Steelers0854
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- May 29, 2016
- Messages
- 626
We just finished our very first stay to Aulani, and we loved it. I get why people own here and why so many people come, it was great and we cant wait to go back (except by points balance can 
)
-We stayed in a 1 Bedroom Ocean view in the Ewa Tower, room 1082. IMO it was the perfect location, it was shady most of the day (up til about 3pm) and we had great views of the ocean and pool, zero complaints here. We loved sitting on the balcony. Having the washer and dryer was a game changer for us. It was our first time in any 1 bedroom with DVC. While I dont think it is necessary in WDW to have one, it is for us at Aulani. It means next time we can pack so much less and we ended up using the washer and dryer so much this trip. Also nice that they give you unlimited laundry detergent which was very helpful. Also DW has very sensitive skin and the detergent they provided was no issue for us. We actually did use the kitchen to cook a couple of meals, lunches, that we bought from Costco. Having the kitchen was a nice option to avoid the mid food (more on that below) at high prices.
-We rented a car and that was a very wise decision. Free parking at the resort was amazing and Costco is so close it was easy to pop over and buy some cheap macadamia nuts and food for the week. Also Costco gas is a steal at almost $1 a gallon cheaper than everywhere else, so we filled up there before heading to the airport and just topped off at a gas station by the rental car place. It was also great to head up to the Northshore which we really enjoyed. I would rent a car every time we go in the future, especially for what we paid (about $200 for the week) it is a no brainer.
-The resort was beautiful and a lot of fun. It actually felt like a resort and not just another hotel.
-The adult only area of the pool was great, nice and quiet. We did get a Casabella on the Malie deck (number 6) and i dont think i would do that again. While it was nice to not have to worry about or fight over a chair, i dont think it was worth the money and I would have fathered gotten a chair by the adult pool instead.
-The pool is incredible. The lazy river is a joy, and heated which was nice (all the pools are), the water slides are super fun, the snorkeling in the reef is fantastic and worth the money and the adult hot tub is awesome, especially at sunset.
-The spa was amazing, the hydrogarden you access before your treatment is very nice and we probably had the best massages of our life. The price wasnt terrible and there is 0 upsell on anything. My only complaint is 1 hour in the hydrogarden just isnt enough without feeling rushed, I think 90 minutes would be the sweet spot, but other than that it was great.
-The beach was really nice as well, nice sand and an easy to access ocean.
-But the Magic band was flawless otherwise and worked great everywhere, it made life so easy we loved it.
-The DVC swag was great, although i wish they gave less magnets and mixed it up a bit more, my fridge is getting pretty full at home lol. Also the DVC members party was great, lots of good stuff, loved the lei’s we got.
-Character meet and greets were awesome! ‘Olu Mel is so stinking cute!
-Unfortunately we missed the luau, the one day it poured rain was the day we had the luau and the other offerings were already sold out. It will give us something to do when we get back but this was really sad as we were looking forward to it. We did check back with the concierge each day, and stalked the booking site, but no seats ever opened back up.
A couple of things we didnt like. And most of these are just minor annoyances, believe me we loved our stay but just documenting what we would have liked to see improved etc.
-Why no real tiki torches? I mean even the Poly has them but Aulani doesn’t? That was disappointing.
-The soda machines are disappointing especially for those that look for sugar free options. I wish they had the freestyle machines would gladly pay for a resort mug each time if they did.
-Other than the pool area there are hardly any places to sit and relax that aren’t in the direct sun. Im so thankful that we had a great balcony because it was difficult to find anywhere else to sit and luxuriate.
-The app and pre booking experience is terrible. There is no consistency on when and where you book things. Some are done in the app, others on a third party website. Once you book something you cant add other people to your plans so they can see it in their app and anything done on the third party site (Luau and Spa etc) dont show up as plans in the app at all.
-Photopass cant use the magic band but you can use the Disneyland app (didnt try the WDW one) and use the QR code there for your photos, which was fine but it would be nice if the magic band also just worked.
Here is a detailed breakdown of the food and our thoughts. DW has quite a few food allergies so our experience is going to be different that yours as we work around those. Having such an incredible experience at both Disneyland and WDW left Aulani a little to be desired, but it wasnt terrible.
