Aulani Pool Chair Changes Coming?

[karatstravels]

If Aulani closed access to the pools until 8:00 AM each morning, it would still create a mad dash for chairs as soon as the ropes are dropped.

Rope drop Hawaii style.

I think every resort / cruise ship etc experiences these types of issues. We are early risers so don't have an issue getting chairs and Aulani was no different for us. Unfortunately you cannot teach people manners or give lessons in courtesy. I always am amazed that something as silly as pool chairs can cause so many issues. I hope they find a reasonable solution.

 

[vikequeen]

We were at the Marriot last year, and Aulani a couple of weeks ago, same time of year. The Aulani pool situation was MUCH worse than Marriott ko olina. I can't see them doing a shot gone start -- can you imagine the injuries with people running on a wet pool deck? I don't know how they are going to address this. the day we went to the pool at 730-8, we got good seats. Otherwise, we rented a beach casabella to give us a place to sit. we saw many sad families looking for seats at 930 and there wasn't a single empty chair. I am shocked by the number of people who fly to Hawaii and stay at the resort the whole time. Aulani is beautiful, but there is so much more to the island that people are missing.

And yes, there were two different types of bands, but I didn't see any difference in service. and the band alone didn't get us a discount if we didn't have our card . . .

 

[jessicaerv]

These types of threads amp up my anxiety. My DD6 and I will be visiting Aulani for the first time in late June. It is just the two of us as my DH passed away suddenly in late 2014 and we're still adjusting. My kid can (and will) swim for hours but not well enough for me not to be with her, and I can't imagine not being able to put our items on a chair and then enjoy the pool for as long as she wants for fear our items will be swept away.

On another topic, I simply can't stand in line for an hour or two each morning to sign up for activities at Auntie's because I won't leave her alone in our room and she certainly will not tolerate standing in a slow moving line for that long (ADHD). So now I'm left wondering how to make things work without an extra set of hands to stand in line, hold the chair(s) by the pool, run to grab QS food or drinks, etc.

Can anyone alleviate my anxiety?

 

[vikequeen]

I'm sorry about your husband. Reading these posts made me very anxious before our trip a few weeks ago too. So my advice is to step away from the boards. It will help.

In the meantime, I can't comment on Aunty's, but you will be fine with the pool chair. If you find a chair, get out of the pool periodically and rearrange your stuff. They track the chairs by folding the towel and putting it on the back. If it doesn't move, the remove your stuff. If you move the towel, you can keep the chair all day. And it is totally reasonable (In my opinion) for you to do that so you have a place to sit when you want to take a break. Or if you can afford it, rent a casabella. The beach casabella can be rented on a daily basis with a limited wait in line and would be a perfect spot for the two of you to take a break. Its half the costs of the hard to get pool casabella. and its only a short walk from the beach to the pool.

I hope you have a fabulous trip!

 

[Supplanter]

These types of threads amp up my anxiety. My DD6 and I will be visiting Aulani for the first time in late June. It is just the two of us as my DH passed away suddenly in late 2014 and we're still adjusting. My kid can (and will) swim for hours but not well enough for me not to be with her, and I can't imagine not being able to put our items on a chair and then enjoy the pool for as long as she wants for fear our items will be swept away.

On another topic, I simply can't stand in line for an hour or two each morning to sign up for activities at Auntie's because I won't leave her alone in our room and she certainly will not tolerate standing in a slow moving line for that long (ADHD). So now I'm left wondering how to make things work without an extra set of hands to stand in line, hold the chair(s) by the pool, run to grab QS food or drinks, etc.

Can anyone alleviate my anxiety?

I was there a couple weeks ago and we didn't have any issues. Certain days at auntys are busier (star wars day in particular) but we never had problems getting in at all. There was never a problem getting a chair and if you do run into a problem just go full local and move someone's towels off their vacant chairs and use them. Just gotta relax and enjoy the trip, don't worry about stuff and go with the flow, its a super fun place

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

We also had no issues with finding chairs but it was just 2 of us. And though we never were forced to because of the lack of chairs we would have gone to the beach where there never was an issue that I saw. But if we were going to go eat or back to the room for a bit we

These types of threads amp up my anxiety. My DD6 and I will be visiting Aulani for the first time in late June. It is just the two of us as my DH passed away suddenly in late 2014 and we're still adjusting. My kid can (and will) swim for hours but not well enough for me not to be with her, and I can't imagine not being able to put our items on a chair and then enjoy the pool for as long as she wants for fear our items will be swept away.

On another topic, I simply can't stand in line for an hour or two each morning to sign up for activities at Auntie's because I won't leave her alone in our room and she certainly will not tolerate standing in a slow moving line for that long (ADHD). So now I'm left wondering how to make things work without an extra set of hands to stand in line, hold the chair(s) by the pool, run to grab QS food or drinks, etc.

