The state Department of Transportation’s new climate roadmap would cut cruise ship travel to Hawaiʻi in half by 2030 and restrict it almost entirely by 2040 in an effort to reduce emissions from maritime travel.
Hawaiʻi gets up to 250,000 visitors from cruise ships each year, according to HDOT’s estimates. The Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority reported that in 2023, out-of-state visitors arriving on cruise ships added about $63 million to Hawaiʻi’s economy.
In a public meeting on Tuesday, HDOT Director Ed Sniffen acknowledged that some local businesses rely on cruise ship operations. He said HDOT would work to minimize any impacts to those companies.
The Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority did not respond to HPR’s request for comment on whether the agency supports phasing out cruise travel.
The move is part of a larger strategy the department is laying out to decarbonize every transportation sector by 2045. Sniffen said that when it came to reducing maritime emissions, options were limited.
“If we had to get rid of some kind of operation in Hawaiʻi in our commercial harbors, it's not going to be our cargo shipments and definitely won't be our military operations — it's going to be the cruise ships,” he said.
Sniffen added that HDOT is open to working with the cruise industry if it commits to transitioning to cleaner fuels.
“We're letting them know our goal is not to kick them out of Hawaiʻi. Our goal is to make sure that they bring in cleaner ships,” he said.
Norwegian Cruise Line’s Pride of America is currently the only cruise ship based in Hawaiʻi. HDOT said it would not be subject to the same restrictions as ships based in other ports.
HDOT is taking public comments on the draft version of its climate plan until July 31. Find more details and information on attending a public information session here.