Here is the thing about dining at Aulani, it’s fine. But thats about it, it’s just fine. The only thing that is going to stand out are the prices. Here are my quick thoughts, with a more detailed breakdown below. Table service is where Aulani struggles. Every meal we had came out lukewarm at best. The food is mid and the prix fixe is everywhere. There is so much potential here, but it’s wasted. Also the service is just ok, when compared to other options nearby, they are really lacking. Their quick service options are better, but still mostly unforgettable.
Makahiki:
-Breakfast: It’s fine, it’s a Disney character meal so I understand why it’s prix fixe. The food is just fine, the malasadas are incredible, the pancakes were good, no problems, but it’s a one and done. Meeting the characters is great, I would definitely do it once, but beyond that Off the Hook is just fine for breakfast.
-Dinner: Not good. Why on earth is this a prix fixe meal? There are no characters and there is no incredible view like AMA AMA. In no world should this be a flat fee. Plus I dont want an appetizer, entree and dessert forced on me. Our food came out lukewarm and not hot, and thats just disappointing. I just want to order what I want when I want it. The food here was fine, it isnt worth the price but its Hawaii and its Disney Hawaii so I let it slide. But if they made this just a regular table service meal, I would 100% be ok with that and would go back. Right now, it’s a no from me.
AMA AMA:
-Yea it’s expensive. Is it justified? Nope. They try to make it a high end restaurant but fall flat. The service here is the best on property, but still pales in comparison to Mina’s next door at the Four Seasons, which by the way has much better food and is cheaper, but more on that later. We left our meal hungry and joking we needed to stop ay Ulu to get some fries on the way top to the room. For an almost $400 meal for 2 people who aren’t drinkers that is criminal. I got the duck and it wasnt properly rendered so it was tough and chewy. DW got the wagyu filet and it was ok, it just was too small a portion. Again lukewarm food at each course. I know why this is prix fixe, if it wasnt you would get everyone coming in and ordering an appetizer for the incredible views and taking up a table. So while I think there is too much prix fixe on property, Im not mad at it here, what I am mad about is the food and service dont deliver on the bill. We wont come back.
Off The Hook:
-Breakfast: This is a great spot, you get your coffee here, they have great options for breakfast and you can sit in the AMA AMA area and enjoy the incredible views. The coffee is good, not great, but on par with the Four Seasons next door. Food comes out quick an hot. No complaints at all here. Plus they have allergy friendly mickey waffles.
-Lunch: Just ate here once and it was great. Chicken Club sandwich is an incredible deal and a HUGE portion. No complaints at all here for lunch.
Ulu Cafe:
-Breakfast is a nice balance to Off the Hook. More grab and go style and you can mobile order here. The açaà bowl is IMO a great deal as it’s huge, really good and the fruit is super fresh tasting. The breakfast wrap had perfectly cooked scrambled eggs, and I mean they were perfect. Another great breakfast option here.
-We didnt get to the Oleo room for dinner, but they had a great looking menu. The Malasadas for breakfast though are a home run.
Let’s talk off property (But walkable) hits and misses.
-Mina’s Fish House may as well be on property. It’s so close since it’s right next door at the Four Seasons and this place is amazing. We had dinner here and liked it so much we cancelled a reservation we had for a steakhouse so we could come back before leaving. The views, the food and the service are incredible! They are amazing with allergies, and the prices deliver on what you get. We are coming back here multiple times on any future visit. This blows everything out of the water at Aulani.
-Roy’s was very good, one of the best steaks we had on the island. a bit harder to eat here with allergies but not a deal breaker by any means. Good service and very very walkable from Aulani. We would go back.
-Monkeypod is fine. Good variety, but nothing that stands out. The pizza is just ok. It’s too bad too because the atmosphere here is fabulous. But $20 for a mai tai when you can walk a cross the street and get one for $8 on happy hour is a shame lol. Not tops on our list to return to.
-808craft house is a sleeper hit. Steak was great, moco loco was great. Good service, good prices. Pro tip: Costco sells $100 gift cards for $80. We got one while we were in town and used it here, worked out perfectly. Definitely be back.
-Mekiko Cantina. Wow this place is great. Huge portion int he fajitas for a great price. A ton on their menu and the service was outstanding. We 100% will come back multiple times here.
Beyond the Reef:
-We ate up in Northshore quite a bit. Giovanni’s truck has some of the best shrimp we have ever had and the prices deliver was incredible especially for how much shrimp you get. Seven Brothers has a great menu with a ton of options and it is all super fresh. Ted’s Bakery has great food as well beyond the Chocolate Hapua pie which is one of the best things on the island.
