Agreed. That’s just my general feel of Maui - too much driving, too much traffic, not enough payoff. Kauai on the other hand had driving, but it was much quicker/easier to get around.
Two reasons to go to Maui:
-
you’ve been to the other islands, and wanna check out something different… worth going once
-
you love underwater - maui has the best Diving in Hawaii on a general basis.
Otherwise Big island/Oahu/Kauai covers most use cases (relax? adventure? food? etc)
Love me some Hana.
My wife and I did the road to Hana on our honeymoon about two years ago and had a blast. We did it in reverse (counterclockwise) so we could finish in Paia and have dinner at Mama’s Fish House.
We also rented a Wrangler, but it really wasn’t necessary. There were a few spots that were dirt/gravel, but nothing really serious that required any level of vehicle clearance or 4WD. If you haven’t used Turo before I would recommend renting through them. Our rental came from the Kihei Rent a Car. One thing about driving is that the roads are extremely tight and the locals FLY and will tailgate hard. Don’t be afraid to just pull over and let them pass or they will harass the hell out of you.
One must is the Shaka Guide “Road to Hana Maui Driving Tour”. It gives you something like 150 different spots to stop and things to look for. It’s super accurate from what I remember as far as giving locations for parking/restaurants/sight seeing/etc. If you take one piece of advice from my post, this would be it.
Last thing I would say is to get started early because it is a longggg day. We left our hotel at 6 am and just made our 7 pm reservations at Mama’s. We did stop and hike the whole Pipiwai Trail to Waimoku Falls, but I’m not sure I would do that with children, although the falls are awesome. The black sand beach would probably be a better stop with kids.
Hope this helps. Enjoy your trip
Mama’s is out of this world good and well deserved after that long day on the road. My wife and I still talk about how that was the best meal we ever had.
I’ve tried to convince DK to go to Mama’s, but he refuses to listen…Perhaps all of the positive feedback with change his mind.
Highly recommend the drive around the backside of Haleakala if you are a tenacious driver with an SUV. There’s a ~40-minute stretch past Kipahulu that’s quite bumpy and has limited road railings, but past that the road is nicely paved all the way back to civilization. Lots of postcard views and happy cows and none of the crazy tourist traffic you encounter during the windy part of the drive to get to Hana.
We hired a local guide with a van and did the full loop. Took us to some cool spots a bit off beaten path. Nice to have someone else drive, and he was a wealth of local info and history. Bring Dramamine if you get motion sickness.
Well worth the money.
+1 on the Shaka Guide. Kept my teenage kids interested in the drive, provided not only history, but places to get out and walk, swim, eat, etc. Easy download from iTunes, uses GPS to tell stories and provide direction exactly where you are.
Resurrecting this thread since we are planning to visit Maui this March (since last years trip was canceled).
I think we are going to skip the full Road to Hana excursion for my own sanity of not having to listen to my kids complain in the car for 8 hours. However, we would like to find some waterfall hikes that don’t take up the entire day. Are there any that aren’t on the road to Hana, or are there some near the beginning where we go drive in, hike and then turn around and head home?
One would think the traffic on the road to Hana would be better. It’s much much better if you keep driving past Hana back to Kihei.
The red sand beach was my recco. hollowed out cinder cone volcano with a nice little lagoon.
Pretty cool huh?
Last week was exactly 25 years when I made that drive. One car went around the backside and saw no rain. I had the luxury of drive back in what turned out to be a blinding rainstorm. Those gentle streams turn into raging rivers with water going over the road in a few places. If you get to Hana, you might as well go another 11 miles and visit Lindbergh’s gravesite. (Look up directions as it’s hard to find) The vista is spectacular.
Big +1 on the Shaka guide - it’s really accurate and highlights both good points to stop and when to keep driving.
There is a rally of eucalyptus trees along the road that is so remarkable. Hutts for BBQ grill may be a must, Mokae and many cascades throughout the journey are so peaceful. We hire a guide for our family and he takes us for a tour all around the destination. Formerly it is an extended day
Just got back from Maui. They are placing all kinds of restrictions on the Road to Hana. No waterfall access (being ignored now but supposedly not for long) and no parking signs going up everywhere with the possibility of getting towed. Long line for park to black sand beach. Long lines everywhere. Back side road construction.
I would heartily recommend skipping right now.
Heading in 3 weeks… does this mean the backside drive is blocked? or what is impact of road construction?
thanks!
Could not agree more
The backside is open. What we were told was that while it is open, there is construction and that they will simply stop you for extended periods while they work. So it’s a crap shoot, which is why we skipped it.