Due to the more contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus, this summer has turned into a nightmare for some popular destinations. One of the biggest reasons for this is unvaccinated tourists who have caused massive COVID outbreaks in travel hotspots like Florida and New Orleans. And now, another tourist destination has been hit hard by increased COVID infections—Hawaii.
Hawaii currently has over 9,300 active COVID cases, which is crippling the state’s healthcare system. To curb the spread, they have reinstated capacity limits for restaurants and are canceling all large gatherings like concerts and shows.
Hawaii’s governor, David Ige, even went a step further to personally tell travelers to change their plans and not come to Hawaii. According to ABC Honolulu, Ige stated, “It’s not a good time to travel to the islands. Restaurant capacity has been restricted. There is limited access to rental cars…and we know that the visitors who choose to come to the islands will not have the typical kind of holiday that they expect to get when they visit Hawaii.”
For those who have already booked travel, however, there is no rule technically saying you can’t visit. Hawaii’s borders are still open. However, as Governor Ige stated, the trip might not be as you’d hoped. With capacity limits in place and Oahu now requiring masks in all indoor spaces, your trip might not feel like much of a vacation.
Furthermore, there will likely be conflicts with the locals. Even before the governor’s message, Hawaiians were having heated confrontations with tourists over traveling to the islands during a pandemic. Considering these new updates, tensions between locals and visitors are sure to boil over in the coming weeks.
