If you’re planning a trip to Maui, it’s very likely that Road to Hana is on your list of things to do. You’ll likely read a ton of information, like I did and be overwhelmed with the amount of things to see along this road. Believe me, this is not the type of journey you want to take without doing some planning first. In this guide, I’ll talk through the things you need to consider and be aware of before you go. I’ll also provide you with my list of the 10 spots along this road that still stand out to me, even months later!
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What You Need to Know Before Driving the Road to Hana
- Know that it’s about the journey, not the destination. Hana is nothing special. And in fact, I recommend going past Hana for some of the best attractions on Maui. You’ll see why later in the post.
- Go with a tour or do it yourself? If you’re trying to decide whether to go with a tour or do the drive yourself, I highly recommend doing it yourself. This way, you can pick and choose the places that you want to stop and spend as much time as you want. And if you wanted the luxury of having a guide explain the history or significance of each attraction, there’s an app for that! Which brings me to #3…
- Download the Shaka Guide app (or I’m sure there are others that do the same thing). It costs $6 to download a map, but it is SO worth it. Doing this ensures that you will have GPS for the whole trip. It will tell you where to stop and park. It also talks about each stop before you get there and suggests which spots are worth stopping for and which aren’t. The app even had some spots that many tourists don’t know about, and many which I hadn’t even heard of in all the research I did. Download the tour you want BEFORE you go on the drive, at your hotel or wherever you have wifi and make sure to bring a car charger so your phone doesn’t run out of battery.
- Don’t rush! It’s a long drive, with a lot of bends, curves, and one-lane bridges and there’s a lot of stopping points. If you’re taking the time out of your vacation, you may as well actually take your time and enjoy it.
- Stay in Hana. I can’t stress this enough – spend the night in Hana. A lot of people do the road to Hana in one day, but I seriously couldn’t imagine having to drive that highway back in the dark, which means leaving yourself at least 2 hours before sunset to get back. Which means significantly less time in the day. It will be much more stress free and enjoyable if you just stay in Hana for the night.
- Stock up! Before you get on Hana highway, stock up on gas, food and water. If you download the Shaka Guide app, he’ll even tell you the best place to do this!
- Have a bathing suit and towels. This may be obvious, but wear a bathing suit (or at least have one to change into, but know that there are not many places with restrooms to change). There are many swimming holes and beaches and you’ll probably want to go swimming in at least one of them. Also bring a towel or two to dry off, or even just to sit on at the beach or for a picnic.
- Wear or bring light layers and a raincoat. Being that the area along the road to Hana gets over 300 inches of rainfall per year, the probability that it will rain while you’re there is pretty high. If it’s cloudy and rainy, it can be a little chilly as well.
- Getting back. Remember that after driving the road to Hana, whether the same day or the next, you need to return. It is possible to do a loop so you don’t have to return the same way you came. But, you should know that most car rental companies prohibit driving on the roads past Kipahulu and if anything does happen to the car on those roads, it won’t be covered. I’ve heard there are 2 rental companies that do allow you to drive on those roads, but we didn’t use them, so definitely something to look into. Also, we decided to not to take the road past Kipahulu because we heard that the road conditions can be very bad when it’s wet, so we felt it wasn’t worth the risk considering it had been raining pretty much all day. I’ve heard the scenery is beautiful past Kipahulu, so it’s definitely something to consider before you go!
Falls of Makahiku, Haleakala National Park, Pipiwai Trail
Top 10 Stops Along the Road to Hana
Note: When we were there, the weather was terrible for most of the day, so we didn’t stop at many of the beaches. You may want to consider more of the beaches if the weather is nice. The items on this list are in the order you would approach them on the road to Hana. These are the stops that particularly stood out to me, especially given our situation with the rainy weather – there are definitely plenty of other great stops along the road, but these are ones I still remember and I’m definitely glad I didn’t miss!
- Ke’anae Peninsula This short detour is definitely worth it. Not only are there beautiful views, but there’s Aunty Sandy’s Banana Bread. If you’ve already read about Aunty Sandy’s banana bread by now, I promise, it really is as good as everyone makes it out to be.
- Ching’s Pond This is a nice waterfall and a freshwater pond that you can swim in. It’s also pretty accessible and easy to get to. The water was chilly but it was just too tempting not to jump in and take a swim! It’s definitely easy to miss if you don’t have a GPS, but there will likely be plenty of cars parked near the trail that leads there.
Ching’s Pond - Wailua Iki Falls and Hike This is a short yet rewarding hike. It’s about a mile round trip and it takes you to a beautiful waterfall and another area were you can swim. Technically this is property of East Maui Irrigation, but that doesn’t seem to stop anybody.
Wailuaiki Trail - Lava Tube Cave This is not the paid tourist attraction in Hana, it’s a small lava tube on the side of the road. I have to be honest, this lava tube felt much more real than the one in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. The entrance to the cave is so small and easy to miss, making it really creepy to get into, but once you get in the cave, it opens up. It’s short enough that it only takes a few minutes to walk through, so definitely worth the stop. You’ll want the flashlight on your phone so make sure you bring your phone in with you!
Entrance to the Lava Tube Cave, Road to Hana - Wai’anapanapa State Park This park has it all. Freshwater caves, hiking trails, lava tubes, blowholes, a natural stone arch, and of course the black sand beach. Take your time here, especially if it’s nice out.
Wai’anapanapa State Park - Red Sand Beach (Kaihalulu Beach) We didn’t actually stop here because it was raining and I read that the trail can be dangerous and slippery. However, it looked really cool and when the seas aren’t rough, snorkeling is supposed to be good here! This beach is in Hana, so this would’ve been our last stop of the day. The remaining spots on this list we did the following day.
- Venus Pools or Waioka Pond A short trail through a field takes you to this hidden gem. The swimming pool sits right against the ocean with rock formations that offer great cliff jumping spots. It was so quiet and peaceful here, the water was beautiful and we even saw a sea turtle swimming in the pool. Unfortunately, we didn’t have the time to swim because we had to catch a flight that night, but even without swimming, it was still a spot worth stopping! Just be careful, flash floods are a potential danger here, as with many places in East Maui.
Waioku Pond - Wailua Falls You can see this amazing 80-foot waterfall right from the road. You can park a little past the falls and then walk back to take a pic. Definitely worth the short stop!
Wailua Falls - Pipiwai Trail This 4-mile round trip hike is in the Kipahulu District of Haleakala National Park. It takes you passed a waterfall, a huge banyan tree, through a bamboo forest and to the base of the 400-foot Waimoku Falls. This was probably my favorite stop on the entire road to Hana, and it’s actually past Hana. The entire drive is worth it for this hike alone. When we were there, the end of the trail was closed near the stream crossing that takes you to the base of the falls due to recent flash floods. But, even from a distance, the view of the falls is amazing and well worth the easy 2 miles to get there.
Waimoku Falls, Pipiwai Trail, Haleakala National Park - Pools of ‘Ohe’o Also part of Haleakala National Park, the ‘Ohe’o Gulch is a stream that continues to drop forming cascading waterfalls into plunge pools until it converges with the ocean. This attraction is also known as the “seven sacred pools” or “pools of ‘Ohe’o.” Unfortunately, these pools are closed to swimming with no date for reopen due to safety concerns from landslides. However, it’s still a beautiful site and worth taking the short loop trail that overlooks the pools!
Seven Sacred Pools, Haleakala National Park Planning a trip to Hawaii? Check out my post on how we spent our two weeks island hopping in Hawaii.
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