Haleakala Crater — Local services in Maui

I'm glad I went, because if I hadn't, I would have always wondered what I had missed. The ride up was pleasant, but the last half hour was in a giant, cold, wet cloud. I went from 80-degree beach weather to 40-degree cold, wet, dense fog. There was absolutely nothing to see. Zero visibility, the watch tower was closed, and no sign of any crater — just a parking lot. I was pretty disappointed. FYI, you cant pay with cash to enter the park. You must use a credit or debit card. I guess some locals kept robbing the cashier/ranger station. The park ranger told us it takes the police several hours to get up there and the thief’s are long gone by the time the police finally arrive. There is only one road in or out of that place so the thought of a thief being able to escape is sobering. Anyway, I would like to see it on a day with some visibility. Be forewarned, you should have a sturdy rain slicker or a winter coat if it’s a cloudy day. On the way down, I stopped at the tea farm. The hostess said that on a clear day you might need extra sunscreen, t-shirt, and shorts. I guess I would say it’s useless to go on a cloudy day, there is absolutely nothing to see. For the 10-days I was in Maui December 2021, I could look up from where I was staying at Sugar Beach where sky’s were blue and clear to see a giant cloud...

Experience of a Lifetime !!!

You cannot miss this Sunrise @ the Haleakala Crater while in MAUI. We started our journey to the top of the Crater around 3:30AM from Kihei and it took us just short of an hour 1/2 to reach the summit. The drive up the mountain was pitch dark but was surprised to see the numbers of cars that actually go up at that time of the morning, I would say there was at least 100 cars going up together up the steep curvy road at the time we were.

There was sufficient parking available when we got there around 5AM but beware it gets extremely cold, Us being from the Canada didn't think it would be that cold up there but to our shock it is, and the wind makes it that much worse so make sure u bundle up and bring gloves.

This place gets really busy closer to sunrise but the wait and the Chill is worth the wait to see one of the best sunrise I have seen in my life. I would recommend to spend at least an hour or so exploring the area once the sun is up to get the most of your trip to the Crater and plus to avoid the rush of traffic heading down right after the sunrise.

The drive down the crater during the day light was spectacular and numerous pull out where you can stop and take pictures. I would highly recommend to make a visit to the crater while in Maui. Until...

This is my second trip to Maui and I made sure to come to the Haleakala crater both times. The first time we went we did a sunrise tour, where you drive up and bike down, and the weather was insanely bad. It was like 30°, raining and wind blowing like 40 miles an hour sideways, just a complete washout with overcast where you couldn't see anything anyway. This was in January of 2020. Now coming back in November, we drove up ourselves to the top and were treated to the some of the most incredible views on the island. The weather was great, a bit cloudy but there were enough breaks in the clouds to see down below to the water, and also down into the crater. We ventured down for the hike down into the crater, and I'm so glad we did. It was awesome to see all the old lava rock and the formations inside the crater. It was like being on another planet, it reminded us of Mars with all the red rock from the iron content. The hike overall took about an hour and a half and I think it was about a...