The hosmer trail is a half mile loop to observe non-native trees, planted before the park's…read moreestablishment, and native shrubland. It's also a unique habitat for honeycreepers found nowhere else on earth.

We stopped by Hosmer Grove on our way down from the Haleakala Summit and are glad we did! There was…read morea short nature trail with a lot to see -- felt like an old growth forest which was dramatically different than the landscape up at the top. Seems like a great place to camp as well although we didn't do that.

Love everything about this spot! Whether I'm packing up for a full beach day, hanging out while…read morefishing, or scouting locations for a photo shoot, Kanaha always delivers. It has the perfect mix of park space, shade, and open coast. 10/10 recommend spending an afternoon here. Until next time, XOXO, ChelsieFletcher

Free park with a small parking lot. Just 5 minutes from the…read moreairport. We didnt walk the whole beach, just looked for a place to eat our lunch and came across the perfect picnic table in the shade with view of the ocean. Lots of flies so be aware. We saw some lifeguards on duty. Overall a calm park.

I absolutely love Camp Olowalu! I've stayed here multiple times, and it's one of those places I'm…read morealways happy to come back to. They have regular camping sites and Tentalows, but I've been lucky enough to stay in one of the cabins tucked away in a private are. it's such a special experience and so peaceful. I am obsessed with the private outdoor showers. There is seriously nothing better than taking a shower outside while looking up at the beautiful Maui sky. Everything here is always clean, and well-maintained. Tim, the on-site manager, is awesome and always incredibly helpful. As is all the camp staff. If you love camping, being outdoors, and having a beautiful, relaxing place to disconnect, Camp Olowalu is absolutely worth checking out. It reminds me of how lucky I am to be on Maui. I'll definitely keep coming back!

I did NOT feel safe. There was a group of people and two of the men were up late after their…read morefamilies went to bed and harassed me in my tent by yelling and screaming into the tent at midnight and tried to open our tent and come in while I was sleeping. NOT safe for women or solo travelers. Management did nothing when we informed them.

This made my time on Maui absolutely unforgettable. From the minute we were picked up at the…read moreairport to the minute we were dropped off, I was happy, comfortable, and excited about van life. We got the light blue van with automatic transmission (road to Hana with a manual trans-no thanks!) and Noelle went through the van's features thoroughly before giving us a map of the island and circling all the camping spots available to us and our van baby. After giving us our camping chairs and wishing us a great time, we were off! We drove the road to Hana with no issues, camped in the rain, camped in the wind, by the beach, under streetlights and in the middle of nowhere. This van trip was so much more than accommodations and transportation; it was a literal and figurative vehicle for the kind of life I want to live. Staying in a hotel on a tropical island is nice; you can sleep in AC, lounge by the pool. shower and change in privacy, eat 5 star food and never ever feel out of your element. Staying in a camper van is awesome; you can sleep under the stars next to the ocean, lounge on a remote beach and then nap there, cook inventive, delicious meals with your camping partner, enjoy their company, and be bored enough to do things you wouldn't normally do (talk story for hours, play cards, snuggle up and watch the sun set for an afternoon). It was pretty incredible to actually spend multiple days worth of quality time with my husband, not just occupy the same space while looking at separate screens. You meet so many people who love "your" van, who want to tell you all about the van they used to have, and who embody the elusive aloha spirit that makes human interaction worthwhile and meaningful. We made several friends who dined with us on my glamorous one burner concoctions, or who entertained us with their stories from so many various walks of life over beers shared in camp chairs around the van's "living room". The van isn't perfect- it's 30 years old, and obviously is not a rolling Hilton. If you're creative, adventurous, and willing to see the bright side of any situation, you will LOVE Aloha Campers. Sure, we had to pull over a few times so Bluebell could cool down, and the E-brake light stayed on the entire trip. The back door flew open once in transit, and one morning I woke up with wet toes after some heavy sideways rain. The fridge never worked, and the cooler only kept our beer cold for three days. But those experiences just didn't matter in the grand scheme of things. We lived in a VW van, courtesy of Aloha Campers, on freaking Maui. Plain and simple. We cannot wait until we have a van of our own, and it was all because of this trip. MAHALO NUI LOA!!!!

