Can I Take My Dog To Hawaii On Vacation – Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, which means that if you decide to make a purchase through my links, we may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. Read about our associated guidelines here.
If you want to visit or go to Hawaii, but can’t go anywhere without your dog, you’ve probably asked yourself, “Can you bring your dog to Hawaii?”
Can I Take My Dog To Hawaii On Vacation
When we moved from London to Maui, we had a big problem to solve: how to transport our beloved dog, Hattie. We knew he could be brought to Hawaii, but we had heard horror stories about dogs having to be quarantined for six months after arriving in Hawaii.
How To Avoid Pet Quarantine In Hawaii
Yes, you can bring your dog to Hawaii, but to avoid the six-month quarantine, you must apply for a Direct Airport Release (DAR). You must start this process months before you arrive in Hawaii. We’ll cover exactly how we navigated the process and what we learned.
Our dog Hattie is met by the vet at the Maui gate for her direct release to the airport. Avoided Hawaii’s 6-month quarantine!
If you’re moving or vacationing in Hawaii, check out our Hawaii packing tips, our favorite activities, accommodations, rental car deals, and even a list of discount codes.
The Hawaii Department of Agriculture has checklists to guide you through the process of bringing your dog to Hawaii. They’re a great resource, but honestly, it’s a little confusing at times.
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Our dog was ready to leave the cold of England for the beaches of Maui. He has no regrets about moving to Hawaii.
The microchip number will be used to identify your dog upon arrival in Hawaii, and the number will be used in the blood test that will be performed on your dog. If your dog does not have a microchip, get one installed.
Hawaii is a rabies free state (amazing!) and the strict laws they implemented are their way of protecting their habitat from rabies. Hawaii is the only rabies-free state in the union.
This means that they must ensure that every animal that enters the state has enough rabies antibodies built up in their blood.
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To do this, your dog must have received at least two rabies vaccines in its lifetime, and the last rabies vaccine must be active (not expired) before arriving in Hawaii.
Hattie had never had a rabies vaccine in her life (the UK is rabies free) so we had to give her two vaccinations. The vaccines must be 30 days apart and we must wait 30 days after the second vaccine to take the blood sample.
The key is to plan and have enough time to make sure you do all of these things before you decide to bring your dog to Hawaii!
Now that you have given your dog two rabies vaccines and given him time to develop rabies antibodies, it is time to have a blood test taken at one of the three approved laboratories.
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This was the most complicated part of the process for us, coming from the UK. If you live in the US, this should be much easier to do. Give the vet the names of the labs and they can arrange for samples to be sent.
The dog’s blood samples will be sent to the lab, and the lab will send the results (pass or fail) directly to the Hawaii Department of Agriculture. You should also get a copy of the results from your vet.
If you would like to check the status of the test and ensure that the Hawaii Department of Agriculture has received the results, you can perform a search using the Animal Quarantine Microchip Search.
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Once you’ve done all the hard work, this is where it all comes together. Before applying for a permit, you must do two things:
Once you’ve confirmed these two details, it’s time to apply for your permit. If you are unsure of the details, the veterinarian of your choice in the Hawaiian Islands can help you with the application process.
10 Things To Know Before Your Trip To Hawaii
If you are applying for a Neighbor Island Inspection Permit, please submit your application documents at least 30 days prior to your arrival in Hawaii. The documents you must present include the following:
We also sent a shipping label to the Department of Agriculture to use our license overnight. We were very worried about getting the flight permit back in time.
If, like us, you fly to one of the neighboring islands, the Ministry of Agriculture will send you a permit. This is the authorization you must present to your airline before you go to Hawaii (they will check it) and you must give it to your vet upon arrival.
More than 14 days before your flight, visit your vet to check and confirm that your dog is fit to fly. At this appointment, you will also want to treat your dog for ticks, as your vet must also mention this on the health certificate.
Before You Travel To Hawaii
Taking your furry friend to the islands is a lot of work and time consuming. But is it worth it. I was very nervous about the process and wasn’t sure what to expect when we landed, but it couldn’t have been easier.
The vet met us at the door, scanned Hattie’s microchip number, reviewed the licensing documents and we were on our way. This was the easiest part of the whole process.
Yes, the process of taking your dog to Hawaii is long. But if you take the plunge, it’s worth it. Now Hattie can enjoy the beaches of Hawaii and lie in the sun all day on our terrace. He loves it and we love having him here.
You can pay more than $500 to fly your dog, a blood test for rabies, a health certificate and a license. We paid $755 to bring our dog to Maui, broken down by expenses:
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Most of these prices are standard, but you can save money by choosing the right airline. It costs $100 to fly a dog to Hawaii with Alaska Airlines. On Hawaiian Airlines, it costs $225.
Looking for more Hawaii budget tools? Find out how much it costs to travel to Hawaii for two people and a family of four. Find out how to book a trip and how to get cheap tickets to Hawaii. Visit the cheapest island in Hawaii and book accommodation with points!
I just posted all the steps you need to take to bring your dog to Hawaii when you move. The procedure for taking a dog on holiday is exactly the same. You have to decide if it is worth taking your dog on a trip to Hawaii.
It requires months of planning and is very expensive. The total cost to bring Hattie (including the rabies vaccine) was about $1,000.
Maui Vs. Oahu: Which Is Better?
If you decide to bring your dog to Hawaii, remember that your housing options will be more limited. While traveling between the islands, we were lucky enough to find some hotels and rentals that would allow us to bring Hattie. But that always complicates planning.
We know that bringing your dog to Hawaii can be complicated, so to help you through it, we’ve also created a video that shares our experience with the process. Watch our video below and tell us about our experience bringing Hattie to Maui.
I am the founder of Hawaii Vacation Guide with my husband, Jordan. We have lived on Maui and Oahu and continue to travel, experience and learn about the Hawaiian Islands. We traveled with our children, Henry and Edith. I’m a planner! I love planning trips to the mainland and island adventures, day trips and everything in between. I spend a lot of time in Hawaii SUPing and my favorite time of year in Hawaii is whale season.
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