Mele Kalikimaka, Kids! Santa Says We Are Sailing in Hawaii! (TR 12/29/15-1/10/16)

[missaud]

You are right. Less hassle sometimes is better!

[baseballsandbows]

After parasailing, DD and I headed back to the condo. I got cleaned up, and then all four of us went to lunch. DH, who is a Tennessee fan, was in good spirits because UT had gotten a big bowl game win while DD and I were parasailing. There was a Buffalo Wild Wings right across the street from the Ilikai, so we ate lunch there. This fit in well with the boys' goal of watching football all day!

 

After lunch, we did take some time to shop for a few souvenirs for the kids. DS only buys one type of souvenir. He always buys baseballs. He has them from Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Disney World, DC, etc..., and he keeps them in display boxes in his room. He was able to find three that he liked during this trip: one from Pearl Harbor, one that represented all the Hawaiian islands, and one from the Big Island. (I'll take a picture and add it to the thread later.)

 

I always buy a Christmas ornament, which I found difficult to do on this trip. It seemed every store had the same cheap-looking Santas on surfboards or hula dancers. They all came in red and white boxes, and I didn't like any of them. There was one other type/brand that was pretty--they were glass balls that had been painted with scenes of Hawaii. None of these stood out to me, however, so I decided to wait.

 

DH doesn't buy souvenirs, so he is easy, but he did walk with us.

 

DD is another story. In typical female shopping fashion, she has to search and hunt for the PERFECT souvenir. This can take quite a long time and quite a bit of back and forth: "Should I get this? Should I wait? What if I find something I like better? What if I never see one of these again?" Etc...

 

I am more male-like when it comes to shopping (find what I want and get out), so souvenir shopping with DD makes my head explode. But, we were on vacation, so I let her wander and look, and I kept my cool. :o She ended up buying a fold-out, Japanese-style fan with a scene of Waikiki on it. It was cheap, so she was able to save money for later. During the trip, she got quite good at flipping that fan open with flair. :)

 

Later in the afternoon, I took DD back to the pool and beach. She had planned to meet one of her Australian friends again, and they wanted to swim, watch the sunset, and then enjoy the Hilton's fireworks. The Hilton has a fireworks display every Friday night at 7:45. We could see them from our lanai, but because DD wanted one more evening to hang out with her new friend, we watched them from the beach. It was much less crowded than I expected, possibly because many people had seen the NYE fireworks the night before.

 

The show wasn't the same as watching fireworks at Disney World or a major city's 4th of July show, but it was good, particularly the finale. It was a fun end to our three nights in Waikiki.

 

IMG_9094 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

IMG_9074 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

IMG_9071 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

Although I have one more morning in Waikiki to write about, I will go ahead and mention that this location was not a favorite for DH and me. For those of you familiar with beaches in the southeastern US, we felt like it was similar to a visit to Myrtle Beach or Panama City, just with even more high rises. I think DH and I would have enjoyed going to a less congested area like Ko Olina. I had considered going to Aulani because we are Disney fans, but it was $500 per night. Considering we did want to see Pearl Harbor and Diamond Head, I decided to stay in Waikiki for less. But, I now wish that we had stayed somewhere more remote--we could have visited Pearl Harbor with a rental car or tour group from there. And, Aulani isn't the only choice. There are other lodging choices that aren't $500. This is the only aspect of our trip that I would change. Oahu was our least favorite island, but I think I would have enjoyed it more if we had been outside the Waikiki area.

 

For those of you planning to stay there, or who love that area, I know many people enjoy Waikiki. It wasn't dirty, there were lots of accommodations, restaurants, and shopping, and the beach was pretty. We just don't enjoy all the high-rises and traffic. It wasn't our favorite part, and we would do that portion of our trip differently. Hindsight is 20/20!

 

Coming Up...It's time to sail away!

Edited January 23, 2016 by baseballsandbows

[baseballsandbows]

I am sure most of you don't care about these souvenirs, but you never know when someone has a similar interest, so I thought I would share.

 

Collecting the baseballs has been fun for my son. He enjoys them, and he knows what he is looking for when it comes to finding a souvenir. We have found them in every vacation destination, although some are easier to find than others (we had the most difficult time in Alaska).

