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Hana Paradise Farms Stand
3 reviews
Hana, HI
Category: Food Stands
The Road to Hana
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31 reviews for The Road to Hana
Get started early because the road can be crowded. I'm not sure why this is such a popular attraction, but we did go on a day that it was raining and drizzling all day. We took a small van driven by a professional tour company, definitely a waste of money because we could have easily driven this ourselves. The road does twist and turn in a few places, but it isn't anywhere near as bad as advertised.
Make sure to stop off along the way to see waterfalls, get some banana bread, and walk on the beach. Wai'anapanapa State Park was a highlight for anyone on the trip.
I LOVE nature and the drive was beautiful. I am very glad I did this drive, but I don't plan on doing it again, at least not all the way past Hana. I do wish it had been a sunnier day.
I think the Road to Hana is like having kids.
People tell you that you "absolutely have to do it" and you don't really ask why until you're already too deep into the twists and turns.
You'll occasionally stop off and see something that takes your breath away, but most of the time you're either rushing to get it over with or creeping along because you're afraid you're going to go over the edge.
You'd better REALLY like the person you're doing it with or it's going to be a loooong trip.
You'll take a lot of pictures that you will later realize look the same, but will still show all of them to your friends.
You won't ask those friends who insisted that you had to do it why they tricked you like that because you'll think there's something wrong with you for not loving every minute of it.
Unlike having kids, it's a one day commitment, then you get to turn around and come back and, ideally, you'll only remember that you wouldn't do it again the next day, but there were some really beautiful parts of the island that you wouldn't experience at your resort, spa or golf course.
If that doesn't sound like fun to you, I'm going to give you the best "vacation shower" (opposite of baby shower) gift ever. The gift of permission. You don't have to do it!
No, I don't have kids.
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Second Trip to Maui - Saturday, 9/5/2009
Since we missed the road to Hana during our trip last year (due to some passengers having major motion sickness issues), we decided to hit it up this time around.
After all that was said and done, I have come to a conclusion that I was glad we took the trek to Hana. I am probably never going back that way, but it's nice to put that place in my travel portfolio.
Our trip started off with an early wake up call. 5:00 AM to be exact with a lagged departure time of 6:30 AM. We left on a Saturday, which surprisingly was a perfect time because there wasn't too much traffic on the road. I read about the crazy local drivers and we were able to witness one of them! A large work truck passed us with a quickness when we pulled over to give him clearance to pass. In a matter of seconds he was gone speeding through the windy roads.
HANA is definetly an all day event. We left at 6:30 AM got there at 9 and returned to Kihei around 6. Total drive time was 5 hours. The radio reception is bad there so if you want music to jam to bring an iPOD with an AUX cable or in our case I brought my iPOD speaker docking station.
Stops on road to Hana::
**Tutus Snack Shop (pit stop on the way to seven sacred pools and lunch stop on the way back to Black Sand Beach)
PROS: Free bathroom usage.
CONS: One Chef so the wait may be long if it is crowded
**Seven Sacred Pools (paid $10 for parking at Haleakala St Park)
PROS:
- We arrived at 10:00 and there were only 2 people swimming in the pools.
- We took some great shots under the waterfall.
** 2 mile Hike to Waimoku Falls
PROS:
- Hike was full of tall bamboo forests, some paved hiking trails, and a beautiful waterfall at the end of it all.
CONS:
- Porta potties at Haleakala Park.
- Got 10 lovely mosquito bites that turned into lovely infections.
** Black Sand Beach
PROS
* Cool beach since its not your typical sandy beach.
* Good amount of parking
CONS:
*Huge ants everywhere especially near the cooler parts of the beach, so it made lounging out very uncomfortable and nerve wrecking.
