Kauai Anticipating Busy Travel Season—Urging All Travelers To Be Prepared With Pre-Travel Testing Program

Poipu Bay

(Kaua‘i, Hawai‘i) – With many Americans ready for a return to normalcy, Kaua‘i hotels, resorts and golf courses are reporting a pent-up demand for summertime travel to the Garden Isle. Pre-bookings for rounds of golf in June and July are approaching pre-pandemic levels, while hoteliers are pleased with the increased booking pace of summer hotel and resort reservations. Kaua‘i tourism officials are requesting that all travelers to be prepared for their visit by becoming familiar with and participating in the state’s mandatory Safe Travels pre-travel testing program, and ensure you have a rental car reserved far in advance of arrival.

With Hawaii’s Safe Travels pre-travel testing program, travelers from the U.S. mainland, even those who are fully vaccinated, must have their negative test results prior to departing as an alternative to Hawaii’s mandatory 10-day quarantine. A 10-day mandatory quarantine will be required for transpacific travelers arriving WITHOUT a negative result from an accepted COVID-19 Nucleic Acid Amplification Test (NAAT) test taken within the 72 hours before departure of the final leg of their trip to Hawaii. Travelers will not be able to obtain an accepted COVID-19 test upon arrival at any Hawaii airport. To qualify, transpacific travelers must do the following:

- Create a Safe Travels account as soon as you get your airline reservations and complete the mandatory State of Hawaii Travel and Health Form 24 hours before departure at: https://travel.hawaii.gov/

- Take a pre-travel test from one of the State of Hawaii’s U.S. Domestic, International, or Airline Trusted Testing and Travel Partners within the 72 hours before departure of the final leg of their trip to Hawaii. A list of transpacific Trusted Travel Partners can be found at https://hawaiicovid19.com/travel-partners/

- For transpacific travel, the state of Hawaii will ONLY accept a Nucleic Acid Amplification Test (NAAT) PCR test from a certified Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendment (CLIA) lab test results from the specific U.S. Domestic, International, or Airline labs on that list. If a traveler arrives with a test from any non-qualifying lab on the list, or a test that is not a NAAT PCR test, you will have to quarantine for 10-days (or the length of your stay whichever is shorter), or participate in the Resort Bubble program, or leave the state.

- Travelers arriving from out of state MUST have their negative test results BEFORE flying to Hawaii. If you don’t have your test results in hand before boarding, you best postpone your trip. If you receive your results after traveling to Hawaii, you will still have to quarantine for 10-days (or the length of your stay whichever is shorter), participate in the Resort Bubble program, or leave the state.

- The negative test result MUST be uploaded onto Safe Travels prior to departure or printed out prior to departure with hard copy in hand when arriving in Hawaii.

”We are welcoming back our visitors and asking them to be mindful of the current COVID rules so we can keep Kaua‘i safe and enjoyed by all.  Golf continues to be one of the best outdoor experiences with incredible views,” said Sue Kanoho, Executive Director of the Kaua‘i Visitors Bureau.

Nicknamed the Garden Isle for its lush tropical foliage, waterfalls and ever-present Pacific Ocean scenery, Kaua‘i boasts numerous daily-fee and resort golf courses. The destination is perennially recognized for its beaches, award-winning golf courses, ideal playing weather and stunning natural beauty. For more information on Kaua‘i golf, visit www.gogolfkauai.com.

For the latest information on travel guidelines to COVID-19 pandemic, please go to: www.kauai.gov/covid-19. For a list of Resort Bubbles, please go to: https://kauaiforward.com/travel/.