Can you drive from wailea to hana

We are staying in Lahaina for 2 nights then Hana for 2 nights and ending our trip with a 3 nights stay in Wailea- which route do we take in Hana? Start time, etc? Thanks in advance! Hi there, unfortunately the floods we just had have washed out part of this road and it wont be passible for some time.

Check the Maui County website when you arrive. As far as what time to start, I always say as early as you are willing! Have fun! Hi Mark, Do you know if the road is still not passible? Thank you! PS: I have not seen anything on the Maui County website but may have missed it. Bumpy but nothing that felt unsafe. Possibly I love this side more than the road to Hana. Mark — Are you saying that the road on the backside of Hana has been washed out in spots and is not passable?

Avoid the road death road that loops around the western Maui along the northern shore, and avoid the backside road that goes through Kaupo that loops around the eastern Maui along the southern shore. The views are spectacular, but the roads are very dangerous in my opinion. Hi there, my family is visiting in January. I am typically up fairly early and was considering driving the back way in the early morning , dark and starting at Pipiwai Trail or would you suggest going around clockwise at the same timish and starting in Pipiwai?

We just drove it. Hi- is it possible to car camp along this stretch. Do you know where you took that second to last picture, where it looks like the road will drop into the ocean? Just drove it today. What a beautiful drive. The first miles are kind of difficult but the rest is a breeze. Is the scenery better clockwise or counter-clockwise? Thinking of driving from Hana to Kula, driving up Haleakala for sunset and then overnighting in Kula before driving out to West Maui. Is that cramming too much into one day, or is there plenty of time to get to Kula by noon, and ample time to enjoy Haleakala views before sunset?

Hi Dennis — I think that plan sounds great as long as you were planning on an overnight in Hana before this. Have a blast, sounds awesome! Great article! What do you think? If you are not a Hawaiian National or Hawaiian subject I do not recommend traveling on the back South side of Haleakala. Please when visiting the Kingdom of Hawaii come with respect for the culture and the Hawaiian people. My family and I plan to drive the backside in December.

We will be hitting the road at am leaving from Kahului cruise port And using the Shaka app and will only have hrs to make our way around and to the airport. Will we be okay? Thank you for the great info and your feedback. Just reading your question.. We had a small SUV and had no troubles. That back side is really unique..

There are a couple of tight spots past Hana and then the road opens up. The switch backs and tight roads made it feel like home…. Looking great! I am astonished to learn the road map you have shared as this could have saved a lot of travel time.

Hi — My husband and I are planning on doing the whole loop this Christmas. Our flight is at 1. The clockwise route has many more places to stop and enjoy waterfalls and trails and you will want more time for that side.

I would suggest going that way to Hana, so you can spend the time unhurried. Hi Mark — Thanks for a great website! The backside of Haleakala is one of my favorite activities when visiting Maui.

Thank you in advance for your time! Hi Judd — unfortunately camping is very limited on Maui, and there are no campgrounds in this area. Hi Mark. We planned on leaving Lahaina around 6am in October and doing the whole loop clockwise. We would like to get back around sundown. That gives us around 12 hours. Is this doable? Hi Ralph — yes, this should be a nice full day, and you will miss a lot of the heavy traffic thats usually on the Lahaina side on your way out.

Great article. We took off on a rented Slingshot closest thing to a motorcycle that you can get and headed to Hana at 9am. Paia only has one stoplight in the middle of town, so to avoid a slow start, get through Paia before 9 am. Amazing views! We continued on the south side of the island, not knowing where we were headed. It completed the Hana trip. Without the drive South, you only get half of the experience. Elevation changes, beautiful coastal views and severe climate changes complete the entire trip.

Drive slow, obey all signs and have respect, and it will be the drive of a lifetime. Still a fantastic drive! Thanks for the excellent advice to take the road less travelled. Enjoyed the very limited counter-flow traffic, and loved the 10 miles of smooth roller coaster pavement in our rented Camaro.

Love your website. Weather permitting, I plan to drive SUV rental from Wailea round the back side directly to the Pipiwai Trail and hike to the waterfall first. Then we will grab lunch in or near Hana and drive the main road back to Paia. I figure we can stop at some of the highlights on the way back in the afternoon and maybe avoid the biggest crowds. Does this make sense? It seems like the backside might have less morning traffic.

Is that correct? Would you be able to estimate for each route what time we would need to leave Hana to make sure we could catch our flight with no difficulty including a rental car return assuming we made minimal stops? Hi Carol — If it were me I would return to the airport via the backside. Give yourself 2. Grandmas Coffee House in Keokea is about a half an hour from the airport, so if you get there way ahead of schedule, go ahead and head in for a yummy lunch or some treats! Their grill usually fires up around 11am and they serve up one of the best burgers EVER!

Beef, elk, venison, lamb……all raised there at the ranch and so good. If you have a few xtra minutes then pay a visit to Maui Wine, they have shipping and travel sleeve options if you want to bring back a bottle….. The Upcountry is a slice of Heaven on Earth.

We will be driving from wailea to Hana and staying two nights in Hana then heading back to the airport. We would like to catch a sunrise at halakei. What sequence would you recommend. We were thinking of heading from wailea to Hana on the north road heading east and spending the day working our way to Hana. On the second day spending the day around Hana and going down to the seven pools.

On our departure day getting up super early and driving to the state park for sunrise. Does this make sense or do you have a better sequence. Also if we did this would be travel the back way to the park for sunrise. Great info. Much easier than making the mega turns from Hana to Paia. When we go again we will do it in reverse and see the winery, beach and Lindberg grave before we go to Hana. Did the back road from Hana with my wife yesterday.

Beautiful trip with absolutely no problems. Yes, the road is narrow in spots and can be a bit bumpy. But if you drive with care and at a prudent pace you will find it very enjoyable. The views are spectacular and the last miles of the road back to Kahului appears to have been recently improved and is a very nice surface. We actually found the back side to be easier to navigate than the very curved and restricted view trip out to Hana. Two suggestions.

First, leave early to increase your enjoyment and decrease the traffic and stress. We left the Costco in Kahului at am and the resulting traffic was very light although it was early December the entire length of the trip. Second, watch the weather and make the trip on a sunny day, if possible. If it is rainy I suspect the degree of difficulty can be much higher—on both stretches of road.

Take the less traveled road and enjoy the wonderful vistas. We did the round trip, with multiple stops and lunch in approximately 7 hours. Thanks for trip report. We are about to do this in couple of days, so encouraging to know things have improved on that side!

Great Article. You appreciate the road more when you really witness it. It is bumpy ride. But views are spectacular. We had an SUV with 2 kids so did not have the bumpy road issue. Totally worth it. Just make sure you leave the Seven sacred pools in time to have a save drive. This should be a must do in Maui. We were in a Malibu. Great views! I have made 6 trips to Hana over past years.

I drove the back road one time. Big mistake. In my opinion it is really too dangerous. I think it should be closed until it is paved. It is really not too dangerous. I drove it too and it was breathtakingly beautiful!

We had no problem at all, and we were in a minivan. Only a few miles are unpaved, but it is graded gravel. I checked out the link, it shows road closed during working hours which is , so it should be open after ?

We are hoping to do the whole look, including this backside drive next week. We will be leaving from Kaanapali around 6 am. Would you recommend we start with the south side and go counter-clockwise? Thanks for the sharing, I also found a useful service for forms filling. Its pretty easy to use. I think you can get a free trial if you ask for it.

We have asked the state, DLNR and county to intervene. We take offense to drivers that disrespect our Aina. Your visiting our island be respectful.

Even when we gave signs you still go in, Stop it!!! Stop throwing garbage out the window. The Yield sign must be respected specially at a one lane bridge. I can appreciate what you are saying about respecting your island, it is beautiful and everyone should respect this beauty.

That being said, you need to address your concerns with respect. The visitors to your island make your economy, please remember this. Scott, virtually all of the tourist money flows off of this island as quickly as it came. Few of the locals who live in Kipahulu are benefiting from the tourist economy.

Even for those who are, to have an attitude that your money somehow bought you the right to impact the people or environment negatively IS the problem. What I suggest, and this applies to any visitor anywhere, that everyone visit with the humility of a gracious guest, rather than a king who paid to do as he pleases.

