Beginning Saturday, March 26, 2022, individuals arriving from the continental United States will not be required to create a Safe Travels account, show their COVID-19 vaccination status, or take a pre-travel test when traveling to the Hawaiian Islands.
Hawaii Governor David Ige announced today that Hawaii’s Safe Travels program for domestic travelers will come to a close on Friday, March 25, 2022.
“Safe Travels is one part of a multi-layer approach to COVID safety. The program played a key role in keeping Hawaii’s residents safe before vaccinations were widely available, and during the surges we’ve seen through this pandemic,” said John De Fries, Hawaii Tourism Authority President and CEO. “Bringing the Safe Travels program to a close reflects the progress we have made as a state, and Governor Ige’s decision is a good balance of maintaining reasonable health precautions while reopening our society and economy.”
Passengers arriving to Hawaii on direct international flights must still adhere to federal U.S. entry requirements.
This includes showing proof of an up-to-date vaccination document and negative pre-travel COVID-19 test result taken within one day of travel. For more information, visit www.hawaiicovid19.com/travel.
“The Safe Travels program was an immense undertaking that would not have been possible without the collaboration and support of our fellow government agencies and numerous visitor industry partners who worked tirelessly to serve our communities in this effort, from the dissemination of travel requirements globally, to testing and screening, the call center response and check-ins with quarantined individuals, and the airlines which stepped up to pre-clear their passengers at the point of departure,” De Fries said. “We would like to especially thank the hundreds of kamaaina who worked as Safe Travels screeners, patiently working with travelers to ensure their compliance with our health measures.”
Hawaii’s statewide indoor mask mandate remains in place until further notice. On the county level, the County of Kauai, County of Maui, and County of Hawaii have repealed their COVID-19 Emergency Rules. The City and County of Honolulu’s Safe Access Oahu program will end on Sunday, March 6, 2022.
De Fries added, “The recovery of Hawaii’s travel market and economy will be a gradual process, and HTA will continue to work diligently to educate visitors about the responsibility that they share with our residents to malama (care for) our home.”
Image courtesy of leico imamura from Pixabay
WHAT TO TAKE AWAY FROM THIS ARTICLE:
- “The Safe Travels program was an immense undertaking that would not have been possible without the collaboration and support of our fellow government agencies and numerous visitor industry partners who worked tirelessly to serve our communities in this effort, from the dissemination of travel requirements globally, to testing and screening, the call center response and check-ins with quarantined individuals, and the airlines which stepped up to pre-clear their passengers at the point of departure,” De Fries said.
- “Bringing the Safe Travels program to a close reflects the progress we have made as a state, and Governor Ige's decision is a good balance of maintaining reasonable health precautions while reopening our society and economy.
- De Fries added, “The recovery of Hawaii's travel market and economy will be a gradual process, and HTA will continue to work diligently to educate visitors about the responsibility that they share with our residents to malama (care for) our home.
