Aulani Trip Report!

Shuweb

Earning My Ears
Joined
Oct 21, 2011
Here is our Aulani trip report. I will break out my thread by day, because it's a lot of info. If you want to keep an element of surprise for your trip, don't read this.... I've pretty much outlined the key attractions. Please note, this is as of November 2011 - looks like the programs are still evolving.

I have the full trip report with photos up on www.shuweb.com.


Background
This is a babymoon. In other words, there won't be a big trip for the next couple of years, and this was a good enough reason to visit Aulani, a new Disney resort that opened just a few months before.

Aulani is located on the southwestern side of Oahu, in a little "community" called Ko Olina. It's a little ways from Waikiki, so for most people, this little gem has remained unknown. But now with Aulani, the main attraction in Oahu has just shifted to Ko Olina.

Day 1
As we arrived in Ko Olina, we passed through a gate with security. I'm not sure whether non-guests of the restaurants/hotels are not allowed, but the security guard had our name on a roster, and we were allowed to proceed. There are two primary hotels here - the JW Marriott and Aulani, both of which share a beach in a small lagoon like area. there is also Roy's, which is a very well known restaurant (see also our Oahu trip from the year before).

Upon arrival, we were presented our lei (our daughter received a necklace) and were whisked away to be checked in - we were taken to a concierge desk where Teresa took care of our check in, restaurant reservations, gave us the Daily Iwa, and showed us the map of the property. The welcome was very nice - she took all the time we needed to start our stay. We went up to our room 1531, where our luggage arrived.

The room was very nicely done - it highlighted Hawaiian culture and crafts as opposed to Disney itself. In fact, the only hint of Disney was a lamp of Mickey (Note: partial ocean view could also be a view of the parking lot. Consider facing the pool instead).They designed the room well - it was very tastefully done. We walked back into the lobby floor, which was beautifully decorated in every direction. There were staff everywhere, all of them very willing to help and share their own wonderful experiences at Aulani.

As soon as we walked out to the pool area, we saw Stitch - he was greeting the kids in a Hawaiian shirt. The wait to take pictures with took less than five minutes, which is unheard of at Disneyland.

We knew about the nearby grocery store - it is an ABC store - so we walked down the hill and across the street - and found everything from salads made to order, quick take out food and fruits. In the immediate area, there were also an ice cream store, Mexican restaurant, Hawaiian BBQ, etc.*

Our daughter went to Aunty's Beach House, a kids only club for hotel guests, where she dressed up as Cinderella and did arts and crafts and had a tea party. There are a ton of staff - they were very nice and attentive; on that day, it was 2 staff for every kid when I picked up Cinderella (yes, she was in the costume). I inquired about the cleanliness of the dress - and based on the answer, I was satisfied (let's just say that they go through A LOT of dresses). I then went on to explore the resort - and my wife was happily enjoying the nice hotel room.

We had dinner at Makahiki - a buffet. This is one of two restaurants that require reservations, even for breakfast. It's not cheap either - $43 for adults for dinner (and around $25 for adult breakfast). The buffet was not bad, but I didn't feel like I ate my money's worth.

After dinner, our daughter went back to the beach house where she apparently dressed up as Snow White and had a blast hanging out.
 
Day 2*
On Monday, we had breakfast at Olelo Room, which basically serves a la carte pastries and other carbs and sugar, as well as coffee an tea. The food was OK, but it was not a filling breakfast. By this time, we had resigned to forking out the money for our morning meals.

At 9am, we saw fish feeding in the Rainbow Reef, where something like 70 species of fish reside. *Our daughter had a terrific time watching the fish (from a window). This "reef" is a glorified pool - don't assume that his is a section of the beach where fish come and go. We followed up the morning with photos with Minnie, and an hour later with Mickey. By this time, we had become accustomed to seeing adults (mostly Japanese - I can say that because I am one too) going absolutely nuts for these characters. What's great here is that the wait time is so short, and they take their time with each person.*

We went into the*infinity hot tubs until we were well cooked, because quite frankly, the pool water was way too cold for me (though apparently not too cold for our daughter). *The hot tub was therapy - there are two levels of the hot tub, and the hot water overflows from one to the other - so if you sit just beneath the upper tub, you can have the hot water drench you from above - it was like a massage.*

We had our lunch at poolside (burgers, lettuce wraps), and our daughter went into the Aunty's Beach House, which by at this time was her favorite place to be.