* Bring Aqua shoes because instead of sand there are black rocks everywhere - ouch! They should have named this place Black "Rock" Beach.
i don't know how anyone could go to maui and miss this.
okay, it's long, and it takes a good 10 hours round trip, if you account for stopping time and hiking, but it is sooo worth it. the most beautiful and scenic drive i have ever experienced.
if you're not a nature person and don't enjoy the outdoors, then you won't enjoy the road to hana. if you don't enjoy seeing lush greenery, waterfalls and rainbows, then you won't enjoy it. if you just got your driver's license yesterday, you shouldn't attempt driving it. if you are riding in the back of a sedan at the mercy of someone who isn't a very good driver, you might not enjoy it.
my hubby and i woke up on a tuesday morning, the 5th day of our honeymoon and made it on the road leaving kihei by 7:15am. i packed a cooler with sandwiches and plenty of drinks and snacks for the way. there are plenty of places to stop along the way for snacks and lunch, but i wanted to be prepared just in case.
i'm so thankful we had a jeep wrangler, so we could take the soft top on and off as needed. it sprinkles unexpectedly, but we both agreed the drive was so much better being able to see through the roof. the inclines are pretty steep, and in order to fully take in the views, you need to be able to look overhead!
we weren't sure how we'd feel after the drive to hana, so we thought we'd play it by ear as far as any hiking goes. we arrived at hana around 10:30 and felt fine to keep forging ahead to haleakala national park. thank goodness we did! the road gets a little more narrow after hana, but it's still completely doable. we paid the $10 entrance fee to the park and headed over to oheo gulch (also known as the 7 pools). it was too high to swim that day, but was a beautiful sight worth seeing, and only a 0.5 mile loop. after the gulch, we were ready to see more and decided to make the 2 mile one way trek to waimoku falls. this was the highlight of our trip. it is important to be prepared, as the trail gets a little hairy at points - slippery rocks, muddy trail at times and depending on the weather, and lots of gnarly (literally) roots underfoot. i saw some girls wearing flip flops along the way and i really felt for them. this trail is best hiked with tennis shoes. i'm by no means a regular hiker (while i do enjoy the outdoors) and though i got soaked in sweat (mostly due to the humidity -you're hiking next to a waterfall stream!) i didn't find it too strenuous. for large portions of the hike you are shaded by rainforest-type trees. the trail through the bamboo forest is something that can't be justified with photos or words. just beautiful.
we weren't sure how long the hike would take us, so we just took water with us along with sunblock and a camera (so many photo ops) and a towel, and i'm glad we did because it was nice (for my husband) to not be lugging around too much weight. once we got to the falls, we wished for a second we had our lunch, as lots of people were eating there, and it would've been a nice place to rest and eat. we started the hike around 11:30 and got back to the car around 2pm. after having only snacks up until that point, we were pretty famished and ready for our sammies and potato salad! a nice reward after a gorgeous hike. i've been on several hikes in my life, and this was, by far, my favorite.
i was concerned about being too tired for the drive back, especially after the hike, but the road fromFROM hana seemed pretty quick! and the scenery simply spectacular. it's nice to see the ocean and the waterfalls and cliffs from a different perspective. we did have to stop at the general store in hana to pick up some anti-itch cream, as i got more than a few mosquito bites on the hike. still worth it.
we've been in maui for 4 full days, and we took the most pictures on this day. if this place isn't in "1,000 places to see before you die," it very well should be!
sidenote: while i brought motion sickness meds with us just in case, it turned out we didn't even need them. i think having the top down with fresh air flowing makes all the difference. also just enjoying the journey. simply spectacular!
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THis has got to be one of the most overrated attractions in Hawaii.. I think the only people who find it exciting and/or interesting are those who are not used to driving on twisty roads (yea, I'm talking about you, Mr Midwest). Yes, it is beautiful, but get ready to spend a good half of the day driving to Hana and back. Oh yea, it's the SAME road, since most rental car companies won't let you take your cars off-road to connect through the Southwest part of the island.
There also seem to be two types of drivers. Those who are driving to Hana like they are fighting Sebastian Loeb for the World Rally Championship title and those who creep along the road slow enough to awaken road rage within a Buddhist.
