As you are making your sight-seeing plans for Maui, I do hope you are planning in a visit to the summit of Haleakala. Did you know that the name Haleakala means “house of the sun” in Hawaiian? Given the meaning of Haleakala, I think it’s fitting to visit the summit for sunrise or sunset.
Which is the better time to visit Haleakala – sunset or sunrise? That’s a good question! Let’s just say that they’re both excellent choices. We’ve experienced and enjoyed both. Personally, I tend to lean towards sunrise being my favorite.
The basics of getting to Haleakala
Before we get into the “debate” of sunrise versus sunset, let’s review the basic information of Haleakala.
The summit of Haleakala is at 10,023 feet (3,050 meters) above sea level. The drive to Haleakala is a very steep road with lots and lots of switchbacks. From the beach resorts, it takes roughly two hours plus or minus 15 minutes to a half-hour to drive to the summit. Throughout the year, sunrise can be as early as about 5:40 a.m. and as late as about 7:00 a.m depending on the season you visit. In contrast, sunset times range from about 5:50 p.m. to 7:05 p.m.
With Haleakala’s elevation, the temperatures are much cooler than what you experience at the Maui beach resorts. According to the national park’s website, we can expect temperatures to be 30°F (or 17°C) colder at the summit compared to the temperature at the beaches. The weather can even get cold enough to snow at the summit in the winter, but it’s very rare for there to be any accumulation.
Sunrise from Haleakala can make good very good use of jet lag
Hawaii is so remote out in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, most likely, you’ll experience some sort of jet lag, especially if you’re traveling from the US mainland, Canada and points further east. We travel to Hawaii from our home base of North Carolina, so our jet lag has us waking up at about 2:00 a.m. or 3:00 a.m. on the first couple of mornings in Hawaii. So, we take advantage of our jet lag and drive up Haleakala for sunrise.
On the flip side of the jet lag issue, if you want to watch sunset, you may want to wait to go to Haleakala towards the end of your stay. On the first few days when I’m in Hawaii, I get sleepy early in the evening – I’m talking around 7:30 or 8:00 p.m. So, if sunset is around 7:00 p.m. and I’ve got to drive two hours back to my accommodation, I’m going to be fighting to stay awake while driving in the dark down a steep and winding road. That’s not a good combination.
Stargazing opportunities from Haleakala
Haleakala is one of the top places in the world for stargazing with its elevated post and limited light pollution. You can stargaze before sunrise or after sunset. We’ve stargazed before sunrise and after sunset enjoyed both.
My personal preference is to stargaze before sunrise. I like to get to the summit while the sky is still dark in the wee hours of the morning. I enjoy watching for “shooting stars” and observing many more stars than I would normally see from city living on the US mainland. Then, as the sun slowly starts lighting up the darkness, I love watching the sunrise colors. It’s also neat to see the sun illuminate the moon-like Haleakala landscape as it seems to emerge from the darkness. It’s hard to put into words how amazing this experience is.
Of course, you can watch the above sequence in reverse if you go for sunset. From our experience, after sunset, the wait for the sky to get dark enough to see stars is not the most enjoyable experience. As the sun’s warmth disappears, it seems to get colder by the second.
The upside of stargazing after sunset is that you have many hours to enjoy the night sky. In contrast, if you want to stargaze before sunrise, you’ve got to get there so early and your time gazing time is more limited.
As you are making your decision for sunrise versus sunset and/or stargazing, be sure to consider how the moon light might affect your stargazing. Ideally, you’d like for there to be little to no moonlight so that the sky is the darkest for viewing the most stars. Here are a couple of helpful links:
Driving in the road to and from Haleakala in the day vs night
I have always found that it’s easier to drive uphill in the dark. To me, it seems more dangerous driving downhill in the dark. For me, it’s easier to control my speed on a dangerous road going uphill versus going downhill. Has anyone else noticed that, too?
I grew up in the mountains of North Carolina, so I feel like I know a thing or two about driving on steep, curvy roads. The road to the summit of Haleakala is very steep and abundantly filled with hairpin turns. I prefer to navigate up this tricky road in the dark before sunrise rather than down the road after sunset.
