Jordan T.

Yorktown Heights

Joined June 2019

Pretty nice campground in Haleakala state park

This campground was the largest by far we saw on Maui - it was a large grassy area down a road past the visitor's center for Kipahulu. The area is for both tent and car camping, and there's no separate parking lot for tent campers since it is a bit of a walk from the visitor's parking lot. There's no running water, but two small buildings with pit toilets inside and hand sanitizer. There's also a group area that I believe needs to be reserved ahead of time and is at the back of the main camping area, as well as a trail off the campground that leads to shady tent camping spots (you definitely couldn't get a car in there) under large trees. We liked the campground a lot, especially how grassy it was (rather than dirt, like at Olowalu) but unfortunately we stayed on a Friday and Saturday night - and boy did the other people there like to party. We spent the first night stuck next to a HUGE party that didn't quiet down til late at night. Even after moving our van to a spot farther away from them, we realized that there were quite a number of groups partying til late at the site. I bet this wouldn't be the same case on a weekday night, but it's good to know that this campground is popular with the locals/residents on Maui and from other islands - probably because it's so cheap and accessible ($25 for 3 nights, which is essentially your entrance fee to get into the 7 sacred pools and hike the Pipiwai Trail). 

As for Kipahulu itself, it's a beautiful place. we swam in the 7 sacred pools (which get pretty crowded in the afternoon from day tourists) and hiked the Pipiwai Trail. We LOVED Pipiwai - it's a bit grueling, and is 4 miles there and back, but the 100 foot waterfall at the end of it is incredible and a must-see. For the price, Kipahulu is a great place to camp at, and to make the most of your money, I'd suggest spending a night or two here and then heading to Hosmer Grove on your way to the summit. Note that there's no running water here, so come prepared with water jugs. While there's running water in the bathrooms at the service center, as well as a water fountain to fill up your water bottle there, there's no faucet or anything that you could use to fill up a big water jug. One of the major downsides to the site, in addition to the noise.

great private campsite with all the amenities

I read seriously conflicting reviews about this place before coming here, so I was super on the fence. We ended up camping in our campervan for our first night here, and it was just what we needed. The campervan site is just a dirt lot, but it's pretty big and right next to the showers and toilets. The amenities are GREAT. The showers are enclosed, they have benches and hooks to put your things down on and they have hot and cold water. The bathrooms are REAL bathrooms, with flushing toilets, running water sinks, toilet paper, mirrors, hooks and a ledge to put your things down on. Really well maintained too. In addition, there's also a cell phone charging station, and large sinks to wash your pots and pans. We came back here after camping on the East side of Maui in the state parks, and had an even deeper appreciation for it. Our second time around we camped in the tent area. Each tent spot has its own grill and picnic table, and is close to garbage bins, the beach and showers/toilets. My only complaint is that both the campervan area and the tent area are pretty much just dirt, rather than grass, which especially in the tent area makes you and your things quite dirty. The wood chips that line the pathways in the tent area are also pretty sharp, and my foot actually got cut on one even when I was wearing shoes - so be careful. Overall it was a great campground, and while it's expensive for adults ($20/person), let's just say that the people that run this place aren't that interested in checking that your party is actually the size you say it is or that you have the correct number of adults vs. kids (kids are $5)..compared to Papalaua Park ($10/person on weekdays, $20 on weekends and no amenities except for porta potties) this place blows that one out of the water.

beautiful but rainy campground in the clouds

We hiked through here on a day hike through the crater, and stopped here to rest and chat with some campers. The campground has one cabin available to reserve online (but reservations fill up fast) and then a grassy area to camp with a tent in. The guys we talked to said it was constantly raining the night before, so they camped in a small lava cave near the campground. It was a beautiful area of the crater to be in - truly 'in the clouds' - but it was misting the whole time we were there and I'm not sure I'd want to spend a night there if it was in a tent. The cabin seemed well maintained. There's an outhouse/toilet there, as well as water that must be treated/filtered. It was about 6-7 miles in, starting from the Sliding Sands Trail, or about 4 miles from Halemau'u Trailhead.

beautiful campground next to black sand beach

This was probably our favorite campground in a state park on Maui. We camped in a campervan, and there's a separate section for RV/campervans and tents. Campervans park in a mostly dirt (so it does get a bit muddy when it rains) lot adjacent to the bathrooms/beach shower and the grassy area for tent camping. The black sand beach is small and has rough waves but it is absolutely beautiful, and there's an incredibly lava tube (a cave, basically) that you'll have to do a little searching for (when you walk down the stairs that lead to the beach, look to your right when you get to the bottom and search along the rocks for an opening. You'll have to duck in, but once in the lava tube opens up far above your head and leads to an opening that touches the ocean). 