But I guess it's one of those things that you have to do to mark it off your list. So, there. CHECK. Moving on...
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So knowing i would be driving to Hana, a SUV isnt the best choice. That's why i reserved an intermediate, but was upgraded to a SUV.
The Chevy Equinox fits the lane, and if you pay attention to the road you'll do fine.
Some blind corners you might want to practice honking, otherwise have some fast reflexes on the steering and brakes.
Our plan was to drive to the end, then work our way back with the stops, that way we know we made it to the end and could hit the stops closer to Pa'ia if we ran out of time.
Like all the phamplets touting getting the Road to Hana CD, we did. $20 at the Shell station near KMart.
We listened to the CD, then replayed the parts as we neared. That way we could hear what's upcoming.
With a few stops here and there, we made it to the end in about 3hrs. Stopped off for two parks, but for the most part skipped out on all the popular stops heading to Hana.
I'll add this to the been there done that bucket list. Fun but long drive, an SUV didnt make hugging the road any fun, then again 15mph cant get you pulling 1G anyways.
A fun little excursion to the far east of Maui. The road is windy for sure, so I pretended I was a driver in the Dakar Rally!
It wasn't as crazy as I was afraid it would be, to be honest. The scenery is nice, but to be honest, I think the drive along the Pacific Coast Highway in California is prettier. It is pretty curvy, but I thought our car would be dangling off cliffs and we careened around corners and whatnot. It was nothing like that at all. For a truly horrifying Maui drive, drive from Lahaina to Wailuku along the north coast of West Maui (on the 30 to the 340). We did that drive a few days ago, and that is what I was envisioning the Road to Hana being like. Thank god it was much milder.
There are some cute little tiny rest stops along the way, people selling stuff out of little shacks. There is a crazy toilet stop where there is a herd of chickens and feral cats co-existing in a shaky truce, which occasionally erupts into a loud cacophony of squawks, yowls, feathers and fur....
I can't believe people pay freaking $120 to take a tour of this road. We rented a cheap car from Dollar for $35 a day. I would have been enraged if we had been duped into paying $240 total for this trip!
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ONCE BUT NEVER AGAIN.....
Everyone says....you must do the drive to Hana if you go to Maui....so of course I'm gonna do it
-Am I glad I did?......YES
-Would I ever do it again?.....HECK NO!!! (one of those experience that once is definitely enough)
-Would I recommend doing it?....Only to those that don't mind spending a whole day in a car. If you easily get motion sickness.....SKIP IT
-Beautiful scenery...yes (but for the most part I was focused on making sure we did not have a head on collision)...YES I FEARED FOR OUR SAFETY...THERE IS OFTEN ONLY ROOM FOR ONE VEHICLE ON A TWO WAY ROAD....wondering if you are going to plunge off a cliff to your death on vacation....
-The curvy road seems like it would never end......my boyfriend drove us the whole way for 6+ hours and he had no idea what he was in for. He was totally irritated that I wanted to do this adventure....OOPSIE HEHE MY BAD =)
-Lots of locals sell banana bread out of store right near their homes, so it's good to support them and stop for a snack.
-It was cool getting the opportunity to see a few waterfalls right off the hwy and hike a short distance to see a couple....but none of them were that breathe taking....maybe because it's summer and there isn't too much water flowing
-We also cross so many bridge....bridge after bridge after bridge....goodness...everything started to look the same. There aren't very many food choices, so pack a lunch.
OVERALL THERE ARE +s and -s....BUT DON'T KNOW IF THE SCENERY IS WORK DOING THE WHOLE DRIVE
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The views were just okay. I didn't make it to the end because the road was closed for 3 hours because of a landslide we we turned around after Keanae.
I have no doubt I would have been more impressed to get to the end, see the red beach, see the seven pools, etc... but just a warning that sometimes plans are derailed by nature and/or construction.
FIRST RULE OF ROAD TO HANA: Rent a convertible!!!!!
