With this 14-day quarantine for arrivals in place, how are hotels and taxis handling the latest arrivals to Hawaii?

Every hotel has a set of protocols. But on top of that, the Hawaii Lodging and Tourism Association and the Hawaii Tourism Authority have sent out guidelines that emphasize social distancing. So the Hawaii greeting visitors have heard about or are accustomed to will look very different.

Mufi Hannemann of the Hawaii Lodging and Tourism Association says the guidelines ensure hotel workers are protected as guests stay in their hotel rooms.

“The guests will have their linen placed outside their door by defined time and we place clean linen and if an associate has to have a closer contact they will be wearing appropriate protective clothing especially when they are picking up the used linen,” said Hannemann.

Hilton Hawaiian Village tells us:

“Taking care of our guests is at the heart of our business and our team is prepared to welcome all visitors. However, due to these unprecedented circumstances and mindful of social distancing recommendations, we are offering selected services under certain restrictions and mandates imposed by the State of Hawaii.”

The state says the Hawaii Tourism Authority will call hotels to give them a heads up about the visitors who will need to be quarantined.

“From there random phone calls can be made to the hotels to ensure that that person is in fact in their hotel room and to verify that they are in fact quarantined,” said Tim Sakahara from the Transportation Department.

Charley’s Taxi says it implemented enhanced protocols at the beginning of the month. Their service is considered essential but drivers who are concerned may choose to stay home. Those who work, disinfect their cabs after each ride.

“The drivers have been doing that for every trip after the trip that is finished and during the trip. After the customers leave, they wind down the windows so that they ventilate the car. We would prefer if they allow us to ventilate the car while they are riding but otherwise we will run the air condition,” said CEO Dale Evans.

Officials do not expect visitors to come to Hawaii. The state says arrivals in March dropped by 87-percent compared to the same time last year.