That said, the original comment is written from anger, and polarized pigeonholing all white people as being one way — but if you can see past that anger with some understanding of what it must be like for those who have lived here all their life watching the land and lifestyle being taken away for nothing in return, there is also a lot of truth in there. I drove this route 30 years ago and was terrified. I respect your island very much and will not travel the roads anymore.

God bless you for letting us share your island and I hope all visitors will feel the same. When I visit your island respect is foremost on my mind.

Understand what you are saying and can clearly hear the frustration in your words. I have witnessed tourists disrespecting the land and not okay. As a tourist coming up behind another tourist who has slammed their brakes on to get that perfect photo is dangerous and irritating. So know that there are tourists that treasure your land and treat it with respect. I agree….

Respect people….. The Earth is a beautiful treasure that only humans can appreciate. The Earth is a beautiful treasure that only humans can destroy. Wherever your feet tread, remember that respect is not given BUT earned. Reflect on your contributions to the macro- AND micro-cultures you happen upon, whether purposeful or by chance.

Strive to be socially respectful and responsible anywhere AND everywhere you venture. I would highly recommend making this drive… some spectacular sweeping views — probably my favorite drive on Maui.

We made this drive today in a rented BMW convertible, and it was just fine. Many other convertibles and compact cars were on the route as well. Chris, thx for the update. Thanks for the great info. What is your opinion on driving the back side from the other direction? We are taking the Road to Hanna a different day, but on this day we plan to take in the sun rise, breakfast at Grandma Coffee House, then drive the back side to the Seven Sacred Pools and hike to the falls before the crowds arrive.

We felt making the hike after the Road to Hanna was too late in the day. Especially having to drive back to Kaanapali. Hello, we are staying in Wailea next week and planning to do the same counter-clockwise to Hana leaving at 3. We do not plan to make any stops. How did you find the counter-clockwise drive? As it sounds like most drive clockwise I want to make sure there is enough room to slowly pass another car or pull to the side to let a car pass.

I also wanted to see if you think we will make it to Hana where we are staying the night by dark if we leave at 3. Hi, We are planning on taking the the road to Hana and stopping off to hike and go to the seven pools and maybe a few other stops along the way. How long do you think this entire trip will take? Aloha Julie — I suggest giving yourselves the whole day and leaving as early as possible.

You will not make it there before crowds unless you leave super early and zoom though a lot of stuff you should be checking out! Hey Mark! Thanks so much for doing this website! You convinced us to do the backside and it was our favourite part of our trip!

Seriously amazing landscape! Love it! How did it go Julie? We started out from Kihei at and drive right to Hamoa then back tracked. This is the absolute best driving route on Maui. We enjoyed it far more than the more famous Road to Hana. The back road from Hana past Kipahulu was a great choice and a great alternative for the return trip as opposed to doubling back on the Hana Hwy.

I would recommend a Jeep as we had driven though we did see lots of convertibles, minivans and compact cars pass us on the road. I would not fear the dirt road portions as to be quite honest it was a much smoother ride than some of the patchwork asphalt sections. Recommended to use your horn on approach to the blind corners especially those hugging the sea wall before Kaupo. A great trip back and a great look at the lesser traveled side of the island.

Did this on Sunday, my first day in Maui. Road to Hana and then the south side. It was awesome. Thanks to this blog, I was! What happened to all the green?? My husband and I did the drive back in , this was my favorite part… Your pics are how we remember it. But it was brown and appeared scorched this week, just lack of rain? I could see it was green halfway up the mountain… Still beautiful coastline of course and a fun drive! It was brown because winter is usually the rainy season and when the Haleakala hills will be green!

Never a problem with either on, but I did follow the habit of honking going around the bends coming out of Hamoa. Thank you so very much for your Road to Hana suggestions! We will be doing the day trip from Kapalua. We will be adding on the 7 Sacred Pools as our final destination on the trip. Where does the loop take us? What would be the total time from 7 Sacred Pools?

And finally, where would you recommend that we have dinner? Thanks again!!! Would love to stop at the Kaupo store! Aloha Mark, Hawaiian Ryan here. Would u happen to know what mile marker turn offs take u to the ocean backside?

