My Winter Trip to Asia and Hawaii: Maui’s Haleakala, Ho’okipa and the Road to Hana

In December, I took a two week trip away from the cold! I started in New York and stopped in Hawaii for a week en route to Asia, breaking my time between two islands: Maui and Kauai. After Hawaii, it was off for a quick stop in Singapore, 5 days in Phuket and two days in Tokyo. This was my first ever trip to Asia and we had a great time! I flew Business Class most of the way, stayed at the top notch hotels Andaz Maui Wailea, Le Meridien Phuket Beach Resort and the Conrad Tokyo.

Trip Report Index

• Planning with Miles and Points

• The Andaz Maui at Wailea

• Restaurants at the Andaz Maui at Wailea

• Maui’s Haleakala, Ho’okipa and the Road to Hana

• The Grand Hyatt Kauai

• Wamea Canyon, Wailua River and Na Pali Coast in Kauai

• A Day in Singapore

• Redeeming Barclaycard Arrival Miles To Fly Singapore to Phuket

• A $3250 Stay at Le Meridien Phuket with Points

On my trip, I spent three nights in Maui before heading off to Kauai for more adventure. Aside from lounging on the Andaz Maui at Wailea property grounds, having a grand breakfast buffet and sampling food at Morimoto, we did venture out for a few island activities off the beaten path. The best guide I found for visiting Maui and being guided to the gems is Maui Revealed. It really lays out the island and where to go and is an especially good guide for The Road to Hana, telling you the exact mile markers to find the red sand beaches, black sand beaches, natural pools and waterfalls.

Our Adrenalina previously wrote about her top ten Maui activities for the more active adrenaline-seeking visitors. My outings focused more on the scenery and nature. A few highlights of notable places we got to visit:

• Haleakala Volcano Crater
• Ho’okipa
• The Road to Hana

Haleakala Crater

Haleakala is the volcano that forms 75% of the island of Maui. To comprehend how massive this giant mountain is, let’s compare it to something we all know well: Mount Everest. The highest peak on Haleakala stands at just 10,023 feet, easily dwarfed by Mount Everest’s highest peak at 29,092 feet. Of course, we typically measure mountain heights from sea level. But that’s not where the mountain starts. In reality, 19,680 feet of Maui’s Haleakala is hidden under the ocean and, with that in mind, Haleakala actually beats Mount Everest by 675 feet. That’s right! The islands of Hawaii are actually home to the world’s tallest mountains!

It takes about 1-1.5 hours to drive to the summit from Wailea, for example. There is a road that goes straight to the visitor’s center and, from there, you can hike in the crater. It’s extremely cold up there! Another example of Maui’s various micro-climates. Don’t just bring sweaters, bring coats.

One of Maui’s most popular activities is to see the sunrise from Haleakala crater. We personally didn’t end up doing this, but the reviews do say it’s a unique experience. There are tours that will take you up there; just keep in mind you’d have to get up around 2 am and it is very cold up there!

Ho’okipa

Ho’okipa is a local surfing spot on the north side of Maui right by Paia. On a given day, if the winds are good, you can find plenty of surfing and windsurfing. It’s apparently one of the most renowned windsurfing spots in the world. We found it a nice setting to observe the surfing, see the sunset and have dinner in local Paia.

One thing that really set the scene for me was the presence of crosses on the rocks marking the fate of those whose previous surfing experience did not end well. You can see these in the picture below. It really puts in perspective how seriously the surfers are risking their lives to ride the waves.

The Road to Hana

The road to Hana goes around the east side of the island and takes a visitor through the rain forest for a view of lush waterfalls and different types of sand beaches formed by the volcano.  It’s amazing that such a small island can have such diverse micro-climates so close to each other. The western side is all about sun, surf and beaches and the eastern side is rainy and tropical.

The road is certainly winding with many one-lane bridges. It takes a full day to drive and some even break the trip up into two days with an overnight in Hana. I personally feel one day is enough, but some will prefer to take the two-day option. This avoids feeling rushed and gives plenty of time for hiking trails, swimming holes and just casually enjoying the scenery. It may be a long drive, but in my opinion, it’s worth it. Here are a few scenery highlights:

After Maui, it was off to Kauai… stay tuned for my next island, of course. What are some of your favorite Maui activities?