 

IMG_9595 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

IMG_9594 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

IMG_9593 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

Here is my daughter's fan. Since she's 11, she thinks this is completely cool and glamorous. ;) You'll notice I took the photo by our window with snow in the background. We have about 5 inches, which is a huge deal in Tennessee, but I am dreaming of the Hawaii temperatures!

 

IMG_9592 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

[baseballsandbows]

And for the Christmas ornament...I actually never bought one while in Hawaii. I mentioned that most of the ornaments were in a red and white package. They were small Santas, turtles, and hula girls made of resin, and I didn't like them very much. The glass balls were pretty, but most of them just had flowers on them.

 

IMG_9596 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

I wanted something that was more representative of our trip. When we got home, I looked up the company that makes the glass ornaments. It is Maui by Design. They had other styles, and I found one with volcanoes, waterfalls, dolphins, whales, and turtles. Appropriately, it was named Hawaii Family Vacation ornament. Since we saw all these things during our trip (I will mention them in my future posts), I liked this ornament much better. Yes, I did have to pay more because I paid for shipping, but I am glad I waited until I found what I wanted. I'm guessing the selection in the islands was lower because we were there just after Christmas, and many of the more popular styles had been purchased. The ornament is a heavy, quality glass ornament. Somehow, they hand-paint them from the inside. I am very happy with it.

 

(I already packed up my Christmas stuff, so these are pics of my ornament from the Maui by Design website).

 

IMG_9597 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

IMG_9598 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

IMG_9599 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

[df5250]

Following along and loving your review! We go in May and are staying at the Ilikai pre-cruise too. Thank you for your candid opinion of Waikiki. My brother said similar about the Waikiki area, but we wanted to experience it for ourselves.

[greatlakesgirl]

Following along and loving your review! We go in May and are staying at the Ilikai pre-cruise too. Thank you for your candid opinion of Waikiki. My brother said similar about the Waikiki area, but we wanted to experience it for ourselves.

 

Make sure you get out of the Waikiki / Honolulu area! To really appreciate the beauty of Oahu you have to get up to the north shore and eastern side of the island. :)

[baseballsandbows]

Make sure you get out of the Waikiki / Honolulu area! To really appreciate the beauty of Oahu you have to get up to the north shore and eastern side of the island. :)

 

 

I definitely think Oahu got shortchanged during our visit. My original intent was to see the north shore and eastern side, but with the cancelled tour and the national holiday, it didn't work out. I hate that we missed that part of Oahu!

[baseballsandbows]

Our plan on Saturday morning was to hike Diamond Head before heading to the port. We had to be out of the condo at 11:00, but since we were waking early, we figured we would have plenty of time. Of course, this would be the morning when my kids really started to change over to Hawaii time. My DD slept until 7:00! We got going as quickly as possible and took a bus to Diamond Head.

 

The Bus drops you off just outside the park area.

 

IMG_9175 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

Our bus was packed, and I thought, "Wow! Diamond Head is even more popular than I thought!" What I didn't realize was that there was a popular farmer's market at the stop before Diamond Head. Almost everyone on the bus got off there! :rolleyes:

 

From the point where the bus drops you off, you have to walk into the crater on the access road. If you drive yourself, you can drive into the crater to the parking lot, but otherwise, you have to walk yourself into the crater. Cars and walkers use the same tunnel to get through the side of the crater into the middle, and the walking path is definitely single file! When people met each other going opposite directions, there really wasn't room for two people and a car.

 

We made it into the parking area, and stopped at the restroom before heading up. The trail does have steep parts, but this is a great, relatively easy family hike. My DD is NOT a huge fan of hiking (we overdid it with her in Yosemite, and she hasn't let us forget it!), but this was fun for all of us. I think it took us about an hour and fifteen minutes round trip from the bus stop back to the bus stop. We were moving at a decent pace because we had to get back to the condo to clean up and head out. It was an enjoyable excursion, but I wish we hadn't been on a schedule so we could take our time even more.

 

As you start up the trail, it is paved, but not for long. Please excuse my son's nasty hair. He was just SO busy watching football the day before that he didn't shower (typical teenaged boy). I promise he did right after this hike! Of course, you can't tell if my DH has showered or not (he had--he's mature enough to shower daily). But, I guess having no hair has some advantages. ;)

 

IMG_9103 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

In this picture, you can see the buildings inside the crater. We were on our way up the side of the crater to the viewing area.

 

IMG_9105 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

[baseballsandbows]

There were several stops along the way to look at the views and take photos.