Spring break is here, and I like take da wife and keiki for do some daytime big pole n plugging. I get 4wd and would love for our ohana to be as secluded as possible. I enjoy your website and plan to take the family out and do some hiking in hana. Something different for us. Mahalo brah! Hello, I wanted to ask you about timing We are arriving in Maui at noon on a Wednesday and driving directly to Hana where we plan to spend 2 nights.

As I understand it, there is no access from Road 37 down to Wailea. So we need to drive all the way up to Kahului and then get on Road to head south to Wailea. Is that right? We do plan to stop at the 7 pools a few other spots. Aloha — that plan sounds great, and yes, you do have to drive the long way around though Kahului. If you are coming this week, there is actually a wild fire in Ulupalakua area that has the road temporarily closed, so check for that first!

We made the mistake of not checking before driving this morning and were stopped at a road block. I now know the closure is from feb , but is there an updated website for that? And if we got to the road closure point coming from the airport before am would be able to cross?

Lastly, is there a good website to check the fire and its affect on the road closure? The county posts road closures here. Thank you so much for this information! I am traveling solo and hoping to drive from the Kipahulu campground back to the Kahului airport in time to catch my flight. I figure leaving about 3. Aloha Anna — that is doable. I think your time frame is perfect. We are driving to Hana from Kaanapali in February and spending in 2 nights in Hana before heading back to Wailea.

We will be in a minivan with a 16 year old, and a 3 year old. Our plan is to do the Seven Sacred Pools on our full day in Hana, and then do the back side drive back to Wailea for the return trip. My question is, how long does the actual driving portion of the trip take? I would guess hours each way. Hi Mark, Such great info, we hope to travel the entire road this coming Monday. Quick question… I read that the Alelele Falls access is now closed as of summer Do you by chance know if this is accurate or just another deterrent?

Thank you again!! The entire road is turns, much of it is narrow. Does it matter? Hi Ray, Did you end of doing this reverse direction. It is now and I have the same question as I plan an upcoming trip. I heard a section of road is closed during the day right now so I have to check the map, etc. I did the RTH drive in all the way around and look forward to seeing Maui again. I hope you had a great visit. HI Mark, Do you think it is doable for us to do an early morning sunrise at Haleakala, then drive the backside and do the road to Hana backwards all in one day?

I do think that is doable if you focus your Road to Hana trip. About how long does it take to go from 7 pools to keckea taking the back side road? Were looking forward to it on saturday if the weather stays favorable on the east side. Without stopping 1. We drove it yesterday from hana and it took us 4 hours from hana to kihei with several stops.

It was abaolutley beautiful, green the whole way! We will be coming from Wailea. Since we know that we want to see these items, what are your thoughts on us doing the R2H counterclockwise so that we go and end in Paia? We drove the road to Hana today and continued through Hana to do the backside of Haleakala that you describe here.

I found it to be a more enjoyable fewer locals pushing us and fascinating drive than the road to Hana, namely because of the many and sudden changes in ecosystems. Not sure that we will ever get back to Maui, but am so glad we saw the back side of Haleakala.

Hi Mark, Thank you so much for all this wonderful information. I am heading to Maui in June and plan on doing the Road to Hana I did this once 20 years ago, but did not get to spend enough time. We will be in Maui for 5 days and have left 2 days for the road to hana. However, staying overnight in Hana is not going to work for us. Thanks for this resource; because of it, I decided to take this route. In my opinion, this part is even better than the Road to Hana. I just wanted to drop you a line and give you an update on St.

We took this route on March 26th, It was a Thursday and we were so luck to have met two of the descents — they both had grandparents or great grandparents berried in St. The gentleman would come every Thursday to cut the grass and keep the ground.

The lady told us that every 5th Sundays, there will be a church service. It happened to be that coming Sunday. A priest from Hana would come and people from all around will come for the service. So I thought I would let you know. Mark, Great info!

We will be staying near Pukalani for 3. We will drive back to our house each night. Will you recommend a route coming back and forth from Pukalani? I have done the wonderful tours twice and I highly recommend them. And no, I have no connection to them. We highly encourage all visitors to consider a guidebook when driving the highway. It's the best way to determine which stops are for you and which aren't.

