(screenshot of the Neighbor Island plans offered by Hawaiian Airlines website)
On first site ... it would seem that getting to/from mainland US or any other international country into Hawaii would be the most costly right?
Well, for the most part, it can be sometimes cheaper by dollar/mile cost to get from West Coast of the US to Hawaii or even sometimes, from Japan to Hawaii cheaper than it is to travel within the state of Hawaii by airplane.
How crazy is that?
The cheapest inter-island flights within Hawaii are between Oahu and Maui. Makes sense since the majority of the flights do go between Honolulu on Oahu and Kahului on Maui. The flights progressively get more expensive as you fly to the other outer islands, including Lihue, Kona. Out of all of the airports, the most expensive is out of Hilo. And yes, there could be more expensive flights going out of Molokai or Lanai ... although in this case, we are speaking mostly of the 5 major airports within Hawaii. And Hilo Airport, being the smallest in terms of passenger traffic.
Why is it that some flights between West Coast US to Hawaii .. namely those from Los Angeles or Oakland, CA to Hawaii can be as cheap as $275 to $350 round trip! It takes around 5.5 to 6 hour flight depending on east or west direction (due to jet stream).
And yet, for me, I fly out of Hilo Airport, and to get to Maui ... on a 30 minute flight ... it can cost at least $100 one way, and as much as $150+ during peak seasons.
Come on ... for a 30 minute flight ... that it costs $100+ each way?
That's just airline price gouging.
I know what people will say ... well the price is deemed by the market competition, the time of year, time of day, etc. etc.
But here's the truth, back in 2008, before Aloha Airlines went out of business, lots of inter-island flights could be bought as low as $25 one way, with the average price around $35 each way. That's a far FAR cry from the current interisland prices that range from $80 to $100+.
I'm sorry, but no matter what Hawaiian Airlines mentions, it's clearly greed and price gouging.
There should be a program implemented where Hawaii residents (proven with driver's license), can have discounted airfare, so that we can get to/from each interisland without costing an arm and leg. If Alaska Airlines allows a program like that for the residents of Alaska who travel within the state of Alaska ... then why can't Hawaiian Airlines do that same thing, and extend that to Hawaii residents.
I just find it ridiculous that for me to visit friends and family on Oahu and Maui .. I'll always have to pay a shit ton of money to get to/from Hilo, Big Island to those islands.
That being said, of course just complaining doesn't do anything. So I decided to save money, and set that aside so that I could buy one of these neighbor island passes, that within one year, I'd take around 8 round trip inter-island flights to see friends and family, mostly on Maui, but also in Oahu.
With 16 one way flights, divide that by $1,229 ... then the average one way flight comes down to $76 per flight. That's much better than if I book tickets around $90 to $100+ each way from Hilo airport.
I really wish the Hawaii Superferry system was in place .. but of course, politics and greed get in the way. Back in the 2000's, it was briefly in service to allow Superferry ... but proponents falsely accused the ferry for environmental reasons ... yet cruise ships, and sea tour boats can still operate? They all are also environmental problems as well.
But I smell Hawaiian Airlines dishing out to politicians that they were scared of loss of revenue if people took ferries.
(screenshot of example pricing of inter-island flight Hilo to Kahului airports in April 2018)