 

IMG_9107 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

IMG_9110 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

This is a view looking into the crater. If you look carefully near the middle, you can see the tunnel that we walked through to get into the crater from the main road.

 

IMG_9170 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

A view of the crater and the coast...

 

IMG_0176 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

[baseballsandbows]

I mentioned that Waikiki was not our favorite part of the trip, but it did look beautiful from the top of Diamond Head!

 

IMG_0173 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

IMG_0165 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

Diamond Head was used as a military lookout. I thought it was interesting to see the remaining bunkers. When you come up the long flight of stairs on the way up, you actually emerge into a bunker at the top, and there is another bunker that you can see (it is not accessible).

 

IMG_0180 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

Of course, going down is always faster than going up! As we neared the bottom, we used Google Maps to check the bus schedule (you can use it to see which buses are nearby and their ETA at your desired stop). We were a little worried that we wouldn't be able to shower and get out of the room in time, so we ditched the bus and used Uber instead. I had never used Uber, but it worked out great. A very nice, native Hawaiian lady picked us up six minutes after we requested the ride and took us back to the Ilikai. We enjoyed talking to her, and she was excited to know we were from Tennessee because Marcus Mariota (a quarterback from Hawaii) plays for the Tennessee Titans. We had several Hawaiians talk to us about Mariota during the trip. He is clearly a hometown (or island) favorite!

 

Diamond Head was a fun family outing. I recommend getting there as early as possible because it does get hot. I used this website for helpful information:

http://www.lavasurfer.com/info/hikediamondhead.html

 

It was a fun morning, and now we were very excited to board the Pride of America!

[df5250]

Make sure you get out of the Waikiki / Honolulu area! To really appreciate the beauty of Oahu you have to get up to the north shore and eastern side of the island. :)

 

 

Thank you! We are planning to see the sights around Oahu, honolulu area and the eastern coast before our cruise. We are staying at Turtle Bay Resort on the North Shore for five days post cruise!

[cincicruisers]

I am loving your review and look forward to the rest!

[baseballsandbows]

I am loving your review and look forward to the rest!

 

Thanks for reading!

[baseballsandbows]

We returned to the condo to shower and pack up. I had done laundry the night before, so we were able to start the cruise portion of our trip with almost everything clean.

 

I'll interrupt the report for a moment to say that we sailed with Disney four times prior to our POA cruise. I will take the time to compare and contrast our experiences as I write the cruise portion of the review. Overall, our POA experience was great, but I would give Disney a huge thumbs up for having self-serve laundry facilities on their ships. It is $1 to wash and $1 to dry, and you don't even need cash; the machines work using your stateroom card. I really missed having a laundry room on this cruise, especially since we were gone from home for almost two weeks.

 

After packing up, we headed down to the lobby where we met Johnny Cab for our transfer to the port ($25). The ride to the port was a quick 15 minutes or so, but we were glad to get out of Waikiki when we did because there was some kind of big music festival starting a few hours after we left. Our Johnny Cab driver said they weren't even going into the Waikiki area after taking us because the traffic would be so bad.

 

We got to the port between 11:30 and 11:45. I was expecting a crowd and a wait, but the entire check-in process was very smooth, and we moved through the stages quickly. I'm guessing we were on the ship by 12:00-12:15. We did receive a written warning about Dengue Fever on the Big Island at the security checkpoint, but other than taking bug spray (which we never used), we didn't really worry about it.

 

DD and I were given flower leis, and the boys got shells. DD was very excited about this as she considered it to be the Hawaiian experience that she has seen on television.

 

We were welcomed onto the ship at Deck 5 midship, which is where guest services is located. My initial impressions were good. There was a Hawaiian band playing in the lobby, and the ship was clean and attractive. I do think the Disney ships are more classically elegant, as opposed to the American theme of the POA, but it is fitting for the ship, and it was fun. In all of three stairwells, there are large photos on the wall (blown up to cover the entire wall). The forward stairs have natural wonders from the US, the midship stairs have famous US sites and city scenes, and the aft stairs have scenes from Hawaii. DH and I always take the stairs--no matter how many flights we have to climb--in an effort to counteract the number of calories we eat during the cruise, so we saw all of these pictures many times. At first, I didn't love them, thinking they were a little kitchy, but the Hawaiian scenes especially grew on me as we ended up seeing most of the locations for ourselves during the week.