A lot of folks simply let the clumps of cars along the road be their guide. This is a big mistake. There are a lot of great places along the Hana Highway, but there are also several stops you'd be wasting your time visiting.

That said, we invite you to let us be your guide. We've driven the Hana Highway a few hundred times over the last few years and eventually, we said, "Why not put what we know in a book? Our guidebook, Hana Highway Mile by Mile: The Road to Hana and Beyond will navigate you along the 52 miles of undeveloped road, 56 one-lane bridges, and curves.

You will pass by the most breathtaking scenery on the face of the Earth that was literally a million years in the making. And the journey doesn't end in Hana, it continues well beyond the sleepy coastal town at the bay. This website's use is your expressly conditioned acceptance of the terms, conditions, and disclaimers found within our Disclaimer of Warranty and Limitation of Liability page without any modifications.

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Travel Supplies. Our Mailing List. Hawaii Airlines. So, if you drive on the unauthorized road, you are taking a risk. Do tourist violate this rule and get away with it? Yes, they do, everyday. Is it worth the risk? In my opinion it is not worth the risk. They have you sign the contracts, give you a map and send you on your way. Take a look inside the Drive Guide they either hand to you or you pick up in the rental office. The major rental car companies use the same publisher for these maps, so all the information is similar, but branded differently.

You might want to use this link to see a larger version of this map photo. Notice the the red arrows between Kipahulu and Nuu? The road on the back side is rough, narrow, prone to mudslides and unpaved in sections. After driving the extremely curvy road to Hana, you can easily become fatigued.

The back side of the road to Hana is very narrow, partially unpaved and quite bumpy in sections. Take a look at the following photo. Notice how narrow it is. Notice the signs and the wire mesh on the rock wall.

Can you imagine having to pass a big dump truck coming in the opposite direction? Let me tell you that we have personally experienced that and it was pretty darn scary. Mere inches separated us from the rock wall on the right side and a massive dump truck on the left.

We feel that it would be careless to suggest otherwise. The desolate scenery beyond Kipahulu is not nearly as attractive in comparison the rainforest drive on the road to Hana.

We have taken a couple of different guided tours of the road to Hana that included driving around the back side of Hana on Highway We enjoy seeing the waterfalls and rainforest much, much more. Are there some pretty scenes, yes, there are, but there are very few places to stop to enjoy them. If you double back, the scenery does look different, plus it gives you the opportunity to stop at places you missed earlier.

Turn around and drive back towards the Maui resorts. You will also have the opportunity to stop at places you may have missed on your way, which is quite easy to do. This stretch of road is narrow, partly unpaved, and prone to rock and mud slides — especially during and after rainfall.

The scenery beyond this point is quite barren and windswept. There are no more waterfalls, beaches and such to see. See our advice for driving the road to Hana for many more tips.

Sheila Beal is the founder and editor of Go Visit Hawaii. I believe that Jeeps are covered for this road in rental contracts. It looks like it might be a lot of fun if you were in the right kind of car.

We were on the Big Island and wanted to drive up to Mauna Kea. Even though it was pretty scary the Jeep shifted gears while going up and bumpy for most of the way the last section is paved , it was well worth the effort. We only passed one car on our way up, and while there, 2 other cars made it as well. When I was in Maui last year, I found the highway 31 being blocked past the national park and since I was on my own, I did not want to take the risk, though I would have loved to loop around the island.

Great tips for my next trip whenever that may be! Hi Sheila, The road up to the top of Mauna Kea is very safe. I drove my VW bug up to the very top 35 years ago…no problem. Saddle Road has been improved and most rental cars companies now are allowing their cars to be driven on it. For the drive from Hana to Sacred Seven Pools, would you recommend that or is that also not worth it? Is the road till there also single lane and a difficult drive?

Yes, that part is easier, though still a bit stressful with some one-lane bridges and lots of curves. I have done the road you discuss many times and it is not for the faint of heart. If one takes their time they can see a part of Maui worth seeing. Aloha, Keahi. The road condition is not that great but I really enjoyed standing on the lava cliffs with no other tourists around, to have the whole view to myself!

