Hawaii to Officially Welcome Visitors Back to West Maui Next Month — What to Know

We’ve known for some time now that West Maui would reopen to tourists on October 8th.

As TPG has previously reported, and you likely know all too well, the Maui wildfires caused significant damage to Lahaina, with more than 2,400 residences destroyed and far too many lives lost. Recovery efforts are still ongoing. And now, the community must deal with the reality of economic recovery while also rebuilding homes and businesses and managing the emotional toll.

From just outside the burn zone in Lahaina, Jes Claydon can see the ruins of the rental home where she lived for 13 years and raised three children. Little remains recognizable beyond the jars of sea glass that stood outside the front door.

As the summer travel season comes to a close, one airline is giving travelers a reason to start planning next summer's vacation. Delta Air Lines announced it will be operating its largest trans-Atlantic flight schedule ever, debuting just in time for summer 2024. The airline will be adding new destinations including Naples and bringing back service to Shannon, Ireland.  According to Delta, next summer it will operate 260 weekly flights to 18 countries in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East from New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK). This includes a new flight from JFK to Munich three times a week that will start on April 9, 2024, and a daily nonstop flight to Shannon, Ireland that will begin on May 23, 2024. The carrier will expand its existing service to Italy — it already flies to Milan, Venice, and Rome — with a new daily service to Naples. It will also resume service between Atlanta and Zurich, Switzerland, four times a week, which had originally been cut in 2019. 

Japan welcomed more than 2 million visitors for a third straight month in August, recovering to more than 80% of pre-pandemic levels for the first time, official data showed on Wednesday.

It’s been ten days since Hawaii’s governor announced that West Maui would reopen to tourists on October 8th, but the debate seems to just be heating up now.

Hawaii Governor Josh Green has been a busy man.

Good morning from Skift. It’s Friday, September 15. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.

As travellers look to support Maui’s recovery efforts this fall, Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea invites guests to come back, and in turn, give back to the island through thoughtfully curated offers and programming that celebrate and support community, culture, and conservation.

Maui’s tourism recovery has been moving at a sluggish pace since the wildfires devastated the island’s western region in early August. One factor: Tourists have been slow to return out of sensitivity to locals.

As the plane descends to Maui’s airport in Kahului, it’s readily apparent how sharply tourism has dropped off following the massive fires a month ago: hundreds of unrented rental cars parked in a field near the runway. In the aftermath of the blaze that leveled the historic town of Lahaina and caused so much personal suffering and loss, it was understandable for Hawaii’s Governor Josh Green to advise visitors not to come to Maui. Now facing the financial devastation of an island that depends on tourism, the government changed its position and is urging visitors to come, including to the resort areas of West Maui north of Lahaina which are reopening October 8th. But should visitors listen?

Hawaii will reopen most of West Maui to tourists starting on October 8, Governor Josh Green announced on Friday. Only Lahaina will be remained closed to the public. Tourists will be able to visit Kā‘anapali, Nāpili, Honokōwai, and Kapalua.