Bike Maui — Local services in Maui

My oldest said the sunrise bike tour was a “must do.” As I was researching different sunrise bike companies, I came across this one. We booked the sunrise, self-guided bike ride with Haleakala Bike Company (aka Bike Maui). They called us the day before our ride, apologized and explained the situation and offered a reschedule or refund. Being a must do for my boys, I thanked them for calling us and they worked with our schedule to accommodate us. We arrived at the bike company HQ at 2:40am. Between the email confirmation, my conversation with them in the reschedule, and the information on the website, we felt very prepared. I did wear a beanie, a long sleeve cold gear shirt and a windbreaker along with my shorts for the sunrise (you may need a bit more clothing even it doesn’t rain and some may need less but it does get a little chilly). Do bring some water and any light snacks you might want. Not a lot is needed. You’ll thank me later.

We met our tour guide, Corey at HQ. We received our safety briefing and introduction to the bikes we would be using. We were fitted for helmets and if wanted, rain gear and a backpack. As we drove the long, windy road Corey provided with specific directions and safety instructions for our trip. He also included some Maui history, nature facts and multiple dad jokes along they way. We stopped within the cattle field area which there were no ambient lights so we could see the clearest, most vivid night sky one would ever see. We could see the stars and the milky way with extraordinary clarity. He took us to the top with ample time and we got situated in a spot that we wanted to watch the sunrise.

Once the sun had risen into the sky, we proceeded back to our van and Corey took us down the road to an alternate view location of the crater. Corey provided some tips for hiking the crater in case you wanted to come back later or another day.

We met Nate, the bike mechanic with the trailer full of bikes. The bikes were in amazing shape for being rentals and many uses. I have been mountain biking for many years, roads, on and off trail and for this trip, these bikes more than met expectations and were very well-suited for the experience. After another safety briefing (see the focus of this company? Safety and enjoyment go hand-in-hand with also respecting the land and other people) we were set for our ride. Due to some political issues which I will not discuss here, the tour has been modified from one continuous ride down the mountain to two halves (really thirds but technically not). The first ride is downhill with about a couple hundred yards of a very slight uphill through 29 incredible switchbacks on the road. Yes, you share the road with cars but you are traveling close to or just above the speed limit of 25mph for most of this switchback ride. You can go slower but why would you? Stay in control of your bike and you will have an awe inspiring experience. Corey drives down the mountain first to our meeting point and Nate brought up the rear in case any assistance was needed. Once at the predesignated meeting point, they loaded our bikes in the trailer again to ride the switchbacks again!

Once we completed the switchbacks a second time, they loaded our bikes up and we loaded back into the van. Corey provided more dad jokes, some more history (he genuinely cares about Maui and protecting the land) and we arrived at our next location to load up on our bikes and make the second half of our ride (but really our third). This ride was through small communities with slightly more pedaling, but again not too much. We biked back into HQ where more staff of the bike company were there to greet us, receive our bikes and gear, and thank us for our business.

In short, if you want to see the sunrise at the top of Haleakala and enjoy a downhill bike ride with a company that focuses on fun and safety, Haleakala Bike Company is the experience you want and will...

Really cool! We did the Haleakala Sunrise Self Guided Bike Tour. I am giving 5 stars, with the caveat that if you are a nervous rider or not as experienced at riding, like me, riding the entire way may not be something you are comfortable with, but that's okay, just let them know early on how you are feeling as they follow for a while with the bus! I would like to thank Billy and Kimo for being so nice and accommodating (I realized I couldn't finish halfway down and felt bad because I should have realized earlier, but everyone was so so nice about it!) Whether you are an experienced bike rider or not, it's REALLY important you listen to the tour guides, who put a huge emphasis on safety, especially for the bike portion. Seriously. Listen to them. Also, bring a blanket or giant coat for the top!

We rode up the mountain with Billy, and this was very cool! I had expected just a bus ride since it was dark, but the darkness did not inhibit seeing a lot of cool things and learning a lot! Billy was a fantastic guide; knowledgable, engaging, and friendly. He explained so much about the areas history, geography, flora and fawna, and especially culture in a fascinating way. We made a few stops to view different areas, and this is where a blanket or coat might be useful. They said you could leave things on the bus and get them after the bike ride, so I realized I should have brought a blanket for the top like one lady! It was so beautiful up there, and you can see both sides of the island! SO beautiful!

