Camping by the Ocean at Kipahulu Campground

Camping at Kipahulu Campground – Overview

If you’ve ever wanted to camp next to the ocean, Kipahulu Campground in Hawaii is the spot to do it! Located in Hana, Maui (about ten miles/35 minutes down the road from the main town of Hana), Kipahulu Campground is part of Haleakalā National Park.

There are two primary sections of Haleakalā National Park (which, by the way, are not directly connected by road). The Summit District is the high-altitude part of the park where you can watch the sunrise/sunset from above the clouds, or hike the desert-y Sliding Sands Trail. The Kīpahulu District is located on the lush, waterfall-filled east side of the island; it is in this section of the park that you’ll find Kipahulu Campground, right next to the ocean.

Most of the spots available at Kipahulu Campground (sites 1-15 and 21) are drive-in spots not directly on the ocean. Sites 16-20 are walk-in sites situated on a small cliff overlooking the ocean.

You can reserve a campsite on the national park website, and on the “campsite list” tab you’ll find a map with the location of each site. Sites 16-20 are the prime, oceanfront options that fill much quicker than the other sites.

Why Camp at Kipahulu Campground?

Besides just wanting a unique night sleeping next to the ocean, there was one major reason I booked a night at Kipahulu Campground: making our Road to Hana experience less rushed.

Driving the Road to Hana is an activity everyone seems to recommend (I have thoughts on that, I’ll save them for another post). It’s a long, winding road that takes travelers through the northeastern coast of Maui. To drive it straight through from our location in Kihei would take about two and a half hours. Add any stops to check out the waterfalls, rainbow eucalyptus trees, or banana bread shops along the way, and it’s a journey of three + hours. And that’s just one way.

The Road to Hana activity I was most excited about was hiking to Waimoku Falls on the Pipiwai Trail, which is 35 minutes beyond the main town of Hana. When I was looking at the map, adding up the time driving, then hiking, and then driving all the way back to Kihei . . . that just seemed like a really long and exhausting day. I started to look for places to spend the night in Hana, but there weren’t many options, and they were pricey. That’s when I found Kipahulu Campground. Right next to the ocean + extremely affordable = win!

How much Does it Cost to Camp at Kipahulu Campground?

As part of Haleakalā National Park, you’ll have to pay the $30 national park entrance fee (or show them your America the Beautiful pass if you have one), plus a daily fee to camp at Kipahulu Campground (which is paid in advance online). It was $8/night when I booked, but it looks like it is now $20/night.

All camping reservations must be made in advance on the national park website.

Parking at Kipahulu Campground

Most of the sites at Kipahulu Campground are drive in, with parking right next to your tent:

For spots 16 and 17 you park near the comfort station in front of this lava rock wall and then walk to your site:

Parking for spots 18-20 is similarly next to the lava rock wall, just further to the left of where the above photo was taken.

Facilities at Kipahulu Campground

There are two “comfort stations” at Kipahulu Campground, each with two vault toilets.

There are no showers, water, or flushing toilets at Kipahulu Campground. The Kīpahulu Visitor Center (about a half mile/10 minute walk/2 min drive from the campground) has a water fountain and flushing toilets. Those toilets are closed at night (the vault toilets are always open), but the water fountain is located on the exterior wall of the restrooms, so you can access that anytime.

Camping at Kipahulu Campground : Before you Go

You’ll need to make your camping reservation online ahead of time. Spots open up one month in advance, and the ocean-cliff sites seemed to go pretty quickly when I was planning our trip. Screenshot or print out your reservation in case your phone doesn’t have cell service once you arrive at Kipahulu Campground.

Preparation and what to bring:

Kipahulu Campground is fairly remote, so you’ll want to bring everything you need, like food and all your normal camping supplies (tent, flashlights, sleeping pads, etc.). We didn’t find any mosquitos at our campsite in early November, but it might not be a bad idea to bring bug spray. There is water at the visitor center, but we brought six liters of water in our Platypus water resevoirs, just to be safe.

Getting to Kipahulu Campground

Use the map below to get directions from your location to Kipahulu Campground.

Kipahulu Campground is inside the entrance gate at the Kipahulu District of Haleakala National Park. A small dirt road leads to the campground, while the paved road (behind me from the perspective in the photo below), leads to the visitor center as well as the Pipiwai Trailhead.

Camping at Kipahulu Campground

I was able to snag a reservation for site #17 at Kipahulu Campground. Perhaps I’m biased, but I thought it was the BEST SPOT EVER!

Here’s the view from our tent at sunset looking back towards the main campground:

And here’s the view from the other direction right after sunset:

Shortly after we set up our tent it started raining pretty heavily. Luckily we had just carried in our pillows, sleeping bags, and our bag of snacks (A.K.A. dinner). One of my favorite memories from our Maui trip were those moments in the evening; cozying up in the tent while the rain fell outside, listening to the crash of the waves below while munching on beef jerky, fruit leather, and leftover airplane snacks–it was perfect!

I’ll admit, the sleep I got that night was . . . not the best. For the first part of the night we had the rain fly open. That allowed air to flow through and kept our tent a comfortable temperature. But the wind started blowing HARD, and the open flaps were whipping around like crazy and knocking into the tent…right where my head was. It was loud and tough to sleep through. Sometime after midnight it started raining again, so we had to close the rain fly. This solved the loud-tent-flapping issue, but, unvented, our tent got uncomfortably hot inside, which also made it tough to sleep.

But the less-than-ideal sleep was all worth it when sunrise came (which . . . SURPRISE . . . I was already awake for! 😂), visible RIGHT FROM OUR TENT:

Sunrise from site #17 at Kipahulu Campground:

Things to do at Kipahulu Campground

There was a steep path from our site that led down to the ocean. Obviously it’s not a swimmable beach, but it was a fun area to explore:

The Kuloa Point Loop Trail is just steps away from this campsite. It’s an easy walk/hike with great ocean views and takes you to Oheʻo Gulch (also known as Seven Pools):

Kipahulu Campground is just a short walk from the Pipiwai Trailhead–a great 2+ hour hike on Maui where you’ll see waterfalls, a giant banyan tree, and a bamboo forest:

Camping at Kipahulu Campground : Overall Thoughts

Camping by the ocean at Kipahulu Campground was a unique and memorable experience that I’ll never forget. Watching the sunrise over the ocean, right from our tent was the highlight. It wasn’t the best sleep of my life, but camping never is (and perhaps that was a tent issue more than a Kipahulu Campground issue). If you’re driving the Road to Hana, don’t want to rush it there-and-back in one day, and don’t mind “roughing it” for a night, staying at Kipahulu Campground is highly worth a stay!

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