My wife, four-year-old son and I rented a ~'90 Westfalia from Aloha Campers this past spring (2017)…read morefrom Aloha Outdoors. The "are you chill" questions on registration are relevant, and pleasantly reciprocal. In detail... As is made super clear up front, we were renting a vintage Westy for some camping around Maui. Warts and all. If folks aren't reading the bold print while making their reservation, then they are in a world of grumpy disappointment. After a somewhat last moment pickup reservation on our part, we were met by a nice lady who drove the three of us to Aloha Outdoors in Kihei. She not only checked us out on the van, but also ensured we were set with camping paraphernalia (chairs, etc), gave us a solid understanding of island options available and not available to us. We had already booked ourselves at Waianapanapa and Camp Olowalu, but were thankful for the miscellaneous detail. Our Westy was on the worn side of their fleet. The ice box was out of order, we were using the backup range by the first morning, little blemishes here and there, missing little bits like the front chair tables, etc. After 172k miles it is expected. Nothing dramatic. Driving the Westy was a bit more than initially expected. I've been behind the wheel of '72 VW Bus and other '60-'70 model cars, but was initially shocked by the driving characteristics of our Westy. It took 30-60 minutes to get into the safe groovy of driving her. (And once I was back home, I was hitting the brakes on my modern car too hard!). TL;DR: break early, having driving experience with older cars is super beneficial. Regardless of driving stress, it was an amazing trip. We had the black sands beach of Waianapanapa to ourselves at times, we met lots of great people, amazing sights, waterfalls, shave ice, etc. "Do you live Aloha?" Yeah. And Aloha Outdoors does too. On my last full day I backed the Westy into a rock. A bunch of bondo popped off the rear passenger wheel well. *Crap*. Afterwards I called the hotline to explain myself. The gentlemen was not pleased and said someone needed to inspect it when the VW was returned the next day. The next day the intake crew was unpulsed, photographed the damage to the owner, and ... I never heard back. Aloha goes both ways, and I appreciate that with these folks. My son still talks about this trip. "Makapipi" is his favorite new word. WE still talk about this trip. Highly recommended, get a Westy while you can.

Love Poolenalena Beach. Generally calm. If you keep to the right you will get to Secret Beach, a…read moretruly beautiful beach (The end is regarded as the nude part).

The perfect beach for a peaceful late-morning swim. It's clean, calm, and never feels too crowded…read moreeven when plenty of people are around. There are a few benches, but they're set back from the water, so definitely bring a chair if you'd rather not sit in the sand. Lots of nice shaded spots earlier in the day, which makes it an easy place to spend a few hours without baking in the sun.

Camp Maluhia is a camp run by the Boy Scouts of America's Maui County Council…read more The service office is in town, but before you head to the campground be sure to take a close look at it on the map! San Jose's BSA Troop 611 has been coming here every 4 years for the last several decades. Your son will get a completely different experience from the Hawaiian Hotel resorts. This campground offers all the standard Merit Badge classes in addition to their excellent Camp Maluhia Maui Hawaiiana Award that you can only get here. This is a great way for your son to learn Maui's rich and vibrant history through song, dance, warrior skills and a big pig roasting feast. Sleeping porches are basic, but the views and hiking trails make it all worthwhile.

This is a pretty easy hike with great payoff! It only takes about 2 hours, and you get to hike over…read morea couple of bridges, through a bamboo forest, and end up at a gorgeous waterfall! I'm an athletic kinda girl, and I would say this trail is maybe a 2/5 in terms of difficulty. (I'd give it a 1, but it has some incline, so I gave it a 2.) My boyfriend is a homebody and rarely hikes, and he gave it a 3/5 in terms of difficulty. One thing to note: The drive to get here is a DOOZY. I did thee Road to Hana the last time I was in Maui, and it freaked me out so much that we tried going around the south side of the island this time. That was also very scary. Unless you are prepared for very narrow roads (I'm talking one lane with traffic going both ways) on a cliff, sometimes with drops straight into the ocean, don't do it. If you are okay with that, do the Road to Hana for the more scenic drive. The southern drive was less scenic, and probably just as scary.

