Originally Posted by
SoonerMagic
Hope you enjoyed your room and stay! It was our first time at GW. I was just hoping for a room with at least a partial ocean view.
If I would have known another couple from the forum was there at the same time on their honeymoon, I would have suggested meeting up. Great stay, but we didn't have a lot of interaction with the other guests.
It was our first time in Hawaii / GW too - such a magical place. And all good, we were mostly out of the room anyway so an upgrade to Oceanfront would've mostly gone unused anyway. Would've just been nice to have.
Originally Posted by
SoonerMagic
This was our second time driving the Road to Hana. First time drove a Jeep Gladiator rented from Turo and made all the major stops including the black sand beach that requires reservations. Loved all the stops, waterfalls, and picturesque views. The drive was stressful especially driving back in the dark while it was raining, but overall, one of the best and most memorable experiences of the trip.
This time we decided to be even more adventurous and go skydiving and powered hang gliding. Guess where those are located? The Hana Airport. So ... we rented a Porsche Boxster (also from Turo) which was a great car to make the drive. The drive was still intense, but a little less stressful this time mostly because I knew what to expect. By the time we finished at the Hana Airport, it had started raining steadily so we decided to drive back to Mama's Fish House for an early dinner without making any of the stops we had planned.
After the first time, I wasn't sure I would ever drive the Road to Hana again, but now I think we will probably do it again next time we are in Maui (hopefully next Christmas/NYE). Next time, I would like to stay a night in Hana to break up the drive there and back into two days.
Two tips for those who haven't driven there before: (1) Expect to have intermittent cell phone coverage at best, and (2) Download (in advance) one of the voice guide apps that is tied to GPS - it will tell you what scenic stops are coming up and make recommendations on which to stop at and what to expect even without cell service.
The reason we didn't do a 5 night stay like you was because we jumped straight into the Road to Hana when we landed on the 25th in Maui and stayed a night at the Hana-Maui Resort. I would definitely recommend staying a night or two in one of their oceanfront bungalows if you have the Hyatt points to burn or Globalist status. A Boxster definitely seems like a better car than the Gladiator or the Challenger we took on the road. My wife got dizzy on the drive and I found myself focusing more on the road than the sights - I can only imagine doing it at night.
Definitely second your tips on the Road to Hana, especially if you have reservations for Wai'anapanapa State Park. No signal at the entrance, so we had to drive back and go to the nearby public library to grab their wifi to access our pass. Screenshot any QR codes it gives you after booking!
Also, Mama's Fish House was one of our highlights of our trip - such a beautiful site, great food, amazing service. Worth going for a special occasion 10/10 times.