 

We went straight to the buffet for lunch as we had worked up an appetite on our hike. Buffets can be hit or miss, but we thought the food quality was good. You will know that I am no food snob when I say that I LOVED the seasoned curly fries on the buffet. :) DS especially enjoyed the pretzel breadsticks and rolls at the bread station. He got some every day, even making a special trip up there when we didn't eat at the buffet. I don't usually take food pictures because it drives DH crazy, so I won't be showing you what we ate at every meal, but I will be sure to mention the highlights!

 

Here's a blurry selfie from the buffet. You can see that DS had already allowed DD to take his shell lei.

 

IMG_9177 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

Most of the seating for the buffet is on the starboard side of the ship. We got a seat in the smaller section on the port side, and this became our spot whenever we ate at the buffet. Even at crowded times, we were able to get a table in that area. They also allow overflow seating in the saloon that is connected to the buffet on the port side, but we never ate in there (and they have a popcorn machine in the saloon if you or your kids enjoy popcorn like mine do).

 

At our first lunch, we purchased the soft drink package for my daughter, who thinks getting soft drinks in restaurants is the best thing ever (I do agree with her that fountain drinks are better than out of a can or bottle). In my opinion, the soft drink package is very overpriced, but we had an OBC, and since my DH and I aren't drinkers, we knew we wouldn't be spending all the OBC (we had prepaid our tips). I may not be a food snob, but I am a soft drink snob. NCL has Pepsi products, so I didn't buy the soft drink package for myself. I certainly wasn't going to overpay if it wasn't even COKE! DH, DS, and I stuck with water for most of the trip, and DH had tea with dinner.

 

After eating, we took the time to explore the ship. Our rooms were not ready until about 3:15, so we had several hours to burn. As we walked around, we visited the kids' clubs. DD was not overwhelmed with the appearance of the club (Disney's are very decorated and well-themed), but she ended up enjoying the club immensely in the evenings. I will discuss this in more detail later. DS was not impressed with the teen room for one reason: no Xbox/Playstation. They did have a Wii, but DS strongly prefers the games made for Xbox. He isn't really into the mixers and games like some kids are, so he didn't go to the teen club at all during the week.

 

We finally found ourselves on the sports deck and played shuffleboard in the sunshine for a little while as we waited for our room.

 

IMG_9183 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

Edited January 27, 2016 by baseballsandbows

[Kattus]

I await your next post :)

[baseballsandbows]

At about 3:15, we heard the announcement that rooms on deck 9 were ready. Hooray! We went to our stateroom, which was 9654 if I am remembering correctly. This was a family balcony room on the port side. I chose this room because it had a murphy bed that dropped down from the ceiling over the fold-out couch, giving the kids separate sleeping areas (some rooms have the drop down bed, and some don't).

 

My initial reaction to the room was that it was TINY! Ok, I know that most staterooms are tiny, but there was one aspect that made it seem even smaller than I expected. On Disney ships, which are the only other ships I've sailed, the main bed comes first, then the couch with the drop down bed above it. The POA layout was the same, except for one thing. In the Disney rooms, there is a curtain you can pull to separate the main bed from the couch and murphy bed. I knew there wouldn't be a curtain in the POA room, but even if there had been, we wouldn't have been able to use it because when the murphy bed was down, it extended over the main bed. So...when my DS was sleeping, the end of his bed was hanging over my head. I'm guessing the room was a good 2-3 feet shorter than Disney rooms, as this is how much further his bed was extending into the master bed area. In all honesty, it worked out fine, but when we walked into the room for the first time, my claustrophobic nature kicked in for sure! (Sorry I don't have a pic to show this!) Another note: when the couch is extended, there is NO room to walk. There is a section on the end that you can push under the rest of the bed to allow movement.

 

Another key difference in the Disney rooms and the POA rooms is the bathroom. Disney ships have split bathrooms. There are two smaller bathrooms: one with a sink/shower and another with a sink/toilet. This allows two sink areas and allows someone to get ready while leaving the toilet area available. The shower in the POA bathroom was super tiny, but there was ample storage in the bathroom, even for a family of 4. Just a tip: one of the side mirrors opens for more storage. We didn't notice this at first, but our stateroom host left it open on the first night when he noticed that we hadn't used the space.

 

There was a coffee pot and supplies, but we don't drink coffee, so we put it in the closet so we could use the shelf space. The ice bucket was also stocked when we came into the room. We moved this as well.

