeable and reasonable about Covid issues (sorry - this could have been a Covid discussion, but I think it's arguably more about travel since that's what pays Hawaii's bills - travel.) As discussed here and elsewhere, there have been some fits and starts and some truly heavy-handed approaches that have been a real turn off, not only to tourism, but locally as well. One could argue that "well, it worked" but you could argue that killing the cancer patient kills the cancer. I'm not speaking of the tourism shut down - Most folks on the Island saw (or now see) that as a unique approach an Island state could use. I'm speaking more about some of the draconian fines and pending prison sentences for breaking quarantine and even mask infractions on open-air parks and beaches - pretty much all in the past now except for the court cases which may (or may not) happen - watch this space.

I bring all this up MORE to inform than to state opinions, though it may sound like opinions on my part. Yep, I've got opinions, but I think I've generally stated facts - at least as they have been presented over the past few months. With that in mind, ignore my prattle and watch the video. Kinda cool scenery included.:cool:

https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/...udy-on-what-couldve-gone-right-220246265.html

I think it's a positive result so far but depends heavily on continuing (and probably increased) Federal assistance AND more vaccine than we are currently receiving. That's my opinion, so of course, YMMV.
 
Interesting article. We like to visit Hawaii once a year but the requirement to wear a mask even while on the beach was enough for us to decide to hold off.

Are they still requiring masks in open air spaces? What is open or closed at this point?
 
Ready said:
Interesting article. We like to visit Hawaii once a year but the requirement to wear a mask even while on the beach was enough for us to decide to hold off.

Are they still requiring masks in open air spaces? What is open or closed at this point?
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Masks are still required in public. We no longer see 6 O'clock news stories of 3 HPD officers hiding in the mangroves waiting to pounce on the lone bather without a mask. I think our HPD OT scandal nixed that a bit.

Some restaurants are open, but most of the more "touristy" places are closed - many out of business. Of course, there are Fast Food places, but all you can do inside is order/take out. Can't even use the bathroom. We've been to Outback once and to The Old Spaghetti Factory once for indoor dining. IOW some of the slightly up-scale places are open, but the seating is spaced quite a bit. Prices are higher (not ridiculously so - maybe 20%) to cover cost of being open with fewer guests. Menus are quite curtailed. Maybe a single page instead of the usual "booklet."

We don't do the tourist stuff anymore, but I do sometimes see the parasail up in the sky. There are virtually no air "tours" as nearly as I can tell. We used to have helicopters overhead all day long. Now, the odd military copter is about all we see. You can go to the bigger stores and some of Ala Moana stores are open, I believe, but not many.

I'd say a Hawaii vacation now would most likely be to Oahu (slightly fewer rules than outer Islands - their rules change often it would seem). IF you have your documentation and the right phone app, you can get in and stay in a hotel without quarantine. If it were me, I'd do the beach and scenic stuff (rental car if there are any - check first) to natural formations and other beaches. You'll find food someplace and fuel is available. It will be quite laid back without the typical excitement that Oahu provides. Most bars (maybe all actual bars closed?? I can't keep track of the current rules.)

I'm guessing you could google some of your previous favorite spots and see if they are open currently.

We DO have just about the lowest rate of Covid19 in the country right now. So a mask and social distancing/wash hands/etc. and you should feel reasonably safe right now. Not so sure about air travel - especially connecting flights. Those direct to Hawaii, in theory, most folks are in "compliance" with Hawaii rules which should limit exposure quite a bit - but no guarantees.

I would do a lot of due diligence on the net before travel (anywhere). Our rules change fairly often. We SHOULD make it to the next (better) level of precautions soon if folks avoid SuperBowl parties this Sunday. Our numbers spiked after the holidays, but are slowly returning to our "new" normal. I guess we'll see.

I am hoping that we see significant travel return this fall, but won't count on it. YMMV
 
Koolau said:
Masks are still required in public. We no longer see 6 O'clock news stories of 3 HPD officers hiding in the mangroves waiting to pounce on the lone bather without a mask. I think our HPD OT scandal nixed that a bit.

Some restaurants are open, but most of the more "touristy" places are closed - many out of business. Of course, there are Fast Food places, but all you can do inside is order/take out. Can't even use the bathroom. We've been to Outback once and to The Old Spaghetti Factory once for indoor dining. IOW some of the slightly up-scale places are open, but the seating is spaced quite a bit. Prices are higher (not ridiculously so - maybe 20%) to cover cost of being open with fewer guests. Menus are quite curtailed. Maybe a single page instead of the usual "booklet."

We don't do the tourist stuff anymore, but I do sometimes see the parasail up in the sky. There are virtually no air "tours" as nearly as I can tell. We used to have helicopters overhead all day long. Now, the odd military copter is about all we see. You can go to the bigger stores and some of Ala Moana stores are open, I believe, but not many.

I'd say a Hawaii vacation now would most likely be to Oahu (slightly fewer rules than outer Islands - their rules change often it would seem). IF you have your documentation and the right phone app, you can get in and stay in a hotel without quarantine. If it were me, I'd do the beach and scenic stuff (rental car if there are any - check first) to natural formations and other beaches. You'll find food someplace and fuel is available. It will be quite laid back without the typical excitement that Oahu provides. Most bars (maybe all actual bars closed?? I can't keep track of the current rules.)

I'm guessing you could google some of your previous favorite spots and see if they are open currently.

We DO have just about the lowest rate of Covid19 in the country right now. So a mask and social distancing/wash hands/etc. and you should feel reasonably safe right now. Not so sure about air travel - especially connecting flights. Those direct to Hawaii, in theory, most folks are in "compliance" with Hawaii rules which should limit exposure quite a bit - but no guarantees.

I would do a lot of due diligence on the net before travel (anywhere). Our rules change fairly often. We SHOULD make it to the next (better) level of precautions soon if folks avoid SuperBowl parties this Sunday. Our numbers spiked after the holidays, but are slowly returning to our "new" normal. I guess we'll see.

I am hoping that we see significant travel return this fall, but won't count on it. YMMV
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Thanks! Reading through your comments just doesn’t particularly inspire me to want to travel to Hawaii right now. It just sounds like there are still too many limitations to make it the kind of vacation we would really enjoy.
 
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