Mufi's Message - February 4, 2022

Maui Booster Rule Update

Aloha,

Great news - Maui Mayor Michael Victorino intends to lift his booster requirement for all Maui businesses beginning on Monday, February 7. Additionally, he will also withdraw his request that Gov. Ige require incoming travelers to be boosted to qualify for the Safe Travels exception. This is wonderful  as it comes on the heels of our meetings with Lt. Gov. Green and General Hara where we requested that Governor Ige issue guidance rather than a new mandate. We followed these meetings up with memos to each of the county mayors making clear our position and requesting their consideration. Mayor Victorino's decision brings Maui County in line with what we are working toward on a statewide level as we anticipate a decision from Gov. Ige on the matter soon.

This is all happening as the Omicron surge continues to level off and health metrics trend in the right direction. After seeing an all-time daily high in new cases last month, our statewide community clearly buckled down, did the right things, and let the Omicron variant run its course. Although these high case counts had plagued us for several weeks, it does seem that the worst of it is behind us. As I've noted in the past, this does not mean it is time to become careless; we must continue to do all we can to keep ourselves, our families, and our communities safe and healthy.

O'ahu Chapter Event

The O'ahu Chapter of the Hawai'i Lodging & Tourism Association kickstarted 2022 by taking to the skies. The active committee, now chaired by ‘Alohilani’s General Manager Matt Grauso, propelled into the new year with a board mixer at Blue Hawaiian Helicopters. The evening started off with helicopter tours out of their Honolulu base yard and ended with networking at their outdoor lounge where HLTA members enjoyed a sushi bar, cocktails, and fellowship. It was great to connect with so many of our O'ahu Chapter members including past Chapter Chair Simeon Miranda who was in attendance.

A huge shout out to newly-installed HLTA board member and Blue Hawaiian president Quentin Koch for providing an unforgettable and fun-filled experience. Mahalo also to HLTA O'ahu Chapter Chair Matt Grauso for organizing the pau hana and Justin Yoshino of Market Advantage for providing the signature cocktails.     

There is a lot in store for the O'ahu Chapter Committee in 2022, and I look forward to seeing where they go from here.

To book your own Blue Hawaiian Excursion visit: www.bluehawaiian.com.

Vaccine Survey

As you may recall, in recent meetings with Governor Ige's administration to discuss the possible addition of a booster requirement to the Safe Travels program, I have reiterated time and again that the tourism industry is doing an outstanding job of getting its people both vaccinated and boosted. In order to underscore this, I have been providing Gov. Ige with the results from our recent survey which focuses on vaccination and booster rates among HLTA member businesses.

The survey is still open, and we can always use more data. Please take a moment to fill it out. If you do, please note that there is an option to keep your business name confidential. If you do not indicate that you'd like to remain anonymous, we will share that info with the Governor.

Should you have any questions, please feel free to call us at any time.

Mahalo,
Mufi