Maria

How long is the round-trip to/from Kaanapali to Hana? My husband and I want to take our time and stop along the highway to swim at watering holes and see waterfalls, but we're not sure if we have time to continue past Hana to the Seven Pools, and spend some time there.

brian

for the best experience, you need to spend 1 night in hana. too much to see and do in 1 day from kaanapali

Ani

My husband and I did this drive while staying on Kaanapali...and I totally agree with Brian. It's an all day trip just to Hana with the stops for waterfalls-(we also had a little guide for hiking stops that was WONDERFUL)-and also Black Beach...by the time we got to Hana we were tired-a little nauseous actually (windy roads)-and there was no way we were going on to the sacred pools which we were really bummed about. PLUS-wish we had planned to stay in Hana-it had a wonderful atmosphere--and we had wanted to stay longer and investigate the red sand beach....I definately say stay over in Hana-explore-and go from there!

Nova

There are two different opinions about the road to Hana:

It is the greatest thing in the world, or;

It is a complete waste of a day (or maybe two).

Jean

We did the trip from Kaanapali to Hana and back in one day. Long day, we were up and moving very early in the morning. We did stop and hike in two or three places on the way, stopped at the black sand beach, and even hiked for about an hour an Seven Pools. We made it back to Paia (sp) about dark and had dinner there. I would have loved to stay in Hana, but I'm too cheap to pay for another room, since we already were paying for our condo.

Marti

Don't miss the road to Hana, it's amazing. Those who say it's a waste probably did not get out of their car a dozen times like we did to enjoy the walks, waterfall, foliage, etc--you won't see anything like it anywhere else on the island. BUT, I agree with Jean, I would not want to pay for another hotel and/or check out and back in to my hotel again to stay in Hana. Just enjoy the day, and get back the same day.

Craig

Unless you are spending a couple of weeks on Maui, do it as a day trip. You can easily accomplish everything on your list if you get an early start. We actually did it on our first day on Maui--coming from the east coast of the US the day before, we were wide awake early in the morning.

kate

if you plan to go all the way round take a sturdy car, they are some of the worst roads ive ever been on and being someone whos used to driving round london, england thats not an understatement!

x

we went to the seven pools and back in one day. just start early, eat breakfast in the car while you drive, so that you are not rushed.

MMN

We left our Wailea hotel at 7:30 and started on the Road to Hana around 8:30. We thought it was still okay - not too crowded. We stopped at several waterfalls, swam in one, stopped for banana bread, had a short picnic lunch & visited the Black & Red Sand Beaches - and Hana Bay. We got to the Seven Sacred Pools at 3:30PM. We stayed there for an hour or so (we were really too tired to fully enjoy it & it was crowded by that time of day) and then headed back via the back "Kaupo" Road. We got back to our hotel at 7:30PM. I'd say the back road takes about the same time as turning around - you just get a different scenery - but the roads are MUCH worse. We had a Jeep which helped a lot & I'm glad we did it for the experience but you have to be a very good & defensive driver to tackle the road. Oh, and only do it if you leave Seven Pools by 5PM - I would never do that road in the dark.
We were absolutely exhausted. (and burnt from keeping the top down on the jeep the whole way) I don't know how people go straight to dinner in Paia afterwards - we ordered take-out, ate in our rooms, and watched an on-demand movie!

I think it's one of those things you need to experience yourself. If I ever did do it again - it would definitely be with a night in Hana. Otherwise, I wouldn't do it again.

Hope this helps you a little.