Driving the road to and from Haleakala in the daytime is challenging enough. There are no street lights along the road, so it is very, very dark at night. We created the following video of the drive down Haleakala summit from a mid-day visit. Take notice that there aren’t many/any guard rails.
Saying hello vs good bye to the sun
With Haleakala meaning “house of the sun,” I think it’s more fitting to greet the sun on its house. Maybe I’m thinking too much about this, but I feel like watching sunrise on Haleakala has more of a cultural significance because of its name.
Sunrise over the crater
An extra, arguable advantage that you get with sunrise versus sunset is that the sunrises on the crater side of the summit. I tend to think it makes a better view and photos.
Sunrise versus sunset crowds and reservations
Now, I’m aware of my bias towards Haleakala sunrise. As I’ve gone all goo goo gah gah over Haleakala sunrise, you may be wondering if there are many advantages to watching sunset. Yes, there are upsides to watching sunset! For starters, you’ll tend to find less crowds at sunset.
The crowds for sunrise had gotten to be a bit too much that in 2017, the national park service implemented a reservation system to control and limit the number of cars for sunrise at the summit. So, one of the biggest advantages of visiting Haleakala at sunset is that you don’t need a reservation.
Final notes
If you’ve been trying to decide between Haleakala sunrise or sunset, I hope this article has helped you make your decision. Be sure to see all my detailed tips for watching Haleakala sunrise.
Have you seen Haleakala sunrise or sunset? What did you think of it?
Sheila Beal
29 comments
Hi Sheila – I was just at Haleakala in August, and I will confirm that yes – it is a wonderful must-see Maui experience. One giant caution – DRESS WARM! I was bundled in fleece and wrapped in a comforter and still froze!
Hi Valerie – I’m glad you enjoyed sunrise on Haleakala!
Yes, yes, yes…I agree that dressing warm is super important!
I appreciate you stopping by and adding your comment!
I’ve seen both and prefer the sunset only because I don’t have to wake up so early to get there! 🙂
Sheila, Yes, I’ve been to Haleakala and saw the most beautiful sunrise. And I’m quite allergic to rising so early, but when I’m on vacation, I do the most unusual things ever–like getting up soooooooo early. It was Great!! We met 2 park rangers there, one a local woman, who sang a Hawaiian chant to the sun (which I got on videotape), and the second was from Chester County, where I’m also from!! Such luck–he was just recently assigned there , only within a few weeks of our short trip there to Maui. The scenery changed from “Twilight Zone” to moonscape within about an hour or so. I only wish I had more time to spend there, maybe do a short hike within the crater, and see more silverswords–in bloom–the few I saw were not blooming yet. But we had to see SOOOOO much on our short 6 day stay, that we had to keep on keeping on.
Oh yes, one more thing I,Joanne McCrery, am an HA (Hawaii Addict). I’m subscribed to Hawaii Magazine, and just received my Dec. issue, with LOADS of ads just ripe for the Christmas Picking. I didn’t get to bring home enough souvineirs from my trip, so I’m gonna do some shopping online for Christmas gifts from my Hawaii!!!
Better sign off & let someone else some room to comment. Aloha.
Joanne
That is so neat that you got to watch the Hawaiian chant. I’ve been up to Haleakala three times for sunrise and still haven’t seen that chant.
Sorry for this very delayed reply to your comment!
We have just returned from a trip to Maui, and the Sunrise was certainly one of highlights of our trip. My three tips would be,go ‘early’ and avoid the ‘very slow drivers’ and buses ! DRESS WARM and in layers, there was no wind, yet FREEZING. Stay after the crowds have gone, as the sun rises the changing colours and views are amazing.
I’d also be very wary about biking back down, we saw two accidents ! Not a great way to spend your holiday in a fracture clinic !!!!!!
Neil – I’m with you, that biking trip just doesn’t look like it’s worth the risk. I’d be afraid I’d have to concentrate so intently on the road that I’d never enjoy the scenery. I guess I really shouldn’t knock it before I try it, though, there are many folks who have done it and loved it. Thanks for your first time comment.
Sheila:
Thank you very much for the article. Next week it would be our first trip to Hawaii and I wanted to make everything special for my wife. I was really under a dilemma before I read your article whether to make a reservation for sunrise tour or sunset. I just made sunrise tour reservations. Also I opted out of bike tour. Will write to you with our experience. We are sooooooooooooooooo excited.
