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Road to Hana Tour

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We took The Road to Hana Tour with Valley Isle Excursions and I have to say it was great. What a value for the price! Surprisingly there were two main attractions. First, the unparalleled beauty found on The Road to Hana.

Second is the knowledge possessed by your guide. The guides are so familiar with every aspect of Hawaii, Hawaiian culture and are so friendly, they are truly the epitome of “Aloha”. You really feel like they are enjoying their job! It’s so nice to see that their employees are taking the time to really show you the beauty of Maui and making it fit within your vacation budget!

Another thing to consider is the possibility of having an accident while driving the Road to Hana. There are a whole lot of t-shirts that say “I survived the Road To Hana” and they say that for a reason. There are over six hundred turns on the way to Hana. Six hundred!!! How could anyone enjoy their trip if they had to drive it. It would simply exhaust you and you would be advised to stay the night in Hana and then drive back the next day. Now, if you didn’t already know, the little, affordable B&B’s in Hana are usually booked way in advance. Also, expect to spend at least $150 for a decent place to sleep in Hana.

When we drove to Hana by ourselves on a few separate occasions and it was truly a unique adventure each time. The first time we drove to Hana it was raining so hard that we couldn’t get in to swim at the Seven Sacred Pools because of flash flooding. The second time it was so dry that there weren’t any falls at the Seven Sacred Pools or to look at on the way and we weren’t knowledgeable about the other sites so we just went home.

Another time we drove out a Jeep had just landed in the ditch on the opposite side of the road, presumably because the driver was looking at the sights instead of driving, which happens quite often from what I hear. Even during our trip with Valley Isle we saw a good sized rock in the road that had fallen from the side of the cliff directly above the road. I don’t even want to imagine the hassle that could have caused us if it had come down on our car, not to mention possibly killing someone if they were in a convertible or soft top vehicle!

Yep, the Road to Hana is incredibly treacherous, and incredibly beautiful. Valley Isle Excursions really has us hooked. Now and in the future we’ll enjoy the Road to Hana while letting someone else man the wheel and educate us on Maui!

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Hana

Going out to Hana to do things is the opposite to what you should be planning.  You should plan to do nothing when you go to Hana and just fill in some time checking out some of the local attractions.

During the Day

Hana Cultural Center and Museum

Red Sand Beach

Hana Bay

Oheo Gulch

Waianapanapa State Park

Hamoa Beach

At Night

There is not too much happening after sundown in Hana.  This is a sleepy little Hawaiian village as remote as you can get on Maui.  There is some live music at the Hana Ranch restaurant or at the Hana Hotel on most nights.  Other than those two places, unless you know some locals who are throwing a party, that’s about it.

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Road to Hana

If you love to do day hikes then Maui is the place for you.  One of the most popular and mostly free Maui activities is hiking.  You wouldn’t believe the spectacular and This is by far the best thing to do in Maui.  It’s an exciting day filled with all sorts of classic Maui activities and sights.  Checking out the huge waterfalls, the rugged coast, the rainforest, the colorful flowers, the small villages as well as taking a dip at a classic swimming spot enjoyed for many thousands of years by the Hawaiians.  This is a day you will not forget and will want to do more then once.

The route takes you from Kahului through little towns of Maui’s Northern coast.   Many tours stop in towns like Paia but the folks at Valley Isle Excursions believe that you should spend a bit more time there.  They wet your appetite to come back and see that one.   It’s a great spot to catch a pizza at Flatbread.  They use local and organic ingredients in their creations.  The specials are always very tasty.

The Road to Hana tour from there becomes a tropical wilderness as the road winds through hundreds of gullies over tens of bridges and past waterfalls of various sizes.   Since there is so much to see and experience they stop at only the best or most convenient places along the trip.  There are times when you would want to stop to check out a specific place but trust the guides they will take you to the best spots.

Some of the main stops on a Road to Hana Tour by Valley Isle Excursions are:

  • Maui Waterfalls

    • There are hundreds of waterfalls along this part of Maui.  Depending on the amount of rain over the past couple days they will be either gushing, torrent of water or barely a trickle.  There are trade-offs in dealing with the rain on this side of the island.  So if you get a nice clear sunny day, you can see a long way up the coasts but the waterfalls will be smaller.

  • Keanae Peninsula

    • This area is beautiful with it’s rugged coastline.  This is the most exposed point on the north coast of Maui.  It has been subject to a tsunami almost 50 years ago as it’s only a few feet above the ocean.   There are no sandy beaches here as this is a result of a lava flow many, many years ago.  It has been made habitable by Hawaiian’s years ago through the hard work of transporting good soils down here to create taro fields.

