For years, Native Hawaiians have urged others to stop visiting Hawai‘i because of the devastating effects tourism has had on the local environment and the exploitation of their culture. In addition, tourism had led to a high cost of living, making Hawai‘i the most expensive state to live in, as well as a housing crisis. A disproportionate 51% of the state's unhoused population is Native Hawaiian.
In addition, since the August 2023 Maui fires, which, according to NBC News, have become the deadliest wildfires in modern history, state officials have been discouraging any nonessential travel to the area.
While some celebs, such as Auli‘i Cravalho and Jason Momoa, have been joining the call for tourists to stop traveling to Hawai‘i, others have been ignoring that advice.
Here are 14 celebs and influencers who have been criticized for traveling to or owning property in Hawai‘i:
1. Paris Hilton and her husband, Carter Reum, reportedly arrived on Maui the day the fires began, and as tourists were urged to leave the island, they were reportedly photographed at a beach 30 miles from Lahaina.
On her Instagram story, Paris encouraged her followers to donate to the Hawai‘i Community Foundation.
However, she was still criticized for remaining on Maui. Some fans expressed their disappointment in the comments on her Instagram feed posts.
2. In an Instagram post acknowledging the fires, Stevie Nicks reflected on her house "15 to 20 minutes" from Lahaina. She described how challenging it was to contact her family members who were vacationing there before detailing how much Maui means to Fleetwood Mac.
In the comments, some fans criticized the post for being insensitive and out of touch.
3. During the Maui fires, Oprah arrived at a shelter with a CBS News crew but was reportedly turned away. However, she was allowed inside on her own to speak to survivors without the cameras. She asked people what they needed, then provided the supplies.
Many called on her to return the more than 2,000 acres of land she owns on Maui if she wants to help rebuild.
4. In late July, Olivia Rodrigo shared photos from her recent vacation on Maui.
While many fans complimented her pics, others said it was "very unethical" to promote visiting Hawai‘i.
Following news of the Maui fires, some fans returned to the original post to ask Olivia to use her platform to spread awareness.
5. In a March 2020 Twitter Q&A, Sam Heughan revealed that, following the cancellation of PaleyFest due to the coronavirus, he was staying in Hawai‘i.
In response, some fans called him out for using the cancellation as an opportunity to book a vacation rather than returning home.
He encouraged fans who disagreed with his decision to remain in Hawai‘i to unfollow him.
6. In January 2021, YouTuber Hannah Meloche announced that she was moving to Hawai‘i on her own.
Though the comments on her video were mostly supportive, she was also subjected to some criticism, mainly as part of the larger issue of influencers moving to tropical destinations.
7. In mid-July, Kourtney Kardashian Barker shared Instagram pictures from her daughter Penelope's birthday trip, revealing that she'd taken seven girls to Hawai‘i to celebrate.
In the comments, some people criticized the lavish trip as "out of touch."
A few weeks later, while on her babymoon in Montecito, California, Kourtney received further criticism for captioning an Instagram post, "The ocean calms the fire in me" during the Maui fires.
8. Amid the wildfires, actor Kim Sung-eun made a since-deleted Instagram post with pictures from her trip to Hawai‘i. She captioned it, "It's great."
Fans called her out, reportedly leaving comments like, "Even if you had to go because you couldn't cancel your trip, do you have to brag about it?" and "At a time when Hawaii is experiencing its biggest tragedy, do you have to do real-time posting?"
9. When Jennifer Lawrence appeared on The Graham Norton Show in 2016, she told a story about scratching her butt on sacred rocks while filming The Hunger Games in Hawai‘i.
Here's the full clip:
View this video on YouTube
She was widely criticized for both her actions and the way she told the story while laughing.
Jennifer later apologized in a public Facebook post, writing, "I meant absolutely no disrespect to the Hawaiian people. I really thought that I was being self-deprecating about the fact that I was 'the curse,' but I understand the way it was perceived was not funny, and I apologize if I offended anyone."