Can anyone alleviate my anxiety?

We've been twice and never had any issues. I think it is mostly a problem for big groups that feel they have to have chairs all in a line, so in being 2, like we were, it's less troublesome. And it's an issue if you feel you have to have specific lounges. I'd still head back to the chair for a few minutes to sit down every hour or so but as your running around between the slides and the lazy river or between the pools that's also easy to do. We were also more than fine in just using 1 lounger to hold our stuff if we were heading into the pool and didn't intend to sit.

 

[wdrl]

As @vikequeen says, you'll be fine for most things. As long as you go back to your chairs for a few minutes every hour, you won't have any problems keeping your chairs. I don't know about you, but at least once an hour, we return to our chairs to get a drink, to apply more sunscreen, or when we are on our way to the restroom. Even when to grab a bite to eat, we are back in our chairs in less than an hour.

Lines do form in the early morning for some events at Aunty's. My advice, @jessicaerv, is to go by Aunty's the day you arrive and ask the CMs for their advice whether you need to sign up ahead of time for the events your daughter wants. Some events are very popular, some less so. The CMs might tell you that you need to get in line early the next day, or they might tell you that you'll be fine if you show up later in the morning.

And as @KAT4DISNEY posted, its always easier to get two chairs together than if you're trying to finds 4 or 6 chairs.

Good luck! I'm sure you'll love Aulani!

 

[CaliAdventurer]

These types of threads amp up my anxiety. My DD6 and I will be visiting Aulani for the first time in late June. It is just the two of us as my DH passed away suddenly in late 2014 and we're still adjusting. My kid can (and will) swim for hours but not well enough for me not to be with her, and I can't imagine not being able to put our items on a chair and then enjoy the pool for as long as she wants for fear our items will be swept away.

On another topic, I simply can't stand in line for an hour or two each morning to sign up for activities at Auntie's because I won't leave her alone in our room and she certainly will not tolerate standing in a slow moving line for that long (ADHD). So now I'm left wondering how to make things work without an extra set of hands to stand in line, hold the chair(s) by the pool, run to grab QS food or drinks, etc.

Can anyone alleviate my anxiety?

For your scenario, I strongly recommend the grotto infinity pool area in the back corner by the four seasons. Here's why:
Small enough pool to see your daughter at all times but big enough for her to swim her heart out.
Hot tub within the pool
You can sit in your chair when you want and still see your daughter swim. And there lifeguard is very vigilant and close by.
Panoramic ocean view!!!
A few steps from a restroom
A few more steps to ULU cafe for snacks, food and to refill drinks
Not far to the snorkel pool, the hotdog stand, the shaved ice, and lava shack sundries.

To get a chair at the pools edge, even if you need only 1, you'll have to go down by 5:30am and put your things down quickly. (If you know where you're going, 10 mins max) Then have breakfast and get packed to here at 8 to get your bands and towels. And have a blast!!!
I have left my kids for 10 mins at a time to use the restroom or grab snacks with no problems. I bring an iPad and headphones for them for those times and they don't move. If you have an umbrella it's perfect.

If you go down at 8, I don't think you'd find any chairs in that area even the seats that don't have a view of the pool to see your daughter so it's worth the trouble to sneak out and grab them.

We haven't used auntys at all. I'm sure there is fun stuff but mine would rather swim and they have been going to bed at 7 or so because they are beat. It is a total madhouse over there in the morning though, which has deterred us. We walk by to have Breakfast with a view at Ama Ama (we've walked up nearly every morning without a problem at all!) for a gorgeous view and great breakfast at usual prices is a great pregame and relaxing start to be present, regroup and connect.

You're gonna have an amazing trip. Your DH will be there in every gorgeous sunset with you. Xoxo

 

[carlbarry]

Very interesting to read about human behavior. Years ago I belonged to a gym in Brooklyn that also had outdoor pools.
People would grab the chairs, of which there was a shortage, and sit on one and put their pocket book on another. When the chairs got scarcer, they would stack 2 chairs and put their pocket book on it, and SIT on 2 stacked chairs.
Now, did they think the chair they actually needed was about to wear out, so they needed a back up? Or 2 back ups?
Some kind of weird group think.

 

[jessicaerv]

Thanks everyone! I feel much better now. I'm not much of an early riser, so getting up at 5:30 might be tough for me, but it's great to know we can mosey out to the beach if we want a break from the pool. Mostly, I'm just looking forward to relaxing and enjoying the time with my DD. She's growing up too fast (don't they all?), and I am ever more aware now of how fleeting life can be.

Mahalo!!

 

[bumbershoot]

Thanks everyone! I feel much better now. I'm not much of an early riser, so getting up at 5:30 might be tough for me

I'm so sorry for your loss.

