May 25, 2024 - Maui car rental rates are staying cheap for this Memorial Day holiday. The lowest advertised rate for a one-week rental from Maui's Kahului Airport (OGG) starting on Monday 5/25 is just $179.16 with all taxes and fees. This is up $21 from the week before, but still well below what might be expected for a holiday rate. This is for an off-airport rental. The rate from the airport rentacar center is $260.36, up only $5 from the week before. 

TRAVEL IS DOWN FOR MAUI

These rates reflect low numbers for visitor arrivals to Maui. As we noted in a previous blog post , the Hawaii Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism (DBEDT) statistics show daily visitor arrivals this summer holding at between 75% and 80% of levels for the same period in 2019. 

TRAVEL IS UP NATIONALLY

By contrast, nationally, as reported by CNN , according to estimates from the travel agency AAA, Memorial Day weekend 2024 travel is projected to exceed 2019 volumes, with nearly 44 million traveling this weekend, compared to just under 38 million in 2019. 

SUMMER FORECAST FOR MAUI CAR RENTAL

The Maui car rental rate schedule forecasts Maui car rental rates taking a sizable, if brief, bump up for Memorial Day, but this does not seem to be happening in 2024.
The next seasonal bump in Maui car rental rates is expected in early July for the Independence Day holiday. But based on Memorial Day performance, there is a chance this bump might fizzle too.

This is good news for travelers looking for value, but not so good for rental car operators who count on holiday rates and volumes to bolster their margins for the year.