[Closed - new thread started] Will Hawaii Open by [OCTOBER???] [Please use this thread for all Hawaii Coronavirus discussions]

[gdrj]

I have a couple issues, some are selfish, so doesnt mean they are realistic.

1- Tests- There is a lack of availability of tests in many areas. Without A national testing system it will be difficult if not impossible to have a reliable testing process. Tests false negatives are still too high. We can reduce risk but it cant be eliminated in a free society.

2- Come out with a timeline, even if its tentative. This would allow businesses the opportunity to plan and prepare. If tentatively 8/1 is when hotels/timeshares are going to be allowed to open, allow them to have some staff prior with a detailed plan on how they will keep staff safe while they make adjustments to resorts etc. Dont tell them they can open 8/1 or 9/1 and give them a weeks notice.

 

[rickandcindy23]

I booked two one bedrooms at Marriott's Maui Ocean Club for late August-early September because they were just sitting online. Put them on eplus retrade. I hope the quarantine is lifted by then. Rick and I would love a trip to Maui, and airfare on SW is super cheap and easily cancellable. Here we come, Maui. Woohoo! Our daughter wants later July on Maui before school starts. I am working on it for her. There are some incredible opportunities just sitting online, and I think she would love MMO too. Very good opportunities, and with eplus, I can always switch to Orlando, if I need to. Ongoing searches in for late July.

 

[controller1]

I booked two one bedrooms at Marriott's Maui Ocean Club for late August-early September because they were just sitting online. Put them on eplus retrade. I hope the quarantine is lifted by then. Rick and I would love a trip to Maui, and airfare on SW is super cheap and easily cancellable. Here we come, Maui. Woohoo! Our daughter wants later July on Maui before school starts. I am working on it for her. There are some incredible opportunities just sitting online, and I think she would love MMO too. Very good opportunities, and with eplus, I can always switch to Orlando, if I need to. Ongoing searches in for late July.

We also have two weeks oceanfront at the Westin Ka'anapali Ocean Resort Villas North in late September/early October. Of course we won't go if the two weeks are to be spent in quarantine. Good flights and decent rental car price. I hope Maui is somewhat open then.

 

[pedro47]

Thanks.

 

[csodjd]

I have a couple issues, some are selfish, so doesnt mean they are realistic.

1- Tests- There is a lack of availability of tests in many areas. Without A national testing system it will be difficult if not impossible to have a reliable testing process. Tests false negatives are still too high. We can reduce risk but it cant be eliminated in a free society.

2- Come out with a timeline, even if its tentative. This would allow businesses the opportunity to plan and prepare. If tentatively 8/1 is when hotels/timeshares are going to be allowed to open, allow them to have some staff prior with a detailed plan on how they will keep staff safe while they make adjustments to resorts etc. Dont tell them they can open 8/1 or 9/1 and give them a weeks notice.

Nothing selfish there. But forget a "national testing system." Trump has made clear that's not happening. So it's up to the states, but, in terms tourism and Hawaii, since there's only one way in, it's up to Hawaii in coordination with the airlines. But yes, false negatives need to be down to an ordinary level, < 5% for sure, hopefully well below that. LA County has been allowing anyone to get tested that wants one. They reported yesterday they are getting an 11% positive on their testing. One might guess that those choosing to get tested are bent toward those feeling more at risk of being infected, so if a random group were tested perhaps 5% or so would be positive, certainly less than 10%, possibly less than 5%. So if you have a 1% false negative rate, it would take many hundreds of people (1% of 5%) before there is one that slips by. That's reducing, but not eliminating, risk.

 

[cybernaut]

There is a strong attitude here in Kauai not to reopen for tourism until it is totally safe. Unfortunately, this fear has carried over to daily life for locals as well. We have had no new cases for over 30 days, no active cases and no deaths. Yet, we are still under lockdown. I don’t know where they think a new infection could come from.



