Haleakala on a Budget
If you’re visiting Maui and visiting Haleakala is on your list, you’ve probably seen how expensive tours can be. While you can drive up for a sunrise or sunset in your own car, we wanted to share what we did to not only see both but also to save us a night on hotel costs while having the adventure of a lifetime! Here is how we car camped our way into one of the most memorable vacations! Be sure to check out our Youtube video below for more great visuals!
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| Our drive up in our rental Jeep! |
Upon arriving at Kahului Airport we picked up our rental Jeep, and made a quick stop to Costco for supplies. We then drove to the Bamboo Forest Waterfalls to get a taste of the famous “Road to Hana”. We then tracked back, taking the side roads in Maui’s Upcountry to get to Haleakala.
After checking in at the ranger’s station, and paying $30 for the entrance pass, we started the drive up instead of going straight to our campsite. Haleakala has an elevation of over 10,000ft, the drive up in itself takes around 30 minutes, and is an adventure on its own with its winding and steep elevations into the clouds. We made it just in time to see the sunset. Because many of the visitors will be driving back to their hotels after (which can take up to 3 hours depending on where on the island you're coming from) they often leave right after sunset. As this was not an issue for us, we were able to stay and watch the stars well into the night.
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| Sunset on the top of Haleakala |
We drove down and were easily able to find the parking spot for our campsite at ‘Hosmer Grove Campground’. While you can camp with a traditional tent at your site, your booking at Haleakala allows you to camp in your car - which we did. The campground features a small covered area for eating, a water refill station and pit toilets. Do note, these parking spots are right next to each other like a traditional parking lot - not like drive-in camping.
The most challenging part of obtaining a spot is how fast they are taken and there are only 6 spots in this campsite - dates are released on a 30-day rolling basis. We’d suggest being ready to book on the recreation.gov website right at the time tickets are released. The best part is that it costs $5/night with a three-night consecutive stay maximum. As a bonus, with a campsite reservation, you do not need to get a reservation to see the sunrise!
After seeing a dozen shooting stars, we slept in our car for the night. We woke up and made the trek back up the mountain to see the sunrise. While we did prefer the sunset, there is something special about the energy of collectively waiting with others for the sunrise.
While a typical Haleakala Sunrise tour can cost $350 per person, and a night at a hotel is often over $300 this was a budget friendly option that let us see and experience Haleakala in a unique way!
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