Two high-end Kauai resorts will move ahead with establishing themselves as “bubble” hotels despite Governor David Ige's announcement this week that, as of Oct. 15, Hawaii will start admitting trans-Pacific travelers who record one negative COVID-19 test within three days of arrival, eliminating the need for resort bubbles as a way to entice tourists.
Kauai Mayor Derek Kawakami, who has championed the resort bubble concept, told Civil Beat, a non-profit newsroom in Hawaii, that Kauai will move ahead with the experiment in case future COVID-19 outbreaks on the mainland or elsewhere require Hawaii to button up its tourist industry yet again.