)-We stayed in a 1 Bedroom Ocean view in the Ewa Tower, room 1082. IMO it was the perfect location, it was shady most of the day (up til about 3pm) and we had great views of the ocean and pool, zero complaints here. We loved sitting on the balcony. Having the washer and dryer was a game changer for us. It was our first time in any 1 bedroom with DVC. While I dont think it is necessary in WDW to have one, it is for us at Aulani. It means next time we can pack so much less and we ended up using the washer and dryer so much this trip. Also nice that they give you unlimited laundry detergent which was very helpful. Also DW has very sensitive skin and the detergent they provided was no issue for us. We actually did use the kitchen to cook a couple of meals, lunches, that we bought from Costco. Having the kitchen was a nice option to avoid the mid food (more on that below) at high prices.
-We rented a car and that was a very wise decision. Free parking at the resort was amazing and Costco is so close it was easy to pop over and buy some cheap macadamia nuts and food for the week. Also Costco gas is a steal at almost $1 a gallon cheaper than everywhere else, so we filled up there before heading to the airport and just topped off at a gas station by the rental car place. It was also great to head up to the Northshore which we really enjoyed. I would rent a car every time we go in the future, especially for what we paid (about $200 for the week) it is a no brainer.
-The resort was beautiful and a lot of fun. It actually felt like a resort and not just another hotel.
-The adult only area of the pool was great, nice and quiet. We did get a Casabella on the Malie deck (number 6) and i dont think i would do that again. While it was nice to not have to worry about or fight over a chair, i dont think it was worth the money and I would have fathered gotten a chair by the adult pool instead.
-The pool is incredible. The lazy river is a joy, and heated which was nice (all the pools are), the water slides are super fun, the snorkeling in the reef is fantastic and worth the money and the adult hot tub is awesome, especially at sunset.
-The spa was amazing, the hydrogarden you access before your treatment is very nice and we probably had the best massages of our life. The price wasnt terrible and there is 0 upsell on anything. My only complaint is 1 hour in the hydrogarden just isnt enough without feeling rushed, I think 90 minutes would be the sweet spot, but other than that it was great.
-The beach was really nice as well, nice sand and an easy to access ocean.
-But the Magic band was flawless otherwise and worked great everywhere, it made life so easy we loved it.
-The DVC swag was great, although i wish they gave less magnets and mixed it up a bit more, my fridge is getting pretty full at home lol. Also the DVC members party was great, lots of good stuff, loved the lei’s we got.
-Character meet and greets were awesome! ‘Olu Mel is so stinking cute!
-Unfortunately we missed the luau, the one day it poured rain was the day we had the luau and the other offerings were already sold out. It will give us something to do when we get back but this was really sad as we were looking forward to it. We did check back with the concierge each day, and stalked the booking site, but no seats ever opened back up.
A couple of things we didnt like. And most of these are just minor annoyances, believe me we loved our stay but just documenting what we would have liked to see improved etc.
-Why no real tiki torches? I mean even the Poly has them but Aulani doesn’t? That was disappointing.
-The soda machines are disappointing especially for those that look for sugar free options. I wish they had the freestyle machines would gladly pay for a resort mug each time if they did.
-Other than the pool area there are hardly any places to sit and relax that aren’t in the direct sun. Im so thankful that we had a great balcony because it was difficult to find anywhere else to sit and luxuriate.
-The app and pre booking experience is terrible. There is no consistency on when and where you book things. Some are done in the app, others on a third party website. Once you book something you cant add other people to your plans so they can see it in their app and anything done on the third party site (Luau and Spa etc) dont show up as plans in the app at all.
-Photopass cant use the magic band but you can use the Disneyland app (didnt try the WDW one) and use the QR code there for your photos, which was fine but it would be nice if the magic band also just worked.
Here is a detailed breakdown of the food and our thoughts. DW has quite a few food allergies so our experience is going to be different that yours as we work around those. Having such an incredible experience at both Disneyland and WDW left Aulani a little to be desired, but it wasnt terrible.
Here is the thing about dining at Aulani, it’s fine. But thats about it, it’s just fine. The only thing that is going to stand out are the prices. Here are my quick thoughts, with a more detailed breakdown below. Table service is where Aulani struggles. Every meal we had came out lukewarm at best. The food is mid and the prix fixe is everywhere. There is so much potential here, but it’s wasted. Also the service is just ok, when compared to other options nearby, they are really lacking. Their quick service options are better, but still mostly unforgettable.
