Maui is one of the top destinations for Canadian snowbirds, with fantastic weather, wonderful food, dreamy beaches and a warm, welcoming culture. TravelPulse Canada senior editorial director Jim Byers has been to the island two dozen times and counts it as his favourite place on earth. Here are some of his recommendations for great coastal driving trips and things to see along the way.

THE ROAD TO HANA

This is the star of the show, a wonderful, famous two-lane drive (with a few dozen short, one-way bridges) that snakes along steep cliffs and through dense thickets of palm trees and African tulip trees, which bloom with massive orange flowers in season. You’ll see fantastic views at several turns, and you’ll also find a number of waterfalls, some of them only a few steps off the road. Don’t miss a stop at the Keanae peninsula along the way, where you’ll find stark black lava fields lashed by brilliant blue waves and foaming whitecaps. There’s also a washroom, a pretty church and a snack bar selling banana bread, drinks, hot dogs and other goodies, and a baseball field where the kids can run and stretch their legs. You’ll find a small, casual selection of shops and roadside food places just before Hana in a small “village” called Nahiku, including a very nice Thai place. Also along the way is a fun spot for ice cream and snacks called Coconut Glen’s. Stop at Wai’anapanapa State Park for more excellent views of black lava fields and crashing blue waves, then head into the small town of Hana itself. The road was treacherous 30 years ago but it's well paved nowadays and isn't difficult. But it does take time (at least two hours or three from Kahului), so don't rush it.

BEYOND HANA

It used to be that rental car companies went all goofy on folks who tried to drive around the south end of the island. But the roads are quite good now, for the most part, and you’re unlikely to run into trouble. Past the small town of Hana is a beautiful park called Koki Beach Park, where you’ll find a casual dining spot that sells excellent roast/bbq chicken called Huli Huli Chicken. There’s pretty good surfing at times but the water that can be a little tricky, so try to limit your swimming to calm days to be safe. Stay on the small road that takes you to Koki Beach Park and continue west til you get to Hamoa Beach, once called the prettiest in Hawaii by Mark Twain. You’ll pass beautiful Wailua Falls on your way to O’heo Gulch (formerly known as the Seven Sacred Pools), a series of lovely ponds and waterfalls that cascade down the back side of Mt. Haleakala towards the ocean. There’s great hiking and picnic spots all around. Past O’heo Gulch and down a short side road is Palapala Ho’Omau Church, where you’ll find a graveyard containing the final resting place of famed pilot Charles Lindbergh. Continue along some fairly narrow roads past beautiful coastal views and dry, desert scrub all the way to Ulapalakua, which sits at 2,000 feet and offers tremendous views of the island. There's also a nice winery.

NORTH SHORE DRIVE

It doesn’t get the same attention but the drive around the north end of the island on HIghway 340 north and east from Kapalua also is fantastic. It’s not as lush as the Hana drive and sometimes feels more like Ireland than Hawaii, but that’s what makes it interesting. You’ll find sensational coastal views with steep cliffs and the odd roadside stand or food truck, and there are excellent hikes along the coast near the Nakalele Blowhole, where water surges from the ocean and spews out of the rocks like a geyser. There are a couple of one-way sections around the village of Kahakuloa, so be aware of that. There’s not a lot to see in the village but you’ll find a beautiful wooden church and a few places for shaved ice (Hawaiian snow cones) or banana bread and a couple of art galleries. Continue on past there on a narrow, snaking road high above the Pacific that takes you to the town of Wailuku, near the main Maui airport. Some folks who depart from the resorts near Kapalua and Napili like to turn around at the viewpoint for the massive rock called Kahakuloa Head and retreat back to Kapalua to avoid the one-way sections of the road. You can take a large car on the road to Hana and for most of the north-side drive. But if you want to go into Kahakuloa or beyond, I'd stick with a compact or even a moped to avoid worrying yourself to death on the narrow or one-way sections.