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[Ralph Sir Edward]

Difficult decisions. Perhaps the most difficult problem is the air travel. I am in self-decided lockdown here at home. Say I could do the Hawaii 14 day lockdown, and then enjoy my vacation after. The real risk is that pesky air travel. 8 hours in a HEPA filtration mask? Ye gods!

And what about the person before you where you are staying in lockdown? Burn your weeks to get past the incubation period where you are staying?

I have 4 weeks. To do all the above would take more than that, inorder to have an actual vacation. And would there be anything open. . . .

 

[Tamaradarann]

I have a couple issues, some are selfish, so doesnt mean they are realistic.

1- Tests- There is a lack of availability of tests in many areas. Without A national testing system it will be difficult if not impossible to have a reliable testing process. Tests false negatives are still too high. We can reduce risk but it cant be eliminated in a free society.

2- Come out with a timeline, even if its tentative. This would allow businesses the opportunity to plan and prepare. If tentatively 8/1 is when hotels/timeshares are going to be allowed to open, allow them to have some staff prior with a detailed plan on how they will keep staff safe while they make adjustments to resorts etc. Dont tell them they can open 8/1 or 9/1 and give them a weeks notice.

I don't believe that hotels/timeshares can't open. There have been posts on TUG of members vacationing in timeshares in Hawaii. However, the 14 quarantine is the issue. With a 14 day quarantine few tourists come to Hawaii so it is not cost effective to open.

I agree with you that the Governor of Hawaii should provide a timeline so that businesses can plan and prepare. Since there isn't any clue from the Governor is why I mentioned a few posts ago that HGVC should have a trial opening at the Hilton Hawaiian Village of one timeshare building and on hotel building; the Hilton Hawaiian Village has 8 major buildings. This morning I saw that the HGVC website indicates that all the 4 Timeshare Buildings are accepting reservations as of June 18 so perhaps that is their thinking.

 

[JIMinNC]

1- Tests- There is a lack of availability of tests in many areas. Without A national testing system it will be difficult if not impossible to have a reliable testing process. Tests false negatives are still too high. We can reduce risk but it cant be eliminated in a free society.

Everyone talks about a "national" testing system, but the tests have to be administered locally and the closer the test lab or the testing machine is to the point of patient contact, the quicker the results can be received. So, I'm not sure that a national "system" is the panacea everyone seems to think it is. National solutions tend to be one size fits all and in a country as big as ours, that often has poor results. The bigger you get, the more difficult to manage and bureaucratic an organization becomes. That's why most local and state governments tend to be more nimble than the federal government. While I think the federal government could probably do things a lot better to accelerate the bulk production of the tests and the materials needed to create more capacity, ultimately, it seems to me that the testing has to be managed and administered at the lowest level possible to ensure quick, actionable results. The testing needs in a rural area might be very different than a big city with a huge public transit system. The testing needs for travel to Hawaii might be very different than the testing needs for travel to Florida or South Carolina. Additionally, if I were the CEO of a company and wanted to proactively test all of my workers on some regular basis, the last thing I would want to do is rely on the government to do it for me. I would want to control that myself so that I can get the results rapidly when I need them. Beyond making sure that we are pulling out all the stops to create the tests and materials needed, I'm having difficulty seeing a practical role for the federal government in managing a testing program.

 

[slip]

I have a couple issues, some are selfish, so doesnt mean they are realistic.

1- Tests- There is a lack of availability of tests in many areas. Without A national testing system it will be difficult if not impossible to have a reliable testing process. Tests false negatives are still too high. We can reduce risk but it cant be eliminated in a free society.

2- Come out with a timeline, even if its tentative. This would allow businesses the opportunity to plan and prepare. If tentatively 8/1 is when hotels/timeshares are going to be allowed to open, allow them to have some staff prior with a detailed plan on how they will keep staff safe while they make adjustments to resorts etc. Dont tell them they can open 8/1 or 9/1 and give them a weeks notice.

The Governor is working with all the industries involved. They are just not announcing the information from the discussions until decisions are made.

