Aulani questions

[eandesmom]

We are booked for this coming memorial day. I was pleasantly surprised to see great availability in many categories as I know that isn't what is going on in June. I have lots of questions!

Studio questions
1. Is it all paper/plastic goods in the studio as in WDW? It's going to be brutal not having a 1B (though the 7 nights versus 3 makes u for it lol) and I think I may actually pack some plates/silverware and such if we need to. Real coffee cups and wine glasses or???
2. What size is the coffee maker in the studios?

General questions
1. How far away are the grills?
2. How far away are the laundry facilities
3. Does anyone have a link to the recreation rental prices and options? I imagine spa is on the website though I've not looked at it yet.
4. Refillable mug station(s). Where are they?
5. Is the coffee any better than the Nescafe at the WDW refill stations? LOL.
6. Liquor prices at the store. For FL we will often pack liquor as we don't have a car. Here, we will for part of the time but I'm wondering if there is a cost savings to consider bringing it ourselves?
7. Grocery prices. We know they will be high, we've been before. That said, anything in particular people have seen that are significantly worse than home that you wish you'd have packed? That was packable of course.

The maps I've seen don't have the room breakdown by villa size or view classification that I can find but if anyone can point me in the right direction, that would be lovely

Car rental question
I am considering only having a car for part of the time to save on $$ as we will spend a large chunk of our time just at the resort. Outside of Aulani, if you are without a car, what all can you easily get to in the Ko'Olina area?

I'm sure I'll have more, thanks!

 

[abdgeek]

We are booked for this coming memorial day. I was pleasantly surprised to see great availability in many categories as I know that isn't what is going on in June. I have lots of questions!

Studio questions
1. Is it all paper/plastic goods in the studio as in WDW? It's going to be brutal not having a 1B (though the 7 nights versus 3 makes u for it lol) and I think I may actually pack some plates/silverware and such if we need to. Real coffee cups and wine glasses or???
2. What size is the coffee maker in the studios?

General questions
1. How far away are the grills?
2. How far away are the laundry facilities
3. Does anyone have a link to the recreation rental prices and options? I imagine spa is on the website though I've not looked at it yet.
4. Refillable mug station(s). Where are they?
5. Is the coffee any better than the Nescafe at the WDW refill stations? LOL.
6. Liquor prices at the store. For FL we will often pack liquor as we don't have a car. Here, we will for part of the time but I'm wondering if there is a cost savings to consider bringing it ourselves?
7. Grocery prices. We know they will be high, we've been before. That said, anything in particular people have seen that are significantly worse than home that you wish you'd have packed? That was packable of course.

The maps I've seen don't have the room breakdown by villa size or view classification that I can find but if anyone can point me in the right direction, that would be lovely

Car rental question
I am considering only having a car for part of the time to save on $$ as we will spend a large chunk of our time just at the resort. Outside of Aulani, if you are without a car, what all can you easily get to in the Ko'Olina area?

I'm sure I'll have more, thanks!

Here are answers to some of your questions:
1) The plates, bowls and cutlery are plastic in the studio.
2) The laundry is on the first(bottom) floor.
4) Refillable mug station is in the Aulani store. There is probably another one, but I don't remember seeing it.

You won't be able to get to much of anything in Ko Olina without a car. I stayed at Aulani for 8 days in June and rented a car for 3 days to do my sightseeing. The other days, I did some of the Aulani excursions that included transportation and just lazed at the pool and did the Aulani activities. There is really a lot to do. Check out the daily 'Iwa on the Aulani website to see what you might be interested in. The excursion list is on there also.

 

[eandesmom]

Here are answers to some of your questions:
1) The plates, bowls and cutlery are plastic in the studio.
2) The laundry is on the first(bottom) floor.
4) Refillable mug station is in the Aulani store. There is probably another one, but I don't remember seeing it.

You won't be able to get to much of anything in Ko Olina without a car. I stayed at Aulani for 8 days in June and rented a car for 3 days to do my sightseeing. The other days, I did some of the Aulani excursions that included transportation and just lazed at the pool and did the Aulani activities. There is really a lot to do. Check out the daily 'Iwa on the Aulani website to see what you might be interested in. The excursion list is on there also.

Thanks so much! We are there for 7 nights, 8 full days and we will want a car for some for sure, just not sure we really need it for all 7. thinking maybe of renting it for the 1st night, do shopping then return it, take 2-3 days at just the resort and rent for the remainder. Need to pencil and see how much it really saves though. First floor for both buildings? Ugh. That seems potentially far away! No refill at the pool or just not sure?

Glassware in the studio, what is there for glassware and coffee cups? It seems I'm always using my refillable mug when I'm in a studio at WDW so I don't pay attention to what is in there.

Thanks again!!!

 

[wdrl]

I posted answers to a couple of your questions on the Aulani Villas and Views thread, but I'll repost the answers here:

The grills are located near the Island side of the Ewa Building Long Wing, just past Auntie's Beach House and One Paddle Two Paddle. If you look at JonLouisB's posting of his view from Aulani Villa #787, you can see the grills in the last photo. They are in the upper right hand of the photo, just above the outdoor play area for Auntie's Beach House. Click here to see the photo.

There are two laundry rooms at Aulani, and both are located on the ground floor near the elevator alcoves. There is one in the Ewa Building near Villa #170, and the other laundry room is in the Waianae Building near Villa #112. DVC members staying on points can get free tokens from the front desk to operate the washers and dryers. For all other guests, it costs $3.00 per machine.

Refillable drink stations: There are refill stations located in the General Store just off the lobby on the third floor; just outside the Lava Shack near the pool; and at One Paddle Two Paddle. We also found that the bartenders at the Wailana Pool Bar and at Off the Hook Bar would refill our mugs.

In our Aulani studio, we had glass drink glasses, plastic ware, and bamboo plates and bowls. No wine glasses, but if memory serves me correctly we could have requested some.

We are not coffee drinkers, so I didn't pay attention to the type of coffee offered in the studios. A photo I took of our kitchenette shows that it was a Mr Coffee.

Although Aulani looks big, its really quite compact and well laid out. I think you can get from one point of the resort to almost any other point in the resort in 5 minutes or less. Don't be too worried that you have long walks to get from one place to another. Besides, the views, sights, and sounds are so amazing I didn't mind the walks.

 

[eandesmom]

I posted answers to a couple of your questions on the Aulani Villas and Views thread, but I'll repost the answers here:

The grills are located near the Island side of the Ewa Building Long Wing, just past Auntie's Beach House and One Paddle Two Paddle. If you look at JonLouisB's posting of his view from Aulani Villa #787, you can see the grills in the last photo. They are in the upper right hand of the photo, just above the outdoor play area for Auntie's Beach House. Click here to see the photo.

There are two laundry rooms at Aulani, and both are located on the ground floor near the elevator alcoves. There is one in the Ewa Building near Villa #170, and the other laundry room is in the Waianae Building near Villa #112. DVC members staying on points can get free tokens from the front desk to operate the washers and dryers. For all other guests, it costs $3.00 per machine.

Refillable drink stations: There are refill stations located in the General Store just off the lobby on the third floor; just outside the Lava Shack near the pool; and at One Paddle Two Paddle. We also found that the bartenders at the Wailana Pool Bar and at Off the Hook Bar would refill our mugs.

In our Aulani studio, we had glass drink glasses, plastic ware, and bamboo plates and bowls. No wine glasses, but if memory serves me correctly we could have requested some.

We are not coffee drinkers, so I didn't pay attention to the type of coffee offered in the studios. A photo I took of our kitchenette shows that it was a Mr Coffee.

Although Aulani looks big, its really quite compact and well laid out. I think you can get from one point of the resort to almost any other point in the resort in 5 minutes or less. Don't be too worried that you have long walks to get from one place to another. Besides, the views, sights, and sounds are so amazing I didn't mind the walks.

Thank you so much! The grill location really helps. I'm not worried about walking so much, other than from the grill to the room and food getting cold I am used to a full kitchen/1b so adjusting for a kitchenette will require a little creativity. We will eat out, but not every night, I want to enjoy our verandah! I am very happy to hear about the bamboo plates and bowls. Now I just need to see the coffee cups or purchase a cool Aulani one there! Hmnnn...is there a merchandise thread anywhere?

 

[Skatetigger]

we were there for a week in October and you'll have a great time.

