by Kiara Flores
Foreword: This article was written before the August 2023 fires that devastated Maui and its citizenry. I’m pained by the destruction of such a beautiful and welcoming part of the world and hope for the speedy recovery of its community. I also urge travelers to send help their way through reputable local organizations like the Maui Strong Fund—and to only visit Maui once it has recuperated to bolster its tourism industry, with respect to any guidelines the locals and the government put forth.
When my fiancé Caleb and I started planning our trip to Maui, I was initially against renting a car. On vacation, I operate in one of two modes: either I go on a tour—I’m a plan-every-detail-of-the-vacation kind of girl—or, if I can’t have my precise itinerary, I take public transportation to reduce my carbon footprint and save Mother Nature. The Maui Bus public transit system seemed like a good choice, accessible from the airport and offering a day pass of $4.
Caleb, who is a let’s-go-on-adventures kind of guy, would not hear of it. We’d be missing out on the best of Maui, he’d argued—plus, we were celebrating his birthday on the trip. So I gave in and reluctantly rented a car, and it was probably the best decision we made on the entire vacation.
Smooth pickup from the airport
Though we booked our rental in advance for pickup at the airport, I was expecting actually finding the car to be an ordeal. Kahului—its official name—is the primary airport of Maui and the second busiest airport in Hawaii. When I saw the crowds milling around, I predicted we’d waste an extra hour finding our vehicle.
Fortunately, Caleb had more sense than me. After picking up our luggage, he asked for directions from an airport worker, who directed us to a tram. It turns out that finding the car rentals at Maui Airport is a breeze—once we arrived at the new CONRAC facility, it was easy to find our car rental company. They presented us with the keys to our electric car, and we drove to our hotel in what felt like a blink.
Transportation at any time
The next day was Caleb’s birthday, and unfortunately for my night owl tendencies, he wanted to view the sunrise at Haleakalā National Park. It was partially why he requested the car. Even if an Uber were available when we had to wake up at the terrible hour of 3 AM, it wouldn’t have been a viable means of transportation. The thing is, I wasn’t even sure if the car was either.
After we flashed our IDs and reservation at the entrance station, the journey to the summit was 30 terrifying minutes of wind and darkness, with no streetlights or guard rails for security. I was gripping the upholstery the entire time. We did, however, get to our parking slot in one piece, and it was a much smoother ride than I anticipated. And as the sun rose breathtakingly over the majestic crater and shone on my fiancé’s grinning face, I remembered I was on vacation in paradise.
Personalized stops
The next phase of our vacation was the quintessential Road to Hana. We went to all the big hits, like the gloriously green Kaumahina State Park and the fascinating Hasegawa General Store—but since we were behind the wheel, we were also able to pause every time we glimpsed a waterfall, beach, or interesting-looking trail. By the end, I had to admit there was something to the spontaneity a car rental gives you. You can’t park curbside on a whim to munch on banana bread and wait for a geyser to blast while on tour.
Cargo space for shopping
The last part of our journey sealed the deal on the wisdom of getting a car rental. Since I tagged along on Caleb’s wild nature adventures, he happily indulged me when I pulled him to The Shops at Wailea to find the renovated Louis Vuitton store I’d heard about. The store itself was beautiful, featuring Hawaiian floral accents and stunning curated artwork—and the shopping was divine. Since I had the car, lots of cargo space, and a handsome chauffeur to transport my purchases to boot, nothing stopped me from buying to my heart’s content.
Easy return
Returning the car was as simple as picking it up. We went to Maui airport and emptied it of our many suitcases, and then handed the keys off to a friendly car rental employee. I was almost sad to do it—after driving around it so much, it felt like a second home.
No doubt about it—renting a car in Maui was the correct choice. I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to explore this beautiful island.
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