Valley Isle Excursions — Local services in Maui

We booked Valley Isle Excursions for our Road to Hana trip. The tour is not the circle island tour at this time and I think this is because some bridges got wiped out from floods. So you basically go into Hana, have lunch, and then come back the way you came.

Our guide, Debra, was wonderful. She was from Hana, so she really knew how to drive that road and had unique insight to share with our group. We enjoyed hearing her stories about when she was a child growing up in the area.

After everyone was picked up from their hotels, we first headed into the West Maui mountains area to get breakfast at the Maui Tropical Plantation. Breakfast consisted of some muffins, fresh fruit, coffee and POG drink.

Then we were off onto the road. Debra took us to a bunch of spots off the road, like in Ke’anae where there is an old stone church that survived a tsunami in 1946. Also, we stopped at Aunty Sandy's for the opportunity to purchase the most delectable banana bread I have ever tasted. We also visited Wāi’anapanapa State Park, where there is a beautiful black sand beach and breathtaking coastal views.

One of our highlight stops was just off the Hana Highway, near Koki Beach, to purchase some Huli Huli chicken at a roadside stand. It was so delicious! I saw a sign down the street from it that said something about Gordon Ramsey featuring it on a show. We ate this along with the picnic lunch the tour company provided. The tour company offered either a turkey sandwich with chips and a cookie (my daughter and I got this) or a chicken salad (my husband chose this meal). Both meals provided were actually not bad at all.

One of the last stops while on the road near Hana was to get shaved ice at the Halfway to Hana stand. Oh my gosh it was heavenly- I highly recommend the Passionfruit flavor.

Keep in mind - there is no stopping while on the winding road itself. So taking an unobstructed photo that is not thru window glass is not happening. The van has large windows and you can do your best to shoot pictures thru the glass. We did stop at a waterfall that had a legit parking lot. Along the way, we saw so many people just stopping where there is no parking and people trespassing all over the place. So many tourists breaking the rules, it was sad to see. We even saw a man step over a guardrail and was inches from a potentially fatal fall because he wanted to risk his life to get a picture. His recklessness made our whole tour group collectively gasp. There was nothing stopping him from taking a fall of at least several hundred feet. Still makes me shiver thinking about it.

If you are considering this tour with small children, do yourself a favor and bring something for them to do, like a book to read, or crayons to draw or color. Because once they get bored and tired, your enjoyment will be fleeting like ours was with our 7-year old. The whole time with the tour group from start to finish is approximately 12 hours long. That is a long day for anyone, let alone a young child. There is no internet or cellular data once you enter the rainforest so your phone or iPad won't work. There was another family on the tour with us that was prepared and they let my daughter borrow some crayons and paper which helped us out a lot.

The views I saw that day were the most beautiful views I have ever seen. I'm so glad to have experienced this tour. And it was a wise choice for us to hire a professional company because that road is no joke. We felt very comfortable with Debra. You will not regret taking the Road to Hana tour with...

We heard about this tour from a fellow Montage resident. He said he wouldn't do it again but it ticked off a box on his bucket list. Frankly, I kind of wished we had never heard about it from him. There were pluses: we saw the sunrise on Haleakala which we might never have done and we didn't have to make a reservation to drive up ourselves. Also, the driver, Billy, was amusing when he wasn't driving and his fellow guide (sorry I didn't catch his name) provided us with a lot of Hawaiian perspective and history which we really appreciate. However, I felt like a prisoner for an epic 8 hours. We were picked up at just shy of 2 am and arrived back at around 10 am. Coming from West Maui we stopped for some other folks south of us and also some folks who came on a smaller shuttle from probably Wailea. The bus was the absolute worst part of the trip. The shocks were "gone" and we "bottomed out" on every bump, speed zone, cattle gate, etc. of which there were many! Also, Billy who has been driving this tour for a long time, was a very fast driver and at times, our seat belts were working overtime to keep us from flying out of our seats. The portion in the dark from West Maui down to the isthmus was a nightmare. At one point I grabbed my husband and said we are going to die and I need to get off. I almost had a panic attack. Another plus, though, was the "poncho" they gave us at about 7000 feet up, at the first Visitors Center. After we arrived at the viewing point, they basically told us to get off the bus and go up to the railing. They remained on the bus and talked and slept. Another tour, Skyline, had their tour guide lead them to a great spot for viewing (to the left of the shop, out of the bitterly cold wind but with a very nice view of the sunrise) and spoke to them about what they were seeing and to watch out for the initial gold rimming of the clouds right where the sun was going to come up. They also provided their guests with warm jackets. We got back on the bus and heard some nice information on Hawaiian history and culture on the way back down. There was a nap or two advised here and there but it was difficult to nap given the driving and total lack of shock absorbers. The breakfast provided at the Maui Tropical Plantation (kind of cute but a tourist trap) was ok (the pancakes were the best) but I would rather have been able to go home right away. Overall, it was alright but I felt like we spent too much time on a bit of a nightmare journey for a quick stargaze and sunrise. I wouldn't recommend...

Seeing that the Road to Hana often is featured in the top 10 most dangerous roads in the world lists, we had booked a tour with Valley Isle Excursions to get a more enjoyable experience. And we were thankful that we did; the 54 single lane bridges and countless hairpin turns would have been extremely stressful.

Our tour guide Travis was a local from the area. He was very polite, attentive, humorous and informative throughout our trip. We learned a lot about Hana, the Hawaiian language, the regional history, personal anecdotes and many other aspects from him. He always strived to ensure that it was an inclusive and welcoming atmosphere. And he was an excellent driver; none of the passengers reported feeling nauseous along the way to Hana.

The tour begins early at 7 am (or earlier, if you're being picked up further out from Kihei). All your buses are capped at 12 passengers. The bus has AC, USB charging ports and refreshments onboard. First stop is a breakfast at a plantation with pastries and fresh fruit. From there, you'll make your way onto the Road to Hana. We stopped on the way there for restroom breaks, banana bread, local handmade products and for certain landmarks. The included lunch is deli-style with turkey sandwiches or a salad, as well as chips, a cookie, and your choice of juice or water. That said, most people will purchase the huli huli chicken plate lunch ($15) along the way, which is fantastic.

Currently, the tours are not doing the backside of Hana. So on the way back from lunch, you'll stop at and pass through the Black Sand beach and the waterfalls at Pua'a Ka'a State Wayside Park. You have the option of swimming at both of these sites. After another pit stop for shave ice, the group will drop you off at your designated pick up point from the morning (about 6 pm or so).

This was one of the best excursions that we had on Maui. We felt that this was a better overall experience than the Lanai sailing tour offered by Trilogy (if you're wondering on where to minimize your costs). If you're feeling hesitant about driving the road to Hana, do the locals and workers there a favour and take a tour instead. A sincere thank you goes out to Travis, who made this tour unforgettable and for sharing his...