Here's a couple more answers to your questions.

Coffee maker was a 4 cup Mr. Coffee and I believe it's ceramic mugs.

There's a ABC Store across the street and I believe they ahve some alcohol if you don't mind lugging . But if you get a car you can stop there on your way back from your touring or shopping.

I will say the milk was much more expensive than I thought (but unfortunatley you can't really pack that )

Cereal was about $1.00 more than at home but I don't think anything else was extremely different.

Hope that helps

 

[eandesmom]

we were there for a week in October and you'll have a great time.

Here's a couple more answers to your questions.

Coffee maker was a 4 cup Mr. Coffee and I believe it's ceramic mugs.

There's a ABC Store across the street and I believe they ahve some alcohol if you don't mind lugging . But if you get a car you can stop there on your way back from your touring or shopping.

I will say the milk was much more expensive than I thought (but unfortunatley you can't really pack that )

Cereal was about $1.00 more than at home but I don't think anything else was extremely different.

Hope that helps

It does! I was afraid of that (the 4 cup, not a 12) oh well, we will just make more pots! Do the 4's need a smaller filter? I can't recall that part...

 

[DMarq]

We were there in mid October and we had those square bamboo plates with matching utensils, ceramic mugs.
If you have a car while out there - try out Leonard's Malasadas at the Waikele shopping center. Its a red & white food truck & they make the malasadas onsite (portuguese donuts). Yummy breakfast treat - very local. We usually stop there on the way to the Aloha Flea Market (aloha stadium). There is a Starbucks across the street to complete your breakfast on the go.

It's got to be Hawaiian Coffee while you're out there - no... not nescafe please. LOL. Longs Drugs & Walmart (both in Kapolei - 5-10 min drive) has them on sale almost on a weekly basis.

Just in case you don't get a car during your stay & you end up wanting to go to town (ie Ala Moana Center in Honolulu). Aulani offers a shuttle service to & from also. Ala Moana offers all the shopping you might fancy - cheap to designer. Purchases are taxed at 4% - so if you're like us in California paying 8.5%+, then its a bit of a relief especially if you go shopping for big ticket items. There's also a nice Farmers Market in Ala Moana every Tuesday (4-7 pm) & Saturday mornings... with fresh local items on sale. Prepare for a 1-hour ride though - depending on traffic. Sorry - not that I'm persuading you to leave the resort (not at all!). Aulani is beautiful and the lagoon / beach there is waaayyy better than a lot of the others.

 

[dsneygirl]

Definitely price out rental cars. We had an SUV for less than $200 for 10 days. Some days we never used it. Definitely a large selection of alcoholic beverages at the ABC store and it's just a few minutes away.

We didn't find groceries that expensive but we are used to Canadian prices. Milk is about $4/gallon here every day.

 

[okiedokieartichoke]

Recreation info for you:

Beach rentals ->
Stand Up Paddleboards: $30.00 per hour
Single Kayaks: $15.00 per hour
Double Kayaks: $20.00 per hour
Snorkeling gear: $15.00 per half day, $20.00 per full day
Lawn Cassabellas: $20.00 per half day, $30.00 per full day

Everything else is complimentary.


Rainbow Reef Rentals:

1 Day Pass per child 9 and UNDER: $15.00
1 Day Pass per Adult (Anyone over 9): $20.00

1 Length of Stay pass per child 9 and UNDER: $29.00
1 Length of Stay pass per Adult (Anyone over 9): $39.00

The price of the Rainbow Reef includes the snorkel, mask, and required life jacket.

 

[eandesmom]

We were there in mid October and we had those square bamboo plates with matching utensils, ceramic mugs.
If you have a car while out there - try out Leonard's Malasadas at the Waikele shopping center. Its a red & white food truck & they make the malasadas onsite (portuguese donuts). Yummy breakfast treat - very local. We usually stop there on the way to the Aloha Flea Market (aloha stadium). There is a Starbucks across the street to complete your breakfast on the go.

It's got to be Hawaiian Coffee while you're out there - no... not nescafe please. LOL. Longs Drugs & Walmart (both in Kapolei - 5-10 min drive) has them on sale almost on a weekly basis.

