Campgrounds are plentiful and are generally evenly spaced around the coastal areas, plus a few in key upland areas. These locations are perfect for touring in your camper, allowing for easy planning of your vacation itinerary, as well as convenient camping in very beautiful places. For details of campgrounds and other useful information, try these links:
General Hawaii Campground Information
Hawaii Division of State Parks
Alternative-Hawaii Campground Info
Island of Hawaii Camping
Details on popular spots
County campground info and permits
Hawaii Volcanoes N.P. campgrounds
Arnott's Lodge and Campground- Hilo
Our recommendations for Hawaii:
NORTH: Laupahoehoe Beach Park, Kole Kole Beach Park (closer to Hilo), and Kalopa State Park.
EAST: Many 'unofficial' spots- look for little side roads and pullouts off of the main highway, or try Isaac Hale Beach Park, or MacKenzie State Park.
SOUTH: Volcanoes Nat. Park (Namakani Paio Campground- 30 miles from Hilo), Punalu'u Beach Park (park near boat landing), and side roads in the South Point area are great, but can be windy.
WEST: Ho`okena Beach Park, general parking near Old Airport State Park in Kailua, Mahukona Beach Park, Spencer Beach Park (better for kids)
Maui Camping
General Maui campground info: Economaui
Our recommendations for Maui:
Maui has fewer choices of actual campgrounds than the other islands, and all listed in the link above are recommended. What tends to work best for Maui (especially in the Hana area), is the 'unofficial' camping areas, as they are discussed at the bottom of this page.
"We had a great ride in your VW Westy
in Maui around mid-april 2005 ....Here is a
picture of a sunrise near Hana. Aloha... Peter"
Oahu Camping
Great general info on various options: Alternative-Hawaii, Oahu camping page
While the above campgrounds in the links above are fine, it also works well to find 'unofficial' spots along the coasts to set up camp in, such as access roads, fishing pull-outs, boat landings, etc. Generally you will not run into any trouble as long as you avoid private property and use common sense. The Westfalia is perfectly suited for this style of travel.
On permits: The campgrounds sound strict about permits, but in reality you rarely get checked. It is nearly impossible for most people to know where they are going to be on every night- that takes the fun out of this style of travel! Most likely you will have to promise to pay next time if you do get checked, or hand over the fees to whoever checks you ($5 per adult). If you know where you are going to be on any night now, you can purchase permits online for all of the County and State campgrounds. See the links above.