Avoid quarantine in Hawaii? WestJet offers COVID-19 testing for Canadians to bypass 14-day rule
For Canadians looking to get away from the cold, snowy winter weather, WestJet is offering a way to travel to Hawaii without having to quarantine in the destination.
The airline announced Monday that it is working with LifeLabs in British Columbia and Ontario for travellers to get proof of a negative COVID-19 test within 72 hours of departure to exempt them from the 14-day quarantine when they arrive on the island. This is in addition to a previous partnership announced in November with DynaLIFE, which includes travellers from Alberta.
“As Canada's largest medical laboratory, LifeLabs has been focused on providing Canadians with COVID-19 testing solutions that keeps them safe – whether it's in their own communities or when travelling abroad,” a statement from Charles Brown, president and CEO of LifeLabs reads. “We are proud to partner with WestJet to provide their guests with access to convenient testing and high-quality, reliable results.”
In Ontario, LifeLabs provides travellers with an online system to book a COVID-19 test at participating Shoppers Drug Mart locations, for a fee of $199 plus tax.
There is a similar online portal, through DynaLIFE, for people travelling to Hawaii from Alberta, which costs $150.
In B.C., there are three LifeLabs locations, two in Vancouver and one in Coquitlam, where people travelling to Hawaii can get a test for $250 plus tax.
“COVID-19 testing is key to ensuring safe and confident travel,” a statement from Billy Nolen, WestJet vice president of safety, security and quality reads. “We are pleased to be working with LifeLabs to offer testing approved by the State of Hawaii for our guests travelling from BC.”
Once these travellers get their COVID-19 test, each adult must set up an account with Safe Travels Hawaii, complete the travel health questionnaire and upload a PDF copy of their negative test results within 24 hours of departure. Each traveler will then receive a personalized QR code, which must be displayed, along with their negative test result, upon arrival, and they need to share a method of communication for health check-ins when they land in Hawaii.
This comes as the federal government is still advising Canadians to avoid all non-essential travel, while testing programs in Toronto Pearson International Airport, and some Alberta land and air crossings, are being piloted to see if Canada can loosen its federally-mandated 14-day quarantine rule.
Beginning on Dec. 18, WestJet is operating flights from Vancouver to Maui and Honolulu three times a week, to each location. As of Dec. 19, flights from Calgary to Maui will be available twice a week and on Dec. 20, the airline will fly from Calgary to Honolulu once a week.
Travellers from Ontario will have to make a connecting flight to one of these two cities and their COVID-19 test must be completed within 72 hours of their departure from Canada to Hawaii.
