This Hawaiian Airport With An Open-Air Design Is One Of The Busiest In All The Islands

For decades passengers moving through Maui's Kahului International Airport (OGG) waxed poetic about the soft Hawaiian breeze and sweet scent of plumeria that welcomed them upon arrival. And visitors departing the Valley Isle welcomed the opportunity to savor the essence of Maui in an open-air setting before boarding their flights to destinations far and wide. Originally a U.S. Naval Air Base, Kahului International Airport officially opened to commercial air traffic in 1952. Facilities, as they were, included a passenger terminal building made from U.S. Navy surplus materials and refrigerated cargo storage built into an old shop. Rustic, but functional. Updates over the following decade included the addition of a restaurant, a freight terminal building, and an enhanced safety infrastructure, but the first comprehensive facility overhaul — the project that resulted in the much-loved open-air terminals — didn't happen until 1965.

When it opened in 1966, the new $834,500 (about $1.8 million today) was hailed for both form and function, fulfilling the design goal of creating a space that reflected the essence of Maui — home to a spectacular snorkeling destination with majestic underwater caves — while offering what was then considered state-of-the-art efficiency. The project was so successful that Vladimir Ossipoff & Associates, the architectural firm that designed the space, won the American Institute of Architects 1970 award for excellence in design by creating an environment that, among other things, included an open-air lobby and an interior garden.

Construction of the new and enhanced airport terminal coincided with a post-World War II boom in tourism as Maui, inspired by the growing tourism industry on Oahu — a great destination for an adventure-filled family vacation — began building its own tourism infrastructure, developing resort communities including Kaanapali — a dreamy beach destination and the perfect place to feast on mouth-watering local seafood — Wailea, and Kapalua. 

The shift was so rapid that by 1977, increased air traffic had pushed the decade-old state-of-the-art terminal beyond its planned capacity. Subsequent renovations expanded the facility, but through it all, the open-air design remained one of Kahului International Airport's most unique assets – until it wasn't. The feature that initially charmed 20th-century visitors upon arrival became a subtle bone of contention among 21st-century airline passengers, accustomed to traveling in climate-controlled comfort, who complained about navigating through the hot, crowded corridors of Hawaii's second-busiest airport. The pushback prompted plans for a much-needed update and expansion to comfortably serve over 8 million passengers that pass through Kahului International Airport annually.

The five-year plan, currently in its final phases, involved closing in the open-air concourse on the second level to create a climate-controlled environment — but all is not lost. To compensate, the newly refurbished terminal features a nod to the airport's original open-air layout in the form of an outdoor seating area and garden deck in the southern concourse of the main terminal near gates 1 to 15. It's the perfect place to savor the soft Hawaiian breeze and sweet scent of plumeria.