Hawaii lifts quarantine measures for trans-Pacific travellers, starting September

Canadians who want to travel to Hawaii will no longer be subject to quarantine measures as of Sept. 1st. 

According to the State of Hawaii's Department of Transportation, Hawaii's borders will soon be open to "all trans-Pacific travellers', and that includes Canada!

Hawaii had previously imposed a mandatory 14-day quarantine for all out-of-state travellers at the start of the pandemic, unlike the rest of the states in the U.S.

The lifting of the 14-day quarantine requirement in the archipelago was normally scheduled for August, but Governor David Ige had to delay it due to an increase in confirmed cases in the rest of the country.

It must be noted, however, that the Canada-U.S. land border remains closed to non-essential travel, and any Canadian leaving the country is still subject to a mandatory 14-day quarantine upon return to Canada, until otherwise stated. Canadians may still travel by air, so long as they understand their requirement to self-isolate back in Canada.

Negative COVID-19 test required

“Travellers arriving to Hawaii from out of state will have the option to take a valid COVID-19 test prior to arrival and show proof of a negative test result, to avoid the 14-day quarantine," a press release from the State Ministry of Transport says.

The test should be taken within 72 hours of boarding a flight to Hawaii.

The mandatory 14-day quarantine for interisland travellers was lifted on June 16th, however passenger screening will continue with a temperature check and completion of a new travel and health form. 

WestJet plans to resume flights from Vancouver on Sept. 5th, while Air Canada will do so starting Sept. 8th.

According to Johns Hopkins University, which is actively tracking coronavirus cases around the world, Hawaii has 2,111 confirmed cases and 26 deaths since the start of the pandemic, out of the island's 1.4 million inhabitants.

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