Hawaii Travel Blog

Following the 6.7-magnitude temblor and subsequent power outages that hit the Hawaiian Islands Oct. 15, things are back to normal with flights on scheduled, most hotels open and power restored statewide. According to Marsha Weinert, tourism liaison to the governor’s office, "There are no continuing consequences as far as visitors are concerned. We’re fully functional and operating normally."

While damage assessments are still be conducted statewide, regions closest to the earthquake’s epicenter including the Big Island’s Kona and Kohala districts appeared to have suffered the most damage, including the collapse of three lanais at the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel and what appeared to be cosmetic damage at several other Big Island properties.

Aside from the Paniolo Club condominium at Waikoloa, which currently is not taking reservations pending an assessment of damage, all Big Island properties are open and accepting reservations, according to the Big Island Visitors Bureau.

"We had a bit of broken plaster, but nothing that appears structural," said Keith Vieira, Starwood’s senior vice president for Hawaii, referring to the Sheraton Keauhou Bay. "Of course, we’ll continue with a thorough follow-up to make sure, but we have no reason to be concerned, it’s purely cautionary."

On Oahu, the main problem was at Honolulu Airport where an island-wide loss of power wreaked havoc on the airport services for everything from security screenings to ticketing. The power loss created long lines and severe delays at the airport, a problem compounded by the cancellation of many inter-island and trans-Pacific flights.

That problem was resolved on Monday as virtually all of the carriers serving Hawaii added capacity to handle those stranded by Sunday’s flight cancellations, according to Marsha Weinert, tourism liaison to the governor’s office.

"Everyone cooperated on this. I think things were handled well, that the response was excellent," Weinert said of the overall reaction to the earthquake. "People were very understanding, and luckily no one was hurt. This is still Hawaii and travel agents should not hesitate about sending their clients."

The Waikiki hotel infrastructure fared well, with both the Hilton Hawaiian Village and Starwood reporting the departure of most delayed guests.

"There were quite a few people who returned to the hotel from the airport on Sunday after spending hours there," said Jon Conching, vice president, sales & marketing, Hilton Family Hawaii. "Most of those forced to extend have left by now, although one couple I spoke with said they couldn’t get a flight out until Tuesday or Wednesday."

While most of the Big Island’s visitor infrastructure came through undamaged, newspaper reports noted severe damage to several historic sites, including Kailua’s Hulihee Palace, which is closed due to structural damage, and several ancient Hawaiian sites where stone walls were toppled.

Landslides that temporarily closed several roads have been cleared, with a portion of Route 19 near Waimea on the Big Island still in need of repairs.

With initial concerns receding, the big question is the impact the earthquake will have on future bookings.

"We’re concerned about how this will affect future bookings," said Starwood’s Vieira. "There are stories going around that may influence people’s travel decisions. We’ve only seen a few cancellations, but this may have an impact in coming months. We can’t help but be concerned."

Jay Talwar, the Hawaii Visitors & Convention Bureau’s vice president of consumer marketing considers the quick response to the emergency and Hawaii’s brand strength as defusing long-term consequences.

"The word is out that there we no injuries and that there was very little damage to our visitor infrastructure," he said. "In spite of what happened [on Oct. 15], people were safe and well taken care of during this emergency."