Aulani is full...now what?

[Paul Stupin]

Pretty small in regards to what exactly?More rooms?The condos are huge and modern with upscale appliances and free parking.The patio door wall opens up onto your lanai.You can shop and eat anywhere whether you're sleeping at aulani or not.We've eaten at roy's,Monkey pods and had wings over at marriott.The pools aren't anything special,true ,but they're pools.Aulani has a lazy river.I've visited Aulani every time and have rented vehicles from the car rental.It's ok but it's not the same as staying at DW or DL and being able to hit the parks.

The condos sound beautiful. But there are no on site shops, restaurants or spa, correct? It just sounds like a slightly different experience, not implying its better or worse.

 

[MMSM]

We've always stayed at Ko OLINa Beach Villas.It's located between aulani and the Marriott Beach villas.Amazing big condos with some great views and way better value ,imo.I've always used vrbo.Between the 3,it's easily our choice.

This is what I’ve been currently looking at. I was so happy for you to say that youve stayed there. I def need a place with at least two bedrooms ( I have older teens) and I need a washer and dryer. Besides alumni and Beach villas I don’t see anything that has laundry in the suite. Do you have any other suggestions?

 

[badiggio]

This is what I’ve been currently looking at. I was so happy for you to say that youve stayed there. I def need a place with at least two bedrooms ( I have older teens) and I need a washer and dryer. Besides alumni and Beach villas I don’t see anything that has laundry in the suite. Do you have any other suggestions?

we've always stayed in a 2 bedroom ourselves,each with their own ensuite,but there's 3 bedroom units as well.There should be plenty of units available on vrbo .Rent a vehicle and tour the island yourself;it's so small.One thing we did as well is a grocery at Target,Costco etc.They have gourmet kitchens ,so we'd stock up on snacks,drinks,alcohol,etc.

 

[monsterkitty]

This is what I’ve been currently looking at. I was so happy for you to say that youve stayed there. I def need a place with at least two bedrooms ( I have older teens) and I need a washer and dryer. Besides alumni and Beach villas I don’t see anything that has laundry in the suite. Do you have any other suggestions?

The Marriott has laundry in the one and two bedroom villas.

 

[MMSM]

The Marriott has laundry in the one and two bedroom villas.

Thank you. Most of the pics I’ve seen have not shown that. Thanks so much!

 

[monsterkitty]

Thank you. Most of the pics I’ve seen have not shown that. Thanks so much!

Very true and it drives me crazy when I try to figure out if the MVC we are going to be staying at has them in the room!

However, if you go to the Marriott Ko Olina site and click on rooms, the washer and dryer are listed under amenities.

 

[CarolynFH]

We stayed at the Marriott several years ago in a 2BR. It was very nice - larger than DVC 2BR. My dad had a king size bed in the 2nd bedroom as well as an en-suite bathroom. Big updated kitchen, large dining table. And as PP said above, in-room laundry. The beach is the same, the pools are lovely, restaurants good - and it’s significantly less expensive than Aulani, if you’re paying cash. I was blown away by Aulani’s Hawaiian decor and would love to stay there, but the Marriott is a better value TBH.

 

[kyton]

We’ve stayed at Aulani around 5-6 times, Marriott 4-5 times and the Beach Villas twice - both times were for 25 days. Family of 5 with children aged from 6, 4 and 2 ( first trip) up to 14, 12 and 9 (last trip).

Other then the lazy river, Aulani and Marriott are extremely similar. Rooms are pretty close to same size - we always stayed in a 2 bedroom at each place. They both have fully stocked kitchens as well as laundry facilities within the rooms. They both have food and beverage service available both pool and beach side. The main difference for us was Marriott never felt as crowded as Aulani. At certain times, Aulani was a nightmare to get seating poolside and it just felt too packed with bodies. Marriott has their pools spread out more IMO plus ”their” lagoon isn’t shared with another resort whereas Aulani and Four Seasons share the same one.

Beach Villas are brilliantly appointed and massive! Each time we had a 3 bedroom and they had everything a family could need. We rented via beachvillarealty.com both times, having a different condo on each visit. There are a few caveats - the rules are very strictly enforced. Approx 1/2 of the condos are owner occupied and as such, there is a long list of enforceable rules. Most of them are fine - no wet towels on the lanai, park only within your designated parking spot etc. The main one that was a little hard with kids was noise levels within the pool. There are two pools - one designated “quiet” but kids are allowed and a family pool. Our kids were in the quiet pool and were behaving themselves however there was a group of 3-5 other kids unsupervised who were bombing and yelling. By the time the security guard came around to enforce the quiet rules, they had scampered back to their condo leaving our kids to get the blame. Another time the condo below us had their wet towels over their railings - the security guard counted up the levels incorrectly and left an infringement notice under our door. Since we had been at the North Shore for the whole day, we took that one up with the service desk and had it deleted from our account.

There isn’t any restaurants onsite - when we stayed there was a pool bar that was open daylight hours serving beverages, crisps and hotdogs. Not a huge deal for us as Marriott, Aulani, Four Seasons, the strip mall and Golf Course are all a 5-10min walk from the villas. Plus the lagoon out front had lovely thatched umbrellas that dot the sandy cove for shady respite.

if you want rooms serviced then definitely book the Marriott. If it’s not that big of a deal take a look at the Villas.

 

[Twohsieh]

Both Aulani and Marriott Ko'Olina are very nice places to stay on Oahu. We loved walking over to the Marriott from Aulani to go see the Fia Fia Luau. Now its called the Chief's Luau at the nearby Wet n Wild waterpark.