Recommendations for Weekend Bike Rides in Maui

A Maui bike loop ride map from Paia to Ho'okipa and Makawao.

The month of May is always one of the best months to ride a bike on Maui. The weather is not as warm as the summer months and we have limited trade winds blowing. The roads are nearly empty before the summer visitor influx. With the first of the summer swells arriving, some of the best views of the waves will be from the seat of a bike!

Where to Ride a Bike on Maui

If you want to get out for a bike ride on Maui this Memorial Day holiday weekend, the biggest decision will be choosing where to ride! My best recommendations for mountain biking this weekend: Consider contributing to a very worthwhile charity by riding in the Mountain Bike Relays benefiting Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Maui on Saturday. Sign up using the online registration form at MauiRaceReg.com. Then, on Sunday afternoon, join our weekly shop ride for a fun sunset mountain bike ride in West Maui mountains. Though road cyclists don’t have any organized rides over the Memorial day weekend, you won’t have any problem finding road riding bike routes for cycling around Maui! Use the long weekend to get in some training with a 10K feet climb up Haleakala so you'll be ready for the upcoming Cycle to the Sun ride, the longest steepest paved ride on the planet. Or, for slightly less strenuous ride, ride the West Maui Loop or use the extra holiday weekend day to ride a bike on the road to Hana. Here are a few of our favorite Maui bike rides:

Maui Performance Road Bike Rentals by Specialized

• Paia and Ho’okipa Beach Park with Makawao Loop Upcountry Ride – If you don’t feel like riding all the way out to Hana on your bike, a shorter loop ride exists. Ride your bike or drive to Central Maui. You can park a car at either Kanaha Beach Park or at Baldwin Beach Park and we’ll use Baldwin Park as our recommend bike ride starting point. From Baldwin Beach Park, ride along the Hana Highway using the bike path on the ocean side of the road. Ride toward Paia and Kanaha Beach Park. Though the famous waves of Jaws are usually firing more in the winter month, the bike ride to Ho’okipa Beach Park and a little beyond will give you a sense for the road to Hana ride. I like this road bike ride as it provides opportunity to avoid riding the same route in as you take going out. To make a loop out of the ride, you’ll want to continue riding a few miles past Ho’okipa until you get to Haiku Road. If you miss Haiku Road, an alternate route is Pauwela Road. Whichever you choose, you’ll want to begin riding away from the ocean till you get to Kaukikoa Road. Continue riding and climbing through the rural upcountry scenic area until you get to Kaupakakua Road, where you’ll make another right. Kaupakakua Road turns into Makawao Avenue. Continue on Makawao Avenue until you get into the town of Makawao where you’ll make a right on Baldwin Avenue. After you spend a little time exploring the shops in Makawao or grabbing a snack and refilling your hydration bottle, you’ll want to continue on Baldwin Avenue and ride back down toward the ocean and Paia before returning to the Hana Highway and riding back into Central Maui.
  

View Bicycle Loop ride from Paia to Ho'okipa and Makawao in a larger map

Or, save this Maui bike route map link to your mobile device and use the map after you rent a bike at West Maui Cycles Lahaina bike shop.

Maui bicycle rental, the Cannondale Quick CX 4

• Lahaina to the Olowalu Petroglyph – The Lahaina to Olowalu bicycle ride is a fun ride for families or those looking to combine a road ride with a little off road mountain bike riding. The total round trip ride is about 15 miles on mostly flat paved road with scenic ocean views before heading off road for the short three quarter mile single track ride to the petroglyph at Olowalu. Unless you want to rent a performance mountain bike or the Specialized 29’er HT, a good choice for this ride is our Cannondale Quick CX4 hybrid bike rentals. Your whole family will enjoy this bike ride in West Maui and kids of all ages love exploring the petroglyph. Take along plenty of hydration and carry towels with a swim suits to cool with an ocean swim after exploring the historic petroglyph. With the bike ride passing by Puamana and Luaniupoko Beach Parks, use the bike locks provided with all of our rental bicycles and dive in before riding back to Lahaina.

Arial image showing the West Maui Loop bike route.

• The West Maui Loop Cycling Ride – Under 60 miles, the West Maui Loop ride is the same bike route we follow on our weekly Weds morning shop ride. You'll find this ride one of the most fun bike rides on Maui! The ride offers breathtaking scenery around every corner and some compare to to what is found on the Road to Hana ride but without the distance or time involved on the famous ride out to East Maui and around South Maui. If you are interested in this ride, be sure to check out our West Maui Loop bike ride description for information and advice about riding around West Maui. Find out if you should ride clockwise or counterclockwise.

Need a rental bike for one of the Maui bicycle rides described above? No problem! High performance road bikes from Specialized, full suspension mountain bikes or beach cruisers are available at West Maui Cycles bike shop in Lahaina. Head over to our Maui bike rentals page to select the bike you’d like to rent. Then, hit the rental bike reservation button to reserve a rental bike to ride during a cycling vacation on Maui! Choose a Maui bicycle rental now: