Manoa Valley Rainforest & Bamboo Forest Hike - Any reviews?

[auteur55]

Hello Everyone,

We are planning one big excursion and are thinking this hike may be the way to go. I know we can just drive there and do it for free but Disney excursion takes care of transportation, has a guide and seems to take us to more then just the waterfall. I kind of like not having the stress of figuring out things and can stare out the transport windows instead of driving. Anyone do this excursion and have any reviews??

 

[hopeful4fl]

We were just there (10 days ago) and did the hike. Since you are on a guided tour, makes it easier to review (since finding a place to park and trying to keep up with the speed limits is a pain).

I hike often, so it was an easy hike for me. The scenery was awesome. Posting a couple of pics to whet your appetite (well.....tried but the files are too big and got an error.):

Here are some pointers:

1> Do NOT hurry. There are excellent views from the trail and there are some areas where you can step off the trail to look at the flowing stream. Completely your call if you want to do it.
2> Make sure to have Bug Spray with you and ON you.
3> Depending on your speed, plan about 30 mins to get to the falls (assuming you are stopping and looking at the mountains, flowers, etc)
4> They have the pool at the bottom of the waterfall closed.
5> There is a hard boulder trail at the waterfall that I would have loved to take, but time ran out on me (we did this as a squeeze between some plans). IF you do it, please do post your own experience. Would love to look at it.
6> Plan on the trail to be crowded, with people going various speeds. Just remember you are there to have FUN.
7> IF at all possible, see if you can combine a Waikiki beach day with your excursion. You are so close to it.

 

[thedogatemyhomework]

I’ve heard that some of the disney excursions get cancelled if not enough people sign up for it, so you may want to call and see if thats the case before deciding. Manoa falls is a popular tourist hike, and parking/getting there can be a pain, so probably good odds that there will be enough others doing the excursion.

The boulder path is probably the one that would lead to the 2nd waterfall (not as nice, and harder to get to...also high chance of getting muddy...but most likely less crowded). But its also possible that I’m remembering that part wrong.

 

[auteur55]

Thanks for the feedback. We are pretty sold on the hike but were curious if it's worth booking through Disney. Funny but I got off the phone with the booking agent and he talked me out of it! Said it's easy to just rent a car and do it ourselves. Only benefit of booking through Disney is you get transportation that's it. Hopeful4fl do you have a recommendation for parking?

 

[hopeful4fl]

Thanks for the feedback. We are pretty sold on the hike but were curious if it's worth booking through Disney. Funny but I got off the phone with the booking agent and he talked me out of it! Said it's easy to just rent a car and do it ourselves. Only benefit of booking through Disney is you get transportation that's it. Hopeful4fl do you have a recommendation for parking?

Please put Manoa falls within your smartphone and it will lead you right to it. PLEASE watch out for speed signs once you turn into the neighborhoods. The roads are windy and I saw 20 mph almost all the way.

Now to the parking part. There is a restaurant there called the Treetop that has an upper level parking with a sign they will tow. From talking to people, they do tow, but these people were the ones collecting the money for the lower parking lot ($5), so they had a vested interest. My advise is to pay the $5 and take all stress out of it.

IN CASE the lot is full, my advise would be to back track to the neighborhood (maybe half a mile or less) and then walk to the trail.

If you do find parking at the lower paid lot, the road to the trail is right next to it. There is a paved road that goes up about 300 yards and then the actual trail starts beyond the gates.

This is a hike I think you would like. As I said, we actually had plans at Waikiki, and since you are now driving, make sure you do that too. Here is what I think would be an optimal plan, but this is what "I" would do and not saying this would work for you:

Leave Aulani at 9:15 to arrive by 10'ish. THIS IS TO BEAT RUSH HOUR. I would do this on a weekday to take local people out of the trail.
Spend exploring Manoa for 2-3 hours. This would put you around 1'ish
Go to Waikiki. If you plan to go to Duke's, MAKE RESERVATIONS. If you plan to go hit the beach directly, find a good joint to eat. I would recommend Tommy Bahama restaurant if you don't want to do Duke's. There are dozens of other places you can pick from.
Alternatively, you can do Diamond head too. If too much for a day, just take in the sights of Waikiki.

Regardless of what you end up doing, I am sure you will have fun. Be safe on the trail and enjoy your time.

 

[newdeal]

Its a really nice hike, the terrain is rocky, and slippery and often has fallen trees across it so its a real hike unlike diamond head and make sure you are wearing appropriate clothing and shoes. The treetop restaurant is a basic place to sit for a little buffet afterwards as well. We didn't have a guide, and if you have a car that would be a waste of money, it wasn't rocket science to find it and once you find it you will be with a bunch of other tourists leading the way. Here is a story from when we went on our walk, as we were walking back we heard a rustling sound and then a bunch of swear words. As we got there we saw a dog looking down into the ravine, I looked down into the ravine beside the trail and saw his owner down there who had tripped over his dog and fallen down into the ravine. It was wet and slippery and because of all the vegetation didn't look steep but it was, he wasn't hurt but was like 10 feet down or so. He asked us for help and to keep his dog from trying to come down after him. My wife watched the dog and we got the attention of some other walkers and we hunted for vines and bamboo in the jungle that we could dangle down to him and pull him out. He was ok, but it gave us a story that we will remember forever.