FoodieFriend
DisneyFan
- Joined
- Apr 4, 2015
- Messages
- 584
We were lucky enough to be gifted a stay at Aulani when the original group backed out of interisland travel during the upsurge of covid positive numbers. We were there Friday 9/24- Sunday 9/26. We also had their dining reservation transferred to us for Makahiki character breakfast on Saturday.
New things: Since the new restrictions for dining went into effect in Hawaii, dining at any Aulani restaurant (quick service & table service) requires that diners are Aulani resort guests & are vaccinated or negative covid tested within 48 hours of dining for everyone 12 & older. I was contacted by an Aulani CM to go over this when the resort reservation was transferred to me. We were checking in at 2 different times, so they only issued the room key cards after verifying our vaccination status at the front desk & the rest of the group got theirs later in the day. We were given solid black wristbands to show that we were fully vaccinated & the CM asked us to keep it on for the entirety of our stay.
But I think it's difficult for the Little Opihi beach stand to prevent serving walk up guests from other neighboring resorts. I know that Makahiki did make sure we had our "dining" wristbands but I didn't notice if the CMs at Ulu Cafe checked for wristbands.
Masks are still required as well as social distancing & limited number of guests in elevators. Most guests did not follow social distancing or elevator courtesy. I had to walk out of elevators when people began to pack in after me.
We waited for our room to be ready by renting a casabella on the beach. $70 + tax with 10% DVC member discount. It was nice but whew, it was HOT! We got dole whips from Little Opihi (watermelon, pineapple or watermelon/pineapple swirl) and they melted immediately, so be prepared for lots of dripping everywhere. I also supported a local small business called Beyond Charcuterie Dreams by ordering a large platinum box which was DELICIOUS! She was kind enough to deliver my order to Aulani!! Awesome! I found her by searching on Instagram.
Our room was ready at 2:40pm which was a nice surprise. We were in the Waianae wing, ocean view. We ordered take out from Mad Bene in Kapolei Commons for dinner & everyone enjoyed it. We turned in early since we had a breakfast reservation but there was a Star Wars marathon on TNT that kept me up later than expected.
Makahiki offers character breakfast every morning except Tuesdays & Thursdays. Upon arrival, we were directed to walk through the Olelo Room & outside there was Mickey & Minnie in aloha attire on a stage with a Photo Pass photographer taking pictures & I was able to use our phones to take pictures as well. We were then redirected back to the check-in area to wait for a hostess to take us to our table. First our hostess took us through the buffet area which I thought was odd since Makahiki is not serving buffet style right now. SURPRISE! There was another photo opportunity with Pluto & Chef Goofy!!! It was so cute! There was another Photo Pass photographer taking pictures there as well. We were then lead to our table that was well distanced from other groups. They offer a 3 course breakfast with everyone getting a pastry selection (croissant, cinnamon bun, blueberry muffin & coconut croissant). There were 3 baskets for the 5 of us. Everyone received a fruit plate with pineapple, canteloupe, kiwi, blackberries, raspberries & strawberries. We were able to select our own entrees to complete our meal & I found that the Aulani website had an accurate "sample" menu. Jennifer was our very kind server & we even had a live musician near the end of our meal. Adults were $45 & children 9 & under were $28. The non-character breakfast is cheaper & offer the same menu. I did ask about walk-up availability & the hostess did mention you had to be a resort guest & were welcome to call to check on walk-up. She was ready to put our names down for another morning, but I'm not a breakfast person, so another $45 egg breakfast wasn't for me especially 2 days in a row. She also did say that sometimes they won't have any availability, so calling ahead is always a good idea.
We did a little shopping, got more free DVC popcorn refills from Ulu Cafe & found out that they currently are only serving mango & vanilla dole whip, not pineapple. Only Little Opihi was serving pineapple. aw man. After a nap, we went to tour the 3 bedroom grand villa. The views there are outstanding! My cousins went down for some pool time & I met my sister who had picked up dinner after working in Kailua from Adela's Country Eatery in Kaneohe. It's one of our favorite restaurants on that side! After a great feast, we fell asleep since my goal was to wake up early to try to snag a pool cabana for checkout day.
I had called on Friday & was told the Pool Cabanas were all reserved for Sunday but I was welcome to get on the waitlist at 8am at Rainbow Reef. The pre-opening line was LONG when i arrived at 730am & got even longer by 8am. Luckily everyone in front of me was signing up for fish feeding or other activities & there was one last cabana available for us! Yay! We had always looked at it, but never thought to rent one so this was our time! The cabana hostess met me to escort me to our cabana #7 which was near the former adults only pool. Cabanas have a TV & mini fridge, sunblock, sani-wipes & 8 mini bottled waters. They also bring a fruit platter in the beginning & a dessert platter at the end. It's $450 + tax & there's a 10% DVC member discount and you have it from 8am-5pm. There's also call buttons for drinks/food or for more towels. We still had to pack up but the nice thing about the cabana was since it was out of the way of most guests, we were able to check out & bring down our hard sided cooler & keep it near us instead of having to take it to the car. it was a very nice experience & the cabana hostesses were very kind.