You *definitely* need to get a reservation ahead of time for the park - it's easy to reserve online, but you must do it as soon as possible and print out your reservation to show once you're camping - they do have people come around and check. 

The campsite for campervans has no picnic tables and just one old grill made out of bricks that looked a bit gross, but there's picnic tables near the parking lot where day visitors park, and near the trail along the coastline. There's a bathroom building at the center of the campground that includes separate women's & men's rooms with running water toilets (2 stalls in the women's), a changing area (basically just a bench) and 1 sink (with no soap or mirror). Outside of the restroom are soda machines and an open-air shower. The shower has multiple showerheads so 2-3 people can shower at a time, but they're all connected to one main rod so it is a bit awkward to be showering so close to strangers. During the day, day visitors use it a lot to shower off after the beach, but once evening comes around we saw a lot of campers use it just like a regular shower, just keeping bathing suits on. Considering the other state parks on Maui (like Kipahulu) even the beach shower was pretty nice to have to be able to shower off. There's also a water fountain next to the bathrooms and another very low-to-the-ground water faucet that many use to wash their pots and pans, and we used to fill up a large water jug. 

The beach was great, as were the hikes along lava rocks - though they were definitely not super well maintained, and at times you were kind of guessing whether you were still on the same path. Overall a great place to camp!

campground in the mountains and clouds

We camped here the night before going up to the top of Haleakala. For some context, we did a campervan trip round Maui for a week and a half, and this was our third stop after camping in Wanapanapa State Park and then Kipahulu. We spent 2 nights in Kipahulu and then our third at Hosmer Grove, so we really took advantage of the $25 entrance fee that covers 3 nights in Haleakala State Park - I'd recommend definitely checking out both camp sites/sides of Haleakala, as they're both beautiful in their own way! 

Hosmer Grove is just inside the state park lines, and has a large parking lot with approx the same size grassy area. The area is small, but it doesn't seem like it ever gets overcrowded - we shared the campground with about four other groups the night we stayed, and there were only 2 vans camping out. There's pit toilets with sinks, running water and soap to wash up afterwards, as well as a water fountain, picnic tables and grills. 

When people say it's cold up there, it's COLD. Our van was too old to make it up to Hosmer Grove, so we hitchhiked up and brought a 2 person tent for the night. the grassy area to camp on is not completely flat, and unfortunately we chose a spot that was on a bit of an incline and struggled to not slide the whole night - so bewarned to find the right spot to camp on. We were there in June, and by nightfall it got to about 30 degrees (probably dropped even more by midnight). Be prepared with a warm sleeping bag, long sleeves, long pants, socks and maybe a warm hat. The next morning, when we woke up and hitched a ride up to see the sunrise, it was still COLD, and everyone at the top was bundled up - some even wearing winter jackets. 

Also a note: I did a lot of researching ahead of time about the sunrise reservation for Haleakala, since we missed the deadline to get one online. We were pretty worried that we wouldn't be able to see the sunrise since on their website it says that all those who don't have a reservation will be turned away at the top. We ended up getting a ride to the top with a couple who also didn't have a sunrise reservation, and when we got to the top *no one* checked if we had a reservation. We were able to park and watch the sun from the summit. It seems that reservations must be checked at the entrance gate, which is right before Hosmer Grove (some maps seem to make it look like the entrance is after Hosmer, but that's definitely not true. the campground is about a 5 minute drive after you get through the entrance). So a note to the pre-planners: if you don't have a reservation and really want to see that sunrise, camp at Hosmer Grove the night before - as long as you're not trying to enter the park from 3AM-7AM, you'll be fine. Last note on the sunrise - in one of the guidebooks it recommended skipping the summit and going to one of the other lookout points to watch the sunrise where it's way less crowded, and I wished we'd listened. It was overcrowded and noisy, and everyone had their phones out for the hour we were there waiting for the sun to rise. If you want to go a bit off the beaten track, I'd recommend checking out one of those other lookout points. if you don't have a reservation, you'll still need to camp at Hosmer Grove the night before for those, since they're still inside the park's boundaries. And if you're going to camp, might as well hike down into the crater after watching the sunrise!