Photo Gallery: Travaasa Resort in Austin and Maui

It’s no secret that Hawaii, and more specifically, Maui, is one of my favorite places I’ve traveled to. And that’s in part thanks to one place, Hana, and more specifically, Travaasa. I know, you may have some reservations about the name, which sounds like something hippy or a foreign type of food. However, it is neither, but rather one of my favorite hotels, located in one of my favorite island towns I’ve visited.

The term “Travaasa” appeals to my philosophical inclinations, taking the Sanskrit word, “Pravaasa,” which means memorable journey, and combining it with travel. And that’s exactly what Travaasa was for me, creating one of my more memorable hotel experiences to date, which involved learning to “throw net fish”, taking a kayak/snorkel trip, and maneuvering underwater with a sea scooter (think James Bond, though I ordered a Mai Tai rather than a Vesper upon returning back to the hotel).

However, the most memorable moment was sunrise on my first morning. Which if you know anything about me, is a feat in and of itself, voluntarily being up so early. I had set my alarm, having heard stories about sunrise on this part of the Maui coastline. Yet it was the sun that woke me up, peering through the shutters of my cottage. Groggy and a bit zombie-like, I slowly shuffled out onto my balcony, which immediately turned into a dead sprint down the hill, camera in hand. The way the sun radiated through the clouds and bright colors extended throughout the sky, it was more beautiful than any sunrise (or sunset for that matter) I had ever seen.

Naturally then, I was thrilled that in conjunction with my website launch, Travaasa wanted to give a couple nights away at one of their resorts. The hotel giveaway is for two nights, either at their Hana, Maui or Austin, Texas hotel, and you can enter to win here. To give you a little bit of a taste, see a few photos below from my trip to Hana (and a few more from both the Austin and Maui hotels).

First five photos from Travaasa Hana and Austin.