 

[csodjd]

I listened to an interesting and informative Q&A with the Mayor of Maui County today. His take home points are as follows. Tourism must return, the island cannot survive without it. They made the mistake in the past of allowing quantity to overwhelm quality. They view this event as a way to change their trajectory, and focus on quality tourism -- people that come for longer times, stay and spend more money, etc. -- rather than quantity. He sees perhaps a 50% reduction in the number of available rental cars, reducing traffic considerably. He prefers timeshare owners because they tend to stay longer, come frequently, and care more as an owner, over hotel guests. So they are looking at how they can reopen with fewer people that stay and spend more.

As for what it takes to reopen, that wasn't that complicated. He said they need to do their best to keep sick people from arriving, so testing at departure, and quick testing and isolation of anyone that gets sick to prevent any clusters from breaking out. They can handle the sick person here and there, they just don't want that person having the time to spread it to 15 others. So they are looking at reduced numbers of people in gatherings, at restaurants, etc.

 

[bnoble]

They made the mistake in the past of allowing quantity to overwhelm quality. They view this event as a way to change their trajectory, and focus on quality tourism -- people that come for longer times, stay and spend more money, etc. -- rather than quantity. He sees perhaps a 50% reduction in the number of available rental cars, reducing traffic considerably.

This echos a high-level tourism official (from Oahu?) maybe six weeks ago. It sounds likely that there will be a concerted effort.

I happen to like this idea, but I also recognize that this means my own trips will become more expensive. Cutting the rental car fleet in half doesn't just suddenly convince people not to come---the rise in prices of rental cars will contribute to that. There will be other examples--maybe a change in how TAT is applied, charged on a per-stay basis rather than a per-night basis, but also increasing it; perhaps increases in landing/departure fees at the airport. There will be others too.

Again, I think this is a great idea, but I am sure there will be plenty of grumbling when it comes time to implement it.

 

[slip]

If you do make it down there, please take a few pics and share with us. Stay safe.

Just got back from my walk to Waikiki beach. It only took me about 5 minutes to walk there since there is no traffic. I didn’t have to wait for the lights. This is a link to a short video I put on YouTube. I’ll add the pictures in another post.

 

[cman]

Just got back from my walk to Waikiki beach. It only took me about 5 minutes to walk there since there is no traffic. I didn’t have to wait for the lights. This is a link to a short video I put on YouTube. I’ll add the pictures in another post.

Thank you so much for posting that video.

 

[slip]

I walked down the beach a little and got another view. They are doing some work with some rocks further down the beach. These were taken at about 5:30pm.

 

[slip]

I took a couple on my way to and in the International Marketplace. It’s quicker for me to walk through that to get to the beach.

 

[cman]

I walked down the beach a little and got another view. They are doing some work with some rocks further down the beach. These were taken at about 5:30pm.

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Neither the beach or streets are crowded. Are Hawaiians enjoying their time alone with their island? Just curious, what's the sentiment? Oh, and thank you so much for the pictures. Please keep them coming.

 

[slip]

I had to do Duke better justice and lightened him up so you could see him.

 

[slip]

Neither the beach or streets are crowded. Are Hawaiians enjoying their time alone with their island? Just curious, what's the sentiment? Oh, and thank you so much for the pictures. Please keep them coming.

I do know a few Native Hawaiians and many locals and it is a mix. Some would keep it this way and others want to get back to work and are worried about the economy. No scientific poll just what I get from the people I know and talk to.

 

[DEROS]

I do know a few Native Hawaiians and many locals and it is a mix. Some would keep it this way and others want to get back to work and are worried about the economy. No scientific poll just what I get from the people I know and talk to.

Living in Hawaii..... We are enjoying the open beaches and open roads without tourist but also understand that it can't last. It is like going on vacation. Having a blast, but eventually it has to come to an end. Unless you are in the economic group that can live the dream, eventually money will run out, forcing you back to work. In Hawaii, tourism is still the number 1 industry.