Came back here 5 years after I went the 1st time and brought my 9 year old. He made it to the end…read moreand back. The trail didn't seem as magical, maintained or green as I remember the 1st time. Maybe a different time of year? More mosquitoes as well. Still, it was pleasant and glad we went. We saw a lot of people bringing infants in carriers and really small kids. This is a serious hike. I would say maybe 7 + in age if you are bringing kids. You may make it part of the way, but it will take you an hour to get to the bamboo forest at least and there are a lot of weird wide steps. Bring water, snacks, hiking stick and bug spray.

This was one of the highlights of our trip. Amazing views and hiking. Wear sturdy shoes for hiking…read moreand climbing rocks to the top. Black sand beaches and swimming are available too.

I came here in 2018 and my goal for this park was see the black sand beach. I never saw or touched…read moreblack sand before so when I found out that there was a beach in Maui with black sand, I was amazed and intrigued to go there. When I arrived, I found it boring because there was nothing to do except chill with your beach blanket and sunbathe or read a book like how normal beaches are. The black sanded section was not even that big or long. It was just a tiny part of the park! I did not know how to swim so all I did was touch and grab some black sand and that was pretty much it. The current and waves were strong so it was not safe to go swim. I just stood in the water with the water meeting at my knees. There were some small hills by the black sand to climb up and down. Not good for people who are afraid of heights, which is me. I was pretty scared and had to hold on to the rocks. There are no guided paths or ropes to hang onto so I had to be careful of slipping. I left the park without staying long. Good thing about this park was that there were public restrooms so that was the key thing!

I've been staying in one of the astrovans now every February for 3 years in a row now. The…read morecampervans are the best way to see and stay in Maui because they aren't to big ,drive so well and give you the freedom to see the island. The vans run great and Paul is so passionate about his vans and the vanning lifestyle. After a few trips to Maui I gave up the resort life and now live the vanning dream when I'm in Maui. It's summer now and I'm already planning my trip back in February. I highly recommend you contact Paul and rent a van.

Last day on the island and my OG lesson cancels. Then Paul to the rescue! Even after I called at 6…read moream to try and squeeze into anything he might have available. I had a blast. One of the biggest highlights of the trip. Easy to learn, beautiful location, fun swim, & nice personable instructor. I wish I brought a snorkel set but was happy enough to see a turtle swim right below my board. Would definitely recommend this guy over any commercial company just wanting to suck a buck out of your wallet.

One of the highlights of my trip to Maui was coming to Black Rock Beach in Lahaina. Originally we…read morewere supposed to stay in Lahaina, but because of the rebuilding of the area, we stayed a little further south. I wish I did stay in the area because the whole area is a vibe. It's a little more touristy with resorts and shopping areas, but once you get on the beach you forget all that. Some of our group was already here and gave us specific instructions on where to park. We parked in a paid parking garage and had to walk between hotels to find the entrance to the beach. This particular stretch is in front of the Sheraton Maui Resort. This beach was awesome! Don't get confused like I did and think this was a black sand beach. Black Rock refers to the giant black lava rock going from the beach into the ocean. It's a very popular cliff diving area. In my opinion, you got to have some athletic ability to do the cliff diving. There's two ways to get to the peak of the rock to jump. There's a path from the shore, but you have to do a little climbing with a very sketch path to the top. The other option is to swim in the ocean towards the end of the rock where you have a little ladder to get you up, but you still have to get to the top of the rock. My friends and I decided to do the swim out which in itself was a challenge. One I got close, I decided to be the photographer in the water for when my friends jumped. We hung out in the water for awhile before swimming back to shore. The beach is perfect for lounging around, with soft white sand and crystal clear water. I brought my snorkel and goggles to really appreciate what's under the sea. We stayed out here way longer than we planned because time flies when you are having fun. On my next trip to Maui, I would totally consider staying right on this beach. I will most definitely be back!

Favorite beach in Maui. You can guarantee you will see 3+ turtles by the rocks on the right side…read moreevery time. And occasionally, a Hawaiian monk seal that comes up to bask in the sun during the day. Tourists here are the worst though! I have seen them crowding the turtles (10 ft distance is the law), standing on the swimming turtles to treat them like surf boards, and even approaching the monk seals or blocking their path back to the water (50+ ft is the law). Enjoy this beach responsibly and respect the beautiful wild life that frequent this beach.