Alaska Airlines in cooperation with the State of Hawaii has partnered in the Pre-Clearance program for visitors to Hawaii. At the time of this writing, Alaska Airlines is the only air carrier to participate in this program. Visitors flying to Hawaii on Alaska Airlines can save from three to five hours upon arrival in Hawaii with this fast track program. Previously, I wrote a post that was an overview of the program, you can read it here. Today, I will show you my experience in setting up Pre-Clearance with the steps necessary to participate. If you have not read the program overview, please read that post first.
The Steps For Qualifying For Pre-Clearance
Pre-travel testing
All travelers age 5 and older are required to take a COVID-19 test from a trusted testing partner within 72 hours of your departure flight to Hawaii. Negative test results must be uploaded to your Safe Travels profile prior to the departure of your Hawaii-bound flight or you must self-quarantine for 10 days or the duration of your stay, whichever is shorter.
Sign up for Safe Travels
Each adult needs to register with the Safe Travels program. Be ready to share your trip details – length of stay, lodging, and return flight info. You’ll also need to upload your test results and complete a mandatory health questionnaire prior to the departure of your Hawaii-bound flight.
Hawaii Pre-Clear and arrival screening
Guests who are not pre-cleared at their departure airport will need to be screened on arrival in Hawaii. This includes a temperature check and a review of your health form and trip details. Guests landing in Kona may be required to take a second COVID-19 test upon arrival.
Getting Your Covid Test
You must take a Covid test recognized by the State of Hawaii by an approved testing facility. These facilities are approved and recommended by Alaska Airlines:
Since PDX is my home airport, I went with Carbon Health. You must have a negative test result that is no older than 72 hours before the departure of your flight. You should schedule an appointment as soon as possible so that you can get tested within the 72-hour window.
The test only took a few minutes and I had my results in a couple of hours. The test results are contained in a PDF file that you will download from your test provider. You will need this PDF file for the next step.
Sign Up For The Hawaii Safe Travels Program
The next phase of pre-clearance is creating a safe travels account for the State of Hawaii. You can access their site here.
After you build your account, you will go to the main page where you will enter data to be uploaded to the State of Hawaii.
From the Trips Page, you will enter:
- Your personal information,
- Your flight information and
- Your lodging in Hawaii information.
You will save that trip for further updates including uploading test results and health questionnaire.
Upload Your Test Results
From the main screen, use the documents tab to send your test results to Hawaii.
You will upload a PDF file from your test provider that looks like this:
When you submit your test results, the page will show your status at the bottom. It will initially say test result verification in process.
Take The Heath Questionnaire
Within 24 hours of boarding your flight, you will need to complete the health questionnaire. From the main screen, click on the Health Questionnaire tab.
This post continues tomorrow with part 2 – the day of travel procedure using Hawaii Pre-Clearance.
