Hi all..i will be asking alot of questions in the near future..headin to hawaii for 15 days in august with 4 kids ages 9-11 and spending so far 10 days in maui and 5 on the big island.....first, how long is the ride from kihei to hana? i realize the map only gives the mileage but cant judge time wise due to the roads...is the trip from the south of the island or from the north? thank you very much, bill

This a real hard question to answer because so much depends on:

1) How many stops you make
2) How long you spend at each stop

If forced to give an answer, I would say to allow a minimum of 4 hours to get there from Kihei. Personally, we spent over 6 hours getting there and it was not nearly long enough.

Ken

If you can, stay overnight or maybe even two nights in Hana. You are going to feel some stress if you're constantly thinking about how much further the road is and when you need to be heading back. Also, we had one of the waterfalls near Hana to ourselves because we were there in the morning and most people are there at the end of the day.

I've done the Hana Drive four times out of 9 vistits to the islands, so I must enjoy it. My standard advice is plan for the drive there and back to be a full (long)day affair. I suspect that if you make every stop on the CD narration, to Hana itself from Keihi would be about 4 hours. But remember, there is a lot to see (and for me the reason I go back) beyond Hana. I would never do the drive to Hana without going on to Haleakala National Park and hiking up beyond the pools to the high water falls and Bamboo forest.

Then of course you have to get back to Keihi.

I leave early, around 6:00 AM, to avoid much of the Tourist and Commercial traffic, and if you go on a weekend you really miss most of the commercial traffic. It makes the drive less stressful and easier for the driver to take in the scenery.

Trouble is, there is no way to miss the traffic on the return unless you take the "forbidden road" which I have twice with no problem.

From Keihi, the trip is East for a while then generally south. You start out just like you would return to the airport then hang a right on the Hana Highway. The CD narration is sold in a Kiosk at the Shell station, next to the McDonalds. Sometimes the Condo's have ones left by previous guests, so ask at the activities desk. It'll pay for a breakfast at Mickey D's.

Whether its worth the effort depends on your taste for history a change in scenery.

Having made the journey three times, I recommend you think twice (or more) about driving to Hana with 4 kids.
There is little to interest children. Some of the recommended sights can be dangerous..particularly if it rains. People have been washed out to sea at the Seven Pools area, and at other creek beds that lead to/from waterfalls and natural pools. Hamoa Beach is lovely, but had a strong undertow when I was there most recently, which was May, 2005. Hana Bay is OK for swimming, but the sand is very coarse, dark, and hot. Do any of your kids get carsick? MISERY! I love Maui (have been 12 or so times) and kids(6 for us), but just don't rate this very high on my list of favorite things to do on the island.

Thank you all very much...spokaneman, u mention the " forbidden road"..im assuming that is the southern road, past hana and around back up towards kihei? tell me more..if i have a 4x4 is it possible,weather-wise?..i really dont like backtracking so i kind of wanted to continue around the island..i am also looking into staying in hana for 1 nite so i wount have to travel the roads at dark....
p.s. as said my 4 kids are 9 and 11..i have 2 ages 9 and 11 and my girlfriend has 2 ages 9 and 11...good match..didnt want you all to think i had 2 sets of twins ! .the kids are quite adventurous as the past 3 years we've done vegas and he grand canyon hiking, the red rock canyon 3-5 mile hike, the next year we did sodona and the west fork hike,and others in the arae for 2 weeks in Az. etc, and last year we kinda vegged in cancun and taught them how to snorkel and relax,,,haha,,but as you can see, the relaxing is going to be continued this year with some hiking !! so we all win.... thanks again.....

Actually, you don't need a four wheel drive. We've done it in a Mustang, a Taurus etc. There is about a 10 mile stretch that is dirt, very narrow and windy, but nothing that would create any problems for an experienced driver so long as the co-driver is not the nervous nelly type. Once you hit the pavement, the first few miles are a bit rough, but beyond that it turns into an nice uncrowded well marked two lane road. Little traffic and what there is moves along smartly.

The only caveat, would be watch the weather, if there is a risk of heavy rain on Haaleakla, or if there have been heavy storms in the past few weeks, I don't think I would try it. Be sure you have plenty of Gas as there is absolutely nothing out there. No cell coverage, etc.

I enjoy the drive (but I also enjoy the drive across North Dakota), and it shaves about an hour off of the return trip to Keihi/Lahaina.

I've done Hawaii 4 times with the kids and 2 more times with my husband. My kids were right around your kids ages. The road to Hana is very, very, very did I mention very long for the kids. It is also very winding (I got motion sickness the last time from driving). It is an extremely beautiful drive but I don't think you have to go the whole way to appreciate it. At the end of the drive there are some very cool waterfalls (7--hence the name the 7 pools) that you can swim in but beware there is no town, no restaurant, no gas station, nothing,so be prepared. There are a select few places to stop along the way but not much. I'd consider going 1/2 way ---most of the beauty is in the drive and the kids will be restless. It's about a 3- 31/2 hour drive one way! THere are waterfalls to see and hikes to take along the way. Be prepared for an entire day for Hana. Some people recommend staying overnight because there is no way you want to be on that road after dark.

We've done most the islands if you have anymore questions I'll reply if I see them.
You'll love it!

I concur about not taking the kids, Ours were early teens when they went and were fine, younger than that would be a handful.

I'm the odd man out but I hated the road past Hana (backway) that takes you back around. I thought we would never get there and much of the road is terrible.

ok, another question..is there or is there not a road connecting rt 31 ( the southern part past hana ) with the rt 31 fron kehei,makena and cape kina'u by le perouse bay? i see on the map a dirt road by le perouse bay but am not sure if it connects the 2,,,i will have a 4x4 ( because i need an 8 passenger vehicle ) so would be possible if its there...thx again bill

Billyb68 -

There is a dirt road, but it is a private road across private property. When we were there in May of last year it was gated and locked.

Ken

Considering that DW and child became naseuas going the "back way" up to Waimea Canyon on Kauia, we probably won't be seeing Hana on our upcoming trip. However, "Maui Revealed" says essentially the same thing as Spokaneman regarding the road beyond Hana.

Does anyone try going from Kiehi to Hana via this route, instead of the "long way 'round"?

26 mo' days to go!!

thank you ken...so if it were open????????????? still private , huh? thanks, bill

billyb68, the road from Kihei to Hana is about three times as long when there are children in the car!

We went to Hana last yr and loved it. We stayed two nights at a beautiful cottage but I personnally would never take children on that ride. It would be too long and let's face it, it is a bit of a stress through some of those turns - that with a few noisy children would create an unpleasant day in my opinion. I also agree that the back road is a road that you just basically have to do but it looked so barren and desolate - didn't enjoy that at all. The road to Hana was spectacular, stopped at a lot of waterfalls. Hamoa Beach was beautiful, 7 Sacred Pools was cool - the whole experience there was something I wouldn't have wanted to miss.