Okay, I know you are going to hear all kinds of things before you head off to drive along Hana Highway; some of it might be true while other things you hear are way off. First things you will hear is that you will need a 4WD vehicle.
This is not necessarily true. Rental car agencies will tell you when you rent one of their cars that you cannot drive the vehicle on any road that is not paved. Well, the majority of Hana Highway is paved, with only a small portion being gravel. What does this mean? Does this mean you cannot drive a rental car across the gravel or you can be in big trouble with the car rental agency? The answer is no. The real deal is, if the car is damaged by driving across the gravel then your own car insurance will be liable or that you will, however, there is only around 5 miles of gravel on the Hana Highway. Many people still remember when the highway was pretty much unpaved and then you did a 4WD vehicle.
If you are planning on going off the paved roads and see some of the sights, you might want to rent a 4WD vehicle, however, if you stay on Hana Highway you will not have any problems at all enjoying the sights.
Now, the next thing you should do is have your gas tank filled. It is best to start with a full tank of gas. If you plan on stopping off at one of the waterfalls along the way, you also might enjoy taking along a picnic lunch.
Most tourists that enjoy this drive already know that it is best to get started early, so the traffic might be a bit heavy. There are over 1,500 to 2,000 cars on this highway every day. The majority of people leave between 8:30 am and 11:00 am, one main reason is they want to take their time to enjoy the sights and the waterfalls are usually better to see before 11 am. If you plan to spend the night in Hana, then you avoid the rush and leave after 10:30 but the waterfall scenery might not be as glorious.
The waterfalls are one of the main attractions along the Hana Highway, but you must take one thing into consideration, not every waterfall is going to be flowing. Even if the waterfall was flowing with grace the last time you visited, today it may be no more than a trickle. During the winter months is the best time to see the awesome waterfalls even though there a few that flow every season. According to the weather, you may find some are only trickling while others might be muddy from a recent rain. However, no matter there are some beautiful and attention grabbing waterfalls along the Hana Highway. Another thing to remember when you desire to see the waterfalls is that East Maui Irrigation Company can and will turn off the water to some waterfalls to give the sugar fields water. You will even notice “No Trespassing” signs but as far as it goes, most of the falls are really on state owned forest and the East Maui Irrigation Company only has water rights. So many people do not pay too much attention to these postings and there are plenty of hunters out here every weekend.
For your own safety, it is best when you stop and leave your car to see the sights to put valuables out of sight. Just because this area is safe and you do not expect any trouble, this does not mean some person will not glance into car window and decide they want your purse or other valuable you have left in plain sight. This is like offering candy to a young child. Take away the temptation or you might come back from your stroll and find you have a broken window and all your money is gone.
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