Aulani & DL to meet Santa Update 06Jul12 Page 10 Christmas at Disney

[areweindisneyyet]

Welcome home. Can't wait to hear more.

Thanks Ms Shuttergirl

I will get all catched up soon....

Hope you had a great Christmas.

 

[areweindisneyyet]

Our last day in Waikiki.

We had a last breakfast at Denny's (love the hash browns, gotta say).

Grandma and Grandpa headed to Ala Moana, and we went for a wander up to the International Marketplace. Stopped in Macy's and got DD1 some Calvin Klein jeans on sale and picked up some trinkets for the girls friends at the Marketplace.

We then headed back to the hotel and to the pool for an afternoon of splashing around (DH packing). Joined by Grandma and Grandpa and we enjoyed a pina colada by the pool. Thanks Grandpa.

For dinner we were given the private dining room at the Grill restaurant on the beach at the Hawaiian Village where we ate watching the sun set over the ocean. A fitting end to the first part of the of our adventure.

Tomorrow Aulani

 

[areweindisneyyet]

Uploading photos while off to get groceries

back soon

 

[OziJo]

Great photos. Thanks for the tip on getting to Pearl Harbour early.

I'm so torn I can't wait to get to Waikiki but then that means our WDW trip will be over!

 

[aussietravellers]

Welcome Home. Glad the lego arrived in time.

Gosh you are good, getting in last night and having the laundry done ! Takes me days, unpacking is my least favourite part of a trip

Looking forward to the rest of your report .

 

[PrincessInOz]

Welcome home! Looking forward to the rest of your TR and your photos.

 

[WAMUMOF4]

Welcome home.

 

[Toy Story]

Welcome back, I have really enjoyed reading your Hawaii part of the trip.

 

[areweindisneyyet]

I had organised a private car to take us from the Hilton to Aulani at 10am so that we didn't have to rush, yet also make the most of a day at Aulani. We arrived shortly before 11am to be greeted in the driveway by cast members who greeted us with fresh lei's and nut necklaces.

We were offered fruit infused water as a refreshment. The bellmen took our bags and we were escorted into the lobby and told the stories of the design. There are murals that depict the history of Hawaii from ancient times to present.

A beautiful rainbow mural is behind the reception desk which is comprised of photos sent in by local school children called the Keiki Wall to reflect what they believe Hawaii is. It looked amazing. Check in was simple and the best bit was that our rooms were available right there and then. We were in the right tower, Wai’anae Tower on the 9th floor with an ocean view. We were also given a copy of the Daily Iwa to decide which activities we would like to participate in. Tonight there was a movie on the lawn area near the beach to watch.

WOW, can I say now, this is a place that photo's don't do justice. It is just as beautiful if not more. After looking at the view from the verandah we decided that it was time to explore.

As we walked back past the lobby we found Mickey waiting to greet us and had our photos taken. We head around to Off the Hook which is a bar area for lunch. Grandma and I had the turkey wrap with sweet potato fries each. We should really just have shared as we could only get through half. The girls had grilled chicken with regular fries. The men folk decided on Angus Burgers, Grandpa with regular fries and DH with taro chips which were interesting. Some cocktails too - Blue Hawaii and Pina Colada.

We purchased the refill cups for $18.99 which allowed us to refill soft drinks from the Lava Shack, the Store and One Paddle throughout the stay. Options included coke, zero, sprite, lemonade and iced tea. These cups could also be used for coffee at the Store and in the Olelo Bar in the mornings which was great. Drinks were $3 so 6 refills made it worthwhile.

We decided it was time to hit the pools so up to change we went. We went to the towel tent and got arm bands for the pool which they give to each registered guest in rooms per day. They sign off on it, and got our towels. The kid water playground was out of action so we found a nice quiet spot on lounge chairs with an umbrella. Off to the waterslides. Both are accessed from the top of the volcano. The volcano vertical is on the left hand side and takes you through a pitch black tunnel through the inside of the mountain. AWESOME. Rode this too many times to count. The kids had a great time yelling out as they went down as the sound travels up and down the slide. DD2 brought a smile to her face with the comment 'You are the best mum in the whole world'. On the right side is the tube slide which you can ride as a single or a double depending on the size of your tube. Speedy and fun no matter which you choose. DD2 went flying off the front a few times at the bottom when we got lots of speed up. This launches you into the Waikolohe Stream where you float around a lazy pool. It feels very slow in the tubes however when you hop out and float around it felt like you moved faster. It was very beautiful and serene. We also discovered the spa's. There is a quiet one near the lobby area in middle of the lazy river. The others were located near the beach front overlooking the water and the sunset. These felt sooo warm but so nice.