 

[Tamaradarann]

Just got back from my walk to Waikiki beach. It only took me about 5 minutes to walk there since there is no traffic. I didn’t have to wait for the lights. This is a link to a short video I put on YouTube. I’ll add the pictures in another post.

Great pictures, thank you for posting them. We miss being there. When I am there I walk from the Hilton Hawaiian Village to the Duke Statue every morning sometimes all the way to Queens Beach. Where were these pictures taken? Just kidding, it doesn't look like Waikiki.

I can see some people enjoying the area without tourists. We have come to Waikiki for over 1000 nights in the last 12 years because we like the way it normally is and hope it can return to that soon.

 

[DaveNV]

These pictures of empty beaches and no crowds reminds me so much of what it was like when I was in high school there in the late 1960s. I lived in Kailua, and would ride to work in downtown Honolulu with my Dad. I'd head for the Waikiki area to hang out for the day, then meet Dad at the end of his workday and ride home. It made for some awesome summer days. I'd arrive at the beach around 8:00 or so, and it was like these images - few people up and about. It was a magical time that has been gone a long time.

When I didn't go to town with my Dad, I'd often walk to Kailua Beach to hang out for the day - snorkeling, body surfing, seeing my friends. There were many, many times I was the only person on the beach.

I can fully understand Slip's comment about Locals who would like the emptiness to stay. Not practical, of course, but very reminiscent of the old days.

Dave

 

[Tamaradarann]

These pictures of empty beaches and no crowds reminds me so much of what it was like when I was in high school there in the late 1960s. I lived in Kailua, and would ride to work in downtown Honolulu with my Dad. I'd head for the Waikiki area to hang out for the day, then meet Dad at the end of his workday and ride home. It made for some awesome summer days. I'd arrive at the beach around 8:00 or so, and it was like these images - few people up and about. It was a magical time that has been gone a long time.

When I didn't go to town with my Dad, I'd often walk to Kailua Beach to hang out for the day - snorkeling, body surfing, seeing my friends. There were many, many times I was the only person on the beach.

I can fully understand Slip's comment about Locals who would like the emptiness to stay. Not practical, of course, but very reminiscent of the old days.

Dave

I was just thinking that what we really miss is not all the crowding as a result of tourists. It could be alot less crowded and still very enjoyable for us. What we miss is just walking down the beach or down Kalakaua without a mask and without worrying about social distancing. We miss being able to go the the Honolulu Museum of Art to see the art, movies, shows, an opening dinners. We miss the Blaisdell concerts. We miss the live plays and musicals at the small theaters. We miss the street festivals. We miss riding the bus to and from events without worrying about wearing masks and sitting near people. We miss riding elevators without masks and worrying about social distancing.

We hope it will return to the way it was. Perhaps our hopes will never come to fruition. That is a most depressing thought.

 

[csodjd]

These pictures of empty beaches and no crowds reminds me so much of what it was like when I was in high school there in the late 1960s. I lived in Kailua, and would ride to work in downtown Honolulu with my Dad. I'd head for the Waikiki area to hang out for the day, then meet Dad at the end of his workday and ride home. It made for some awesome summer days. I'd arrive at the beach around 8:00 or so, and it was like these images - few people up and about. It was a magical time that has been gone a long time.

When I didn't go to town with my Dad, I'd often walk to Kailua Beach to hang out for the day - snorkeling, body surfing, seeing my friends. There were many, many times I was the only person on the beach.

I can fully understand Slip's comment about Locals who would like the emptiness to stay. Not practical, of course, but very reminiscent of the old days.

Dave

The impact is not unique to Hawaii. I live in Los Angeles. We're more or less traffic free. Reminds me of the '84 Olympics.

 

[csodjd]

I can fully understand Slip's comment about Locals who would like the emptiness to stay. Not practical, of course, but very reminiscent of the old days.

Dave

Well, if the powers-that-be pull off what they are talking about, tourists will return, but in lower volume. A bit of the best of both worlds if they are able to thread that needle.