At Travaasa Hana guests can have their cake and eat it, too.

On one hand, the rural hamlet of Hana provides the perfect setting for a low-key, laid-back escape.

On the other, they can enjoy all the amenities of a luxury resort, from fine dining to a full-service spa.

There are two ways to get to Hana, which lies at the easternmost tip of Maui. From Kahu­lui Airport, Moku­lele Airlines’ nine-seat Cessna Caravan glides over a coastline fringed with waterfalls, verdant rain forests and ebony cliffs. From takeoff to touchdown the flight is about 20 minutes.

By car the 52-mile drive from Kahu­lui puts vacationers right in that scenic splendor — never mind that along the way there are 620 turns and 59 bridges, most of them wide enough for just one car. It takes about two hours to make the trip without stops; captivated by the views, most visitors have a hard time doing it in less than three.

Either way, arriving at Travaasa Hana immediately slows both pace and pulse — the ambience is that comfortable and relaxing.

Most of the hotel’s employees were born and raised in Hana. Several started working there more than 30 years ago, when it was known as the Hotel Hana-Maui (opened in 1946, it was Maui’s first resort).

Since 2011, when the 70-room hotel became the Travassa Hana, it has been continually refreshed and upgraded. Original paintings by Hawaii artists adorn walls in and around the lobby. The landscape is a montage of expansive lawns and beautiful ferns, flowers and century-old trees.

MENU choices celebrate the bounty of the islands and delight even the finickiest gourmets; think Lobster Eggs Benedict made with eggs from a Hana ranch, Ahi Nicoise Salad featuring fish caught from offshore waters, and Maui Cattle Co. Rib Chop accompanied by locally grown broccolini, baby spinach and tomato.

In keeping with the idea that "digital detox" is the key to a truly restful stay, there are no clocks, radios, TVs or Internet connection in the rooms (free Wi-Fi is available in the lobby for those who really need or want it).

Thoughtful little gestures earn big points. Refreshing passion orange guava juice is served at check-in; iced towels are offered after bike rides; and books, puzzles and board games are loaned free of charge. Employees often bring bananas from their yards to share with guests.

Travaasa Hana vacations are built on five "pillars": Adventure, Culinary, Culture, Fitness and Spa/Wellness. Activities revolving around those themes change daily.

For example, adventurers can ride horses, try stand-up paddleboarding and soar in a glider over Hale­akala. Culinary options include classes such as Juicing for Vitality, Art of the Cocktail and Feed Your Face, where participants create nourishing smoothies and facial and body treatments from fruits, vegetables and spices.

All of the cultural offerings — coconut husking, throw-net fishing, hula and ukulele lessons, and flower and feather lei making — are free. Guests can also sign up for complimentary yoga, tennis, archery, aqua aerobics, coastal walks, bamboo pole fishing and three-hole pitch-and-putt golf overlooking Hana Bay.

At night the only sounds breaking the stillness are the songs of the sea. Breezes are tinged with the fragrance of plumeria, and, unchallenged by ambient light, millions of stars sparkle in an indigo sky.

Heavenly Hana, kama­aina say, and guests at Travaasa Hana agree: It is like no other place on Earth.

Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi is a Honolulu-based freelance writer whose travel features for the Hono­lulu Star-Advertiser have won several Society of American Travel Writers awards.