Along the Hana Highway on Maui’s east coast, there’s a gorgeous 26-acre arboretum and botanical garden called the Garden of Eden. My parents, Andy and I toured this garden on recent visit to Maui. We all enjoyed meandering around the paths nestled between beautiful tropical blooms, trees, and shrubs of Hawaii and the South Pacific. Most people stop at the ... Read More »

Last week, I published an interview with my parents about their impressions of their first visit to Hawaii. When asked about highlights from the trip, my dad mentioned that he enjoyed watching sunrise at the summit of Haleakala. More specifically, he mentioned how beautiful the sunrise looked with the clouds lightly spilling over into the crater. I wanted to share ... Read More »

When you visit Haleakala National Park, keep your eyes peeled for a very special plant, the Haleakala silversword. The silversword is native to Hawaii and its Hawaiian name is Ahinahina which means “very gray”.   The Haleakala silversword is one tough cookie in the plant world. It lives on the slopes and summit of Haleakala where it survives weather conditions ranging ... Read More »

As we were driving along Kaupakalua Road (Highways 365 and 400) from Maui’s Upcountry down towards the coast, we saw this most unusual surfboard fence. We just had to stop the car to admire this colorful fence and snap a picture. The fence originated back in 1990 when the owner wanted to secure his surfboards in anticipation of a hurricane ... Read More »

I often hear these two questions as people are planning their scenic drive on the road to Hana: —- Should we drive the road to Hana starting at Paia, go past Hana and continue on past Kaupo and Kula? OR —- Should we drive a portion of the road to Hana and double back? Our answer is to drive past ... Read More »

You may have heard that Mount Everest is the world’s tallest mountain. Well, Hawaii says, “Everest, schmeverest!” You would need a heck of a tape measure and some scuba gear, but if you could measure the Big Island’s Mauna Kea from its base on the sea floor all the way up to the summit, you’d find that Mauna Kea is ... Read More »

If you’re headed to Hawaii this June, you’ll find loads of special arts and cultural celebrations on the islands. Many of these excellent events and festivals are free. So, let’s take a look at the list of what you’ll find happening on each island. HAWAII’S BIG ISLAND Celebration of Hula – “Na ‘olelo o ka pu‘uwai”(June 6 from 5 p.m. ... Read More »

Each time I visit Hawaii, I am always blown away by the amount of stars I see at night. I absolutely love to gaze at Hawaii’s star-filled night sky. I’m really just a stargazing novice. I enjoy and appreciate the vast amount of stars I see, but that’s really the extent of it. So, I’ve been wanting to learn more ... Read More »

When most people think of Haleakala National Park, they visualize the semi-barren summit of Haleakala volcano at over 10,000 feet above sea level, but there is a whole coastal section of this park that’s green and lush and definitely worth the visit. This area is called the Kipahulu area and it’s located near mile marker 42 past Hana on the ... Read More »

Here’s what’s cooking in the Hawaii vacation news kitchen today: * Since Mokulele Airlines began inter-island service a few months ago, fare wars surfaced. Just this week, a new twist to the fare war began. Mokulele is offering travel coupons — five one-way flight vouchers for the total cost of $267. That works out to $53.40 per one-way flight, which ... Read More »