Before you drive yourself crazy Googling “is the Road to Hana in Maui scary” you must remember that the it is a staple of any Maui vacation for a reason. It’s full of some of the most gorgeous parts of the island and it’s all conveniently located in a day’s drive. However, “Is the Road to Hana dangerous?” and “Road to Hana deaths” are commonly asked questions on Google (so no you’re not crazy for researching those exact terms), and for very fair reasons. It is a long day of tight, winding roads that can be stressful for those who aren’t prepared. After spending lots of time driving around Maui, these are my 10 tips for the Road to Hana that will reduce your stress and make sure you have the best time.
If you don’t want to do this drive, I don’t blame you. You may feel significantly less stress if you join a tour, so here are a few Road to Hana tour options for you to check out:
My Top 10 Tips for the Road to Hana
1 – Rent a Small Vehicle
For any nervous driver out there, this is number one on my Road to Hana tips list for a reason. If you’re not taking a tour and plan on driving yourself, definitely get a smaller vehicle. Everything is perfectly drivable so you won’t need any off-roading capabilities. What makes the Road to Hana scary to drive to some people is not the quality of roads, but the tightness of turns and parking. We went with a small SUV and it was perfect. You see lots of tourists in lots of huge SUVs and trucks and it’s just way harder to maneuver the countless hairpin turns in something that size. This is probably my top tip for Road to Hana, especially if driving/parking in new places stresses you out.
I would recommend driving vs. doing a tour personally, just so you can move at your own pace.
Find a Maui Rental Car for the Road to Hana
2 – Fill up on Gas, Snacks, and Water
Prepare for your Road to Hana trip the night before. Buy your snacks and fill up on gas so you’re all stocked up before you take off in the morning. To me, there is nothing as scary on the Road to Hana as running out of snacks, but maybe that’s just me and my love of snacks! But, in all seriousness, make sure you have a couple of water bottles full, just to be safe. Always being sure you have access to fresh water is not just one of my better Road to Hana tips, but one of my better tips for life in general too!
3 – Leave Early to Start the Drive
Honestly this is one of the best Road to Hana tips on this list, because you will see its impact so clearly. The earlier in the morning you leave, the fewer people you’ll be sharing the Road to Hana with and the less dangerous the drive will feel (even though I stand by the fact that I don’t think the drive itself is dangerous). We hit our first stop on the Road to Hana at about 7am and we really didn’t see anyone until 11am or later. It was amazing to feel like you had this whole, very popular experience all to yourself. This is definitely one of my better tips for the Road to Hana because it allows you to see the most you can and also have places all to yourself.
4 – If You Can, Spend 2 Days on theRoad to Hana
If you’re not pressed for time, I’d highly recommend spending a night in Hana town so you can truly enjoy the drive without a time limit. You can absolutely do the drive in a single day if that’s all time allows; we did. But to really make sure you have enough time to spend at each stop, spreading the Road to Hana drive over two days vs. one will definitely allow that.
Take a look at the hotel options in Hana; they’re limited but they exist:
5 – Download a Tour Guide App
We downloaded the Road to Hana tour from the GyPSy app and it was honestly such a life saver and makes for a phenomenal Road to Hana tip that I hear/see quite often. It uses GPS so it doesn’t rely on the Road to Hana’s infamous spotty cell service, guaranteeing you have access to it at all times. The app tells you when key stops are coming up and where to park, as well as providing fun facts along the way. And what I liked most was probably the Hawaiian history lesson on the drive back. The app knows if you’re doing the trip in a day that you won’t be making stops along the way back. So you spend your entire drive back on the Road to Hana learning about the native Hawaiian history, how it became a part of the United States, and more. It was honestly fascinating and probably needs its own HBO series in my opinion.
6 – Plan Your Priority Stops Before You Go
One of my best tips for driving the Road to Hana is to know what stops are your must sees before you leave. Decide on the places that you are most interested in seeing and make a list that includes mile markers. Mile markers are really the way you know where stops are on the Road to Hana, so having these documented will be very helpful for you. Here are my top five stops I wouldn’t miss if I were you!
Check out my Amazon Beach Trip List for lots of cute beach gear needed for your sunrise trip to the Phi Phi Islands
7 – Pack for All Sorts of Tropical Weather
Depending on where you stop along the Road to Hana, you’ll be hanging out around waterfalls, at the beach, in the rainforest, or in some combination of all of them. You’ll want to pack your car so that it includes clothes for any of those. At one stop you might need a raincoat and at the next you might just want a swimsuit. Take a look at my Hawaii packing list and while you won’t necessarily need all of it for the Road to Hana, it’s a good guide.
8 – Avoid Driving the Road to Hana in the Dark
The only time I might answer “yes” to the Googled question “is the Road to Hana dangerous” is potentially at night. The tight turns, likely rain/drizzle, and fast-driving locals leave the drive feeling a little scarier at night. However, this is really only an issue if you plan to drive it all in one day; so if you are it’s one of my better Road to Hana tips. Be sure to give yourself enough time to drive back in the daylight and time your trip appropriately so you have about two hours to get back to Paia.
9 – Drive Safely
One of the more obvious but most important tips for driving the Road to Hana is just the general “be aware” sentiment. Locals are going to be driving way faster than you, but that’s not an invitation to do as they do. What’s dangerous about driving the Road to Hana isn’t the locals who know what they’re doing and what to expect, but tourists who act like they do and don’t.
There are a crazy amount of hairpin turns, the road will probably be wet either everywhere or in key spots, and there are tourists crossing the road at random times. You’re simply going to need to be driving your absolute safest on your day on the Road to Hana.
10 – Don’t Drive Beyond Haleakalā
I did a lot of reading about the best way to navigate the Road to Hana in order to avoid people. One of the things I read a lot is to just drive beyond Haleakalā and make a loop around. Truly, don’t do this. It’s a crazy treacherous drive and rental companies won’t even allow you to drive there.
So there you have it, my 10 best tips for the Road to Hana. Do these things and you’ll breathe a little easier while you navigate your way through one of Maui’s most beautiful roads. If you have any questions, as always feel free to reach out, and watch my Maui Instagram story highlights for more on-the-ground views of my day driving the Road to Hana.
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Your post make me dream about Hawaii 🙂 I would love to visit it one day. I am saving your post for the future.
Oh I wish I was in Hawaii now! Great tips!
Wowww that photo of you overlooking the view with the rainbow! What a perfect shot. As a resident of Hawaii, I am glad you highlighted the dangers of this roadtrip. Each year we hear of too many accidents along this route, it’s really best to be cautious. Splitting it in two days also seems ideal, I hate rushed road trips
I’d never heard about the road to Hana, but it looks absolutely stunning! Your pictures are dreamy.