Road to Hana -- self-guided or tour?

[ESquared423]

Have any of you done the Road to Hana on Maui? I keep going back and forth between doing it self-guided (with this: www.gypsyguide.com/maui/where/road_to_hana.php ) or doing a tour. We aren't really tour group people, but I am concerned when I read about how overwhelming the drive can be..is it really that strenuous? Thanks!

[sarahbear]

Do not do a tour. It's best done slowly, at your own pace, where you can be in peace and quiet. You can skip the turn offs with 3 vans full of tourists. The drive is crazy, but go slow and be safe. You'll be fine. You might want to alternate who drives so both of you get to enjoy looking out the window vs. staring at the winding road.

[ESquared423]

Ok, that's what I was leaning towards. I hate being in tour groups and unable to pick and choose what I want to do and when I want to do it. Do you think starting around 6AM is a good idea? I definitely don't want to be stuck driving back in the dark!

ETA: Do you think that GPS guide thing is worth it or should we just go for it on our own? The only thing that stresses me out with the GPS is the rental shop is open from 730-5, so we'd have to rent it the night before and either haul ass to make it back by 5 or rent it for another day and return it the day after. That'd be like $80.
I have a print out of points of interest and their locations, we definitely don't plan on stopping at all of them, but I'd like to have somewhat of an idea of what to look for. I've also heard there's CDs you can buy for the trip.

[sarahbear]

There are also CD (or probably phone aps now) that you start at the begining and it talks you through the stops. I'd do that over the GPS rental. Use your phone GPS device.

We started out early (we were there during May one year), but I think it was around 7-8am. We had plenty of time to see what we wanted, stop, and be back before dark. We went as far as the 7 waterfalls thing (or something like that name). By that point we had seen enough and wanted to get back to relaxing on the beach. Other people like to go the entire way, which I'm really not sure how much further it is from where we stopped. I kind of felt like after a certain point we had seen the highlights and I was getting a little car sick.

[ReenaP]

I agree, self-guided is the way to go. The road can get a little scary once you get closer to The Seven Pools, but nothing too crazy (Seven Pools is awesome too).

You can also get a sack lunch in Paia in the morning at a lot of the restaurants. Then you can eat your lunch in serenity at the Black Sand Beach. Great trip! I think you'll be fine with leaving 7 or 8 am.

[ESquared423]

Awesome, thanks for the feedback! I ended up finding an app on my iPhone for it (I didn't even think of that!), so that'll be perfect.

[cricketwife]

I definitely agree that you should do it at your own pace - no tour.

Here's another viewpoint, in case it helps. The Road to Hana was the only part of my 16 days on Maui that I didn't enjoy. My husband just said, "I wouldn't do it again. It was more of a burden than a joy." Here's what I wish I had realized - all those ideas of swimming in waterfalls and such - it was too cool to want to. It was the rainy side of the island, the whole trip was cloudy/rainy and it was "cool" -- 70s. (We went in mid June.) It seemed way overhyped. Yes it was pretty but it just didn't seem worth all the trouble. There were other parts of the island that I found much prettier and more accessible. The road isn't that scary, it's just really long. We did not take the road back, but rather went past Hana and then around the south side of the island (Lots of guidebooks say that you can't do this, but you can. There are some parts that are dirt, but it wasn't bad, again just really long and gave us a whole different experience. Almost no traffic on that part of the trip.) We were exhausted at the end of the day and neither of us had enjoyed it.

Depending on how long you have on the island, I would seriously consider whether this is what you want to do with a whole day. On the flip side, we met some people at our b&b who said it was the absolute highlight of their trip, so to each his own. And there is something to be said for experiencing what everybody is talking about.

