The Road to Hāna is one of those days where the drive really is the adventure. Waterfalls, rainforest, ocean views, little stands and one-lane bridges — there is a lot to see, so leave EARLY. If you try to do every single stop, you’ll make yourself crazy. Pick the ones that sound fun and enjoy the day. 😂
The drive times below are what it takes to reach the area without long sightseeing stops. On a real Hāna day, everything takes much longer because you’ll be stopping.
Pāʻia Town
Baldwin Ave & Hāna Hwy, Pāʻia, HI 96779
From Wailuku: about 20–25 min
From Grand Champions / Wailea: about 35–45 min
Pāʻia is fun to wander around, grab coffee or food and look through the little shops. I like pairing it with Hoʻokipa and Twin Falls rather than making a separate trip.
Hoʻokipa Beach Park
Hāna Hwy, Mile Marker 9, Pāʻia, HI 96779
From Wailuku: about 25–30 min
From Grand Champions / Wailea: about 40–50 min
My boys and I love going here. 💕 It’s one of my favorite easy stops to watch the surfers and windsurfers, and there are usually HUGE turtles resting on the beach. Sometimes they look like giant rocks until you realize how many turtles are down there. 😂🐢
I don’t send guests here specifically to snorkel because the water can get rough.
Good to know: Give the turtles plenty of room and enjoy them from a distance.
Twin Falls
6300 Hāna Hwy, Haʻikū, HI 96708
Phone: 808-463-1275
Website: https://twinfallsmaui.net/
From Wailuku: about 35–40 min
From Grand Champions / Wailea: about 50–60 min
This is a fun waterfall stop near the beginning of the Road to Hāna, and my boys and I love going here. There are trails back to the falls and you can get into the freshwater pools when conditions are good.
Good to know: Parking is paid and first-come, first-served. Gates open about 7:10 AM, last entry is 4:30 PM, and the first Saturday of each month is kamaʻāina-only. No roadside parking or rideshare drop-offs.
A little Hāna road advice from me 😂
There are a LOT of one-lane bridges. Slow down, look ahead and take turns. And if you suddenly have a local right on your tail, don’t panic. They drive that road all the time and know every curve. Find a safe pullout, let them go zzzooooom by 😂, and everybody is happier.
Please only pull over where it is actually safe and legal. Don’t stop in the road for a picture, and don’t block driveways. I also usually tell guests to plan on coming back the way they came unless they have checked current road conditions and their rental-car rules for the backside route.
Keʻanae Peninsula + Aunty Sandy’s Banana Bread
210 Keʻanae Rd, Haʻikū, HI 96708
Phone: 808-248-7448
Website: https://auntysandys.com/
From Wailuku: about 1 hr 20 min
From Grand Champions / Wailea: about 1 hr 35 min
Take the Keʻanae turnoff for a beautiful ocean stop and grab warm banana bread at Aunty Sandy’s. It’s one of those simple Hāna-road stops that is actually worth it.
Good to know: Aunty Sandy’s is highly rated and can sell out of favorites. The peninsula is worth the turn even if you just stretch your legs and enjoy the view.
Waiʻānapanapa State Park / Black Sand Beach
Waiʻānapanapa Rd, Hāna, HI 96713
From Wailuku: about 2 hr 20–40 min
From Grand Champions / Wailea: about 2 hr 40 min–3 hr
Definitely see the black sand beach if you can fit it in. The whole park is beautiful — black sand, sea arches, lava coastline and hala forest.
Good to know: This IS different now: non-Hawaiʻi residents need advance ENTRY + PARKING reservations. There are no same-day walk-up reservations, so book this before your Hāna day.
Reservations: https://gostateparks.hawaii.gov/waianapanapa
Hāna Town
Hāna, HI 96713
From Wailuku: about 2½ hr without stops
From Grand Champions / Wailea: about 2¾–3 hr without stops
Hāna itself is tiny. The point is really the whole day getting there. Stop, eat, look around and don’t rush just because Maps says you should be somewhere at a certain time. 😂
Koki Beach + Huli Huli Chicken
175 Haneoʻo Rd, Hāna, HI 96713
From Wailuku: about 2 hr 45 min+
From Grand Champions / Wailea: about 3 hr+
If they’re serving, Huli Huli Chicken by Koki Beach is such a fun casual lunch stop. Smoky chicken, picnic-table kind of meal, ocean right there — exactly the sort of thing that feels right on a Hāna day.
Good to know: Hours can be more island-style than restaurant-style, so have a backup food plan too.
Wailua Falls
Hāna Hwy, near Mile Marker 45, past Hāna
From Wailuku: about 3 hr+
From Grand Champions / Wailea: about 3 hr 15 min+
This one is beautiful and easy to see right from the road, so it gives you a big waterfall without needing a long hike. Just make sure you pull over only where it is safe and legal.
What about Red Sand Beach?
You’ll see Kaihalulu / Red Sand Beach all over older Maui blogs. It is beautiful, but I don’t send my guests there anymore. The commonly used access involves a narrow, unofficial trail and private-property concerns, so I’d rather point you toward Waiʻānapanapa and the other legal, maintained stops.
Photo credits: Hoʻokipa Beach and Waiʻānapanapa — dronepicr / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0. License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/