Then we got our bikes and set off. It was a bit steeper than I expected, so there is no pedaling required, basically the whole way. I came with family, and they are all a bit more athletic, and had a fairly easy time with the bike ride. I had a bit of a harder time, I'm not sure why exactly but probably because I hadn't ridden in a number of years, or maybe I should have requested a smaller bike or something, I'm not really sure. Also we bike on the road, and I don't have much experience with that, and I'm a more nervous biker, so I liked to pull off when a car came by. My fiance stayed with me even though I was a bit slow, and Billy checked in with us multiple times and gave me some good tips and offered that I could get back on the bus if I was uncomfortable. The mountain area was very windy and beautiful, and not many cars, so a great place to get the feel of the bike. Then we got down to the town area, also beautiful. We stopped to eat at this BEAUTIFUL little restaurant, I'll edit the name in later, you HAVE TO see the gardens in the back! When we continued on after the restaurant, the roads got a little busier, and as I said I hadn't biked in years so I wasn't as steady as I had expected, and so I nervous about the cars. It was hard for me to stay on the shoulder sometimes when it was narrower, and we decided for me that probably meant it wasn't safe to continue. So we called the company, and they said they would come pick us up shortly. I felt bad, but everyone at the company was so nice and did not want me to feel bad. Kimo picked us up and was very kind, and we chatted with him on the way back, which was very fun. So we got back and checked in!

I definitely enjoyed all parts of it! Everyone was so nice, and I really, really appreciated the emphasis on safety and comfortability, and how nice everyone was! So beautiful and fun! The only thing I would have done differently, is think I should have assessed better in the beginning whether I could finish or not and let them know before our bus left the mountain (they follow at the back for a while). Again though, everyone was so nice about it, and I really, really appreciate it! Definitely recommend this company, and thank you again to...

This is my second time going down Haleakala on a bike and this was even better than the first. Do your research, and you'll end up picking this company - Bike Maui/Haleakala Bike located in Haiku Maui.

The first time was almost 20 years ago, on a guided bike tour, which starts with a leader on a bike in the front, and a guide van on the back to keep the cars away. We would stop to take pictures (as a group) at various lookout points, or we would move to the side (as a group) to let other cars pass by. This is a good option for people who aren't really comfortable riding on roads with cars, or for people who might get lost. This option is also great since there are lots of photographers around to take pictures of you and your friends.

I didn't have a choice this time because the only 2 seats left on the day I wanted to go last week was on the SELF-GUIDED EXPRESS TOUR. The self guided tour takes you up in a van/bus and drops you off at 6,500ft (skipping the tour of the summit) and off you go, down the volcano. I was a little apprehensive because it truly is self-guided; you need to know when to turn and how to get back, all by yourself. Kimo Rice was the tour guide/driver and he is the absolute BEST. He made sure we knew how to get back safely, and had me in stitches laughing on the ride up.

THE BIKES: the bikes had multiple gears, and disc pad brakes, so I never worried about slowing down, or shifting gears to take the uphills. 97% of the ride is downhill, but there are a few uphills, and it was nice to have a multi-gear bike. BTW, other companies use cruiser (1 gear) bikes, so be careful where you spend your money. This company has great bikes.

THE GEAR: if you don't have a jacket, they have rain jackets, fleece vests, backpacks, etc that you can borrow for your ride. The top starts out very cold, especially when you pick up speed going downhill.

THE HELMETS: they use motorcycle helmets. If you've never used one, you can't hear anything, so you can't hear the cars very well and it's hard to hear each other. Make sure you have your hand signals with each other to communicate. The roads are paved very well and clearly marked the entire trip.

THE SELF GUIDED EXPRESS TOUR was actually perfect for us. We didn't have to wake up so early for the sunrise (meeting time was 9:30am), we didn't have to waste time up at the summit (10,000 feet) - we did that part on our own on a different day. I did the ride down with my 17yr old son, and it was actually better for us that we were on our own, as my son wanted to go down pretty fast. He does ride on the road quite a bit, but this was his first time going down a volcano. If we were in a group and had to go at the groups pace, he wouldn't have had as much fun. I did bring our own handle bar mirrors for each side, and front and back flashing lights for better visibility.

SAFETY FIRST: This company really does go the extra mile. In addition to the ridiculous motorcycle helmets (which I'm actually glad we had), they hired a person to sit on the road checking us in one by one on the final stretch right before the sharp turns. Mary sits on the side of the road from 10am til the last person comes rolling down the hill to 1) check us off (to make sure we made it!) and 2) to tell us we better SLOW DOWN on the upcoming turns. I always follow my son when we ride on the road, but she insisted that I go first for the last part, because of the tricky turns. I'm glad she did, so I would die first if I took the turn too fast, just kidding. I never felt like we were in danger, but we both have ridden on the road before so we knew what to sort of expect with...