 

Once our luggage was delivered, I began the unpacking process, and despite my initial reactions to the space, I was able to find storage areas for all our stuff.

 

I was worried about the size of the room, both before the cruise and at first glace. I had even called to see about an upgrade to a suite the week before. We could have upgraded for $1000, and we would have had a bigger room. BUT, we wouldn't have had a better bed situation. The available suites had the main bed and a fold-out (no extra murphy bed). I knew the kids would not want to sleep in the same bed, so we kept the smaller room. In hindsight, this was the best decision. With every day being a port day, we weren't in the room often. We all had our own sleeping spots, and it was fine. Yes, the room was small, but it suited our needs and worked well for us.

 

We went to Skyline, one of the main dining rooms, for muster at 4:45. After that, DS wanted to play basketball. Basketballs have to be checked out near the pool and carried to the basketball court. Then, they have to be turned in by 5 or 6 most nights. This was disappointing to DS. Because every day was a port day, evenings were really the only opportunity to play, but the balls had to be turned in early. He usually spends a lot of time on the sports deck on Disney ships playing soccer or basketball. POA didn't have soccer, and the basketball hours were limited. This was a downside for him, but he did enjoy working on his shuffleboard skills, which was always available.

 

DD and I went to the pool to see the Hawaiian blessing. There wasn't a huge crowd there, and we enjoyed it.

 

IMG_9197 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

IMG_9196 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

Then, we watched the sun set.

 

IMG_9201 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

During our cruise, the sun set just before 6:00. After this, we headed to dinner. When we booked, we were able to choose the Ultimate Dining Package free. We REALLY enjoyed this. Our dinners in the specialty restaurants were very good. I don't feel like I am comparing apples to apples because we only eat in the main dining rooms on Disney ships, but the food we ate on POA was better than Disney. As far as reservations are concerned, I am the OCD planner who booked our dinner reservations well in advance. But, most restaurants did have availability at some point each evening, particularly after 7:30 or so.

 

Our first night was La Cucina, which turned out to be a family favorite (all kids like pasta, right?). We started with some tasty sourdough, and then shared plates of calamari and a pizza for our appetizers. For our main courses, DH and DS both ordered chicken parm, which was huge and very tasty. I got carbonara, which I really liked as well. I don't remember what DD had--she liked mine and ended up eating off my plate. :rolleyes:

 

DH loved the tiramisu, but the kids and I didn't enjoy our desserts as much. Even though we were quite full, we walked through the buffet on our way out for DS to get some soft serve ice cream. At this time, I noticed the crepe station. They offer crepes every night in the buffet, and they are delicious. Even though we ate at the specialty restaurants, I visited the buffet for a crepe almost every night of the cruise! YUM!

 

By the time we were finished with dinner, we were very tired. Back in our stateroom, we went on the balcony and looked at the lights of Honolulu in the distance. We still hadn't adjusted completely to the time change, so we turned in early, excited to see Maui the next day!

Edited January 28, 2016 by baseballsandbows

[baseballsandbows]

If I remember correctly, we woke up on Sunday at about 7. It was a beautiful day in Maui. Truly, all our days were absolutely gorgeous, with brilliant sunshine and a high of 80 degrees. Because it was the rainy season, we were very fortunate with our weather.

 

We headed to the buffet for breakfast and disembarked the ship a little after 8. My kids and I had brought refillable water bottles on the trip, but DH hadn't. As we walked through the port area, he was glad to see a vendor selling bottles of water for a $1. Most port areas had vendors selling trinkets, but we didn't look carefully at the choices.

 

As we exited the port, we walked to a corral for passengers needing shuttles to the rental car agencies, and waited for our bus. It didn't take to long for our shuttle to arrive. Picking up the car, however, took a little longer because one of the agents was quite the talker. We had to wait in line while he repeated the same cheesy conversation with several families in line before us. Finally, we got our car and hit the road.

 

Our plan was to visit Iao Valley State Park and Haleakala Crater. We used an app called the GyPSy Guide, which was fantastic. As you pass points along your route, the guide gives information and stories related to what you are seeing around you. My DD and I especially enjoyed the historical information. The only problem we had was getting started on the right route from the rental car location. If you use GyPSy Guide, I suggest using your regular map app to get started toward your destination, and then switch over to the GyPSy Guide once you are on the right route. We used my phone for the GyPSy Guide (which does not use data as long as it is already downloaded onto your phone), and used my DH's phone for the regular map. Once we got started, however, we were able to turn DH's phone off as both were giving the same instructions.

