The Great Hawaii Rental Car Crisis: Is It Ever Going To End? Some island leaders say it’s time to implement smarter visitor management strategies that don’t involve large fleets of rental cars.
A dire rental car shortage is forcing some would-be Hawaii visitors to cancel their trips — or empty their wallets.
The root of the problem is two-fold. When the pandemic hit and Hawaii imposed the nation’s strictest travel rules, car rental companies like Hertz and Budget started to sell off portions of their fleet and ship some of their inventory to the U.S. mainland, where they could still make money.
