Hawaii might be closer than originally thought when it comes to bringing tourists back at pre-pandemic levels.
Hawaii tourism saw a solid bump in air travel last week, thanks to spring break, when nearly 30,000 visitors arrived over a three-day span. While that is still well off the average of 30,000 travelers who come to Hawaii daily, it nonetheless was the biggest three-day tourism streak in a year, or since the coronavirus pandemic began.
According to Hawaii News Now, most of the arrivals were on Oahu, and the upward trend of visitors was on full display in tourist-packed hot spots like Waikiki, and other beaches across the state.
Mufi Hannemann, President and CEO of the Hawaii Lodging and Tourism Association, said a mixture of visitors are coming to Hawaii for spring break.
"I checked with our hotels and partners, they said they're seeing it across the board - the budget-conscious traveler that wants to come and bring their family, young adults who are on spring vacation who are longing to come to a place where they can have fun in a safe and healthy way, and those who can afford to come to Hawaii and stay at the resort," said Hannemann.
Hannemann attributes the pent-up demand, the state's successful safe travels program and an increase in vaccinations as reasons for the influx.
But officials, including Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky, say everyone's guard should not be let down just because vaccines are being administered nationwide.
"These should be warning signs for all of us - cases climbed last spring, they climbed again in the summer, they will climb now if we stop taking precautions when we continue to get more and more people vaccinated," Walensky added.
Nonetheless, Hawaii has allowed Hawaiian Airlines to expand the state's pre-clearance program to Japan - a lucrative market to draw tourists from - and South Korea.
The program allows travelers who meet Hawaii's pre-travel testing requirements to bypass the state's 10-day quarantine and additional airport screening in Honolulu by having their documents verified before boarding.
Over the weekend, Hawaiian became the first airline flying between Japan and Hawaii to offer its Pre-Clear Program with its launch of the service at Narita International Airport, near Tokyo. The program will expand on Thursday to Kansai International Airport in the greater Osaka area of Japan.
Pre-Clear starts Friday at Incheon International Airport in South Korea. Hawaiian recently added a second weekly flight between Honolulu and ICN to meet increased demand.
"Expanding our Pre-Clear Program to Japan and South Korea simplifies the travel experience for our international guests so they can spend less time at the airport and more time vacationing or doing business in Hawai'i," said Theo Panagiotoulias, senior vice president for global sales and alliances at Hawaiian Airlines. "We look forward to working with the State of Hawaii to expand the program to more markets, and to continue building back travel to Hawai'i in a way that is safe for visitors and our community."
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