FWIW, I see that you're in CA. That means you'll have the time change working for you in the mornings. 5:30 Hawaii time will feel like (just checked on it) 8:30 to your body. (though does Hawaii do daylight savings? not sure when your trip is or if that will change things for you or IF they follow it at all)

Just like east coast people can do rope drop easily at Disneyland, it works for you in the mornings in Hawaii.

 

[Anal Annie]

We went 2 summers ago. Chairs were tightly packed into the rows and I went down a little early (7:30ish) to get chairs before we had breakfast (usually I ran down while the guys were getting ready). But we were opposite of wanting front row - I wanted an umbrella, a small table and 3 chairs together in the back row if possible, away from all of the munchkins. I always observed others down there doing the same thing - one Croc or one refill cup on a chair at a time and often our "neighbors" were from across the Pacific. I generally took a lot more stuff down than 1 shoe or 1 cup per chair....but we really did spend almost all day there on the days we had resort days so we did want / need the umbrella. We got food down there a couple of days and a couple of days I went back up to the room and made sandwiches to bring back down & we ate there. We all 3 pretty much "moved in" to our space for the day and sharing chairs for the day would have been a little more than awkward for the entire day. We would have gone to the adult only area except DS was only 17 at the time and was not allowed. NEXT time if we can ever afford to go again he'll be eligible....that will be nice to have a little less competition....

This was pre-color coded bands - everybody had the same band....the CM's were VERY diligent about patroling the chairs and folding the towels to put over the backs. Perhaps they are going to start charging an extra fee for the chairs - and will rent them out with a time limit? Morning / Afternoon? Maybe they will develop something like a little flag that is placed on the backs of the chairs to signify the rentals?! Or maybe it will just be that they charge a deposit? That would really suck either way tho....

 

[quinnc19]

I have similar concerns, as I also am a single parent with a young DD. I'm not sure how to handle the pool situation, but on a brighter note you can now pre-register for some of the premium experiences at Auntie's. That way you won't need to wait in line in the morning. Too bad we're not going to be there at the same time!

These types of threads amp up my anxiety. My DD6 and I will be visiting Aulani for the first time in late June. It is just the two of us as my DH passed away suddenly in late 2014 and we're still adjusting. My kid can (and will) swim for hours but not well enough for me not to be with her, and I can't imagine not being able to put our items on a chair and then enjoy the pool for as long as she wants for fear our items will be swept away.

On another topic, I simply can't stand in line for an hour or two each morning to sign up for activities at Auntie's because I won't leave her alone in our room and she certainly will not tolerate standing in a slow moving line for that long (ADHD). So now I'm left wondering how to make things work without an extra set of hands to stand in line, hold the chair(s) by the pool, run to grab QS food or drinks, etc.

Can anyone alleviate my anxiety?

 

[CaliAdventurer]

I have similar concerns, as I also am a single parent with a young DD. I'm not sure how to handle the pool situation, but on a brighter note you can now pre-register for some of the premium experiences at Auntie's. That way you won't need to wait in line in the morning. Too bad we're not going to be there at the same time!

For a young child, you could go for the alley in front of the play structure that is near the main towel tent and the lazy river. You can prob get that spot by 7-7:30 or so. It's 6:30 am now and looking out today ( a Tuesday and no longer spring break and the chair situation looks much better!! The first 2 rows of main pool are taken, the grotto area is mostly taken (what I can see of it) and all around the okay structure is totally available. Beach is completely empty.

 

[twodogs]

So sorry to hear about your husband.

To help ease the stress of Aunty's, you can now pre-register for up to three of the free experiences ahead of time. Here is the link to the thread that explains how to do it, as well as a lot of other good info about Aunty's . Have fun with your daughter.
http://www.disboards.com/threads/auntys-free-activities-registration.3489715/

 

[SuperRob]

We're just wrapping up a week long stay. Yes, chairs are hard to come by, but we never had a problem getting one to hold our stuff while we floated along the lazy river, no matter the time of day. More than one would have been extremely tough, but we never lounge at the pool, since we have a baby, we would just swim, towel off, and go about our business.

 

[Dean]

I suspect the cash guests are even more difficult in this area but there's plenty of this type of attitude from members as well plus members are more likely to figure out how to use the system than cash guests. Resorts struggle with this situation, I haven't seen a perfect solution. The 1 or 2 hr and take things away seems to be the most common and effective if done aggressively though it rarely is. It takes manpower to do so but the same manpower can help assure that those there are actually resort guests as well. Another effective method is to combine this with a pool towel checkout that has a hefty charge for towels unaccounted for including those taken from the chairs. The Aruba Surf Club give you chair tags, uses the 2 hr limit and is aggressive in enforcement which takes 1-2 full time staff to do so from appearances. Personally I favor a more hardline, fix it even if the offenders get upset approach.