There are no other rules. If you get the convertible and drive with the top down, nobody gets sick. You also get a 360 view which aint bad. We went in mid March which meant tons of rain and incredible waterfalls. Downside to that was that we couldn't go swimming in a lot of places (like Seven Sacred Pools) because they were flooded/chance of rapids too high.
Other info to keep in mind: This is an ALL DAY event. Even though it's only about 60 miles each way it will take you 3 hours each way. But you'll be rewarded with so many spectacular views, black sand beaches, blow holes, etc. I suggest planning your day so you get back to the Paia area around 6-8pm and make dinner reservations at Mama's FIsh House. What a perfect end to our day. You can buy a cheap CD at almost any supermarket/convenience store that will give you some ideas of where to stop or check out something especially cool. Or just read a guide book. Don't try to go tramping through the local's property, there are enough beautiful sights where you never have to cross private land.
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Fun drive and lucky enough, it wasn't very crowded and we were lucky not to see a single tour bus. Sadly, we were not able to swim in the 7 sacred pools(high tide) or see the black sand beach (closed) but we made lots of stops on the way and took some great pictures. The man decided to take the harsh road back "home" so for that bumpy (albeit pretty) part of the ride, I only give 2 stars, but this is definitely an adventure I would go on again.
I will post pictures upon my return.
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Why would anyone in their right mind want to get up at 5am while on vacation in Hawaii? To get on the road to Hana of course!
From the looks of the other reviews, it appears that they had some not so great experiences. Sorry for them. That wasn't the case for us. We had nine days in Maui, why not take one to explore the island!
We opted for the mini van tour so that we could all experience the sites. So glad we did. Our tour guide was a hoot! (see the pics!) He was a transport from Southern Cali who met his bride off CL or something when she hired him to come do some photography for her. Whatever works! Turns out he married into a very native family. Therefore he had facts, some useless, some not, about every crack and crevice along the path to Hana. Needless to say he was very enjoyable!
As for the trip itself....ab so loot L E....beautiful! We experienced:
-Black sand beaches and got a chance to swim
-Caves
-Waterfalls galore
-peddlers on the road...bought a shark tooth necklace :)
-fresh mango ice cream
-orchid farm
-BBQ
-Oprah's HANA home
-Horses
-bridges
-wild things
-lush greenery
-hundreds of those muskrat things! ew!
-charles lindbergh's grave
-old churches
-banyan trees
-and so, so much more.
What a beautiful day and opportunity to get to know other Maui visitors too!
Worth all the time and every cent! Just do IT!
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Crazy twisty road. If you got nothing better to do, this is fun for like 15 minutes...
Guidebooks will tell you which stops are good along the way, but going around Hawaii, I've seen much better places for sightseeing.
Get your driving groove on, because this road is insane!
I agree, that you must go all the way to the end - it's worth it - but man it can be a white knuckle driving experience and at time it just CRAWLS with traffic.
Bring extra bottled water for the car and your camera.
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Kind of overrated. Not nearly as impressive as I thought it would be due to the lack of ocean views. There were a few nice waterfalls but mostly it's just driving through the jungle on hairpin turns. I went all the way past Hana to Kipahulu in the hopes I'd see something different but never really did. If I had to do it again I'd go about half way to Hana and then turn around.
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We decided to do this drive when we heard how spectacular the views are. We can tell you that yes, the views are phenomenal and unparalleled however it is simply not worth the 5-hour drive to do the whole thing. We agreed with Christopher Q. that you should do the drive in far enough to see a few waterfalls and impressive ocean sights, and then turn around. The turns are incredibly sharp, and there are a TON of them - almost the entire road is a tight curve in one direction or another, more than enough to make even someone who is not usually susceptible to motion sickness queasy. Dramamine might help.
Also, be sure to bring bottled water, snacks, and a picnic lunch. Paia, the first town you travel through on your way, has a few small eateries offering picnic lunches that they'll pack in coolers but after that there are VERY few options. If you plan to hike, we recommend sunblock and bug spray as well.
