Gov. David Ige said he’s expecting Japan Airlines to start service between Japan and Kona on Aug. 1.
All Nippon Airways will also restore Hawaii flights, starting July 1 with service to Honolulu, Ige said during a livestream interview with the Honolulu Star-Advertiser on Wednesday. The governor recently returned from a trip to Japan, where he met with what he called travel industry “partners” to reestablish the relationship between Hawaii and Japan.
“We definitely are implementing the destination management action plans and the whole notion that it’s not just about more and more visitors. It’s about being focused on the visitors we’d like to invite,” Ige said. “I can tell you on my trip to Japan, the Japanese partners, the airlines, the tour companies really is embracing the malama Hawaii notion. … And we’ve provided videos to all our partners they can use in their promotions, as well as in-flight education, talking about protecting our environment and being mindful visitors.
Japan, long considered the most important international source of travelers to Hawaii, has been slow to reopen to visitors after a coronavirus-related travel shutdown.
“You know, Japan is being very methodical,” Ige said. “I do know that, starting today, they’ve dropped the post-arrival testing requirement. I do know that we stood in line for two hours when we went to Japan because we did have to take a PCR test, and we couldn’t leave the airport until we got the negative test results.
“… They are also increasing from 10,000 per day to 20,000 per day entries into Japan, and for leisure travel, they are definitely focused on package tours. So for anyone wanting to go to Japan, I certainly would go to your travel agent and see what package tours might be available. They are going to be slowly increasing. And I do know that Hawaii will get more than our fair share of Japanese visitors. We do expect that they will increase the numbers that they allow to travel into Japan.”
Hawaii’s statewide seven-day daily average of new COVID-19 cases rose from 1,098 last week to 1,210 this week, marking the 10th consecutive weekly increase. Hawaii has the fourth-highest test positivity rate among the 50 states, at 21%.
“Because we’ve seen how strict Japan has been in regards to COVID, I did tell them that I was the strictest governor in the country,” Ige said. “And certainly, we’ve had the lowest infection rates in the country for most of the pandemic. I am concerned … and yes, Hawaii, for the first time during this pandemic had the highest per capita virus counts in the country for a few days. That is concerning.”
Ige pointed to COVID-related hospitalizations, which are at about half the numbers of last summer.
“We are working an ensuring that the Japanese visitor will be able to get health services if they need to, whether it be testing or treatment for coronavirus,” he said. “It’s really heartwarming to see the visitor industry in Japan. One of the tour companies actually is including as part of their tour packages an insurance program so if someone should get sick while they’re visiting Hawaii, the tour company will be covering the cost of isolation and quarantine. And they are making arrangements to ensure that they can get health care.”
With the summer travel season upon us, Ige said it’s time to focus on “not just going for more tourists, but going for quality tourists.”
“I think everyone agrees that the visitor from Japan is who we want to focus on,” he said. “They’re very respectful to the environment and to native culture. And they also want to engage in authentic activities. You know, they do spend money on tours. They go to attractions.”
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.