Maui Hawaii – Road to Hana, Haleakalā Sunrise & Beaches

Maui is a different experience from Oahu, despite both being part of the same Hawaiian archipelago. Maui has a smaller population, which gives it a more laid-back and peaceful vibe. The island is also known for its natural beauty, including the famous Road to Hana, which takes you on a scenic drive through lush forests, waterfalls, and dramatic coastline.

One of the top attractions in Maui is the Haleakala National Park, where visitors can witness the stunning sunrise or sunset from the summit of the dormant volcano. The park also offers a range of hiking trails, from easy nature walks to more challenging treks.

Another must-see in Maui is the town of Lahaina, which was once the capital of the Hawaiian Kingdom. Today, it is a charming and historic town that offers plenty of art galleries, boutiques, and restaurants. Visitors can also take a stroll down Front Street, which is lined with historic buildings and offers stunning views of the ocean.

Maui is also home to some of the best beaches in Hawaii, including Kaanapali Beach, which is known for its soft sand and crystal-clear water. Other popular beaches include Wailea Beach, which is great for snorkeling, and Napili Bay, which is ideal for families with young children.

PLEASE NOTE: Our last trip to Maui took place in February 2023, prior to the devastating fire that destroyed Lahaina. Please consider a contribution to the "Maui Strong Fund" to help. The Office of the Governor of Hawai'i recommends donations to this fund.

Contributions are also being accepted at the Maui United Way Website. A list of charities that are accepting donations can be found here.

Click the above video poster image to watch our Maui Vacation Travel Guide video provides suggestions for how to spend one week on Maui and some tips. We give an overview Map of Maui and describe the island and then jump into a suggested itinerary that can be considered a starting point for how to spend your week. We discuss visiting Haleakala crater at sunrise, the Kapalua Coastal walk, Lahaina, the Maui Ocean Center, Makena Beach and the lava fields on the south side of Maui and give our view of driving the Road to Hana.

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• What is the height of Haleakala? Haleakala rises 10,023 feet above sea level and is the largest dormant volcano in the world. The summit depression is 21 miles across and 4,000 feet deep, big enough to hold the entire island of Manhattan. Dress warm, it will be about 32F cooler at the summit compared to sea level. Haleakala is the largest dormant volcano in the world.
• Haleakalā is the world’s largest dormant volcano rising 10,023 feet above sea level. It last erupted between 1480 and 1600, and its crater spans over 19 square miles.
• Where is Charles Lindbergh's Grave? The Famous aviator, explorer, and social activist, was buried on Maui in 1974. His grave sits underneath a plum tree at the Palapala Ho’omau Church along the Road to Hana.
• One of the Highest Life Expectancies in the United States: Hawaii has the highest life expectancy in the United States at 81.5 years.
• The first printing press in the Western United States: Founded in 1831, Maui’s Lahainaluna High School is the oldest school west of the Rocky Mountains and owned the first printing press in the western United States.
• The Maui Gold Brand of pineapple: It possesses three times the amount of vitamin C as other brands of pineapple. It is specially grown and takes approximately 18 months to reach ripeness.
• The Lahaina Banyan Tree: Spanning 1.94 acres and rising more than 60 feet in the air, Lahaina's famed banyan tree is a quarter of a mile in circumference and possesses 16 trunks, making it the largest banyan tree not only in Hawaii but also in the United States. This tree was a gift from missionaries from India, and was only 8 feet tall when it was planted in 1873.
• Whales in Hawaii: Approximately 10,000 humpback whales migrate to Maui each year.
• What is Maui's Size? At 727.2 square miles, it is the second largest Hawaiian Island.
• How was Maui Created? Maui is a volcanic island made from 2 volcanos. The East Maui volcano, known as Haleakala, had its recent eruptions between 1480 and 1600. The eroded West Maui volcano, known as Mauna Kahawai or West Maui Mountains, last erupted 320,000 years ago.
• Where does Maui's Name come from? Maui takes its name from a Polynesian demigod. It was created by two volcanoes, Puu Kukui and Haleakala, which constitute east and west peninsulas connected by a 7-mile wide valleylike isthmus that has earned Maui the nickname of the “valley isle.”
• What is Maui's Population? In 2020, Maui had a population of 168,307, the third-highest of the Hawaiian Islands, behind Oʻahu and Hawaiʻi Island.
• How many Beaches are on Maui? There are 81 accessible beaches including ones with white, gold, black, and red sand. It has 120 miles of accessible beach, more than any other Hawaiian island.
• Where are the Maui Billboards? Other than traffic and safety signs, you have a free view of the natural landscape around you. Hawaii is one of only four states to ban billboards, in addition to Vermont, Maine, and Alaska.
• Maui has more miles of swimmable beaches than any other Hawaiian island with 120 miles of coastline, it boasts over 30 miles of stunning beaches.
• The island has no natural predators Maui’s native species evolved without natural predators like snakes or large carnivores. The introduction of non-native animals like mongoose and rats has threatened many of these species.

