What a Ride!

I recently had the opportunity to travel the "Road to Hana." 

It was incredible! It is believed by a lot of people to be really treacherous to drive. Not at all. It is very curvy, but the road was in very good condition. My friends and I were advised to leave before 6am. We left at 5:45am - a very good idea. This way we stayed well ahead of the traffic, including the tour buses that came hours later. 

We had to stop to let vehicles through from the other direction on the bridges. Bridges are one lane only, but are very short, thankfully. There are yield signs to allow for traffic coming from the opposite direction. We passed the town of Hana and headed into Haleakala National Park. The road in this stretch was not as good as previous sections, but not awful.

A bridge on the Road to Hana

The scenery was amazing! That is why you drive the Road to Hana! There were incredible views of the ocean, waterfalls, and the foliage was amazing! The road is very curvy. I was okay, but I don't suffer from motion sickness. To me, it was a really fun amusement park ride! My friends took Gravol and they were okay.

Curves on the road

Once in Haleakala Park, we hiked up to the waterfall. Along the way we walked through a bamboo forest. This was incredible! Admission to the park is $20 USD, and is good for three days.

We stopped at the Black Rock Beach on the way back. This was really cool to see. It is located at Pa'iloa Bay.

We started in Lahaina and it takes about 3.5 hours from there to drive the road. The entire trip took us about 12 hours, so plan an entire day, including stops.

The Road to Hana is definitely a bucket list item. It is worth the ride!

~Angie

Banff Springs Hotel

There is so much history in the Banff Springs Hotel. It is great just to walk through and see it all!

It is great at Christmas because there are Christmas Trees throughout the hotel, but any time of the year the Banff Springs is beautiful!

View from the 11th floor

I had a private tour which started at the old entrance. The old entrance is at the back of the hotel. When the Banff Springs was built, the architect flipped the blueprints, so the entrance was at the back instead of the front! It was this way for years! it is only in the last 15 or twenty years that the front of the hotel was refinished so that it could be used as the main entrance.

The back entrance is beautiful and really showcases what the hotel is about. Upstairs you can really notice the details that make it the "Castle in the Rockies". There is a medieval banquet hall, complete with a knight in shining armour! Our tour took us down a wing that overlooked the pool. This was an open hall with chairs and side tables to relax at. The fireplace at the end of the hall is original and still works!

Wing that overlooks the pool

We looked at two banquet rooms and the solarium, which was very bright and sunny!

Then we walked down the haunted staircase! A young bride was getting married at the Banff Springs, before electricity, and the staircase was surrounded by candles. Her dress caught fire and she fell to her death at the bottom. This is one of the most famous ghost stories of the Canadian Rockies. Her ghost is said to still walk down the stairs and people dancing and music can be heard in the hall at the bottom (it is now a restaurant).

The haunted staircase

There is a lot to see at the Banff Springs Hotel. One visit is never enough!

To book a room, please visit:  http://www.fairmont.com/banff-springs/

~Angie