This was a great way to fill the afternoon and before we knew it we had missed the movie. We headed upstairs to get changed for dinner. I had read that the variety of food on offer was not great and this I would have to agree with as someone staying at the hotel. We went back to Off the Hook but they offer a much smaller appetiser selection in the evening that was not going to work for dinner for us. Instead we headed to One Paddle, which offered the same menu as lunch but just as a takeaway option. We ordered this and ate in the room. By the time we had returned we had received a turn down service with a fresh orchid on our beds with a copy of tomorrow's Iwa. The evening view over the pool was breathtaking and I decided there and then that coming was well and truly worth it.

Tomorrow, more of the grounds, a breakfast with the characters, Aunty's House, Cocktails by the adult pool and exploring the surrounds.

Mia

 

[aussietravellers]

All I can say is WOW!

Thank you so much for sharing. I absolutely love your report of Aulani so far. The Keiki wall is gorgeous, what a fabulous idea to do that and it looks so pretty and is such a lovely story to tell guests and to get the locals involved in the resort. Love the view from your room, love the pool pics, loved the whole report .

It's nice they met you with the lei's & juice too. I love it how the hotels in Hawaii do that. In the last half a dozen trips in recent years we have stayed at the Moana Surfrider (was a Sheraton, then became a Westin) and they always greet with orchid leis & nut ones for the men and a yummy guava juice. Just makes arriving in Hawaii that little more magical.

Can't wait to read more!

 

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

Oh my WOW!!!! The resort looks absolutely beautiful. And with that awesome Disney style that they bring to everything. Sounds like you are getting great service, shame about the limited food choices. Hopefully Disney fixes that up soon.

The pool's and gardens look stunning.

Is Aulani extremely expensive compared to similar level resorts in the area?

 

[PrincessInOz]

WOW! Aulani is spectacular. Okay. Need to plan a holiday to Hawaii.

 

[Mum from oz]

Welcome home! Great report on Hawaii so far. Aulani look beautiful. It definitely makes me want to stay there one day. Can't wait to hear more!

 

[areweindisneyyet]

Woke up and opened to the curtains, and yes, I was not dreaming.

We had booked the Buffet Breakfast at the Makahiki Restaurant with Aunty. Aunty visits three days a week and some of her Disney friends drop by. Other mornings it is just a normal buffet breakfast.

DH and I had already been downstairs on a coffee run to the Olelo Room which is located right next door. People were coming to enquire about breakfast to be told without a reservation they would not be seated. This breakfast was my dad's belated birthday present so I told DH I would just confirm to be sure. They had no record of our reservation. I also knew that I had a printed confirmation upstairs so I popped up to get in and went back down and all was good.

At 8 we headed down for breakfast. After going through the whole lost reservation thing AGAIN our Ohana (Family) were seated at one of the outside tables overlooking the pool area. It was beautiful but a little fresh so DH went back up to the room to grab an extra layer. We were greeted by Mickey at the door for a photo that we could have purchased. On sitting down our drink orders were taken and we headed to the buffet which had a great range of island, Japanese and Western breakfast food. My favourite was the Eggs Benedict version which came on purple muffin and used a Spanish Sausages as the meat. It was just a little hard to get of the buffet with dignity.

During our breakfast both Minnie and Goofy visited our table. Minnie stopped for a short visit and Goofy came and made us wave our napkins along to a song sung by Aunty. Aunty talks to dinners throughout the meal talking of Hawaiian customs. She also sings songs and has puppet fish and coconut shells that she gives to the children to follow her in a conga line through the restaurant. She also sings a special birthday song to birthday children and teaches them a hula. A special birthday cake was bought out for my dad and the waiters sung him happy birthday.

After a few trips to the buffet a light rain began which certainly encouraged us to finish up as there was little protection from the rain at our table and it was full inside and nowhere to go. So watch out for this if the skys are grey.