The following is a suggested itinerary based upon maximizing your time on Maui and proximity to these individual destinations;

Maui is one of the Hawaiian Islands and is known as "The Valley Isle" due to the large valley between its two main mountain ranges, Haleakala and the West Maui Mountains. The valley is home to many of Maui's towns, including Kahului, Wailuku, and Lahaina. Haleakala is a dormant volcano that stands at over 10,000 feet tall and is a popular tourist attraction for visitors to Maui, especially for watching the sunrise. The West Maui Mountains, on the other hand, are much older and have been eroded over time, creating dramatic cliffs and valleys along Maui's western coast.

As you can see in this static map, we visited a number of diverse locations, each of them are linked so that you can click on any that you would like to view.

1. The Road to Hana
2. Waiʻānapanapa State Park
3. Hoʻokipa Beach Park
4. Maui Ocean Center
5. Makena Beach
6. Lahaina & Northwest Maui
7. Haleakala Summit Visit

The Road to Hana had been on our list "to do" ever since our last trip to Maui over 14 years ago. We were not able to make the drive on that last trip, and we were determined to make it happen on this trip. This is a challenging drive, as the road is narrow and becomes narrower across the one lane bridges. Then you have local drivers who know the road and are determined to traverse it at top speed without regard to the yield signs or oncoming traffic. Be very careful on this road !!!

Click the "map link" above to view a Google Map.

If you have enough time on Maui to make this day long trip, then maybe you want to consider doing it. But frankly there isn't much to see in Hana, it is primarily those places around Hana that are interesting, for example; The Wailua Falls are seven miles past Hana, the grave of Charles Lindbergh is 4.5 miles past the falls, and there are several beaches just past Hana that are nice as well. But if you do not have an entire day to put into such a drive, consider going to the Twin Falls on route 36 that are only 19 miles from Kahului. They are pretty and do not require such a long drive to get to.

Road to Hāna: Should You Drive It Yourself?

• Good fit: You’re comfortable with narrow roads, don’t mind a 6–10 hour day, and are happy stopping at just a few places.
• Consider a tour: You want to relax, avoid parking drama, and let someone else handle timing and etiquette.
• Best compromise: Pick 2–3 priority stops, start at dawn, and turn around before fatigue sets in.

Background Info from Wikipedia

The Hana Highway (colloquially referred to as The Road to Hana) is a 64.4-mile-long (103.6 km) stretch of Hawaii Routes 36 and 360 which connects Kahului to the town of Hana in east Maui. To the east of Kalepa Bridge, the highway continues to Kipahulu as Hawaii Route 31 (the Piilani Highway). Although Hana is only about 52 miles (84 km) from Kahului, an uninterrupted car-trip takes about 2.5 hours to drive, since the highway is very windy, narrow, and passes over 59 bridges, of which 46 are only one lane wide. There are approximately 620 curves along Route 360 from just east of Kahului to Hana, almost all of it through lush, tropical rainforest. Many of the concrete and steel bridges date back to 1910 and all but one are still in use. That one bridge, badly damaged by erosion, has been replaced by a portable steel ACROW or Bailey bridge erected by the United States Army Corps of Engineers.

