Is Hawaii Good for Vacation

Hawaii is a beautiful island that is full of natural beauty and people around the globe visit this place. However, due to some recent incidents, tourists are wondering that “is Hawaii good for vacations and should they visit this place”.

After the fire in 2023, people are thinking differently about tourism in Hawaii because during this fire, a lot of hatred arises between tourists and locals. Government tried to protect tourists and locals felt that the government is giving more importance to the foreigners and tourists are snatching their rights. 

While tourists felt unsafe and unpleasant due to the attitude of local people and the regular visitors started considering whether they should come again to Hawaii or not.

One such tourist is Mysti Berry. He visits Hawaii regularly and has been doing so for the past 20 years but now he is also confused. He is unable to comprehend that are the concerns of locals true? And is it real that tourism is harmful for Hawaii and its people?

“During the pandemic, I started reading articles about how tourism has contributed so much pollution and harm to the environment. And this gave me pause because I had never considered any of that before,” says the San Francisco-based writer.

That is another perspective and people are also considerate about it. So, it is still a question that “is Hawaii Good for vacation”?

The state government is also concerned about it because they generate a lot of revenue from tourism each year and if it is stopped, their economy may drop. So, they have passed a legislature about decreasing the environmental footprints of tourism and supporting healthy tourism. Moreover, they are focused on the needs of locals and increasing the job opportunities and educational facilities.

“By 2028, we have set as our goal to be known as a regenerative destination,” says Daniel Nahoopii, the interim president and CEO of the Hawai‘i Tourism Authority. “What this means is a tourism that not only supports communities but adds back to them by protecting environments, acknowledging Indigenous communities as critical to this change, creating destination stewardship programs and seeing what infrastructure is needed. There will be more programs to make sure visitors get safe, clean experiences and that residents feel empowered.”

James adds, “What we need to do is create clearer messaging and examples for how visitors can add value. And be a model for how to do this the right way.”

Concerns of the Locals about the Tourism in Hawaii

The locals of Hawaii are against tourism mainly after the Maui wildfires. One of the Hawaiian explained that there was nothing to eat and buy during those days and we had not even shoes to wear but a tourist family had pineapple in the trolley and they were still saying why there is not something in the store to buy. The main concern of the locals was the insensitive behavior of the tourists toward Hawaii and its local community at the time of fire.

The demand of the locals from the tourists is just to be considerate about the people and environment of Hawaii. They think that they should take care of the land and its natural resources and meet and greet the people of Hawaii as well. Locals are protective about their land, their beaches, their markets etc.

One Hawaiian Airlines, generated a great video about responsible tourism in Hawaii and they play it during the flights. This is a great message for all those who visit Hawaii for vacation.

“The video they produce is exactly the type of message we want to get out to more visitors. And they did it on their own, it wasn’t a mandate,” says James Kunane Tokioka, director of the state Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism.

Voice of Local Hawaiians

Chris, a native person from Hawaii started a youtube channel about the life and perspective of locals about tourism and the channel name is “Hello From Hawaii”. 

He mainaly covers the content about the differences between local, Native Hawaiian, and Western cultures; challenges that locals face; strikes in hotels; affordability problems; and common problems of people raising kids in Hawaii.

According to Chris,

“If people choose not to come, it’s their right, but I hope that if they come across my video, they will understand that not everyone is pushing that narrative of ‘stay away.’ Not everyone believes that tourism is this bad thing that is hurting everyone in Hawai‘i. I hope they can hear both sides and have a well-rounded discussion about that topic.”

Mana Up co-founder James is another native who is in support of responsible tourism in Hawaii. He understands that the state needs the tourists as their economy heavily relies on it so he explained that a good thing tourists can do to locals is to support their business. He further adds, “People can stay at a locally owned hotel, eat at a locally owned restaurant, go to locally owned grocery stores.

They can go to Kō Hana Rum, have a mai tai with locally made rum. They can go to Mānoa Chocolate for a tasting. They can go to one of the farms and support our local farming initiatives. They can end up having a great experience while knowing that every dollar they are spending will stay in our community.”

Tourists should Understand the Importance of Local Reservoirs

Maui resident Roselani Aiwohi says it angers her when tourists film in her community and then brag that they’ve “discovered” something off the beaten path. “The next thing we know we get 50 tourists at a little freshwater pond. And with that comes degradation because they don’t know how to treat the place respectfully. Hawaiians are getting very frustrated with people treating our home as their playground.”

“What we should work toward is educating tourists to come and leave this place either in the exact same state or even better,” Aiwohi says.

Moreover, there is a dire need to protect the fragile places in the state like Ha‘ena State Park and Diamond Head State Monument. There should be reservations for these places and everyone should not be allowed to avoid congestions and to save the ecosystem. Moreover, People are also not in favor of resort area at the black sand beach Hawaii. So, state should consider these issues and try to resolve for both locals and visitors.

Conclusion; Is Hawaii Good for Vacation

Visitors should know about the value of this place and respect the sentiments of locals. Whereas locals should also be supportive toward the visitors and treat them in a friendly and welcoming way in order to develop a mutualistic relationship that would benefit the both.

FAQs