[ESquared423]

Hmmm..that's interesting, cricket. We live in Hawaii and are just going for the long Memorial Day weekend, so we'll just be there 4 days. The only other big plans we have for the trip is a helicopter tour on Sunday morning and sunrise on Haleakala on Monday before we leave that evening. The rest is just down time/relaxing as I really just wanted to relax on Maui rather than try to cram in a bunch of stuff (as our other trips tend to be!). So I figured taking a chunk of Saturday to do the Road to Hana could *maybe* be relaxing as we would go at our own pace and start really early in hopes of being back to the resort by dinner time and have the rest of the night to chill. That's a bummer that it was disappointing for you, but I have read some not-so-great reviews on it. I have zero desire to swim in the waterfalls...the warning signs (at least on Oahu) about various diseases you could catch and seeing one too many dirty diapers floating nearby are enough to make me never want to try it anywhere ever again!

Maybe we'll just start the drive and if it seems like it's not worth it we can always turn around. Since we live here (albeit, only temporarily) I have also been told that the scenery might not have much of an impact on us as say, someone from Kansas or something. So, we'll see!

[chicago]

We loved the RtH and thought it was really relaxing. If you think of it as a drive to a destination, I can definitely see it being frustrating. For us, it was the journey that made it so great. Having said that, it was our first trip to HI and you live in Hawaii, so it may not have the same effect on you.

We used our Maui Revealed book to get around. No cds, no guided tours.

[mdgirl]

As someone who used to live in Hawaii, too, I'd say you can skip it. I found the east coast of the Big Island just as pretty and the road is a real road.

[shorty20]

We've done it twice and just went on our own for both times. We had an absolute blast. Some of the best stories and memories of our honeymoon came from that first drive we did.

[babygirlpriest]

Glad you found the ap. That was my suggestion and what we used.

Also - ditto the pp who weren't totally in love with it. From a totally touristy perspective, I would only do the first half again. We drove the whole thing including the non-road road and I LOATHED that part.

We loved Jaws and the first couple stops to hike in and walk in waterfalls, etc. Knowing what we do now we would have turned around at Wailua (I think that's the name - it's the old fishing town).

[cricketwife]

OP, oddly my viewpoint has changed a bit knowing that you live in Hawaii. At lot of my favorite experiences would probably not be unique to you. I didn't like RtoH but it is unique to Maui so it may be worth it for you.

It was my first trip to any of the Hawaiian islands (DH had been once like 20 years ago) so it was very different than for someone who lives there. We LOVED the helicopter ride - that was our favorite thing.

I also loved the dolphin watching boat tour by the Pacific Whale Foundation (but that may not be unique to you). For us, it was super relaxing and beautiful. We only saw one dolphin but followed it for quite a while and I loved it.

Honolua Bay was the absolute best snorkeling we did on Maui. We called it "snorkeling on steroids."

If you get to that part of the island the Pineapple Grill in Kapalua was our favorite restaurant- the only one that we went to twice. And they have an "early bird special" if you go before 6pm.

Paia and Makawao were our favorite towns for just strolling around. Makawao is a great stop on your way down from Haleakala.

We also did the Atlantis submarine ride and loved that (it's obviously very touristy) but we saw sting rays and a dolphin! (I guess I love the dolphins -LOL)

Anyway, this is WAY more than you asked. I just love reminiscing about Maui. It was so amazing. Enjoy your long weekend!

If you do take the Road to Hana, please post what you thought of it!

[basilosaurus]

You'll be fine. It's not that strenuous a road at all, especially if you go early. I get my fill of tourists daily (yesterday it was just me and 2 busloads of my closest Japanese tourist friends at turtle beach), so there's no way I'm sitting in a van with them on a bus when I could have the peace of my own car. It was honestly a nice relaxing day for us.

Do you have the blue book for Maui? It is really easy to follow along. I have that and a gps if you're in my area before you leave and want to borrow.

[aurora]

I am glad I did it once but I probably wouldn't do it again. I absolutely positively would not do it with a tourist group - the best part is moving at your own pace and enjoying the things that interest you.

I also agree that the full loop is absolutely driveable in a typical rental car if you decide to go all the way around--the dirt portions are just normal graded dirt roads. However, this part was long and less interesting than the northern side.