Need to Know – Maui

Road to Hāna drive is slow—start early and don’t try to do everything in one day. Respect closures and private land. Reef-safe sunscreen only. Conditions change—check official updates the morning you go.

Waiʻānapanapa State Park

OK, so this is actually on the Road to Hana, but it is a beautiful park and one you should visit if you have the time. Remote, wild, volcanic coastline offering solitude and respite from urban life. Lodging, camping, picnicking, shore fishing and hardy family hiking along an ancient Hawaiian coastal trail which leads to Hana. Excellent opportunity to view a seabird colony and natural stone arch. Other features include native hala forest, heiau (religious temple), sea stacks, blow holes and small black sand beach.

Reservations are required, and there are fees both for entrance and parking, click here to obtain more info and your reservations.

Hoʻokipa Beach Park

This is a stop we made on the way back from our road trip to Hana, and we stopped here for two reasons; (1) The surf was huge and there were some good surfers out there riding and (2) there were porta-potties next to the parking lot. Yes, we had been on the Hana Highway for quite a while!

The surf was huge, couldn't tell exactly what the height was from our location on top of the ridge above the beach, but it looked to be a minimum of 12 to 15 feet. We read later that the beach was closed due to high surf conditions.

Due to inclement weather, we had decided to visit the Maui Ocean Center , as it has a informative & interesting set of displays and going there would allow us to avoid the rainy weather! Besides which, the Aquarium was on the road to Lahaina, our next stop.

The aquarium offer a 3D experience called "Humpbacks of Hawaii" in a 3D domed theater experience with multi-channel surround sound. The teams from the Ocean Mind Experience were looking for a modern way for people to see, hear and interact with these animals without invading their habitat. Humpback whales have been on endangered species watch lists for decades. Working with award winning nature documentarian, Daniel Opitz, the Yessian teams created the sound to bring these whales to life on large format screens through originally recorded sounds deep below the sea combined with sound design and music scoring based on the natural sounds of the whales. This is a very good presentation, and it allows you to feel as though you are swimming alongside these whales.

By arriving early, we were able to enjoy all of the Aquarium before the crowds grew as the day wore on. By the time we departed, the parking lot was completely full and the line at the entrance was getting long. Word to the wise traveler; get there early.

Makena Beach holds a special place in our hearts & memories, it is not only very pretty but it is somewhere where we were able to spend some private time during our last visit to Maui. Given that this beach has such a prominent place in our memories, it was inevitable that we visited it again, regardless of the rain that day!

Makena Beach is nestled amidst lush tropical vegetation, creating a scenic backdrop for those seeking peaceful walks and picnics. The area is also renowned for its captivating sunsets, attracting photographers and romantics alike. Additionally, the beach boasts exceptional views of the nearby Molokini Crater and Kahoolawe Island, enhancing the overall experience.

Our next stop after the Maui Ocean Center was meant to be Lahaina, however we realized on the drive there that we had not been north of Lahaina to the Ka'anapali and Kapalua areas. In particular, we wanted to walk the Kapalua Coastal Trail.

Kapalua Coastal Trail is a 2.5-mile out-and-back trail that traverses Kapalua Bay & Namula Bay (it continues past Oneloa Bay if you hike the entire route). Generally considered an easy route, it takes an average of 56 min to complete. This is a very popular area for running and walking, so you'll likely encounter other people while exploring. You'll need to leave pups at home — dogs aren't allowed on this trail. After we completed this trek, we drove to Lahaina to explore there & see the banyan tree. Click the "map link" above to view a Google Map.

Haleakalā National Park is a place of profound cultural and ecological significance, centered on the magnificent Haleakalā volcano. Its history as a protected area began in 1916 as part of the original Hawaiʻi National Park, alongside the volcanoes of Kīlauea and Mauna Loa on the island of Hawaiʻi. The two areas, located on different islands, were split 45 years later. On July 1, 1961, the Haleakalā section was officially established as its own separate national park.

To view how interesting Haleakala is, click here to view our Haleakala National Park page.