Uday
You’re welcome Uday. Enjoy that magical sunrise on Haleakala!
Thanks for sharing, I am heading to Maui on Monday and I am definitely going to check this out.
Sheila,
Do you have any recommendations to spend time for few hours in Haleakala summit area after the sunrise visit before going back?
– Karthik
Karthik – check out the displays at the summit area visitors center. There are a some hikes in that area as well. I recommend you speak to one of the rangers at the summit visitors center to get their hiking recommendations based on the amount of time you have available.
That’s a good advice. Thank you, I will check with the rangers at the summit.
I am wondering which scenario would be better. At the start of our trip, we will be jetlagged, which would be a good time to see Haleakala sunrise. Since there is a full-moon the night we arrive, we wouldn’t get much stargazing, but would still have a unique view of seeing the sunrise on one side and the moonset on the other.
On the other hand, we could wait until the end of our trip when the moon doesn’t rise until after midnight and get both the sunset and star-gazing.
Any opinions?
Either way would be fine, however I think the stargazing opportunity tips the scale in my opinion.
Hi Sheila,
Thanks for this article it’s very helpful. My Fiancee and I land in maui around 10pm (coming in from California), and plan to start driving to the crater around 1:00am and get there super early (around 3) and just star gaze and take quick nap before sunrise. Probably not the most ideal, but at least we’d save money on a hotel for the night and also guarantee us a good spot in the morning. Our question is: how cold does up there if we just stay in the car for an hour or two to take a nap before sunrise? Would you recommend this route?
Any insight would be much appreciated. Thanks!
It’s generally 30°F colder on the summit as compared to the temperature at sea level. See our Maui weather guide: https://www.govisithawaii.com/2015/09/29/maui-weather-guide/
We don’t have any experience of sleeping in a car.
Great site, Sheila…
how does one go about sharing some imagery (still and video) with you for posting on your wonderful endeavor here…?
* * *
I grew up on Maui… been in NC during my military career.
Retired entirely last year… visited Maui, took several thousand still images and much video footage.
I am going back again in a couple of weeks and would love to share still, video, and an article or two… (grin) Is that possible…?
Maybe one or two before I leave…?
Until that time… Earl J.
Hi Earl – we do an Aloha Friday Photo series. Please check it out here: https://www.govisithawaii.com/aloha-friday-photo/
Coincidentally, we live in NC, too. 🙂
I am intrigued. . .
I will share with you soon about my effort to begin a helping hand project for the Kaupo Store… and administer the effort from here in NC (IF I can’t swing moving back there entirely…(wink))
* * *
Yes, I will go there and post images…
I’ll have some fresh ones very soon… 16 SEP to be exact…
(grin)
Until that time. . .
Hi Sheila,
Thanks for your write-up! Unfortunately there are no sunrise passes available, so my fiance and I will have to settle for sunset. Do you know of alternative ways to get a pass? What’s a good time to leave Kihei for sunset?
Thanks!
We don’t know of alternative ways to get sunrise passes. The only alternative we know of is to book a guided tour that includes sunrise.
Use the resources here to determine directions and drive times: https://www.govisithawaii.com/2011/04/14/directions-to-haleakala-summit-for-watching-sunrise/
My husband and I are coming for the first time to Maui this coming up May. We have booked a condo in Lahaina. Would you recommend us doing a tour since we do not know the roads or do you think we would be fine to make the drive ourselves?
That’s a personal decision as to how comfortable you are driving on unfamiliar roads in the USA.
As Sheila has mentioned, it does come down to preference. If you guys have the endurance to drive for 8+ hours through winding roads, then you can definitely drive yourself. This way it’ll allow you to stop when you want and go at your own schedule. If you do end up doing it yourself, I’d recommend downloading a phone app that will guide you. Cellular data is almost non existent out there.
Sorry, I confused this with Road to Hana. Same comments apply, but the drive is a lot shorter, it’s overall about 5-6 hour drive. The roads are windy but they’re well paved.
About how long is the drive from Maui to Haleakala?
Haleakala is ON Maui!
For estimating drive times, use these tips: https://www.govisithawaii.com/2018/05/22/using-google-maps-for-vacations-in-hawaii-and-beyond/