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If you ever wondered exactly how far apart Hawaii and Maryland are, you’re not alone. Many people are curious about the distance between these two iconic states located on opposite sides of the continental United States.
If you’re short on time, here’s a quick answer to your question: Hawaii and Maryland are approximately 4,984 miles apart if you travel in a straight line from Honolulu to Baltimore.
In this comprehensive guide, we’ll look at the exact distance and best routes for getting between Hawaii and Maryland by plane, train, car, and even on foot if you’re up for the challenge.
Calculating the Distance Between Hawaii and Maryland
Using the Great Circle Distance Formula
The great circle distance formula is the most accurate way to calculate the distance between two points on the globe. To find the distance between Hawaii and Maryland, we would use the latitude and longitude coordinates of Honolulu, Hawaii and Annapolis, Maryland in the formula.
Plugging the coordinates into an online great circle distance calculator tells us that Honolulu and Annapolis are approximately 4,792 miles (7,710 km) apart as the crow flies. That’s quite a distance – nearly the width of the entire North American continent!
Factors That Influence Actual Travel Times
While a straight line between Hawaii and Maryland is almost 5,000 miles, the actual travel routes and times vary considerably depending on your mode of transportation:
As you can see, while Hawaii and Maryland are almost 5,000 miles apart “as the crow flies”, actually getting between the two states takes much longer based on your transportation mode. A direct flight may technically be the fastest way, but stopping to enjoy the journey makes the travel time worthwhile!
Traveling by Air
Direct Flights
There are currently no direct flights available between Hawaii and Maryland. To travel by air between the tropical paradise and the historic eastern state, passengers must connect through another major airport hub in the continental United States.
Connecting Flights
The most common route for connect flights is through Los Angeles, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Denver, Dallas, Chicago, Atlanta, or New York City. The total travel time can vary greatly depending on the number of connections, length of layovers, and flight delays.
For example, a trip with short 1-2 hour layovers in Phoenix and Chicago could take 18+ hours gate-to-gate. While a longer route with overnight layovers in San Francisco and New York City could span 30+ hours.
The average travel time for flights between Hawaii and Maryland is approximately 20-26 hours, including connections.
Total Estimated Travel Time
When estimating your total door-to-door travel time between Hawaii and Maryland, be sure to account for factors such as:
- Early airport arrival time (at least 90 minutes prior for domestic U.S. flights)
- Ground transportation time to/from airports
- Time in airport security lines
- Boarding/deplaning and gate connections
- Flight delays at any airport
- Time crossing multiple time zones
Adding in these additional factors, the total estimated travel time can easily extend to 25+ hours each way.
For example, departing from Kona International Airport on the Big Island of Hawaii – allowing 2 hours pre-flight, 1 hour layover in Los Angeles, 2 hours layover in Chicago, and 1 hour transportation from Baltimore Airport to your final Maryland destination would total approximately 26 hours door-to-door.
Be sure to get ample rest, stay hydrated, stretch your legs, and account for jet lag when planning any extended journey combining lengthy air travel over multiple climate zones and across several time zones.
Taking the Train or Driving
Driving the Distance
Driving from Hawaii to Maryland would be quite an epic road trip! To drive the 4,983 mile route, you’d have to traverse through multiple states and time zones over the course of several long days behind the wheel.
With no direct route, you’d likely take I-80 E through Nevada, Utah, Wyoming, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania and into Maryland. Fueling up often and switching drivers would be a necessity.
If going at a clip of 65 mph with minimal stops, it would take over 3 days and 22 hours of nonstop driving to make the coast-to-coast trek from Honolulu to Baltimore. Make sure to load up on road trip snacks and great driving tunes! 🚙⛽️🥨😎
Traveling by Train
Unfortunately, taking a direct passenger train from Hawaii to Maryland isn’t possible. Since Hawaii is an isolated island chain, there is no railway connecting it to the continental United States. You’d have to take multiple forms of transportation to bridge the gap.
First, you could take a train on Oahu to get around the island. Then fly to the West Coast and catch an Amtrak train heading eastbound. Routes like the California Zephyr and Capitol Limited traverse through places like Chicago, Pittsburgh and into Washington D.C. From there, it’s just a quick local train ride up to Baltimore.
Although quite scenic, going by rail would be more time consuming than driving or flying. You’d get to see some beautiful countryside along the way though! 🚂💺🛤️
Comparing Travel Times
| Mode of Transport | Duration |
| Driving | 3 days 22 hours |
| Passenger Train | 5-7 days (estimate) |
| Nonstop Flight | 10 hours 55 minutes |
As illustrated above, driving or taking the train from Hawaii to Maryland would be marathon trips spanning several days. With no direct passenger railway, travelers going by rail would have to combine routes.
Driving would enable you to take a more customized trip, but also requires more planning, fuel costs and endurance behind the wheel. Still, for those adventurous road warriors up for the challenge, driving nonstop could get you there in just under 4 days.
However, those short on time or seeking convenience would likely prefer the 10 hour nonstop flight option. 💺✈️🚙🤔 Ultimately, choosing the ideal transport depends on your priorities and interests in this cross-country journey between the Aloha State and Old Line State.
Each mode of travel has its own advantages for turn this 4,000+ mile distance into an unforgettable trip!
Hiking from Hawaii to Maryland
Walking Routes and Distances
Hawaii and Maryland are separated by around 7,500 miles of land and sea. To walk directly from Hawaii to Maryland following a straight line route would require crossing the Pacific Ocean, North American continent, and the Atlantic Ocean by foot – an impossible journey for any human.
A hypothetical hiking route could be charted starting from Honolulu, Hawaii and heading northeast through Canada, traversing through provinces like British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan before entering the United States through Montana.
One could continue hiking east through the Great Plains states like North Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin before reaching the eastern seaboard.
From New York, one would need to cross the expanse of the Atlantic Ocean, arriving in western Europe before continuing east through countries like France, Germany, Poland, and others before arriving in western Russia.
Heading south, one would pass through Ukraine, Romania, Bulgaria before entering Turkey and continuing through the Middle East until reaching Egypt. Crossing the Suez Canal, the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean would bring one to the eastern coast of Africa.
From there, still heading north and east through continents, you would eventually reach Maryland – a journey spanning three oceans and covering much of the northern hemisphere landmass.
The hiking distance for such a route would likely surpass 15,000 miles in total. Endurance athlete estimates suggest it would take over 3 years of nonstop walking to complete this distance.
Realistic Considerations
While interesting to conceptualize such a journey spanning continents, hiking from Hawaii to Maryland is entirely unrealistic and practically impossible for a human traveler. The immense distances crossing oceans and traversing through wildly varying geography and climate zones make it an unsurvivable adventure.
No person could physically walk 15,000+ miles carrying supplies necessary to sustain them for multiple years. Death from exposure, weather extremes, dangerous wildlife would also be near certain fates for anyone attempting such a hike.
Even with an impossible, unlimited food/water supply, the toll crossing thousands of miles of difficult terrain from forests to deserts would destroy the human body long before reaching the destination.
While perhaps theoretically possible with unlimited resources/support to walk this distance over many decades, in practical reality there is no way for someone to hike from Hawaii to Maryland within a normal human lifetime.
The distances are simply too vast, the obstacles too extreme for this journey to ever occur outside of imagination.
The only realistic way to travel from Hawaii to Maryland is by utilizing multiple modern transportation methods – flying, sailing, driving. Even then the trip would still require over a full day’s worth of transit connecting across routes on planes, trains or automobiles.
Claims of anyone accomplishing this specific hike themselves should certainly prompt skepticism.
Conclusion
As we’ve explored, Hawaii and Maryland are separated by nearly 5,000 miles as the crow flies. By plane, you can make the trip in about 18 hours including a short connection. Driving or taking the train takes days and is generally not a practical option for most people.
While the states seem worlds apart geographically and culturally, calculating the distance between them helps put their relationship as part of the same diverse country into perspective. We hope this guide gave you a deeper appreciation of just how far Hawaii is from Maryland!