Along the road there are a lot of old farms, we felt the history and spirit when we did the drive:. I visited Hawaii in and we made the mistake of waiting till the last day of ten day trip to do this loop. We did do the entire loop and we ran into tanker that had flipped over and it backed up traffic for more than six hours.

Needless to say we missed our flight that afternoon and many people doing cursies missed their ship as well. Of first road to Hana trip was a guided tour with Roberts Hawaii on one of those mini buses. They took us all the way around the loop with a stop at the Tedeschi Winery at the end. Those unpaved roads in a mini bus were absolutely a killer, as we bounced around like jumping beans.

Very unsettling after all the winding roads from earlier that day. That way you get two days instead of one, and driving back the next day is far less daunting. Plus, some of the sights nearby Hana town will be a lot less crowded the following morning then smack in the middle of the afternoon.

We we were in a Buick and had my parents with me, which added to the stress of the situation. Mike — oh my gosh — that sounds like a nightmare, but on the plus side, you got another day in Maui.

I hope you had some snacks with you. In Rented Chevy Malibu. Drove the whole thing solo. Stopped at the Lindbergh grave, the national tropical garden, the store on the backside, etc. No problem. If you are used to perfect suburban roads and freeways, it may not be your cup of tea. You should definately drive the backside.

Yes, the road is narrow, and yes it is bumpy, but the views are incredible. I drove around in a convertible Mustang and had no trouble at all. The Road to Hana is wonderful, but in my opinion, the road past Hana is even better. The afternoon light gives the more barren landscape of lava fields a surreal feel, and the views of the ocean from high up on the volcano face are amazing.

I agree with previous poster Dave. Use your horn around corners, and take it slow. And the unpaved section does not last the entire way around. You come back to pavement after only a few miles. I went to sacred pools from the standard north East and then returned back via the back side. I was nervous a bit for the initial miles where the road is narrow and un-paved sometimes, however the road improved to a brand new looking one after that pillani Hwy and my gosh the scenery and views were from the another world.

Watching the mix of ocean, lava rock structures and lush greens from a great hight was a serene experience. I was driving a Jeep Cherokee and it was no fuss at all. My wife and I just completed the Hana loop literally two hours ago.

The road to Hana, while a lot of fun, was a bit of a letdown to me. I also feel that highway on Kauai west of Hanalei ending at Haena state park were more scenic. We continued past Hana in our Jeep in flagrant violation of our rental contract. Past Hana, there are a lot of sections that are narrow and required very cautious driving. Dealing with oncoming traffic was a pain in some places. The hilight was the section between mileposts 40 and The maps say that section is narrow, and they are not kidding.

We were lucky enough to not hit oncoming traffic, but if we had, it would have been tough. The road is a single lane hugging the side of the cliffs with a steep drop down. It is not for the faint of heart! However, the scenery is spectacualr and is what makes it worth it. They are occasionally interrupted by paved sections. The biggest surprise is that the section between MP is, while paved, bumpy as all hell.

Overall, I think the drive around the south-side was worth it — the scenery is spectacular, and the driving is exciting. We are going back in September and I really want to do the whole thing this time.

Last time not everyone was in agreement. This time I think they will be! Thanks, guys, for sharing your experiences of driving the back side of the road to Hana. Experiences will vary. The park ranger actually recommended it, stating it would be a faster way to get back to our condo. I was too focused on avoiding the cows, rocks, cars, etc. We were aware of the possible difficulties and the rental car company told us we would be responsible for repairs or rescues.

They however did not say we could not drive in that area. We loved the view, the setting sun, the slopes of the volcano,but yes, it was trecherous. It scared us nearly to death. We had already seen a cow on the road and laughed at that but it was still light then. Fortuantely for us and the horses was the fact that they were on the outer parts of the road and not in the middle! Would we do it again? I have to say, yes. There was nearly zero traffic and nearly so on the road to Hana on that Sunday.

