Hawaii Travel Update: Please Don’t Travel To Maui At This Time

The deadly wildfires on the island of Maui are likely to affect visitor — and airline — demand to the island for the “foreseeable future,” analysts at T.D. Cowen said Friday.

Hawaiian Airlines reported a net loss of $240 million for all of 2022 on Tuesday, largely attributed to a slower than previously expected return of Japanese travelers and competition for inter-island service between the eight major Hawaiian islands.

The Hawaii Tourism Authority put two contracts up to bid, one for marketing to the U.S. and the other for destination management, on February 14.  The two contracts are essentially a split of the previous one that included both responsibilities and had been awarded to a community non-profit. A government official canceled the it minutes before his term ended on December 5.

The Hawaii Tourism Authority may not be around for long. Last week, the state legislature’s House committee approved a Senate bill that would repeal the Hawaii Tourism Authority and create a government office dedicated solely to destination management, leaving the island without a tourism marketing agency. The bill now has to face two hearings before leaving the House, bringing it closer to passage.

On Thursday, the Hawaii Tourism Authority was officially excluded from the state budget and now has to request funds from the state’s budgeting and finance department. The governor and legislature will vet the funding requests, putting the agency under their scrutiny. 

The Hawaii Tourism Authority plans to move forward with its plans to award an expensive contract to market Hawaii to the U.S. mainland, despite not being allocated funding from the legislature for the next two years. The decision was made at a board meeting Tuesday, according to Honolulu Star Advertiser (paywall). The contract is worth up to $51.3 million.

Hawaiian Airlines unveiled plans for its newest airplane type, the Boeing 787-9. 

The Hawaii Tourism Authority has awarded the Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau the contract to market the island to the mainland U.S., the island’s largest source market, the agency announced Monday. The contract is worth over $38 million, has a two and a half year term with an option of a two-year extension and is scheduled to begin on June 22. 

John De Fries will step down as president and CEO of Hawaii Tourism Authority effective September 15. ​De Fries did not accept an invitation from the board to extend his three-year employment contract.

The healing from the tragedy in Maui will take time and residents are debating whether to encourage more tourism. Many officials and those in the industry are stressing that tourists are still welcome in parts of Maui and the rest of Hawaii and that the economic recovery is critical.

Good morning from Skift. It’s Thursday, August 24. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.

Expedia Group’s vacation rental brand Vrbo for the first time reversed its traditional guest refund policy, and is mandating that hosts refund guests in Maui.