What travelers should know about the severe weather and state of emergency in Hawaii
state of emergency through Dec. 10.
Travelers who planned to visit the islands this week should reach out to their airlines and hotels if they want to postpone their trips.
Only a handful of flights to Honolulu’s Daniel K. Inouye International Airport were canceled Monday, and as of 10 a.m. ET, none had been canceled for Tuesday according to FlightAware, which tracks airline cancellations and delays in real time.
Hawaiian Airlines is waiving rescheduling fees for customers who had flights booked through Tuesday. Customers who prefer to cancel their flights can get credit for future trips in the next year.
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As a standard policy, Southwest customers can rebook flights without penalty or cancel for either flight credit or full refunds, depending on the type of tickets initially purchased. However, Southwest is offering special waivers for Daniel K. Inouye International Airport travelers on Tuesday due to the severe weather.
American, Delta, United and Alaska also fly to Hawaii. USA TODAY reached out to see if they are offering any special accommodations during Hawaii’s state of emergency.
What airlines owe you when flights are canceled, delayed
Airlines are required by the Department of Transportation to offer a refund when they cancel a flight. It doesn’t matter if the reason for the cancellation was outside their control, like weather, or within their control, like maintenance issues or flight crew shortages. And it doesn’t matter what kind of ticket you bought, including nonrefundable tickets or basic economy tickets.
While it may be too late for travelers already in Hawaii to buy travel insurance, if their plans are thrown off by the severe weather, they may be eligible for some trip protection through their credit card companies.
Contributing: Dawn Gilbertson, USA TODAY