But all and all, it was an experience we are extremely glad we had and will remember for a lifetime. There are very few roads like that in Florida where we live. That horse situation would have definitely gotten my heart rate up. Thanks for commenting with your experience. I am excited! My fiance and I are planning our honeymoon for Maui and I have reading about the Road to Hana for weeks now and it is exactly what I am looking for.

I appreciate all the detailed descriptions… I am from Tampa where we have NO roads like that however we have plenty of potholes and uneven streets and I visit Tallahassee, Florida often where there are tons of unpaved and narrow roads and forest areas.

I think we are really going to enjoy the drive and scenes… even if I am a little startled. Thanks for your stories… I am looking forward to it. Did the Road to Hana during our honeymoon in November of Unbelievable scenery, sheer drops off the side of the road…a little danger to spice up the drive. Be careful — make sure you are alert and comfortable though…it can be an exhausting drive. Would I do it again? I just had to chime in, amongst all the tourists here with warnings!

However: you should keep in mind that if something does happen like you hit a cow! Also, something that has not been mentioned is that the road is not always open! Then you have to turn around and go all the way back to Hana. If you really must try, start in the morning from Hana so you have time to get back before dark if necessary. Readers, I live here on Maui. When I go to Hana I always drive all the way around.

I start at about 8 or 9-ish in the AM and time it so I can be looping around the backside around PM to see the spectacular sunset and scenery. I have lived here for many years and this trip, though long, never gets old.

I love what MauiBoy had to say. My wife and I timed things perfectly on our honeymoon when we took the road to Hana. We asked a number of locals before we went when we heard the warnings of the backside. We were told it was nothing to be afraid of as long as we could drive those types of roads. It was a little small of a road and bumpy but nothing crazy……..

Coming fron California and having driven on dirt roads and small highways, it was not too stressful especially when considering the payoff. The views, the waves hitting the rocks, the sun going down the beautiful grasses and plants, the waves blowing through blowholes in the rocks like a giant whale was onshore…..

When we visit Maui again, I am sure we will do it again. Traveling around that bottom side of the island as the sun set and seeing things from that perspective was awesome!! Cindy — probably easier. Since the road is so narrow, it would be easier to pass oncoming traffic. I recommend you check with the motorcycle rental company to see what they have to say. Cindy — I like your question. Back road can get really bumpy and rough at the times. You could do it on cruiser, but it would not be much fun.

We did on motorcycle. But it is tiring exp for the rider me. I am thinking we may do it backwards doing the south side in the morning and finishing up with dinner in Paia. Hi Jim — maybe someone else can speak for that experience. If you try it, please let us know what you thought of it. We just got home from a week in Maui and we did do the road to Hana back to front. No problems with the back road at all.

I have been on way worse roads here in the mountains on NC. I think that the south east arid side of the Haleakala crater was the prettiest! Thanks for the report, Jim. Are you from the NC mountains? In Newland…well actually not in Newland, but we had a Newland address. I grew up between Newland and Crossnore. I always plan to drive Hana on my first day of a trip since the time change has not set in yet. That way I can get an early start.

What are the best days to drive to Hana…less tourists and local traffic??? Drove the whole way in a rented mustang. The difficult stuff is at the beginning, then it levels off to a rough but wide pasture land that you drive on for most of the way. We also timed it to see the sunset as we rounded the island. It was stunning. Would not drive at night or during an earthquake. It feels like another world and it feels like you are never going to get to civilization.

BTW, I am 53 and my husband is 73 and we had no problem once we got past the first couple of hairy spots. Only came across a few cars but this was right after the road had opened back up after the bridge was taken out by an earthquake. I can give one sound piece of advice — regardless of how good a driver you are — DO NOT do the drive at night. Within half an hour the sun was gone and the small unpaved section of the backside goes on for what seems like an eternity when you are going 20 mph in complete dark.

I assume the views would be magnificent, buy all we saw were boats out on the water, trucks barreling by, and yes — cows in the middle of the road. The worst part was when we finally made it to the paved road, were less than 5 miles from S. Kihei where our hotel was, and saw locals going through the gate that connects the backside to Kihei. Instead we had to go 20 miles north up to the top of the crater to the airport, and then all the way back around again.