 

The Iao Valley State Park was only 10-15 minutes away from the port. It is a historically significant location as it is the site of a bloody battle during Kamehameha's efforts to control the island of Maui. Iao Valley is a rainforest, and it's most prominent feature is the Iao Needle. There is a short hike to a lookout and some pretty gardens. We weren't there longer than 30 minutes, but it was pretty and a fun diversion.

 

IMG_0193 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

IMG_0194 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

IMG_0197 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

IMG_9215 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

IMG_9212 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

IMG_0200 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

[baseballsandbows]

Just reread my post and saw that I misused the word it's/its. My OCD nature can't let it go, but CC won't let me edit. Ahhhhhh![emoji23]

Edited February 1, 2016 by baseballsandbows

[Kattus]

Just reread my post and saw that I misused the word it's/its. My OCD nature can't let it go, but CC won't let me edit. Ahhhhhh![emoji23]

 

:D I did that once and went crazy!

[acoralm]

We headed to the buffet for breakfast and disembarked the ship a little after 8.

 

How busy was the buffet in the mornings?

[baseballsandbows]

How busy was the buffet in the mornings?

 

 

It was busy, but I didn't think it was that bad. The day that was the worst was Thursday. Because of the late port arrival time (10:00), it seemed that more people were wanting to eat at the same time. We went to Skyline that morning. At the buffet, we usually sat on the port side, which had a smaller seating section so it seemed less hectic.

Edited February 1, 2016 by baseballsandbows

[Freckles_51]

Was there a fee to enter the Iao Valley State Park and if so how much please?

[baseballsandbows]

Was there a fee to enter the Iao Valley State Park and if so how much please?

 

 

It was $5.00 per vehicle.

[baseballsandbows]

We left the green Iao Valley around 10:15 and headed for Haleakala. It was about 1 1/2 hour drive to the Visitor Center from the valley. Because of many hairpin turns, you have to take the drive slowly. As we climbed the crater, we enjoyed listening to the information on the GyPSy Guide, and we also enjoyed watching the changing landscape and the views of the island as we gained elevation.

 

At 7,000 feet, you reach the entrance to the National Park. The cost is $15 per vehicle. Then, you climb 3,000 more feet to the Visitor Center at the summit. Prepare to be amazed by the cyclists who are climbing the 10,000 feet up to top. That takes serious muscle and grit!

 

The crater is truly amazing. It is "otherworldly," almost moon-like. I loved the contrast of the colors of the crater against the blue sky. Speaking of the sky, we were very fortunate in that there were very few clouds. This is rare. We could see where the ship was anchored in Kahului and had a beautiful view of the island as a whole from the summit.

 

I don't remember if I have been to 10,000 feet before, but I started feeling dizzy and nauseous at the top. Even though the hike from the parking lot to the overlook is short, I had to take it very slowly to avoid becoming sicker. I am in decent shape, so I was surprised by this, and it make me appreciate the efforts of the cyclists even more!

 

There are hikes you can take into the crater, but most take several hours. We chose the short walk from the parking lot to the summit, and then we also stopped on the way down and hiked a short path to another overlook that was recommended by the ranger at the Visitor Center. I think the name of the overlook was the Leleiwi, but there are several, and we went with the one the ranger recommended. Of course, you could stop at all of them!

 

I will have to use more than one post for the pics, but here are a few...

 

IMG_0219 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

IMG_0215 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

IMG_0226 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

IMG_0231 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

If you look carefully, you can see the trail that goes from the summit into the crater...

 

IMG_0233 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

IMG_0244 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

Edited February 2, 2016 by baseballsandbows

[baseballsandbows]

IMG_0252 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

IMG_9225 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

Our ship was way down there...

 

IMG_0251 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

Standing on top of the world...

 

IMG_0228 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

There are observatories at the summit.

 

IMG_0214 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

According to the GyPSy Guide, it wouldn't take much of a rise in sea level for Maui to be two islands. You could see from the top of Haleakala how the valley could be covered with water and the two craters would be separated.

 

IMG_0223 by Lauren Sullivan, on Flickr

 

From the lush valleys to the amazing craters, Maui wowed us with its diversity and beauty!