Sunrise from the summit of Haleakala volcano on the tropical island of Maui, Hawaii. (iStock)
Everybody loves a good sunrise-- there are 23 million hashtagged pictures of them on Instagram. But it turns out the rising sun at one picturesque park in Hawaii might be getting a little too popular.
At Haleakala National Park in Maui there are so many tourists trying to catch a glimpse of it every day, visitors now have to reserve a pre-dawn time time slot.
Tourists can book up to 60 days in advance, to arrive between 3 a.m. and 7 a.m. on their chosen day.
The park has long been famous for its views of the sun rising in front of a volcano, but according to staff, the vista viewing area has become unmanageable since the rise of social media.
People are now so keen to get a picture at the crack of dawn to share with their online followers that there are crowded hordes of visitors with cameras every morning.
The increased foot traffic has now started to damage the wildlife in the park, so management decided to limit visitors recently.
FOR THE LATEST TRAVEL FEATURES FOLLOW FOX LIFESTYLE ON FACEBOOK
Haleakala park superintendent Natalie Gates told Destination Tips: “If you ever went up there, you would see that fully half to three-quarters of our visitors who are watching the sunrise are either taking photos that they immediately broadcast to their friends, or filming it.”
Fun stories about food, relationships, the great outdoors and more.