When booking my trip to Hawaii, the rental cars were $500/day so we opted for a UHaul.
Apparently a lot of the rental car companies sold their cars during the pandemic for cash flow.
And the lack in supply was caught off guard by travel’s incredible rebound. Everyone just wants to get away.
But we weren’t about to cancel the trip because of a little obstacle. The UHaul cost $100/day plus mileage. What was not included — that which comes free of charge — is the UHaul lifestyle that ensues.
After passing a virtual covid test in which I spit into a tube while a strange man was watching me on Zoom I got approved to enter the island.
We arrived in Maui and headed to the gun shop owned and operated by two Hawaiian sisters, which manages the UHaul trucks. This sets the tone.
Driving a UHaul truck along the coast of Maui feels exactly as you might imagine: hilarious.
It was fantastic for groceries and picking up paddle boards. Not so great for parking.
It provided a sublime vantage of the Hawaiian lava fields. Not so easy trying to turn around.
A journalist featured me and the UHaul in a story.
And the following day the Tourism Minister published a statement saying how disrespectful it was because locals may actually need them to move!
Ya live ya learn.
But it was really only after returning the UHaul and departing Maui that the gravity of the decision became clear.
If travel is measured with memories: and if the fondest memories are the unexpected or creative or weird: can we create the right conditions for more of them to happen?
I don’t think I’ll rent a UHaul the next place I go unless I have to. But I will be looking out for another UHaul-style excuse.
Photo credit: Mangofish Studios