Taxes
Businesses on Hawaii Island collect a 4.167% general excise tax on all purchases, including food and services. A hotel transient accommodations tax of 10.25%, combined with the excise tax, totals a 14.42% rate added to your room bill. Even vacation rentals and B&Bs are required to collect this tax. A $3-per-day road tax is also assessed on each rental vehicle, in addition to an airport concession recovery tax, and other fees that are not technically taxes but are tacked on to the base rate.