Take a dose of global warming, add an increase in tourism and a fire in Maui, and what do you get? In Hawaii, it adds up to a new tourist tax.

In his State of the State address, Hawaii Gov. Josh Green renewed the call for a “climate impact fee” to be charged to every visitor to the Aloha State.

A proposed $50 charge failed to pass the legislature last year. But this week, Green proposed a “modest” $25 fee, to be paid by every visitor who stays at a hotel or short-term rental on any Hawaiian island.

The resulting $68 million a year would be used for “beach preservation, fire breaks, and other prevention measures to help us avoid tragedies like the one last year in Maui,” Green said.

“A Climate Impact Fee on visitors would provide the needed resources to protect our environment and increase awareness of the impacts of climate change,” he noted. “I believe this is not too much to ask of visitors to our islands Hawaii’s natural resources — our beaches, forests, and waterfalls — are an essential part of our culture and our way of life.”

At a press conference following the State of the State, House Speaker Scott Saiki and Finance Committee Chair Kyle Yamashita said they will consider Green’s visitor fee, as well as an increase in the existing transient accommodations tax, currently 10.25%.

I’m on a press trip on the AmaSonata, sailing the beautiful (but not blue) Danube. But Jim Augerinos told me he’s at the Signature Travel Network Owners Meeting, and would love to do an interview about Maui, from Maui, I said, let’s do it next week.

Jim said the need is immediate, and the people of Maui can’t wait another week. So I asked him if he would write something up and send it along. Here’s Jimmy’s moving reply: Read the rest of this entry »

After a wildfire spread quickly across Maui last week, the Hawai’ian island is left with a recovery effort that could last several months.

At the time of publication, the wildfire is said to have taken the lives of 106 people in the affected areas. Though, efforts are still ongoing. The approach of Hurricane Dora, and the subsequent high winds, are thought to be the primary reason it spread so quickly across the highly visited island.

Last week, the Hawai’i Tourism Authority (HTA) asked all visitors to leave the island of Maui to help facilitate a rescue and recovery, and for the safety of visitors.

Now, the HTA is telling all visitors booked on a trip to Maui to reschedule their bookings for as far out as months, possibly several months.

“In the weeks ahead, the collective resources and attention of the federal, state and county government, the West Maui community, and the travel industry must be focused on the recovery of residents who were forced to evacuate their homes and businesses.”, said the HTA in a statement.

Fast-moving fires raced across the Hawaiian island of Maui last night and into this morning, forcing tourists and residents to flee through flames in Lahaina, North Kihei, and Kula.

Winds up to 60 mph from Hurricane Dora, 500 miles away, caused wildfires on the island to quickly spread.
Acting Gov. Sylvia Luke has activated the Hawaii National Guard and asked the airlines to halt all incoming flights. More than 2,000 travelers are in Kahului Airport.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency also on Tuesday approved the state’s request for a disaster declaration to provide assistance with “the wind-whipped Kohala Ranch wildfire on the Big Island,” along with two other fires on the Big Island, according to the governor’s office.

**Editor’s note: The Hawaiian Tourism Agency has released a statement noting that the best thing people can do to help is not travel to Maui at this time.

“You know, we talk about ‘aloha’ as this value that is reciprocal, and we’re just very thankful for those visitors who have heeded our call to leave at this time so we can focus on the recovery,” he continued. “It is truly an expression of their aloha for us and for this place.”, said Ilihia Gionson, HTA’s public affairs officer.

If you’d like to contribute to helping Maui recover from these wildfires please go to Maui Strong Fund.

Airfares are crazy, baggage handlers are on strike, and it’s 100 degrees outside. And this month, a tide of regulations, taxes, fees and protestors is asking people to please just stay away.

But nothing, it seems, will stem the tide of tourists this summer. Still, the world’s top destinations are hoping new provisions will make the crowds manageable—even if that means restricting access to those who can afford to pay up for the privilege of visiting.

Just this month, Norwegian Cruise Line cut a deal with the city of Venice to use motor boats to shuttle groups of passengers rather than parking its cruise ships too close; starting in January, the city also will institute a new tax for day-trippers. Barcelona capped the size of tour groups walking its streets and made the use of megaphones illegal, and anti-cruising protests recently made headlines in Norway. Marseille, the oldest city in France, introduced a tourist quota and reservation system to visit the famous Calanque de Sugiton, allowing only 500 visitors a day rather than the usual 3,000, and an Outside the Walls system that deploys 50 seasonal workers at the busiest tourist spots to manage the flow of people. Corsica capped the number of tourists allowed to visit the island; tourists to Lavezzi Islands, Restonica Valley and Bavella Needles must have a prior reservation.

Bhutan, which traditionally restricts the number of tourists in a given year, is upping its mandatory visitor’s fee from $65 USD to $200 per day.  In Italy, the Amalfi Coast has restricted the number of tourist automobiles on its coastal road. Rome, Amsterdam and Dubrovnik are likewise considering measures aimed at moderating the crowds of tourists on their streets and at popular points of interest.

Domestic destinations not immune

In the United States, too, the locals in the most popular destinations are up in arms over the crowds. Two years of peaceful coexistence with nature during Covid lockdowns reminded many of the beauty of their quiet vistas—and this summer’s crazy surge of travelers has run headlong into a shorthanded service industry, making tourists more cranky, demanding, and unwelcome.

