To Go or Not to Go...that is the Question:
The Road to Hana....we had heard horror stories from friends who had gone on the road before us....in fact one couple even referred to it as the "Road to Hell". We had also heard wonderful things from other people. The one theme that we heard over and over from travelers as well as locals was...."It's about the journey not the destination." So...when we got to Maui we weren't really sure about taking a day out and going. We had heard about the hairpin turns, the one lane bridges the rain, the fact that Hana is not much of a city when you finally get there after hours of driving. However...we are the type of people who like to do everything there is to do in a location and the Road to Hana was one of those things. We also are not "beach people" so spending a day driving through a rainforest wasn't a horrible thing for us. We simply chose a day that was a little cloudy at the beach and decided to give it a go. If you are thinking about going there are a few pros and cons to weigh....
1. It is a LONG drive. We are talking many hours of driving around hairpin curves, tight roadways and one lane bridges. It is not something that you can do and still get back to enjoy an entire day at the beach. So make sure you a. have the time to spare while you are in Maui and b. you want to give up the beach time to go.
2. It is a rainforest. This means that you will likely encounter rain along the way. We were lucky and only had a couple of sprinkles but from the sounds of it....that is unusual. You will not be driving along beaches and have sun the entire way. Most of the trip is through the forest....very green and lush and beautiful but know what you are getting into before you go.
3. It is not a fast drive....many times you will be traveling 25 mph and sometimes even less depending on traffic. Patience is a key.
4. You will be rewarded with beautiful waterfalls and green lush forests and yes some beautiful beaches also.
Once You have Decided to Go:
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| The GyPSy Guide...the single best thing we did to make the trip to Hana |
Once you have decided to go on the Road to Hana there are a few tips before you start out...that will help make your trip much better:
1. Pick up a GyPSy Guide
We had read the travel guide....we had read the reviews and the absolute BEST advice that we found was to rent a GyPSy Guide to take with us on the trip. We wanted to get an early start on the drive so we decided to rent it the day before. It was great...gave info all over the island...not just on the Road to Hana and made the drive so much more interesting. I'm not sure we would have caught all the turnoffs to see the sights without it. It told us stories and pointed out all sorts of things on our way. It was definitely worth the cost and I would highly recommend taking one along with you. There are two places to pick up one of these guides....Lahaina and Kihei. We were staying at the Grand Wailea so we picked up our unit in Kihei at the Aston Maui Banyan. The office was a bit hard to find at first but turned out to be very easy to rent the unit once we located it. The office is actually in a middle building of a condo high rise complex. You just go into the office area and it's behind the main desk in the lobby in area marked Pleasant Holidays. We picked up and paid for the unit and the whole process took maybe 15 minutes. We did a two day rental so we would have plenty of time. The agent also told us that the unit worked all over the island...not just on the Road to Hana...so it was fun listening to all the stories wherever we drove. It fit on the windshield along with our Garmin. We used the Garmin map to show the roadway to help anticipate the turns and listened to the GyPSy guide at the same time.
The facts were interesting to listen to and the stories on the way back from Hana were interesting and made the time pass pretty quickly. I would highly recommend this for anyone traveling the Road to Hana...you will not be sorry you rented it!
2. Get an Early Start
The second thing that we did that I would recommend is to get an early start. We went on one of the first few days that we were in Maui and the time change hadn't quite kicked in yet so we were up early anyway. We timed it so that we left the hotel in time to get to the beginning of the Road to Hana at sunrise. The road was not crowded at all on our way to Hana but on the way back it was much busier so getting a head start really saved us some traffic.
3. Remember " it's about the journey not the destination".
The one thing that we heard so often from locals was "It's not about the destination...it's about the journey". I'm so glad that people told us that. If you are going to Hana to go to Hana....you will be very disappointed. If you are going to Hana to see what there is to see on the way to Hana you will be pleasantly surprised.You're On the Road to Hana....Now What?
1. Get Gas Before you Start Out - Make sure you get gas before you start on the trip. There are no gas stations along the way until you get to Hana. Don't panic though...you really don't use that much gas for the entire trip....just fill up before you start out and you will be fine.
2. Keanae Penninsula - definitely a good place to stop. The views are beautiful with the waves crashing on the lava rocks. It is very common to find coconuts that fall off the trees and are on the beach....we picked one up as a souvenir. We also stopped at the little concession stand and bought some banana bread......This was THE BEST banana bread I had ever tasted! It was still warm and was so moist and just wonderful.
3. The Garden of Eden - You will see signs to the Garden of Eden....it's an arboretum with lots of tropical flowers and some limited views of a waterfall. There is also a free arboretum on the way. Unfortunately the free one was not open when we were there so we ended up going to the Garden of Eden on our way back. It was pretty but really not worth the cost. If the free arboretum is open and you want to see some of the tropical foliage up close...I would suggest stopping at that one.
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| There are lots of places to stop for wonderful Banana Bread! |
4. There are not a lot of places to eat along the way but there is food. Again don't panic. Pack a few snacks and a picnic lunch and you will be fine. There are some places that sell food and there is banana bread in several spots along the way so it's not like there is no food at all.
5. There are restrooms available. There is a distance between the restrooms but they are well marked and are clean.
6. Take your swimsuit and towels. There are places to stop and swim by the waterfalls along the way. The valet at our hotel gave us towels to take along...we did not stop and swim but saw many who did.
7. Go past Hana. There is still more to see once you get to Hana...keep going. If you follow the road it will take you to Charles Lindburgh's Burial Site. It's behind a small church and it's just really interesting to see. You can go keep going around the road at this point or turn back. We turned back as it voided the rental car contract if something had happened on the road at this point. We did speak to another couple that continued on and went around the island. They said that the road really wasn't that bad but there was not a lot to see. Also just past Hana is the rest of Haleakala National Park and with a short hike you could see the Seven Sacred Pools. It's definitely worth the stop. The hike was not too intense.
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| I have never seen a tree like this...on the walk to the Seven Sacred Pools |
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| Some of the Seven Sacred Pools |
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| The Beach near the Seven Sacred Pools |
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| One of the Seven Sacred Pools |
8. Remember it's a rainforest. You are likely to get some rain during your drive. It's the reason that everything is so green and lush. We actually lucked out on our day and only had a few sprinkles near Lindburgh's grave.
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| The Church by Lindburgh's Grave |
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| Charle's Lindbergh's Gravesite |
9. You will be a bit tired by the time you are on your return route but don't forget to take time to enjoy the scenery....there are some beautiful areas to see...
10. Make sure you give yourself time to stop in Paia. This was our favorite thing along the way and we actually went back a second time to see it again. This is the North Shore....and the waves (especially in the winter) are large. This is a great place to see surfers and windsurfers and kite surfers. You can get great views, great photos and just enjoy the beach.
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| The waves in Paia |
11. While you are in Paia...make sure you check out Mama's Fish House. Great food and even greater views!!
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| View from Mama's Fish House in Paia |
12. Make a day of it. The Road to Hana isn't something you can rush through. Plan to spend a whole day and make the most of the beautiful scenery!
Final Thoughts:
The biggest question that I got after having gone to Hana is "Would you do it again?" The answer to that is "Probably not....but I am so glad that I did it once." I would say if you have time, don't mind a long drive and want to see some very lush areas, the Road to Hana is a "must do". Having done it once....I am not sure that I would take the time again to do it all over but I must say...the journey was amazing!
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