Makahiki:
-Breakfast: It’s fine, it’s a Disney character meal so I understand why it’s prix fixe. The food is just fine, the malasadas are incredible, the pancakes were good, no problems, but it’s a one and done. Meeting the characters is great, I would definitely do it once, but beyond that Off the Hook is just fine for breakfast.
-Dinner: Not good. Why on earth is this a prix fixe meal? There are no characters and there is no incredible view like AMA AMA. In no world should this be a flat fee. Plus I dont want an appetizer, entree and dessert forced on me. Our food came out lukewarm and not hot, and thats just disappointing. I just want to order what I want when I want it. The food here was fine, it isnt worth the price but its Hawaii and its Disney Hawaii so I let it slide. But if they made this just a regular table service meal, I would 100% be ok with that and would go back. Right now, it’s a no from me.
AMA AMA:
-Yea it’s expensive. Is it justified? Nope. They try to make it a high end restaurant but fall flat. The service here is the best on property, but still pales in comparison to Mina’s next door at the Four Seasons, which by the way has much better food and is cheaper, but more on that later. We left our meal hungry and joking we needed to stop ay Ulu to get some fries on the way top to the room. For an almost $400 meal for 2 people who aren’t drinkers that is criminal. I got the duck and it wasnt properly rendered so it was tough and chewy. DW got the wagyu filet and it was ok, it just was too small a portion. Again lukewarm food at each course. I know why this is prix fixe, if it wasnt you would get everyone coming in and ordering an appetizer for the incredible views and taking up a table. So while I think there is too much prix fixe on property, Im not mad at it here, what I am mad about is the food and service dont deliver on the bill. We wont come back.
Off The Hook:
-Breakfast: This is a great spot, you get your coffee here, they have great options for breakfast and you can sit in the AMA AMA area and enjoy the incredible views. The coffee is good, not great, but on par with the Four Seasons next door. Food comes out quick an hot. No complaints at all here. Plus they have allergy friendly mickey waffles.
-Lunch: Just ate here once and it was great. Chicken Club sandwich is an incredible deal and a HUGE portion. No complaints at all here for lunch.
Ulu Cafe:
-Breakfast is a nice balance to Off the Hook. More grab and go style and you can mobile order here. The açaà bowl is IMO a great deal as it’s huge, really good and the fruit is super fresh tasting. The breakfast wrap had perfectly cooked scrambled eggs, and I mean they were perfect. Another great breakfast option here.
-We didnt get to the Oleo room for dinner, but they had a great looking menu. The Malasadas for breakfast though are a home run.
Let’s talk off property (But walkable) hits and misses.
-Mina’s Fish House may as well be on property. It’s so close since it’s right next door at the Four Seasons and this place is amazing. We had dinner here and liked it so much we cancelled a reservation we had for a steakhouse so we could come back before leaving. The views, the food and the service are incredible! They are amazing with allergies, and the prices deliver on what you get. We are coming back here multiple times on any future visit. This blows everything out of the water at Aulani.
-Roy’s was very good, one of the best steaks we had on the island. a bit harder to eat here with allergies but not a deal breaker by any means. Good service and very very walkable from Aulani. We would go back.
-Monkeypod is fine. Good variety, but nothing that stands out. The pizza is just ok. It’s too bad too because the atmosphere here is fabulous. But $20 for a mai tai when you can walk a cross the street and get one for $8 on happy hour is a shame lol. Not tops on our list to return to.
-808craft house is a sleeper hit. Steak was great, moco loco was great. Good service, good prices. Pro tip: Costco sells $100 gift cards for $80. We got one while we were in town and used it here, worked out perfectly. Definitely be back.
-Mekiko Cantina. Wow this place is great. Huge portion int he fajitas for a great price. A ton on their menu and the service was outstanding. We 100% will come back multiple times here.
Beyond the Reef:
-We ate up in Northshore quite a bit. Giovanni’s truck has some of the best shrimp we have ever had and the prices deliver was incredible especially for how much shrimp you get. Seven Brothers has a great menu with a ton of options and it is all super fresh. Ted’s Bakery has great food as well beyond the Chocolate Hapua pie which is one of the best things on the island.
