Our Maui Tour guides

The guides’ day starts at 5am at the tour van base yard. They load up the vans with bottled water and ice, look over the checklist for their vehicle and review the manifest of people they will be picking up that day. This is the beginning of a 14-hour day for them!

The tour includes hotel pickup and drop-off, starting around 6:45 AM. The first pickup time is for the west side of the island, approximately 30 to 40 minutes from the base yard. Since these vans carry only 12 passengers and most people join as couples, there are usually about 5 to 6 pickups before heading to breakfast. Arriving at Cafe O Lei at the Mill House around 7:30 AM, the tour begins with a tropical continental breakfast. As guests enjoy breakfast and get acquainted with fellow passengers, the guides check in with each other.

These guides are often locals who were born and raised in the islands, or have lived on Maui for most of their life. They have all told us that in one way or another that the road to Hana gets in your blood. Some have family in Hana, some grew up in Hana and all are not only proud but honored to share their Aloha and knowledge of the island and Hana with visitors from around the world. Often we hear them referring to their guests as “my people.” They feel that showing people the Hawaiʻian way of thinking and living is something that can make a real difference in the world. To be honest, most of them would make great stand up comedians too! Laughter is definitely a big part of our tours!

Aside from being fully trained professional drivers, these guides are also storytellers. They are part historian, part botanist, part climatologist and an entertainer to the core, providing interpretation of the sites all day long. Having provided so many tours, our guides have become aware of how a lot of guests start the day quiet and somewhat shy and by lunch the whole group has become more like a giggling kindergarten class.

What people enjoy the most from these guides are the stories of life and living on Maui that they share throughout the day. For example, a guide’s childhood story about how her parents wouldn’t let her play in the streams of Hāna alone until she could hear a stone thrown into the water rolling with the current becomes part of her tour. The streams of Hāna often experience sudden flash floods that start high in the mountains and roll down to the usually sunny coastline. When this happens, the only warning is the sound of rocks being pushed by a wall of water. As she puts it, “growing up in Hāna, you have to have jungle smarts.”

Our drivers expertly time their stops to avoid crowding multiple vans at the same location simultaneously. They coordinate who will lead the pack and who will bring up the rear. This careful planning ensures a more enjoyable experience for everyone. Each stop can range from a 15-minute overlook visit to a full hour for swimming, giving you plenty of time to soak in the stunning views or take a refreshing dip. With this approach, you can fully appreciate each unique location without feeling rushed or overwhelmed by crowds.

After all guests have been dropped off, the van is refueled and dropped off at the base yard. Mechanical reports are filled out (any new squeaks?) and another 14 hour day if finished.

Our aloha goes out to these men and women of Maui who not only inform and guide, but keep people safe. If you really want to get a feel for life in Maui, join us on one of our tours! It may be one of the best things you’ve ever done in Maui, or anywhere for that matter!