best day for Hana drive
 

Hi All,

Going to Maui in July for our honeymoon, staying at the 4S mountainview, thanks for everyone's posts, it's been a BIG help!

We will be in Maui from Wednesday through Tuesday and I was wondering what day would be best in terms of traffic for the roadtrip to Hana (we are only planning a day trip)?

Thanks!

Jed

Just returned from Maui...

We renamed "the road to hana" "the road to Hell-a". Fortunately, my daughter got carsick at mile 11 and we could turn around and spend the day at the beach.

The traffic was light (we left Kaanapali at 7:30 am on a Friday), but frankly the twisty roads and slow pace was not worth it, IMO. Go to Kauai and you'll get an equally lush and dramatic adventure, without the car sickness.

Another reason for turning around: I just couldn't imagine the 36 mile return trip from Hana. Too much time in the car.

As a side note, we visited the 4S (and all the other Wailea Hotels). While I like 4S hotels (esp. Santa Barbara), I found the one in Hawaii to be architectually overbearing and grand. Also, the people all looked stuffy and arrogant - I didn't see much joy around the pool. Mostly people checking each other out, talking in cell phones and reading Conde Nast publications :^)

The Kea Lani, BTW, seemed awesome and had a great Aloha vibe. Also, the beach at 4S was packed - more like Europe than Hawaii. Go to Big Beach, about 5 minutes away. Nicest beach I've been to on Hawaiian Islands.

Aloha.

Coachboy

Interesting how people have different experiences.
My husband and I were in Maui for our 3rd wedding anniversary in 2001.
We did the road to Hana on a week day.
We didn't drive on our own. We booked an excursion. Lucky for us, no one else had booked this excursion, so it was just us and the driver/guide. It was FABULOUS.
Have a great time.

Went on the Road to Hana on a Tuesday. I agree with Coachboy. It was stressful to say the least. It was pretty and some of the waterfalls were good but we only made it to mile 25 before turning around. Maybe if you really take it easy. It just wasn't worth the stress to us. We went back and had lunch at Mama's so we could have some wine and wind down. That was the best time of that day. You may need to do it just so you'll know if you think everything there is to see is worth it. Just be prepared to allow yourself the luxury of turning around if you need to. We never regretted it.

Now the road up to Haleakala was different. We went mid-morning when the traffic was light and loved it.

No matter what, you will love Maui.
Enjoy!

Concur re: Mama's: Best food and setting on Maui. If only it were less expensive. :^(

Coachboy

I agree with the others, don't use a day to drive to Hana. It just isn't worth losing a day on the beach or even a day in the hotel room! It gets more hype than it deserves. We were just there last week and drove the entire way around to make the complete circle. Twelve hours driving is just too much. If you don't turn around early you reach the "point of no return." The people who praise the waterfalls have not really seen waterfalls. They should visit Yosemite.

Have fun. You will definitely hate to leave Maui.

We went on a Thursday this past February and had no traffic problems. But leave early....we left the 4S before 7 A.M.

And I am one who thinks the Drive is very much worth it....I didn't fly all the way from N.Y. to sit on a beach. To each their own I guess.

Thank you for everyone's replies. I'm having second thoughts about the drive to Hana now. Am thinking that we may just do the "drive to Mama's"... :)

Thanks again!

Jedlam, there is no best day to make the drive but it's probably more crowded on Sun, Mon or Tue since most visitors fly in over the weekend and plan to do it (and Haleakala) early during their vacations.

The Road to Hana is not for everybody...especially the ill-prepared. And it might not prove to be the most beautiful coastal drive of your life (some people even prefer the remarkable northwest coastal drive on Maui). I can't think of any other subject on Fodor's that elicits so many contrasting postings. But is it worthwhile for a first-timer who's done a little research? Absolutely! Like most things in life, people will either love it or hate it. But let's face it. Virtually all first-timers to Maui will attempt to make this drive so here's my suggestions in how to best appreciate it:

First of all, curb your expectations. It's not a continuous journey through a Garden of Eden with the ultimate lush landscape and incredible waterfalls, although for some people it is. And Hana is not El Dorado or some tropical paradise at the end of this golden path. Actually, Hana is a very sedate, lackluster town that happens to be the only sizable town along the road around northeastern Maui.

So what is it? It's the ONLY road that people can travel to get around northeastern Maui which happens to have many twists and turns, with only a single lane at many points like bridges. It wasn't constructed solely for tourists' pleasure...there just happens to be a lot of wonderful points along the way that past tourists were amazed with and word got around...and quite possibly over-hyped. If you think you or your passenger(s) could suffer from motion sickness, be smart and take a pill one hour before.

Secondly, if you want to enjoy it to the fullest and at a leisurely pace, it's better to spend at least one night in Hana than to do it as a day trip. It would be like making the drive along the California coast or Amalfi coast in one day...you'd see it but you wouldn't be able to absorb it and appreciate it unless you had a pleasant attitude because of all the time you will spend in the car.