What a ride! I just loved taking our time and driving the wild road all the way to Hana. It has to be one of most beautiful adventures you will ever take.
It is slow with all of the tour buses and sightseers, just like you and me. You see cliffs and surf and villages and farms, and jungle and waterfalls, and little towns. It's magical. But like I said, go slow, get out of the car, take pictures, eat at the small fruitside stands. If you don't you will miss so much and may get car sick as a result.
See the small baseball park along the way. Yes a real baseball park with a phone right by one of the dugouts. Freaked me out too.
And at the end, just past the police station, you will get to Hana, one of the coolest little towns in the world.
Leave early, have fun and make it one of the best stays of your life. Oprah, Jim Nabors, Carol Burnett, George Harrison and more all had or have homes here. They must know something.
By the way, visit the Hana airport. It's really cool. And get the self-guided CD or cassette as you go along the way, it really helps make everything more interesting.
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Disclosure: We didn't get all the way to Hana! We got a little over halfway there, so this review is based on the journey, not the destination!
We almost didn't drive the road to Hana. My BF, on his smoke break with fellow smokers communing in the one place at the hotel where it was allowed had got to talking to some tourists about it. One couple told of the horrors of how they were driving that snakey road in the dark and didn't get home until after 1 a.m. Another told of how it wasn't worth it, that the roads were unmarked and that there is one road for both coming and going to Hana.
I had gotten up in the morning, with my mind made up. Granted, we had a late start because it was about 11 a.m. when we finally took off. But I was ready to go. We missed Hana the first trip and I was definitely not going to miss it again. He came into the hotel room and shared the horror stories he had just been told, and I remained unshaken in my desire to drive it. He begrudgingly agreed, and he was a little bit of a crank for a while. A little food in his stomach in Pai'a and he began to get with the program.
Being the experienced Laurel Canyon driver that I am, I wanted to brave the infamous road. After driving through Pa'ia Village, we passed Mama's Fish House (reportedly awesome for seafood) and the beach popular for windsurfing (we saw tons of windsurfers from the car view).
As we ventured deeper and deeper on the road, to my surprise, it wasn't bad and not at all the terror I expected it to be! It was a paved road, and it DID NOT have a single road for drivers going to and from Hana. There is one going up, and one going down, with the exception of the single lane bridges that you must yield to and be careful of oncoming traffic. But you're going so slow, it's not very scary at all. Locals drive this thing like Nascar, man! They've got it down and they don't want to be behind your 2 mile an hour okole', so just get outta their way! :)
We didn't use the CD guide or anything, we just drove and stopped where we saw cars stop. We visited Twin Falls, Waikulu Nature Trail, and another stop where there was a waterfall. You do a lot of hiking through beautiful lush rainforest type settings, and it's an adventure to seek out the waterfalls and just plain explore and take it all in. You can swim in the freshwater pools and I took a dip in the ones where there were waterfalls (read: natural filtration=cleaner water!). There are ropes in some of these pools that you can use to do a tarzan swing and fall into the water, which is fun. I even saw some guys jump from the top of the waterfall down into the pool which was pretty crazy, because there are shallow areas surrounding the perimeter of the waterfall.
Every stop on the road to Hana provides countless opportunities for photo ops and it's one of the most therapeutic things you can do by surrounding yourself with nature. Check out some of the photos I uploaded on this review; I just had to when I noticed that the only picture previously posted was of an orange sign! wtf? That's not a highlight of Hana!
Although I CANNOT speak from experience, if you stumble upon a stop on the road that is secluded, it's an idyllic place to have some outdoor nookie. [Note to self: Add that to my bucket list]!