We then went to the Pau Hana Room which is like a community hall where they offer craft activities and board games to register for the Menehune Adventure. This is a bit like the Kim Possible Challenge at WDW with a mobile device sending messages and signals throughout the resort. We handed over a room key and signed a form saying we would pay for costs of not returning the device and headed out for the free activity. We chose to start outside but there is a lobby version.

With one child per 2 adults we set off around the resort helping Aunty with our tasks. Aunty talked a little too much at times but the activities and magical mischief we created was lots fun and got some great reactions from other guests who were quite unsure why things had just happened around them. Our younger daughter chose to do a second stage of the adventure by our eldest had enough after the first. Our two groups only doubled up on two activities over the hour or so that we spent. It was lots of fun and would be great for the children to go off and explore on their own.

We took a quick look at the gift shop - Kalepa's Store which had some unique Aulani souvenirs and pins. The shop is also a refillable mug station and stocks some basic food items and frozen meals. The Dooney and Burke bags were beautiful. The sun was coming out so we decided to hit the pools again and wait for my brother to call as they were arriving today. We found a great spot with four chairs by the spa near the lobby. It was very private. We made camp there for the day and hit the slides and pools. The girls wanted to go snorkelling in the snorkel lagoon so I purchased tickets for them and my dad to join them. There arm band for the day got a special clip allowing them entry all day. Like all things Disney you become an adult at 10 so for DD1 and my dad it was $30 for the day and $20 for DD2.

They had a great time with lots of fish. They were not allowed to kick and they were not allowed to put their feet down. They also had to wear a life jacket to make it easy for the life guards to see them. One lifeguard is always in the water and one on pool deck.

Around 1.30 we got a call from my brother so I headed down to the gate at the beach as they were staying next door at the Marriot. They share the lagoon. We caught up with them for an hour before we got a call to say their room was ready so they went to get settled and we decided to meet at 5 at their hotel for some dinner so they could get an early night.

DD2 wanted to check out Auntys Beach House which a kids club type place. They take children up to 12 years of age. On our way we went past the day spa and Painted Sky Spa which is an area for teens and tweens to hang out. There are computers and games for them to play with a frozen yoghurt bar. DD1 was not much interested in staying but she is an introvert. We then went and dropped DD2 at Aunty's. She just had to let a member of staff know when she wanted to be collected and they would phone us.

We decided to head out of the resort and across the road to the small Ko Olina Shops.

There is a Country Store which is an ABC Store where you can make your own salads, purchase some grocery items, drinks and alcohol, souvenirs, tourist clothes and some pharmacy items. There is an ice cream shop, a local takeaway that serves Asian, Hamburgers and Fish and Chips and a Mexican Restaurant. There is space for more shops and would imagine that it will keep growing. We tried the takeaway shop for lunch which was just fine. With the limited food options this certainly expands the selection. If you have a car the Kapolei Village is around 4 miles away with supermarkets, Target and other takeaway establishments. If staying in a Villa you would probably cook more or have simple meals.

We ran into Grandma and Grandpa and DD1 went back to the hotel with them. DH and I went to check out the Wailana Pool which is a quiet more adult pool and grabbed a Mai Tai at the Bar.

We looked over the wedding area out to the ocean. Before we went upstairs we thought we would go check on DD2 at Aunty's. As we walked in the door one of the staff members was coming out to ring us - Perfect timing. She showed us around, she had lots of fun doing crafts, playing video games and playing outside in the playground. She was very keen to come back the next day. We grabbed her a quick snack from One Paddle, Two Paddle as she had missed lunch to keep her going until dinner.

One Paddle Two Paddle

We all got dressed for dinner and headed to the Marriott. They had struggled to find somewhere to eat there for us all so we head to the Mexican place at the Ko Olina Village. They managed to find a table for 10 for us and we all had a very pleasant meal. I had a beef taco salad which was so light and lovely after days of heavy food. Just perfect. Had another awesome margarita as well.

We headed back to the hotel to get ready for another Aulani day.

 

[areweindisneyyet]

Our last full day at Aulani as we leave for LAX at 5am tomorrow morning.