The national parks and our favorite vacation state of Hawaii have cut the crowds with mandatory registration systems. In Hawaii, visitors must get a number not just to visit Pearl Harbor, but also for Hanauma Bay, Haleakala at sunrise, Maui’s Waianapanapa State Park, Haena State Park on Kauai and Diamond Head on Oahu. Even the bar at Duke’s Waikiki is now reservations-only.

On the Great Lakes, members of the expanding cruise ship industry—including newcomer Viking Cruises, which is bringing the biggest ship, the 665-foot Viking Octantis, carrying 378 passengers—have already or are expected to soon agree to a series of sustainability initiatives in response to the increasing traffic.

In Glacier Bay, Alaska, the National Park Service has started an unannounced inspection system under which third-party inspectors will randomly board ships to monitor their compliance with environmental standards.

For travel advisors, meanwhile, the new regulations are one more thing to track, one more form to fill out—but also one more reason for customers to seek professional advice.

Some industry insiders predict destinations will come to rethink their decisions when they begin to feel the pinch of lost visitor revenues; others say the rules will just shift the crowds from one city to the next. Most customers will do what they must to get where they want to go—and by and large it is the destinations, not the customers, that are concerned.

“Like many things in today’s world, there is a group of clients and potential clients that take these concerns and causes to heart. I see a couple of hot buttons in a few of these anti-cruise posters that I am sure will make some reconsider,” says Dave Sobczak at  Holiday Road Travel – Independent by Liberty Travel in Collegeville, PA. “I have to wonder though, if moving people to alternate ways to visit the country actually solves the problem, if there is in fact a problem.”

Off Hawaii’s Naapali Coast, onboard Pride of America—Concerns over having to quarantine abroad are pushing travelers to domestic destinations and first among them is Hawaii, with the highest prices in the nation. But price is no object this year, and bucket list trips are all the rage. So you’d think Norwegian Cruise Lines wouldn’t need much help from travel advisors to sell its Pride of America itineraries in Hawaii.

Indeed, since returning to service last month at 40% capacity, the newly refurbished POA is sold out through October. Still, though, I’d argue that Norwegian needs travel advisors to help sell it more than most ships—and that it offers a great opportunity in return.

Pride of America is a unique and expensive product, commanding the highest daily rates in the NCL fleet but sailing under the most unusual conditions. The key to success, as she returns to service Read the rest of this entry »

Listed as a National Natural Landmark, the iconic Lē‘ahi – Diamond Head State Monument (DHSM), is the third park unit in the Hawai‘i State Park system to require advanced reservations for out-of-state visitors, beginning on May 12, 2022. Hawai‘i residents continue to enjoy free access without reservations, but entry may depend on parking availability.

On Kaua‘i, at Hā‘ena State Park, and on Maui at Waiʻānapanapa State Park, reservation systems are already in place.

Diamond Head is one of the most sought-after and visited attractions in Hawai‘i. Prior to the pandemic, during the 2019 winter holiday period, the park had a record visitation day of over 6,000 people. The new reservation system is intended to reduce hiker congestion along the narrow and winding trail to the summit, reduce the load on the comfort station and reduce vehicle congestion entering and exiting the sole access tunnel at Diamond Head. The DLNR Division of State Parks (DSP) hopes to also reduce parking issues in urban neighborhoods outside of Diamond Head.

The DSP goal is to improve the quality of the experience by reducing access during the more popular and currently congested morning time period and have patrons select the less crowded afternoon slots if they must hike on a particular day. Otherwise, as with any capacity-based reservation system, they must select another day. Visitors will need to plan their hikes in advance.

In 2020, DSP increased fees from one dollar for walk-ins and five dollars for vehicles to ten dollars for parking and five dollars per person for entry.

The system will rely upon QR codes to confirm reservations and will eliminate the exchange of cash at the entrance, reducing the time it takes to enter Diamond Head. When activated on April 28, the system will allow for reservations beginning 14 days into the future. After May 12, out-of-state visitors will not be allowed to enter without an advanced reservation. In addition, commercial tour and trolley patrons will have to have reservations.

Southwest Airlines Co. has added additional service to its flight schedule beginning in early June, including more options for California travel; new service for Hawaii, the Pacific Northwest, and the Caribbean also announced.

“For a gamut of travelers seeking a business opportunity, faraway fun, or family time, these new routes and additional flights put the hospitality and value of Southwest Airlines in front of more of our customers,” said Andrew Watterson, Executive Vice President, and Chief Commercial Officer. “We recently extended our flight schedule to early November, and we’re making available new service sooner for planning early summertime journeys.”

Additional access between the Pacific Northwest and Silicon Valley grows with new Southwest service between San Jose, Calif. and Eugene, Ore., once-daily beginning June 5, and with additional flights on some existing routes.

Recently commemorating three years of serving the Hawaiian Islands, Southwest is increasing the number of flights within the Aloha State to offer interisland service at more times of day to connect people in the islands with business, family, and fun. New, once-daily service nonstop between Kahului (Maui) and Lihue (Kauai) begins June 5, with additional flights, offered on existing inter-island routes.

The carrier’s authorized travel between the U.S. and Cuba is available to more Southwest customers with a tripling of service from South Florida beginning May 4, roundtrip three times daily on the carrier’s Fort Lauderdale—Havana route. That same week, an additional roundtrip on Saturdays begins May 7 on the Tampa, Fla.—Havana route, to complement daily roundtrip service.