[Mushe]

Self guided is fine.

On the iPhone thing - we have Verizon and didn't have service for a big portion of the drive when we were there in February.

[ESquared423]

Thanks again for all the feedback. We are planning on hitting the road around 6AM that day (we are early birds anyway) and we'll just play it by ear and see what happens. I have the GPS app as well as a big printout of all the highlights and directions just in case we lose signal (I have AT&T..so we'll see). We don't plan on going past the sacred pools onto the dirt roads, I don't even know if our rental car company lets us do that anyway.

Sibil -- I LOL'd at your turtle beach comment. I agree, I get my fill of tourists on a daily basis so I'd like to avoid any tour groups...I've never been a fan of them anyway. I had just read mixed reviews on the intensity of the RtoH and some sites said the only way they'd do it again was with a tour group...so I was a little weary about it. I really appreciate the offer for the blue book, I was actually able to rent it out of the library here after one of my client's recommended it to me. So that should be helpful.

Cricket -- Thanks for the restaurant recommendation! I wish we had time to snorkel..I guess we have the time if we really wanted but, again, I didn't want to cram things in. But we do snorkel here on Oahu quite a bit, so it wasn't too high on our Maui list. I am SO excited for the helicopter tour. What company/tour did you do? We are using Air Maui and doing the 60-min West Maui/Molokai tour. Glad you got to see some dolphins on your visit! I am obsessed with dolphins...we swam with wild dolphins here a few weeks ago and it is easily one of the best memories of my entire life. Talk about a bucket list moment!

[basilosaurus]

I automatically distrust any online review that includes a preference for a tour group.

Where did you swim with dolphins? Was that out at electric beach? I hear they hang there a lot.

I'm not sure where in Maui you're staying, but there are quite a few places for a quick snorkel. It doesn't have to be an all day trip. We just throw our gear in the car and swim if the urge hits us.

I'm jealous. We were both supposed to be gone this weekend, and that trip fell through, so now we have a 4 day weekend to spend but nowhere to go! Given that my last 2 interisland trips were holiday weekends with no cars available, I knew better than to attempt it this weekend last minute.

[ESquared423]

Yes, it was right out by Electric Beach! It was seriously amazing, there was about 10 of them and one of the mamas had her little baby swimming right underneath her the whole time, it was so cool.

We are staying in Kihei, I know the beach is across the street but I'm not sure what it's like for snorkeling. We may just bring our stuff just in case...I suppose it wouldn't hurt to keep it in the trunk.

Bummer that your trip fell through, hopefully you find something fun or relaxing to do over the weekend...if all else fails, a full cooler + a quiet beach = success. Eeek they better have our rental car ready and waiting!!

[ESquared423]

UPDATE: Got back Monday night from our long weekend in Maui and I am SO HAPPY we did not take a tour for the RtoH! Y'all were right. We actually left around 6AM as planned and used the GPS guide on my phone (I lost signal at the very end, but it was no biggie). We were able to stop and dilly dally when we wanted and skip over the sites that didn't seem too interesting. On the ride back..about 1PM or so..the road coming in to Hana was pretty busy and we passed numerous little tour buses...ick, so happy we didn't do that!

The road was really not that serious, just a lot of turns which made me a little sick by the end of it. We took Route 340 to 30 from Kahului to Lahaina one day we were there and it was FAR more strenuous than RtoH, and much more rewarding as far as scenery is concerned.

Anyway, just wanted to say thanks for steering me away from any guided tours! We loved our time in Maui...next up: Kauai in November!

[Deleted]

So glad you did it and loved it!!!!
I pretty heart Maui and Kauai!!! If you hit up waimea canyon in Kauai make sure to stop at the hanapepe cafe on your way there!

[cricketwife]

I'm really glad that you did it and that you enjoyed it...especially since I was all like, "it's not that great" --- I'm glad that I didn't dissuade you from something that you loved! Have a great Kauai trip!