I would have paid a pretty penny to make it through that coded gate! DO NOT try that one unless you want to waste half a day of your life. If you do stop in the villages around Hana, do not believe the lies that its only a 1 mile stretch around the island thats rough. The whole thing is a challenge. Regarding doing the trip at night, the first time I drove it was at about 4 am, to catch the sunrise in Hana.

I thought it would be easier at night, because you can see headlights approaching from around a curve before you can see the cars. Not always true on the Hana road! Twice I saw an approaching car only when its headlights appeared mere feet in front of me as it emerged from a hairpin curve hidden by vegetation or a bridge. Had the other driver and I not been disciplined enough to stay on our respective sides of the road, it would have surely been an accident. I have done it the up and back way from Paia twice, and am going back in a few weeks.

Another question on the backside part of the Hana road. I drove the road on the 6th of this month and after reading this website, I had planed to turn around at the Oheo Gulch, but I noticed on my drive that very few people, especially tour groups and rental cars, drove back on the road to Hana to Paia.

I asked the Park Ranger at Oheo Gulch and she suggested to keep driving and that most people do not turn back. I was not looking forward to driving back because I would be like a salmon swimming upstream I would be passing many more cars than before , so I pressed on in our convertable Mustang.

The road was dry, dusty and bumpy at times, but it was nice to be in some different scenery, and overall, I felt the drive was easier and more fun than what I had been through. Plus, the few locals I passed much less than earler , seemed to drive slower and with more care than on the paved sections earlier. If the weather is good, go for it! Keith — thanks for sharing your experience. Here at Go Visit Hawaii, I try to present the facts so that people can make an informed decision.

I do want visitors to know that there are definitely some risks involved in driving that back section. I decided to take the back road, but walked it. A great experiance and would encourage everyone to try it. You really get to be with nature and live the trip. It is not bad at all. But the views are not so incredible either.

Make sure to stop at the local winery at the way back. Hi, I just completed the loop around Hana, and it was pretty crazy, luckily there was a small caravan of us, cars at any time. I know for 1 I hate coming back down and being on the outside lane, seeing all the cliff edges on my passenger side freaks me out, so I opted to go all the way around. I had gone to hana and back the day before as well.

I would say that it does get pretty bumpy for about a 5 mile stretch, but the dirt roads are not a problem so much as the narrow one laners, but there are usually spots to pull aside and let one person thru, we had to do it about 3 times, not so bad.

Also, as for type of car there was a nissan versa, a mustang and seabring. The sun was still pretty crazy in some parts, especially towards the end. And you reach nice roads a lot faster this way and the scenery is really nice. Oh and some of the dirt roads are actually quite wide towards the end, locals were passing us actually.

All in all worth the risk, give it a go. And that honk horn sign only appears twice on the road to Hana and one of those times is before reaching Hana. I did the drive with my wife on our honeymoon in If I go back with kids as well, I am not sure I would risk it with them in the car though. But it is quite a thrill. Did this one going on two weeks ago. I first did the Kahikili Route in the NW section of Maui so this one was more or less a cakewalk in comparison. Then it opens up and you have five miles of dirt driving with some pavement here and there.

This section was in good shape but you will travel slowly. The most annoying thing is the next ten miles or so which is on rough paved road that is only marginally faster then the dirt road.

The actual terrain is utterly barren almost like a desert after you pass Kipahulu. Quite a few cars are on this road which should give you some security if things go bad. We will be in Maui in 2 weeks! We are taking the Pride of America Cruise and will have 2 days there. The first day, we plan on traversing the Road to Hana. We are staying the night at Peace of Maui. Day 2 brings an early awakening for the sunrise of Haleakala.

My question is: How long does it take to get from Hana to the Tedeschi Winery if taking the loop? Or, would it be better to double back and go to the winery after the Haleakala sunrise? I drove the road to Hana with 3 girlfriends in a little Mustang convertible. We were also told by the rentacar company not to venture beyond Hana. Being young and stupid, we decided to anyway: The road leading up to Hana had many beautiful falls and hikes. However, not all were marked. We purchased a mile by mile CD to give us a heads up on the stops.

All of the little fresh fruit and coconut candy stands were also very charming. Two of the girls in my group got pretty sick with all of the windy roads.