Thanks! Great info, it is plastic utensils though, the disposable kind or are they something different? This is in a studio. I know this is a bit uncool but we aren't huge Kona coffee fans. It's a softer bean and can't take a darker or full roast all that well and it seems to end up disappointing us, at least for the price. But if that's what's in the refills stations versus the nescafe, that is VERY exciting. We typically pack coffee.

Just in case you don't get a car during your stay & you end up wanting to go to town (ie Ala Moana Center in Honolulu). Aulani offers a shuttle service to & from also. Ala Moana offers all the shopping you might fancy - cheap to designer. Purchases are taxed at 4% - so if you're like us in California paying 8.5%+, then its a bit of a relief especially if you go shopping for big ticket items. There's also a nice Farmers Market in Ala Moana every Tuesday (4-7 pm) & Saturday mornings... with fresh local items on sale. Prepare for a 1-hour ride though - depending on traffic. Sorry - not that I'm persuading you to leave the resort (not at all!). Aulani is beautiful and the lagoon / beach there is waaayyy better than a lot of the others.

Close, 9.5% tax here. I don't see us shopping for big ticket items though although I suppose you never know. We do hit a few of the island wear type stores that either we don't have here or the selection is a lot smaller, like Tommy Bahama. Honestly it weren't for Aulani, we'd skip Oahu as we prefer the other islands but I am really excited for Aulani, plus I do have family there that even when we do go, I don't see, as we skip Oahu!

Definitely price out rental cars. We had an SUV for less than $200 for 10 days. Some days we never used it. Definitely a large selection of alcoholic beverages at the ABC store and it's just a few minutes away.

That is a great price. I am hoping it comes down as it gets closer, right now best deal for 8 days is $278 for a economy.

We didn't find groceries that expensive but we are used to Canadian prices. Milk is about $4/gallon here every day.

It's not that much less here either.

Recreation info for you:

Beach rentals ->
Stand Up Paddleboards: $30.00 per hour
Single Kayaks: $15.00 per hour
Double Kayaks: $20.00 per hour
Snorkeling gear: $15.00 per half day, $20.00 per full day
Lawn Cassabellas: $20.00 per half day, $30.00 per full day

Everything else is complimentary.


Rainbow Reef Rentals:

1 Day Pass per child 9 and UNDER: $15.00
1 Day Pass per Adult (Anyone over 9): $20.00

1 Length of Stay pass per child 9 and UNDER: $29.00
1 Length of Stay pass per Adult (Anyone over 9): $39.00

The price of the Rainbow Reef includes the snorkel, mask, and required life jacket.

The length of stay sounds like the way to go, even if we packed our own gear it'd still be $20 per day we wanted to be at the reef so at 2x we'd break even and 3x, actually lose money by schlepping our stuff so I'm thinking that will be what we do.

Thanks!

 

[dvc_john]

As mentioned, there isn't much else to do in Ko Olina without a car.

There is a small shopping area across the street with a couple of restaurants and a nice little grocery store.

You can walk to all 4 lagoons, and use any of them. Or Vist the JW Marriott hotel next door, or the Marriott timeshare on one of the other lagoons.

If you are a luau person, Paradise Cove luau is just a short walk away.

But the resort is so great, you really will want to spend a lot of time there.

 

[Iggipolka]

What is a Lawn Cassabella?

 

[LisaT91403]

What is a Lawn Cassabella?

It's like a double wide lounge chair with a shade over it.

If you are a Costco member, you should check the car rental prices through them. I found the rates to be the best. But I also found that the rates varied on a day-by-day basis. Book the best rate, then check back often to see if it's changed.

 

[eandesmom]

It's like a double wide lounge chair with a shade over it.

If you are a Costco member, you should check the car rental prices through them. I found the rates to be the best. But I also found that the rates varied on a day-by-day basis. Book the best rate, then check back often to see if it's changed.

Thanks, I did check and it is running about $20 less via Costco so will probably rebook through them and then just keep checking. Definitely more than I want to pay so I will hope it goes down. I was thinking of doing partial stay rentals but the surcharge for aulani drop off/pick up negates any savings.

 

[TagsMissy]

Here are answers to some of your questions:

4) Refillable mug station is in the Aulani store. There is probably another one, but I don't remember seeing it.

.

The other drink station is near the store at the pool.