We want to do the raod to Hana trip while in Maui, but do not want to go all the way to Hana. From reports, its to long of a drive with younger children.
Does anyone have a recommendation of a good turn around spot so that we dont have to go all the way to Hana?
We still want to get the effect of the road without going all the way.
Road to Hana experience
If you just want to get a taste of the road, you could go about a half hour or so into it, and perhaps tour the Garden of Eden, and turn around. Otherwise, you can just decide how long you want to be driving, and judge accordingly.
Road to Hana experience
I wouldn%26#39;t bother doing it at all. If you turn around and don%26#39;t drive past Hana you will miss the most beautiful sights. We have gone twice all the way around with our son, once when he was 3 and then again last year at 10. I take lots of snacks, books, crayons, gameboy and we make a lot of stops.
Maybe the West Maui loop would be a better alternative for you.
You%26#39;ll find quite a few people who say that if you%26#39;re not going to go all the way around, don%26#39;t bother. I completely disagree. We did go all the way to Hana, still turned back, and loved every minute of it. We were on the road by 7am, had plenty of time to explore several stops along the way, enjoyed a nice lunch at Wainapanapa State Park, and still made it back to Kihei by 5:00 for dinner.
One of my favorite spots (there are MANY!!) is Nahiku Landing. The road down is around mile marker 25. That little road is absolutely beautiful. I also love Keanae Peninsula and Keanae Lookout. Great banana bread stand and beautiful views. That%26#39;s around mile marker 17, I think. (Both of those spots are past the Graden of Eden, so if you aim for that, like someone else suggested, and want more, you can always head up a bit further).
And just remember...anything that you DON%26#39;T see just gives you a great excuse to come back!
I don%26#39;t think she wants to go all the way to Hana...Wainapanapa is pretty close to being there. I still dissagree (respectfully of course) and say you miss alot turning around. And this is coming from someone who wanted to turn around the first time OK?
You%26#39;re absolutely right. Wainapanapa is almost all the way to Hana. In fact, on our drive, we did go all the way to Hana. We just chose to stop there and turn around.
I was not at all suggesting that the OP go anywhere as far as we did. Instead, I was simply trying to point out how much we were still able to see and do, without making the drive all the way around.
Young kids were mentioned, and for many, that long of a drive just isn%26#39;t enjoyable for/with little ones. But, it IS possible to have a wonderful experience on that drive without seeing the entire loop, or even spending more than a few hours. That was my only point, and I meant no disrespect.
You%26#39;re also right that we missed A LOT. That doesn%26#39;t in any way make me feel that we shouldn%26#39;t have gone at all. It just leaves me with fabulous photos and memories of all that we DID see, and makes me want to go back for more. It sounds like you saw some many wonderful sights past Hana. I hope to share in the beauty one day!
If you really want to get a good feel for the journey along the Road to Hana, then get up early, pack food and drink and drive to Hana making 3-4 stops (Three Bears Falls, Keanae Penisula, Nahiku, and Waianapanapa Black Sand Beach park)... Stop in Hana to use the restrooms, grab any aditional food/drink at the General Store, then turn around and head home. I think young children would be fascinated with all the waterfalls, flowers and crashing waves they will see (not to mention black sand!). The recommendation to take other things for the child to do in the car while driving is a good one, although hopefully the child would be staring out the window ooohing and ahhing. If you start the road by 8:30 am you should be able to get to Hana by late afternoon (4 PM) and turn around and make it back to your accomodations in time to have dinner somewhere. If you are running late by the time you get to Waianapanapa, you can turn around there (there are restroom facilities there, too). Oh, and FYI, you cannot drive all the way around at this time anyway, since damage occured to a few bridges during last year%26#39;s earthquakes. Those bridges are past Hana, so they would not effect you anyway.
I agree with the poster than recommended going as far as the Garden of Eden. It is really gorgeous and if you go into the garden, you can get your photo taken (for a free- well worth it!) with giant parrots on you. That is my favorite photo from our trip...I took 800 pics!!! LOL!
Ooops...I meant to say ';for a small fee'; about the photo op with Bud, the Birdman.
I%26#39;d love it if my son were looking out the window watching the scenery but I have to say he would probably be complaining about too long of a car ride if we didn%26#39;t bring something to entertain him. Now that he%26#39;s older he is definately more interested in the scenery. He%26#39;s a big reader to so he usually brings a book.
No comments:
Post a Comment