Hawaii Preparing for Influx of Visitors When Restrictions Are Lifted

Image: PHOTO: 'Aloha' on Hawaiian beach beneath a rainbow. (Photo via iStock/Getty Images Plus/ejs9)
Image: PHOTO: 'Aloha' on Hawaiian beach beneath a rainbow. (Photo via iStock/Getty Images Plus/ejs9)
Rich Thomaselli
by Rich Thomaselli
Last updated: 3:03 PM ET, Sun October 4, 2020

Hawaii is anticipating up to 8,000 tourists a day to head to the Islands when the state's travel restrictions are lifted later this month, Lt. Gov. Josh Green said.

Hawaii is rescinding its mandatory 14-day quarantine for all visitors on Oct. 15 and will institute a pre-travel testing program for the coronavirus. Tourists who arrive with a negative test will not have to quarantine, according to The Maui News.

If 8,000 visitors a day sounds like a lot, well, it's a lot more than it has been. But it's more than two-thirds less than the average of 27,000 per day at the same time last year.

All adult travelers must register for the Safe Travels program on safetravels.hawaii.gov, and all children over 5 must have a negative Covid-19 test result. Tests must be taken within 72 hours of departure.

"Let me be very clear, I know it will not be perfect," Green told the publication. "Nothing will be perfect - we are in a global pandemic."

The testing program will be enhanced by such airlines as Hawaiian, United, Alaska and American, which have announced testing options in or near major airports, such as San Francisco, Los Angeles and Chicago. Oakland International Airport in California is also offering free tests to Hawaii-bound flyers.

"They have the right test, they will be able to give it to us quickly, they are working with us in a way where we know we don't have any kind of flaws, the system should be more efficient, checking people in, and they will do the right test," Green said.


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Rich Thomaselli

Rich Thomaselli

Associate Writer

Editor Associate Writer true 9281 14744 Rich Thomaselli has written for TravelPulse since 2014 and has been a professional journalist for nearly 40 years. His work has appeared in USA Today, the New York Times and New York Yankees publications. He is an 11-time writ

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