10. In May 2022, Benefit Cosmetics took a group of influencers on a PR trip to Hawai‘i. The brand was heavily criticized across social media, as the trip conflicted with local residents' concerns about overtourism during the pandemic.
The company's Instagram comments were filled with people calling it out:
In a statement to HuffPost, a spokesperson for Benefit said, "[The team is] committed to supporting local communities in everything we do. Our global launch event in Hawaii is no different. Across every touchpoint, we have partnered with cultural experts, local artisans, business owners, and entertainers from across the islands to ensure our time here is done responsibly and respectively."
The brand also organized a beach cleanup and donated to Sustainable Coastlines Hawai‘i.
11. In 2012, billionaire Larry Ellison paid $300 million for 98% of the island of Lanai, which also gave him ownership of many of the homes and commercial businesses, as well as the two Four Seasons resorts that provide jobs for the majority of residents.
According to Bloomberg, Larry's residential leases make it so that if a renter is fired from one of his businesses, then they can lose their housing, too. In addition, families who have lived on Lanai for generations have been pushed out as wealthier people move in.
He's also never met with locals to discuss either their concerns or his future plans for their home.
Solomon Pili Kaho‘ohalahala, a seventh-generation Lanai resident, told Bloomberg, "I’ve been waiting now for 10 years to have a conversation."
12. In November 2021, travel vlogger Sofia McMillan posted a TikTok where she appeared to climb the Haʻikū Stairs. Despite the fact that the trail has been closed to the public since 1987, "rampant illegal trespassing" has made the stairs a "significant liability and expense for the city," as city council member Esther Kiaʻāina told Hawaii News Now.
Duetting Sofia's video, Camille Leihulu, a TikToker from Hawai‘i, said, "I've never been up these stairs to see this view and I never will, because I have respect for Hawai‘i and my homelands. Why do outsiders get to blatantly ignore laws and rules and do as they please without facing any repercussions or acknowledging the consequences that Hawaiians have to deal with as a result of their actions?"
In a since-deleted Instagram video, she claimed that a local police officer told her that she didn't have to self-isolate if she tested negative for coronavirus. However, then–attorney general Clare E. Connors refuted this, telling KHON 2, "None of my investigators would convey that information, as it is incorrect. The fact Ms. Salamanca has so many followers makes her actions that much more dangerous and concerning. The spread of misinformation can have very severe consequences during an emergency situation like we are in now."
She ended up spending six months on probation at home in Alabama. She was also required to make a PSA in Tagalog, which had to be approved by the attorney general before she uploaded it. In addition, she had to pay a $575 fee and was barred from going back to Hawai‘i during the pandemic.
14. And finally, in 2015, Mark Zuckerberg paid $100 million for 700 acres on Kauai, but that plot included about a dozen small parcels that Hawaiian residents had rights to. Two years later, he sued those families in a "quiet title and partition," which sought to force them to auction off their land.
While some people supported him for taking the route that would ensure compensation for the people losing their land, he was widely criticized by locals, government officials, and even neighbors.
University of Hawai‘i law professor Kapua Sproat told the Guardian, "This is the face of neocolonialism. Even though a forced sale may not physically displace people, it's the last nail in the coffin of separating us from the land. For us, as Native Hawaiians, the land is an ancestor. It's a grandparent. You just don't sell your grandmother."
State Rep. Kaniela Ing also said, "Zuckerberg is saying he wants to respect the local culture and Hawaiian values but ... I was always taught that if there was a dispute with somebody, you go and knock on their door, sit down, and you kukakuka [discuss] and you hooponopono [make it right]. You don't initiate conversation by filing a lawsuit."
Hope Kallai, one of Zuckerberg's neighbors, told the outlet, "We have been waiting for contact. He's kind of in a bubble. It would be much better if we could sit in a circle and talk. He talks about building bridges and not walls. He built a 6-foot wall."