Glamping Adventures – Maui

Hawaii…in particular Maui, is now one of my top 3 travel destinations! I still have a LOT of countries to visit….. but…Hawaii really has it all…mountains, culture, warm locals, amazing cuisine and let’s not forget those INCREDIBLE beaches & h2O!! I am a beach girl at heart.

Arrival at Camp Olowalu. This camp is situated in Lahaina right on an alcove beach. The mountains create a lush background, and the water is perfect for snorkeling and kayaking. The camp offers rental of kayaks.

​The tentalows are canvas tents on a wooden platform. These are unique because they offer a separate area with a solar shower and a sink and mirror. The beds are cots, but are comfortable for 7 nights. The weather was perfect while we were there in early November.

We had a delicious catered meal of Hawaiian barbecue and enjoyed the camp fire with s’mores.

We woke up early and ate breakfast at Leoda’s across the Street. Leoda’s is a wonderful local upscale diner/cafe with amazing food. Next door is a General Store offering a nice selection of snacks and basic necessities.

​We drove to Kihei where we took a Snorkeling cruise out onto Maalaea Bay and over to Molikini Crater. The boating trip was fun, and Molikini crater is beautiful, but due to a chemical in sunscreen the coral reef was dying and the snorkeling was not ideal. I’ve had much better luck in places like the Florida Keys. We saw some giant sea turtles swimming in the Bay. 

​Later in the afternoon we visited Kihei Kalama Village. It was a fun shopping destination with local wares and souvenirs.

Click here to see my packing list for tropical adventures! 

An all day affair on the Road to Hana. We started out early in Paia Town where we had breakfast at a cute cafe. Next stop was a hike at Twin Falls for a short hike. 
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We then meandered further on the steep & curvy road. A lunch stop at the Island Chef in Nahiku. Views of Honomanu Bay were breathtaking. We decided to jump off Pua’a Ka’a Falls at the next stop.

While water fall jumping we met a group of 20 something surfers who encouraged us to take the back side of the Road to Hana. This would create a loop instead of an out and back drive.  We decided on the new route, and made a quick stop at the dramatic black sand beach at Waianapanapa State Park.

We continued on and passed the Seven Sacred Pools. The back side of Road to Hana is one of the most breathtaking and rugged roads I have navigated (including the rocky dirt roads in the Monteverde Cloud Forest of Costa Rica) If you have a fear of heights or are claustrophobic..this road is not for you. Much of it is so narrow that you have to honk around bends. The drive will include  300+ feet drop offs at some points.
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Once you get to Kaupo it flattens out and then you see the steep grades going up to the back side of the Haleakala Volcano. We made it for sunset on the incline road on Haleakala. It was about a 12-14 hour day on the road…but it was bucket list worthy!

We visited Haleakala Visitor’s Center and hiked down into the crater on Sliding Sands Trail. It is a 2800 ft. descent in the first 4 miles. We opted to hike 2.5 miles down and turned around for approximately a 1700 ascent on the way back up. It was still very difficult. The clouds stuck around, but we were able to see the mars-like landscape. We were exhausted after the hike and went back to camp to enjoy a delicious hearty dinner catered by Leoda’s.  You may want to experience the Sunrise (Ticket Info).

Today was a relaxing morning, and in the afternoon we headed to O’O Farm. We headed back up to 3500 feet to the Upcountry with a panoramic view and cooler temperatures. Here we harvested our own meal in an organic garden and watched as a chef prepared the meal right in front of us. Later we took a tour of their coffee roasting process. A wonderful experience.

​Our final day was spent as a beach day on Makena Big Beach. This is one of the prettiest beaches I’ve visited. The water & waves were perfect and there were no crowds. We dined at the local food trucks and headed back to camp for our last night celebration. 
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We took a picture perfect sunset cruise on a catamaran out of Lahaina Harbor. The weather Gods of Maui gave us a gorgeous sunset and we enjoyed drinks and appetizers lounging on the front of the boat looking out at a perfect sunset.

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