Our staycation ended with dinner at Mahiai Table in Foodland Farms at Ka Makana Alii shopping center. Always great food & great service! They do take out service as well.
New things: Since the new restrictions for dining went into effect in Hawaii, dining at any Aulani restaurant (quick service & table service) requires that diners are Aulani resort guests & are vaccinated or negative covid tested within 48 hours of dining for everyone 12 & older. I was contacted by an Aulani CM to go over this when the resort reservation was transferred to me. We were checking in at 2 different times, so they only issued the room key cards after verifying our vaccination status at the front desk & the rest of the group got theirs later in the day. We were given solid black wristbands to show that we were fully vaccinated & the CM asked us to keep it on for the entirety of our stay.
But I think it's difficult for the Little Opihi beach stand to prevent serving walk up guests from other neighboring resorts. I know that Makahiki did make sure we had our "dining" wristbands but I didn't notice if the CMs at Ulu Cafe checked for wristbands.
Masks are still required as well as social distancing & limited number of guests in elevators. Most guests did not follow social distancing or elevator courtesy. I had to walk out of elevators when people began to pack in after me.
We waited for our room to be ready by renting a casabella on the beach. $70 + tax with 10% DVC member discount. It was nice but whew, it was HOT! We got dole whips from Little Opihi (watermelon, pineapple or watermelon/pineapple swirl) and they melted immediately, so be prepared for lots of dripping everywhere. I also supported a local small business called Beyond Charcuterie Dreams by ordering a large platinum box which was DELICIOUS! She was kind enough to deliver my order to Aulani!! Awesome! I found her by searching on Instagram.
Our room was ready at 2:40pm which was a nice surprise. We were in the Waianae wing, ocean view. We ordered take out from Mad Bene in Kapolei Commons for dinner & everyone enjoyed it. We turned in early since we had a breakfast reservation but there was a Star Wars marathon on TNT that kept me up later than expected.
Makahiki offers character breakfast every morning except Tuesdays & Thursdays. Upon arrival, we were directed to walk through the Olelo Room & outside there was Mickey & Minnie in aloha attire on a stage with a Photo Pass photographer taking pictures & I was able to use our phones to take pictures as well. We were then redirected back to the check-in area to wait for a hostess to take us to our table. First our hostess took us through the buffet area which I thought was odd since Makahiki is not serving buffet style right now. SURPRISE! There was another photo opportunity with Pluto & Chef Goofy!!! It was so cute! There was another Photo Pass photographer taking pictures there as well. We were then lead to our table that was well distanced from other groups. They offer a 3 course breakfast with everyone getting a pastry selection (croissant, cinnamon bun, blueberry muffin & coconut croissant). There were 3 baskets for the 5 of us. Everyone received a fruit plate with pineapple, canteloupe, kiwi, blackberries, raspberries & strawberries. We were able to select our own entrees to complete our meal & I found that the Aulani website had an accurate "sample" menu. Jennifer was our very kind server & we even had a live musician near the end of our meal. Adults were $45 & children 9 & under were $28. The non-character breakfast is cheaper & offer the same menu. I did ask about walk-up availability & the hostess did mention you had to be a resort guest & were welcome to call to check on walk-up. She was ready to put our names down for another morning, but I'm not a breakfast person, so another $45 egg breakfast wasn't for me especially 2 days in a row. She also did say that sometimes they won't have any availability, so calling ahead is always a good idea.
We did a little shopping, got more free DVC popcorn refills from Ulu Cafe & found out that they currently are only serving mango & vanilla dole whip, not pineapple. Only Little Opihi was serving pineapple. aw man. After a nap, we went to tour the 3 bedroom grand villa. The views there are outstanding! My cousins went down for some pool time & I met my sister who had picked up dinner after working in Kailua from Adela's Country Eatery in Kaneohe. It's one of our favorite restaurants on that side! After a great feast, we fell asleep since my goal was to wake up early to try to snag a pool cabana for checkout day.
I had called on Friday & was told the Pool Cabanas were all reserved for Sunday but I was welcome to get on the waitlist at 8am at Rainbow Reef. The pre-opening line was LONG when i arrived at 730am & got even longer by 8am. Luckily everyone in front of me was signing up for fish feeding or other activities & there was one last cabana available for us! Yay! We had always looked at it, but never thought to rent one so this was our time! The cabana hostess met me to escort me to our cabana #7 which was near the former adults only pool. Cabanas have a TV & mini fridge, sunblock, sani-wipes & 8 mini bottled waters. They also bring a fruit platter in the beginning & a dessert platter at the end. It's $450 + tax & there's a 10% DVC member discount and you have it from 8am-5pm. There's also call buttons for drinks/food or for more towels. We still had to pack up but the nice thing about the cabana was since it was out of the way of most guests, we were able to check out & bring down our hard sided cooler & keep it near us instead of having to take it to the car. it was a very nice experience & the cabana hostesses were very kind.
Our staycation ended with dinner at Mahiai Table in Foodland Farms at Ka Makana Alii shopping center. Always great food & great service! They do take out service as well.
