Maui tourism and government leaders signed a non-binding agreement with a U.S. presidential envoy to explore nonstop flights from Japan to Kahului Airport using a customs pre-clearance system. The initiative aims to capture a share of Hawaii’s largest international visitor market, which has been recovering since the pandemic but still trails pre-COVID spending levels.
- A memorandum of collaboration was signed at Maui Ocean Center with Nick Adams, the special presidential envoy for American tourism, to advance nonstop Japan-to-Maui flights.
- Because Kahului Airport is not an international airport, the plan would require a pre-clearance or expedited customs system allowing travelers to clear U.S. customs before departing Japan.
- Japan is Hawaii’s largest international visitor market, but most Japanese tourists currently go to Oahu — Maui wants to redirect some of that traffic.
- Japanese visitor arrivals to Hawaii reached about 732,000 in 2025, roughly 46% of pre-pandemic levels, with spending still below the $2.2 billion recorded in 2019.
- The agreement is non-binding, representing a shared intent to pursue the initiative rather than a firm commitment to implement it.
Source: Maui Now
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