  • Waianapanapa Black Sand Beach

    • The black sand beach and blowhole at Waianapanapa state park are just two of the features to see.  There are caves, graves and a wide variety of plants to see.  Take your time and enjoy this beautiful spot where the blackness of the rocks, the green of the plants and the blue of the ocean contrast with such stark colors that you wonder if your are really seeing it.

  • Wailua Falls

    • This beautiful waterfall just past Hana is just off the road.  You can enjoy the view and the mist by standing on the bridge.  You won’t find this scene anywhere else in Hawaii or the world.

  • Hana Town Sightseeing

    • The town of Hana is quite small and there are a few places of note, like the bay and the hotel.  This sleepy little village is home to many celebrities and hawaiians for many years as this is one of the best examples of a relatively untouched Hawaiian lifestyle.

  • Hana Ranchlands

    • The Hana ranch is huge and is spread over many thousands of acres.  The road cuts through this ranch at many stages and is quite a change from the dense rainforest earlier on in the journey.

  • Charles Lindbergh’s Memorial at Pala Pala Hoo mau Church

    • This classic american hero, the man who flew across the atlantic non-stop and alone first is buried here.  Hana was his home and he loved this place more then anywhere else in the world.  By the time you reach here you will understand why he never wanted to leave.

  • Swimming at the Pools of Oheo at Haleakala National Park

    • Few tour companies are allowed to stop in the park.  This is by far one of the best stops in Hana.  The Seven Sacred Pools are here, examples of Hawaiian architecture.  Huge waterfalls, bamboo forests and amazing plant life are found in the park.  Stopping here can rejuvenate you for the rest of the journey back around Haleakala as you make your way from Hana.

  • Surfing Overlook at Hookipa Park

    • This park is a stop just after Paia.  It’s a place where the worlds best windsurfers come to compete and practice.  Their colorful sails dot the ocean doing jumps and flips over the waves.  If you look carefully right below the cliffs you might see many of the turtles bobbing in the water feeding off of the seaweed that dot the coral reef just a few feet below the surface.

  • Tedeschi Winery

    • The winery is the last major stop on the Road to Hana Tour.  After a day of exploring and sightseeing, enjoying a sweet glass of pineapple wine will make you feel very good.  Grab a bottle to enjoy later with your meal.  You might want to get a few.  The grounds are beautiful and have lots of history so be sure to check out their little museum attached to the wine tasting room.

 

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Hiking To A Waterfall

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 Hiking is another one of the best things to do in Maui.  It is always part of a top ten wherever we go in the world.  There is so much to see and do that you need to hike to that you should always enjoy the journey to it.  

Some of our favorite hikes on Maui can be quite long but we will go through some of the shorter ones as that is what appeals to most people.  Those looking to go on longer hikes they already know quite a bit about the area and have been planning it for a long time.  A long hike on Maui is one that takes you down from the summit of Haleakala and can take up to 2 days at least.

The short hikes we like to feature include a tramp up Oheo Gulch to the 400 foot waterfalls at the end of the trail.   The rock hopping good time up Iao Valley stream, lots of nude sunbathing happening here on nice days so be mindful of that.   The walks up to see the Hawaiian petroglyphs are always a nice challenge.   A walk through the bamboo forest is kind of boring after a while.   Going up to Polipoli hot springs takes a long time to get to and is often very foggy as it sits in the clouds most afternoons.  Going above Kula to the frisbee golf course is always a nice afternoon.  A trip along the coast following the kings trail through the lava fields is also nice when you have already hit the other places.

 

Hiking up a gulch to a waterfall is one of the most spiritual things you can do.  The sound of falling water gives the listener a bit of the energy that is generated by that falling water.  Some of the water is falling from heights over 400′ so it’s generating a bit of speed and force.  Even a little bit of water can sting from that height.  Be careful when standing under a waterfall because it’s not just water but stones and wood as well, especially if it’s raining further up the gulch.

Some of our most favorite hikes to waterfalls are around Maui’s backside.  This is the Kipahulu area and Oheo Gulch.  Way out there where there is a lot fewer people, you can enjoy a moment at a waterfall in peace and tranquility.   There are many waterfalls along Oheo Gulch to hike to depending on your time.  If you have plenty of time then I suggest going all the way up to the end but before you reach the end, there is a side stream.  Follow the path less travelled to the Queen’s bath which is a bit nicer I think.

Also along the backside of Maui a few miles down the road from Oheo Gulch are a number of unmarked gulches with steady streams.  Go up any of these and you will find some great spots to kick back and relax by a pool in a beautiful setting.

 

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