Lastly, if you can only make a day trip out of it, you need to plan well if you want to get the most out of it. Get a good resource like Maui Revealed which will point out many of the sites, but don't plan to see a majority of them in one day...even if you start before 7am. Just pick a handful of must-see sights along the way. But most importantly, stop at certain points and get out of the car! Enjoy the small hikes to certain sites, falls or vantage points. My favorite stops were the following: end of Nahiku road, Black Sand Beach, Hamoa Beach and O'heo Gulch (especially taking the 2.2mi Pipowi Trail through a serene bamboo forest to the incredible Waimoku Falls). Other people also recommend the Blue Pool and Venus Pool. Plenty of other worthwhile stopping points, so obviously it's best to spread them out over more than one day. If you want to see the best waterfalls in a daytrip, save more time for after Hana. It?s hard to do though because everyone tries to do too much before they even reach Hana. But in my opinion, the better waterfalls and beaches along the journey were past Hana, not before. Many people probably get too sick or bored of the journey and decide to turn around before they even get to such wonderful sites. If you get to Hamoa Beach by noon, you will be able to relax, take a swim or nap, and will be able to enjoy the remaining sites in a leisurely fashion before sundown. Better yet, stay overnight and you could enjoy Venus Pool and O'heo Gulch in the morning hours without the crowds.

By the way mauibound, although the waterfalls don't measure up in size compared to Yosemite Falls, which I find quite majestic, or other waterfalls in the Yosemite Valley like Bridal Veil or Vernal Falls, I can't think of any other drivable stretch of road in the whole wide world where you will encounter such a concentration of wonderful waterfalls. To top it off, waterfalls surrounded by such lush, tropical foliage with amazing coastal views around the corner. And have you ever hiked up to Waimoku Falls? The Pipowi Trail up to Waimoku Falls is the best short hike I have ever taken and beats any short trail in Yosemite Valley hands down. I love Yosemite but please don't compare it to Maui...completely different animals. Let's just try to appreciate the Road to Hana for the unique environment it is instead of trying to compare them to other equally unique places.

bluefin......great post....exactly what the Road to Hana is....just enjoy...again..very good description. The main point I think you make is the best way to enjoy the whole effect is to stay at least one night, so you are not rushing around trying to do all in one day!!

Sorry...that was supposed to be
bluefan....

thanks circa. I'm going to London for the 1st time in May, and I've reviewed a lot of your suggestions.

Back to the Road to Hana...for jedlam and others, check out the excellent post re Road to Hana thread started by loungin and plenty others. Personally, I think it's great that so many people offer such differing opinions on the Road to Hana...it gives the readers more insight and realistic expectations.

The only other subject matter that I've seen that rivals the Road to Hana in the number of love-hate posts is the island of Capri in Italy. Both share a common trait: many daytrippers disliked the excursion because they thought it was too crowded and touristy whereas overnighters tended to enjoy the experience. It goes to show that any excursion can prove enjoyable if you break it up into pieces (ie taking it leisurely) instead of trying to swallow it all at once.

"the road to hana" is infested with tourists on "the road to hana". All tourists beleive they are the only non-tourists on "the road to hana". Forget the post card.

Jedlham..
I've thought a bit more about the diverging opinions about the road to Hana.
I think that if my husband and I had driven ourselves, we probably wouldn't have enjoyed it as much.
Our guide/driver was GREAT... He was very knowledgeable about Maui and took some detours (my previous post mentions the fact that we were the only ones who booked that particular excursion). So our excursion was personalized to us and what we wanted to do, how long we wanted to stay at one place. If we wanted to stop at one place to take pictures, we could, etc...
Just a thought...

jedlam,

If you do choose to do the Road (and I really suggest you do....you'd be missing one of the highlights of the island IMHO), bring along the Maui Revealed guidebook. Details all the best, most scenic little hikes to do including a couple to your own private waterfall. One, we were there for an hour with no a soul around....simply paradise!

If my wife and I didn't have MR we probably wouldn't have enjoyed it as much as we did.

It us amazing how some people love the Road to Hana and others don't care for it at all. I did it once and while it was enjoyable it was not one of the highlights of Maui, and I will not do it again.

How can you decide in advance if it is something you personally will enjoy? If you like scenic drives in general then you will probably like the Road to Hana. I am just not big on scenic drives, especially ones that take up the better part of a day. If you do not live on or near the ocean you will probably enjoy it more than people who experience the ocean on a regular basis. I live on the ocean where there are many scenic coastal drives, and therefore the Road to Hana is just not that unique for me.

Thank you all for your coments ;)
I'm getting a room at the Hana Hotel & We are going to take it slow & have a blast! We decided Not to go all the way around like we planed to due to your coments, it's just not worth the drive down there. Do you think a jeep is needed? Thanks again GinnyG;)

Caribtraveler, or anyone else, after reading all your posts I think we might enjoy it more with a guide/driver. I'm thinking that we will still visit Mama's, and then drive to some specific points of interest from Maui Revealed, but not the entire drive to Hana. Any suggestions on companies or drivers to use or should I have 4S set this up for us?

Thanks again everyone, I can't wait!!!

Jed

you don't need a jeep on the road- the roads are suprisingly well paved and marked(lots of guard rails). But the road is EXTREMLY twisty , and elvation changes rapidly. If you survive the drive to hana the best is yet to come. Head to Oheco Gulch(7 sacred pools - really more like 27) It is amazing. you can hike to a large waterfall at the top and swim in all the pools. Note- the road is not as well marked passed hana and the guard rails start to dissapear, but you will still see quite a few toursts. Don't miss the road - I loved it. Leave very early and bring a picnic lunch - make sure you stop alot on the way there are many hiking trails. - stop at a fruit stand , they sell Fresh fruit smoothies with raw sugar cane.