Maui Honeymoon Day 7-8: Resort day and Haleakala

After the Road to Hana, we were ready for a day of just relaxing at the resort.  We rented a pool cabana at the Ritz Carlton to watch our Dallas Cowboys play football.  We had lunch at the Beach House restaurant and for dinner we went back to Sansei next door to the hotel.

Our last day in Maui, we drove up the dormant volcano Haleakala to watch the sunrise at 10,000 feet.  Unfortunately, my Canon chose that time to die on me.  It was cloudy at the crater so sunrise was sort of a bust but I was determined to get a few pictures.

We packed up and were headed home the next day, our dream honeymoon over.  But we were in love with Maui and made plans to return for our five-year anniversary.  Aloha Maui, see you soon!

Maui Honeymoon Day 6: The Road to Hana

We decided during our trip to book a tour of the Road to Hana.  This is a very famous curvy road hugging the east side of the Maui coastline on the way to Hana with many twist and turns and one-lane bridges--not for the faint of heart!  Ben decided we shouldn't tackle driving it ourselves so we booked a tour with Polynesian Tours. 

We enjoyed the tour and this was definitely the highlight of our entire trip.  Someday I would love to drive to Hana on our own so we could explore the area more but I'm not sure if we'll ever have the courage to drive it!

Pictures of our tour:

Rainbow eucalyptus trees

Waianapanapa Black Sand Beach

Oheo Gulch.  We had our suits on and would have been allowed to swim here but the water was too rough.

We made it to Hana!

Doing the tour, we were allowed to continue on the "back side" of Hana which normally car rental companies don't allow you to drive.  We stopped at the Tedeschi Winery for a tasting on the way back.

This was a full 12-hour day so we were tired and ready for bed when we were done!

Maui Honeymoon Day 5: Our first Hawaiian sunset!

I can't believe we didn't see a Maui sunset until Day 5 of our honeymoon.  Now I know you should never miss one!

Day 5 was spent driving down to Kaanapali and sightseeing before our sunset sail.  We explored Front Street in Lahaina.

We found a place that said they had the #1 Mai Tai in Maui.  So of course, we had to see for ourselves!

We continued our drive around just taking in some scenery.

We stopped at Leilani's for a lava flow before our sail.  I think all the weight I gained on the trip was because of these (but it was worth it!)

We booked our sail with the package but luckily this time we chose a good one and were aboard the Teralani 2 where we enjoyed dinner and a wonderful sail and sunset.  You get a little wet boarding the boat!

The picture of Ben and I at sunset is still one of my all-time favorites!

Maui Honeymoon Day 3-4: Luau and Spa

Day 3 was our luau at the Sheraton in Kaanapali.  We chose this luau when we booked our package, not knowing there were much better ones on Maui.  It was pretty cheesy and the food not very good.  Someday I want a do-over!

Here's me in my new Hawaiian dress.

Us outside the Ritz Carlton.

Ben with the girl who greeted us at the luau.

All the honeymoon grooms had to go up on stage which Ben was NOT very happy about!  I tried to get pictures but they didn't come out very good.  Ben is on the end on the left. 

Day 4 started with our room service breakfast and then Ben and I went for a couples massage at the Waiha Spa at the hotel.  After the wonderful massage, we were allowed to relax together and drink mimosas in the lounge and get in the spa hot tub.  I still dream about this day and how great it was!

Later we went to lunch at the Plantation House.  I loved my dress so much I wore it the next day, oops!

Later that night we went to dinner at Kai sushi at the hotel.  We ended up liking Sansei much better and went there again later in our trip.

Pictures before dinner: