Any thoughts on Spirit of Aloha

[Carlyzmom]

Hmmm. This thread has got me thinking too. We have done the SOA show a few times before kids. I was thinking of taking them on our next trip. They went to the HDDR with my folks a couple of years ago, and I wanted to do something different. Now, I can't decide!

 

[jgualario]

Our ADR are all ready made so we will be going. However the next time I think I will ask BEFORE I book

 

[kycanonist]

Now I'm vexed, too.... I don't know which one I should go to... We already have our reservations for SoA...

 

[Stittsville]

Here are my thoughts posted years ago about our May 2007 trip, edited a bit. I doubt if things have changed that much. I won't touch upon the value for $$ aspect but give you my impressions, good and bad.



We did Spirit of Aloha on a Friday night. There was a very long line-up, and it took a long time to get in. Fortunately, it was a nice evening, so we did not mind waiting. Eventually though, they came and told us that if we did not want our picture taken, which involved extra $$$, we could go in a much faster line.

The seating layout was the biggest disappointment. (even though I had paid extra for tier 1 seating). The tables seat maybe 9 people(or was it 11 or 13?) and you have to look along the length of the table to see the stage. We were seated at the far end of the table, and the family nearer the stage were all large people, both height and width. (I am only 5'8) Too make matters worse, since people like to take photos or movies, hands and cameras are constantly out further blocking your view. If you manage to get at or near the very front of the table, I'm sure it would be great.

The show itself was two parts. The first was a rather corny, predictable "love/ugly duckling" story. However, the second part involving various native dances was quite entertaining, particularily the fire dance.

We enjoyed all the food, particularily the Pineapple-coconut Bread. Again, we ate too much. The price included all-you-can drink beer and wine, but we are small drinkers so that was not much of a bargain for us.

The waiter was fine - professional but not as sociable as I would like.

Overall, we were glad we did the show once, but would not likely do it again. Maybe years from now.

 

[Dan Murphy]

We did it during our stay at the Polynesian. Whole family enjoyed it, thought the food and entertainment were great. Enjoy.

The late show does have a Tables in Wonderland 20% discount.

 

[FosterA]

We're going to do the Aloha show in November and I'm really looking forward to it. Never been before.....but, we're in TX so every time we eat out it's like the Hoop De doo review (or whatever it's called)!
I'm ready for something not country-bumpkin for a change!

 

[Mouse's Shadow]

We've seen SOA on our last two visits. We really enjoy it. The food is very good. I seem to be building quite the the collection of SOA souvenir glasses. The show is a lot of fun. They call the kids up front to dance. And the Fire dancer is great. We've done HDDR too and also loved it. If you haven't seen it, it is worth giving it a try. Plus the Poly resort is beautiful to walk through.

 

[threvester]

My son and I have been twice...that was 2 times too many..the food was horrible and the show was also (we thought we just caught a bad night the first time)...Hoop de Doo from now on!!

 

[Robo]

Consider this:


The Aloha show runs- 2 shows per night, Tuesday-Saturday only.

The Hoop runs- 3 shows per night, 7 nights a week.

 

[Eeyore98]

It's definitely worth doing once. I'm not in a big rush to go back, as we only do one "big" thing per trip (La Nouba, SOA, etc.) and there are some tours I want to see as well as HDD before going again. But DH and I had fun when we did this last summer. The show is kinda corny, but neat to see all the different Polynesian dancing styles, and the fire-dancer is awesome.

Food-wise, we LOVED everything on the 'appetizer' course, which was fresh pineapple, the bread, and the salad. All the main course stuff was ok but not great, and we both thought the dessert was hard and gross. So overall, the food was average. If we do ever go back, I think I'll ask if they can bring me more pineapple instead of the dessert!

 

[momtotwo]

Love the spirit of aloha. We go every time we get to Disney and wouldn't miss it. Love the food too. I say go for it!

 

[eebadeeba]

I have been twice. I like the cheesy musicals and I like the food. The little kids got a little bored by the end, but I love the last part of the show. I was lucky and sat at the front both times. I like the food, but pretty much like anything when someone else is cooking.

 

[bdcp]

We went in 2005 and had a pretty good time. We did Hoop de Doo in 2008 and had a great time. We're planning on SOA in Oct just to mix it up some. We stay at SOG so it's an easy walk over and back. The food is okay at SOA. We though the food at HDDR was just okay too. But, I do have to say the HDDR show is excellent. We had tier 1 seats at both shows and will be doing 1 again in Oct for SOA.

 

[AnnaS]

I am trying to decide between the two also. We have done the HDR -but it has been a few years. Wanted to try something different - but I am also re-thinking this now.

 

[k5thbeatle]

Just curious, approximately how long is the whole show, food and all? Are you eating/being served while the show is going on or do you see the show and then eat (or vice-versa)? Can someone maybe elaborate a little more on specifically what the food consists of that is served? Is the wine any good? Is it some "Hawaiian" wine or something? Just looking for a few more details. For those of you who said the food was just average or even poor could you maybe elaborate as to what you didn't like about it? Thanks

 

[Goofy4]

Just curious

There's a good (well, accurate -- the review is so-so) review here: http://www.dadsguidetowdw.com/spirit-of-aloha.html

I'm not sure about the length of the show, but it is somewhere close to 2 hours.

For anyone on the fence between HDDR an SoA... HDDR has at least a few guaranteed laughs for everyone and is generally a safer bet for a family.

 

[tripplanner2]

I have 2 questions about the show for those who have been. Is there a benefit to going to the later show? It is outdoor seating and I can imagine it being hot in August for the 5:00pm show, not to mention that with it still being daylight, does that take away from the show? And second, my goal is to have a laid back day and then hit the show and then MK for extra magic hours. I know we won't enter MK until around 7pm but figure it may be fun anyway. So, the night I am looking to do this, only tier 3 seating is available. How bad are the seats? We are on the dining plan but I would hate to waste all those credits.

 

[Mouse's Shadow]

We like the later show, because it tends to be cooler. We've always done tier 1 seating, but I don't think there is a bad seat there. It is a rather small venue, but perhaps someone who has sat toward the rear could give you a definitive answer.

 

[soulmates]

Like so many others, I went as a child when it was the Luau and I enjoyed it. Of course, I was 12 and the food was "different" so I thought that meant good.

I haven't been back but this trip DP really wants to go, so we're going with the expectation of just having fun. We realize we're NOT in Hawaii, the food will be okay, and the show will be cheesy. It's the experience of it, just to have fun and let loose one night. All our other ressies are very nice TS dinners, so why not do ONE night where we get transported back to 1979 and we can be kids again? Sounds good to this grown up kid!

 

[tripplanner2]

We like the later show, because it tends to be cooler. We've always done tier 1 seating, but I don't think there is a bad seat there. It is a rather small venue, but perhaps someone who has sat toward the rear could give you a definitive answer.

Thanks for the heads up. I had a feeling the 5pm show may be hot. No big fans or anything to cool the place down? The catagory 3 may be a non issue because that is all I am finding available.

For such an unpopular show, this is the hardest ADR to get. But I want to go for just the same reason the previous poster mentioned. It will be something different and a new memory. Not concerned about the food.