So, soooooo breathtakingly gorgeous and untouched. Don't be scared, just drive. It's an adventure. Just start your day early. And don't use the porta pottys. Danger, Will Robinson, danger! This time, I AM speaking from experience! :) Don't leave your valuables in the car so you don't have to fret about a break in while you're trying to soak in nature. Oh, and if you see a rooster on one of your hikes near the sign that reads "quiet..trees are working" then feed him some pineapple. He likes it, and he will follow you until you pay the toll! When you make your way back to town, stop off in Pai'a Village and eat at Milagros to refuel, then do some shopping at the boutiques before heading back to home base.
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Please keep in mind that not everyone is a tourist, and not everyone wants to drive at 5 mph the whole way to Hana.
Unless there's a good place to pull over, if you've got cars behind you please stop slowing down every time you get a glimpse of the ocean or see another waterfall.
I've got a couple of hints for you... You're on an island, the ocean is everywhere. Hana is the rainy side of the island, there are a lot of waterfalls that way. Please stop holding up traffic.
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The road to Hana.... everyone says you have to do it... and I agree. You should do it - ONCE and when you get there (Hana) turn around and drive back - more on that in my Hotel Hana Maui review.
We drove to Hana and it was gorgeous most of the time. The road is small and windy, there are a million one way bridges and alot of cliffs. There are also amazing views you will see nowhere else and waterfalls. It's worth the trade off I think.
Drive slow. Take LOTS of pictures (so you never have to do it again). Be prepared for rain - it rained on us for 30-60 min each way of the trip.
The sights are wonderful.
Must do it just once.
Honestly I think this is the inside joke the natives play on the tourists.
Watch out for the little hut in the middle of no where selling you banana bread. Don't worry if you don't have cash, they accept credit cards.
Get the self-guide Cd. Makes the trip much better.
the drive was LONGGGGGGGGGG i mean LONGGGGGGGGGG lol but its great for sight seeing. there are some one road street that has blind side turn so you have to horn to make sure the incoming traffic wont hit you. Pretty much you can see the cliff so if you drive fast you'll die. haha Anyhow, its a great place, i get to see the waterfalls, black sand, cave, and the view of maui. At the very end, the road becomes pure rock and VERY bumpy like RALLY competition. Id feel bad for the car that weve used. Also, i forgot where we stopped by but they have the best banana cake EVER in the whole wide world.
I can see why people don't like this drive, but they don't make it to the end. You HAVE to make it to the seven pools OR the red sand beach. Don't stop, skip all the other crap, just get to those to stops. It's way at the end, but if you do it, it's worth the drive.
This is almost more of a commentary than a business review only because there is no specific business I visited. It's the whole experience that I am commenting on. The Road to Hana. Which the old adage of "It's not the destination that matters but the journey" or something like that. It is a beautiful journey to experience if you are prepared. And I read several articles and even downloaded a book to help with the experience and I have found that you cannot truly be prepared for this journey. You have to decide to just do it and make your judgement after.
But what I do want to recommend, no, beg of those who are going to make the journey, PLEASE CALL AHEAD!!!!!!!!!!!! Call to find out if any part of the already harrowing drive will be disrupted in any way. Has there been a flood that has washed out any part of the road. Has an earthquake destroyed a bridge. Has some calamity in any way disabled the "Hana" experience.
It happened to me, I didn't know to call ahead and after 5 hours of driving and sightseeing I came to find that the very last leg of my drive was CLOSED! I believe the sign read "Road Closed, continuing will cause serious injury or death." THIS IS SOMETHING I WOULD HAVE LIKED TO KNOW BEFORE I STARTED THE DAMN DRIVE!!!
So I had to turn around and go back the way I came. There should have been a very clear sign telling people they could not continue the drive on through to the west side of Maui. That the road was closed. I had two kids under the age of 6 in a car for over 8 hours! My sanity was near breaking.
So the point of my story is call ahead, prepare for anything and expect to judge your trip on the journey not the destination. Because as beautiful and quaint as Hana is, it is not a trip to make based soley on the town. It is all the things you see coming and going. The companionship of those in the vehicle with you and the memories you build.