Grandpa had gone across the street to grab some yoghurt and fruit from the Country Store for breakfast. My girls love having their hair done so I had booked them in to get their hair done at the Laniwai Spa at 9am. Inside is so beautiful and peaceful. It cost $25 before tax each for the girls to have a wash, style cut and blow dry as they are 12 and Under. Pascal from Paris was amazing and the girls came away with great new haircuts that I am so happy with. This was a bit of fun girl time. Silly me was hoping we could keep it nice and pretty for our big family Christmas Lunch at AMA AMA but I should have known better and before I knew togs were on and to the pool we all went.

At around 12.30 we headed back upstairs to get ready. DH and went brought our guests up to our room as we had not quite finished yet and by Darling Brother proceeded to announce his engagement to his Darling Fiance. A double celebration was to be had. Ama Ama was beautiful looking over the ocean. Angus Burgers were ordered (my Darling Brother is telling everyone he has been knocked up by an Angus Burger), I had a goat cheese ravioli, DH had a local platter which he loved, Grandpa had fish. Everyone was happy with their meals. A special celebration engagment cake was brought out for the happy couple and the photopass photographers came and took some engagement photos which was a great memory from the day.

At Aulani they police the arm bands for pool use, DD2 was reacting badly to sea water with her skin on this trip, something that has not happened before so we tried to get our guests into the pool as our plans for the beach would not work for her. To do this we needed to add their names to our reservation and pay an additional cost. They do not offer guest passes. We added two adults to our room which meant that we could get to additional passes. If you are planning on having guests this is something to think about when you book if their is technically space in your room and it does not add to the cost. As it gets busier it is something that they will police more. After a great afternoon of fun and watching the sunset from our lounge chairs we said farewell to Darling Brother and Sister In Law to be.

DH and I started on some washing in the guest laundry and some packing was commenced. DH popped over to the take away shop to get some dinner for us all.

At 8.30 we headed down to the Storytelling Fire Pit in front of Ama Ama looking over the ocean for Mo'Olelo Pit Storytelling where Uncle came to tell us a Hawaiian story by the campfire. The fire was not working but Uncle was and he was very funny walking and moving amongst the crowd to tell us the story of the Menehune and the story behind the shapes of the buildings at Aulani. It was a wonderful 30 minutes spent with my family which I could go to every night. There are many stories and is not just a repeat. Absolutely magic. A perfect way to finish our Aulani stay.

I am so glad we came, it was the perfect length of time given the week in Waikiki. From Aulani we did not need to go anywhere. If we were staying here as a base we would need a car. There is a $30 per day parking fee unless you are a DVC Member and then it is free.

The little Disney touches and the quality of everything from design to creativity is Perfect Disney although it is not screaming and in your face. What I loved was that I felt that I was still in Hawaii at every moment.

The Cast Members are very proud of their home and the customer service is exceptional with 99% of Cast Members acknowledging you as you pass.

I look forward to returning...

Tomorrow up and raring to go by 5am to fly to Disneyland...

 

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

Well you have made a believer out of me. I think the place looks fantastic. I especially love the sound of the evening storytelling. Beautiful.

Thank you for sharing Aulani with us, I am dying to go now.

 

[aussietravellers]

What a fabulous fabulous report! You have certainly put Aulani at the top of my overseas vacation list! Thank you so much for sharing.

Sad to be leaving Hawaii, I have loved reading your whole Hawaii report, brings back so many fond memories for me of our many trips there. Looking forward to your Disneyland portion.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Yup. Another one here that has put Aulani on my wish list. Thanks for sharing. I think I can convince DH to make a pit stop there really easily. Facilities look great and there seems to be plenty of 'local' type activities for DS.

 

[alicia1506]

well jeez... now i need to figure out how to add in hawaii and a trip to aulani on our disney vacation in november.

i think i need to win the lotto

gorgeous, gorgeous pics -- it sounds lovely and serene & i now have added aulani to my 'must do' list.

thank you for the report. cannot wait to hear about your disneyland vacation.

 

[shushh]

Sigh...another place to have to visit. So wishing that we decided to go this January but it is not to be!

It sounded like you had a sensational time there with your family and the resort looks amazing. Thank you so much for sharing, taking the time to write in so much details and for posting the photos.

JEALOUS!!!!