PacRim Marketing Group has the latest news on Hawaii and Asia Travel. See below for our Hawaii COVID-19 Timeline, which provides important dates and details.
2020
Feb. 2020: Travel to Hawaii begins to decline as news of the novel coronavirus begins to impact the world.
Feb. 21: The state Department of Health begins daily COVID-19 updates after learning a visitor from Japan tested positive after a trip to Hawai‘i.
March 4: Governor issues first emergency proclamation to prepare the state for possible emergency action.
March 6: Hawaii confirms its first case of COVID-19. The man is one of 21 who becomes ill after taking a Grand Princess cruise ship to Mexico.
March 21: State announces a mandatory 14-day quarantine period for all travelers, to begin March 26. Almost all travel to Hawaii stops.
March 23: Stay-at-home order goes into effect. Businesses, including hotels, restaurants and shopping begin to close.
March 26: Hawai‘i is first in the nation to require travelers to the state to quarantine for 14 days. Jobless claims for March hit 82,963. (Total statewide case count: 106.)
April 1: State enacts self-quarantine for Interisland travelers. Airlines announce furloughs.
April 10: Honolulu enacts a nightly curfew for the Easter weekend. All travel is banned from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. Friday through Monday morning.
April 22: 109 visitors arrived at the airports on April 22, compared to nearly 30,000 daily passengers a year ago.
April 23: Face masks are required in all places of business and on public transportation in Honolulu.
July 31: Honolulu bars are ordered closed. Restaurants must stop serving drinks at 10 p.m.
Sept. 8: Honolulu reverts to stay-at-home orders.
Oct. 15: Safe Travels Hawai‘i program allows US Mainland visitors to avoid the 14-day quarantine if they produce negative COVID-19 test results upon arrival.
Nov. 6, 2020: Travelers from Japan can avoid the 10-day quarantine if they produce negative COVID-19 test results upon arrival. There are rules about the type of tests and where they can be obtained.
Japanese nationals traveling abroad are still subject to a 14-day self quarantine upon their return to the country and are requested to refrain from using public transportation from the airport.
Dec. 4: State reduces the quarantine period from 14 to 10 days.
Dec. 10: On December 10, the mandatory quarantine was reduced from 14 to 10 days in accordance with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) guidelines. In addition, the CDC continued to enforce the “No Sail Order” on all cruise ships.
Dec. 15: Hawaii begins vaccinations for COVID-19.
Dec. 17: Canadian travelers with a negative pre-test can avoid the Hawaii quarantine.. Returning Canadian residents must self-isolate for 14 days.
2021
January 12, 2021: US CDC requires all air passengers entering the US to have a negative COVID-19 test result.
February 5, 2021: Travelers from South Korea are allowed to bypass the 10-day quarantine with a negative COVID-19 test from a trusted testing partner. Strict self-quarantine is required upon return to Korea.
March 8, 2021: State of Hawaii begins vaccination program for individuals age 70 and older, The program will continue to roll out in phases, dependent on age and degree of public contact.
March 19, 2021: All persons entering Japan from abroad must provide a negative certificate of COVID-19 inspection written in Japanese or English that was conducted within 72 hours prior to departure.
April 17, 2021: Travelers from Taiwan are eligible to bypass the 10-day quarantine with a negative COVID-19 test from a trusted testing partner. A negative COVID-19 test and strict self-quarantine is required upon return to Taiwan.
April 19, 2021: All Hawaii residents age 16 and older become eligible for the vaccine. 37 % of residents have received at least 1 ose and an estimated 27% are fully vaccinated.
May 11, 2021: People who have been fully vaccinated in Hawaii may upload proof of vaccination to the Hawaii.SafeTravels.gov website and resume inter-county travel without COVID-19 testing and quarantine. The exception is for people who have received vaccines, two weeks after their last recommended dose.
Click here to download the Hawaii COVID-19 Timeline (PDF).