Hawaii Travel Update: John Oliver Discusses Tourism, History, And Future Of Hawaii In Recent Episode Of Last Week Tonight

The Hawaiian Islands have been in the national spotlight of late.

Earlier this month, Maui graced headlines on August 8th as the one-year anniversary of the Lahaina wildfires was observed, and prior to that, the amount of aid given to local residents came up on an episode of the Joe Rogan Experience.

The latest media focus on the Aloha State comes from late-night host John Oliver, as he urged Americans to learn more about the history of Hawaiʻi and how tourism and multi-millionaires impact the local culture.

In a recent episode of Last Week Tonight, he put together a major segment that addressed a wide range of topics and issues that were both funny, enlightening, and unfortunately sad due to their truthful and revealing nature.

The 30-minute episode kicks off with Oliver warming up by going through several pop-culture topics that skew American’s perception of the islands.

This included some bad cinema from Hawaiʻi Five-0 and the myth of the “cursed” lava rocks, which have been taken and then mailed back to Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park in extremely large numbers by tourists. The myth is due to a made-up belief that the rocks are cursed by Madam Pele, the goddess of the volcano.

He then dives into more serious topics that have plagued the islands in recent months as well as the modern era in general: the Maui wildfires, the history of Hawaiʻi, increased development, the U.S. military footprint, the impacts of tourism, the local economy, and the reversal of Hawaiʻi’s food production, to name a few.

Oliver gives large doses of his usual humor as he lays out these topics, but as the episode continues, one begins to see the sad reality of many of the current local issues and how they are negatively effecting Native Hawaiians.

Many celebrities who have purchased land in Hawaiʻi—and at times clashed with locals—are also brought into question, including Mark Zuckerberg and Oprah Winfrey.

The end of the episode is especially powerful, when Oliver discusses the idea of visiting Hawaiʻi as a tourist and how the industry as a whole effects the islands.

Oliver concedes that it’s reasonable to visit Hawaiʻi as a tourist. However, when doing so, he asserts that it’s best to make sure you understand the place you are visiting.

Take the time to familiarize yourself with the local history and people, and be a considerate guest, he says. (This logic can be applied to any place in the world, of course, but is especially relevant in Hawaiʻi, where local culture has historically taken a back seat to visitor preferences.)

For example, Hawaiʻi has beaches and hikes that are fun to enjoy, he says, but good travelers will be sure to understand the complete picture.

“If you do end up visiting, try to be aware of the history you are stepping into, a history, I realize, most of us were never taught,” Oliver said. “And remember that your vacation spot is also someone else’s home.”

You can stream the entire episode of Last Week Tonight on Hawaiʻi for free on Youtube.