If you’re in Hawaii, on your way to Hawaii, or planning to be visiting the islands shortly, things just changed a little bit. Actually, quite a lot.

Hawaii has reintroduced previously loosened restrictions on inter-island travel, requiring fresh quarantine measures for travel between a variety of islands. The news not only adds significant change for locals, but casts significant doubt on plans for a September reopening of travel, and perhaps even beyond.

Hawaiian Quarantine Measures

Hawaii will reinstate inter island quarantine measures for travel between most islands, which will take effect on Tuesday, August 11th, 2020. Current blanket rules of 14 day quarantines for mainland visitors are also still in effect.

The reinstated intra-island quarantine applies to travel between Kaua‘i, Hawai‘i, Maui and Kalawao, with the exception of travel to Oahu. Travel from Oahu to other islands, is of course subject to 14 day quarantine though, with Oahu at the center of troubling new case counts. The new restrictions are set to last until August 31st, 2020.

Trouble For September Reopening?

Hawaii planned to open to visitors in August, provided they brought a negative covid-19 test with them. That got complicated, and then the date moved to September, with further clarification on what would be necessary for visitors to arrive in Hawaii without quarantine restrictions. Now, September isn’t looking great either.


With newly introduced quarantine measures announced nearly halfway into August, sticking to a September 1st reopening amid rising covid-19 cases seems optimistic, at best.


Unlike many destinations, Hawaii hasn’t taken quarantine measures lightly. Tourists have been fined for breaking protocol, and social media has been used to identify and track rule breakers. Further quarantine updates are expected from Hawaiian Governor David Ige in the coming days, but for now, formulating a Plan B for any near term Hawaii trips wouldn’t be the worst use of time.

You can read up on the latest from the Governor here.

Gilbert Ott

Gilbert Ott is an ever curious traveler and one of the world's leading travel experts. His adventures take him all over the globe, often spanning over 200,000 miles a year and his travel exploits are regularly...

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1 Comment

  1. “The reinstated intra-island quarantine applies to travel to all 137 Hawaiian islands” – this is too many islands.

    To clarify, the interisland quarantine only applies to travelers departing from Oahu to the other neighbor islands. It does not apply when traveling between the other islands, or from the other islands to Oahu.

    https://governor.hawaii.gov/newsroom/latest-news/office-of-the-governor-updated-news-release-with-link-to-11th-emergency-proc-re-inter-island-travel-quarantine/

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