Tales from the other side
You might have seen my blog post on October 14th for those planning to travel to Kauai in the coming days and weeks. This time I’m reporting from the other side of the trip – I just arrived on Kauai. (It’s as gorgeous as ever!)
As I mentioned before, there are two things you need to be accepted for entry at the Lihue airport:
1. COVID test. Each traveler takes a COVID test within 72 hours of final departure time on the mainland. OR you will be required to complete the 14-day quarantine. (Take the test!)
2. Safe Travels website. Each adult traveler completes a health questionnaire within 24 hours of the flight and uploads their test results when they arrive. Make sure you create an account there and enter your flight information.
Now that I know more, let me share more. I should repeat that this is my experience and yours may be different. Here’s how it unfolded.
Tues, Oct 13 and Wed, Oct 14 – Went to the Walgreens and CVS websites and made appointments for a COVID test on Friday the 16th. Walgreens’ test was free. The CVS test was $139.
Different test sites have different rules about eligibility and how far in the future you can schedule an appointment. Walgreens was 3 days, CVS was 2 days.
Fri, Oct 16 – Drove through CVS for my self-administered test at 9:30am, then Walgreens at 11:00am.
Why did I test twice? I assume usually you get better service when you pay for it. I wondered if Walgreens would get my results back as fast as CVS. CVS mentions 2-3 days for results, but no commitment. At Walgreens, the employee mentioned “3-5 business days” for results. I tested on Friday, so I worried Walgreens might take much longer for results.
Sat, Oct 17 – Ding! Ding! Ding! Walgreens (the free test) came back first with results at 9pm! The email notification arrived within 34 hours. Free and fast!
Sat, Oct 17 – I also completed the Safe Travels health questionnaire Saturday night (24 hours prior to departure). After answering a few easy questions I received a QR code to be presented upon arrival. Do a screen shot to save it or download as a PDF. OR print it out on paper! I did that and it printed as a giant, full page QR code. J
Sun, Oct 18 – CVS texted me at 4:30am Sunday morning that results were available. Turnaround was a total of 43 hours. I give high marks to both tests, completed in under 48 hours. (I live and tested in San Jose, California.)
Your next step is getting your results into the Safe Travels website. If you’re able to get your results before you head out to the airport, do it on your computer! It’s much easier to capture a PDF of your test results and upload it. MUCH easier.
If you upload the file on your phone, it can be tricky. This is what I did on my iPhone: Open the test results and take a screen shot of the result. (If you don’t know how, do a Google search on “how to take a screen shot on your phone”.)
However you capture them, you must upload your test results into the Safe Travels website. In the earlier article I called this website your “golden ticket”. I had no idea how true that is. You’ll need it at the airport, at the car rental, and at Kiahuna. Keep it handy.
In fact, here are a couple of Best Practices to smooth your experience in Lihue:
- Before you board your flight, open the Safe Travels website in your phone’s browser (https://travel.hawaii.gov/#/). LOG IN. You should be able to remain logged in for later, but just in case, make sure you have your email and password handy. You’ll find your QR code under “Trips”. Underneath the QR code (if you’ve posted your test results) is information you’ll need to show at the airport.
- Before you board your flight, I also recommend double checking your Photos or email (wherever you have your test results) so you can easily find your test results from the lab. You’ll be asked to show them.
I flew nonstop to Kauai on Sunday night. (A couple of owners who connected through Honolulu confirmed you need two QR codes, one for each flight segment.)
Getting off the plane in Lihue, the National Guard kept arriving passengers in line. Masks and six-foot distancing mostly observed.
The line moved quickly and soon I was directed to one of many staffed tables. My giant QR code was scanned. I had to show my information in Trips on the Safe Travels website, just under the QR code. Then I was asked to show my negative test result. Luckily, I had them handy (see above best practices). Everything was in order, and I was allowed to proceed to baggage claim.
As I mentioned above, you’ll need to show the same Safe Travels info at the car rental and Kiahuna, so keep it open and ready.
While there is a lot of preparation and new processes, the whole thing seemed to work pretty well with good planning. Hopefully this will help you manage your travels and arrive ready to enjoy Kauai without delay.
--Thanks to Barbara Siverts!!
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