Aulani Planning

[JulieWent]

I really appreciate all the information on several Aulani threads that I've read through as I've been planning our trip in March. I have a few questions, though, that I'd still like to get some feedback on:

1) Do we need to book everything in advance? (Restaurants, local luaus, car rentals) I'm trying not to do a lot of planning just because my DH and I are going just the two of us. We'd like to make it a fairly relaxing trip.

2) The spa -- Once again, do I need to book it in advance? We are pretty spa-illiterates, so do you have any recommendations? (I have gathered that we can use the garden before the spa treatments. Also after? Do you have any therapies you like?)

3) If we rent a car for a day or two, we think we'll drive up to the North Shore. I'd like to visit one of the shrimp trucks. Where do you go to find the best ones?

If you have any other recommendations, please let me know. I am so used to being the person who plans pretty thoroughly. This is out of my comfort zone.

Julie

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

The only thing we've ever had planned before arriving is the car rental because we use it for transportation to and from the resort. You can do just fine making arrangements once you arrive.

For the spa - I've also booked that after arrival but you may have limited times to choose from or have to wait a couple of days so you might want to make that one of your first stops to set up a reservation.

For the shrimp trucks we've only done that once and just stopped when we saw some while on our drive around the North Shore. I have no idea if the one we went to was considered great or not but we enjoyed it very much.

 

[JulieWent]

Thank you very much!

 

[wanderlust7]

3) If we rent a car for a day or two, we think we'll drive up to the North Shore. I'd like to visit one of the shrimp trucks. Where do you go to find the best ones?

We like Macky's. It's the one we went to on our first trip and we just keep going back each trip. We always think maybe we should try another one, but we never want to miss a chance to eat there. My favorite is the garlic, then the spicy one. We don't like the lemon one much (too sour). One trip, we decided to try Romy's for an early dinner (after going to Macky's for lunch). It was not good - mushy shrimp. Maybe it was because it was the end of the day and we were the last customers.

You can check Yelp for other suggestions. Giovanni's seems to be the most famous one. Maybe one day we'll make it there.

 

[Soccerluvinmama]

I've been hearing amazing things about the Island Bree'z shrimp truck from friends, so that is one I'll be trying in a few weeks. Tried Giovanni's last trip and was utterly disappointed.

 

[southerngirl528]

We visit Hawaii as frequently as possible and have for the last several years. I recommend you book your rental car NOW. Book a rez that does not require any payment or CC number so that you can easily cancel if you either change your mind or find a better deal. What folks do not realize about Hawaii is that it is one of the most remote island chains in the world, and their rental car fleets are a very finite number. It's not like they can drive some cars down from L.A. if you know what I mean. For this reason, car prices can skyrocket once the numbers get low. I literally book my car as zoo as possible after I book my accommodations , most of which are booked at 13 months out. Then I continue to keep an eye on prices and rebook if I find better prices. I can tell you this, more than once the price I got booking a year in advance was as low as it ever got and closer to my dates the prices went through the roof.

Much is dependent on the time of year you are going to be renting. We love whale season, especially February, and that is a busy time. My favorite car rental sites are either Costco Travel (if you're a member) or www.discounthawaiicarrental.com As an aside, the prices do tend to be higher if you book to pick up at Aulani. How do you plan on getting from the airport to Aulani?

Happy planning! Aulani is amazing!!

 

[JulieWent]

Thank you so much! We are trying to make this a very relaxing trip, so we are just going to take a shuttle to Aulani from the airport. DH would like to not drive through Honolulu if possible. Then, we thought we'd spend a lot of our time at the resort, just soaking in the island. (I thought we could do Paradise Cove for a luau.) We're planning on doing a whale watching trip, but I'm not sure whether to book one ourselves or go through the one that Aulani does. Then, of course, we'd like to drive around one or two days to explore (to the North Shore, the Polynesian Cultural Center, maybe the Dole Plantation). I lived on Guam when I was a teen ager, but my DH has never been anywhere in the Pacific. He wants to go but not kill ourselves with planning too much.

 

[southerngirl528]

Your plan sounds very good, JulieWent! And IMO a perfect one for an Aulani stay!! As for whale watches, etc., I would go to Trip Advisor's Oahu forum, though be forewarned there is one "destination expert" on that forum that has a real negative bent toward Aulani. She is quite wrong in most of her posts about Aulani. I've been to Aulani 4 times now, she has never stayed there. If you wanted whale watching advice for Maui, I could give you some fabulous suggestions. I am not quite as knowledgeable about Oahu's options. I can tell you that from my Aulani lanai one trip (ocean view) close to sunset, I saw a mama whale teaching her baby whale to "fluke slap", slapping their tales over and over on the water's surface. Pretty awesome stuff!