Gov. David Ige announced today that the pre-travel COVID-19 testing program will extend to visitors from Canada.
The governor said the state is working now to get trusted testing partners in Canada, the second-largest visitor market to Hawaii. He said he expects the program will be in place for Canadian visitors to be able to travel to Hawaii with a negative pre-flight COVID-19 test by mid-December.
Travel partnerships have already been instituted with Air Canada and WestJet airlines, said Lt. Gov. Josh Green.
Ige also announced that on Tuesday, Nov. 24, just prior to Thanksgiving, if visitors arrive in Hawaii without a negative test result — even if they have a pre-flight test result pending — they will have to quarantine for 14 days or for their entire stay in Hawaii, whichever is shorter.
He said that restriction will apply to both mainland U.S. and international trans-Pacific arrivals.
Ige said that measure was taken in response to the “dramatically increasing COVID-19 cases” on the mainland U.S. and in other countries.
See Friday’s Tribune-Herald for a more detailed version of this story.