Oh another waterfall ozzzzzzzzzzzzz..... That and very car sick how I felt at the end of the trip. I must admit that there were some incredible waterfalls. I'd recommend it for people who haven't been. Just turn back when you've seen a couple of falls any satisfied your curiosity. Trust me, you will be kicking yourself for spending more than four precious hours of your limited time in Maui trapped in a car, getting car sick and having to negotiate crazy narrow windy roads with gigantic trucks that use their horns like nobody's business and scaring the heeby geebies out of all the small rented cars...
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Please dont waste a day of your precious vacation to take this trip. Instead take a 2 hour helicopter tour of the island. You will see everything you want. You will encounter bad, inexperienced drivers, people stopped in the middle of narrow one lane roads, to see a waterfall (there are about 1000 along the way) nudity and drunkeness. Its like that frat party you left early in College, but on wheels. No sense of safety or well being. Its about the scenery stupid.
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This is not to be missed if you ever go to Maui. I loved every minute of my ride. I was able to do the round trip on the same day. However, this means, you leave early early in the morning. There are just too many scenic spots along the way to describer here. Just go and enjoy the ride. I did not buy any maps or CD's etc....just drove.
It is a very scenic drive...they don't call maui "the valley isle" for no reason. The road to hana is what it is...the attractions are along the road as you drive into hana. Just make sure you dont forget to turn around and head back in the opposite direction when you reach the hasegawa market right before you get to hana. If you continue to drive through hana and go around the island, make sure you have 4wd because flash floods can occur and the roads after hana are not paved...they are dirt roads. the highlight was the banana bread (uncle harry's and twin falls), coconut pineapple bread at the cafe, the many waterfall hiking trails along the road, lava cave, and the oheo gulch (seven pools). If you have never driven on the road to hana, make sure you purchase the dvd from your accommodations at your hotel so you dont miss out on the attractions along the way. I was born and raised on oahu and have never been to maui, but i started driving to hana once i got there, so i'm sure i missed some of the attractions. regardless, i'll be returning for the whale watching season in the winter.
I am not an astronaut for many reasons including that I get motion sickness. Whipping around curvy roads is not my idea of a good time. I knew this before going on the Road to Hana which is why I took Drammamine and did remarkably well. I also really wanted to see the "7 Pools" because I love stuff like that. Well, after two hours of winding and getting very tired of it, we got to Hana and found out the road to the "7 Pools" was closed. Super. So we turned around and then found out that the Road FROM Hana is much more scenic and fun. We had way better views. And at this point since we knew how long our trip was, we were able to stop more frequently. We stopped at Waianapanapa State Park which was gorgeous and fun to explore. We stopped at the Hana Paradise Farms Stand on the non-sea side of the road with six different kinds of banana bread. I got a heavenly loaf of chocolate chip banana bread which is the best I have ever had in my life. There were lots of other, easier scenic stops on the Road FROM Hana that we took advantage of also. When the twisting and turning was over, we stopped in Paia for a well deserved break and some shopping. (See my review on wonderful Alice in Hulaland). I still want to see the "7 Pools" but next time I'm taking a helicopter.
four stars, because it IS the road to hana.. but minus one for being too long. i mean, i get that the road to hana is loooong.. but do we really have to stop every 200 feet? oyy. once we got there, tho, it was spectacular. so beautiful. the waterfalls, the rocks, the water.. it was beautiful.
i would do this once. ever. you have to experience the road to hana.. and least so you can say that you've done it. but one time only. i don't think i can handle that again..
the road to Hana is definitely an experience you shouldn't back away from. if you are prone to motion sickness, I'd recommend not doing it nor driving it. the road is pretty curvy. there are also a lot of blind spots and one lane roads. however, the views are spectacular. the cd that we purchased for $20 was sort of worth it. it gives a lot of background and points you to the right direction, however it's difficult to figure out when to turn it off and when to turn it on. if i ever decide to do it again, I think I'd decide to take the tour bus, instead.