Then, my wife and daughter did the*sting ray experience. This was an amazing educational session (I didn't join in the fun, but I took photos and listened to the instructors), as we learned about sting rays - and in case you're curious, they remove the barbs, which are like finger nails and they grow right back. The participants got to touch them and feed them, all while the professional photographer took pictures (they have Photo Pass here too).

After the experience, my wife and daughter went into a quieter, smaller pool as I looked on a wedding in which Mickey and Minnie were the hosts.

On this night, we decided to have prepared dinner from the grocery store -we had to be there early for Starlit Hui (7pm, Mondays and Thursdays only, so book your trip accordingly!). We quickly grabbed our seat on the mat floor (no chairs) and secured our spot, and looked around the several Hawaiian crafts activities which they made available to people to participate. The dancers also gave ad hoc dance lessons to the little kids. The show itself was wonderful - there were beautiful hula dances to some great singing, fast paced ukelele by the duo Heart & Soul, some traditional Hawaiian music, and lots of kid participation. This part of the show must have only lasted maybe 45 minutes, but it was terrific - dare I say better than Ha at the Polynesian Cultural Center? But the real fun started when the characters came - Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Stitch, Chip & Dale - in a big dance party where kids and grown ups alike were shaking heir booty and line dancing. The show ended with more character photo ops, and it was all done by around 8:30.
 
Day 3
On early Tuesday morning, we had breakfast at Ama Ama (yes, reservation required - you can book it online) - it was a wonderful buffet, including Mickey Mouse waffles. This was apparently a trial period - they will go a la carte in December, but I hope they go back to buffet again. They had very nice service - food is $25 per head adults, $12 kids - and very worth it. They were extremely attentive and the food was very good - all with the beach as our background.*

The activity for the morning was the Hoku Nai'a dolphin watch. Basically, a bus took us out to the marina, and from there we traveled north by large boat along the west coast, all the way to where the road ended. There, along the beach, the dolphins were spotted spinning and jumping - in fact, they came up to our boat and swam with us. By law, we were only allowed to stay there for half an hour, as dolphins hunt at night and we were to not keep them up past their "bed time." This was a great way to see dolphins up close in their natural habitat. We also learned a few miscellaneous things - the wet season starts in November and ends in April - we had caught the early wet season (which may explain the strong breezes on Sunday and Monday), but the west side of the island remained dry, at least for now.

We spent the afternoon taking photos back at the resort with Donald and Goofy, playing in the pool and hot tub (how do kids do it - our daughter went into the cold pool, jumped in the hot tub and back into the cold pool again, only to repeat this over and over), and having shaved ice on the pool side (note: to keep unwanted guests, you must check in to receive your wrist band for the day. They check your name off using your card key, and make sure that you have not already checked in. And if you want your badge of honor, you keep those wrist bands on day after day, and by the end of the trip, you'll have a rainbow of wrist bands. But why people, why?. The check in is conveniently located next to the fresh towels. Also - the free water stations are a great idea). Our daughter went running back to Aunty's Beach House once more until dinner, where she (now Snow White), Sleeping Beauty (another little girl), and other princesses learned the hula. We as parents went back to the room to watch TV and play Angry Birds because we were already tired... how pathetic.

Our night ended with a nice dinner at Ama Ama.
 
Day 4
On this day, we had the character breakfast. An important thing to note is that they only have this event on Wednesdays, Fridays and I believe Saturdays, and reservations are required way ahead of time (we booked our breakfast a month ahead). Of course, by this time, we had greeted just about all the characters (I'm sorry to report, no princesses in swimsuits). We first checked in at the Makahiki, and were taken to an outside spot where Mickey greeted us for a group photo. Once that was done, we were seated for our breakfast. Only Minnie and Goofy were making their rounds, but it seemed just fine - Aunty kept the crowd going with lots of songs, interaction with the kids, etc., including Aunty and Minnie parading around the restaurant with kids marching in unison (our daughter was proudly hopping around right behind Minnie). Needless to say, our daughter spent more time with the characters or sitting restlessly waiting for the characters to come than she did eating. By the time Minnie and Goofy came to our table, it was nearly an hour into breakfast, but it didn't matter - she had lots of quality time with the gang.

With breakfast done, our daughter went back to the Beach House to make Stitch's space goo, and we the parents had some quiet time until lunch.

We spent the afternoon together on the beach - our daughter made sand castles.
 


Thanks for posting your trip report!!

One question, though: Are you in a DVC villa or in a regular Aulani hotel room?
 
Thanks so much for sharing your trip! :goodvibes

How was Ama Ama? What did you have? Just curious- it's been getting some REALLY awful reviews, and I'm hoping they have figured it all out now-

Thanks, and Happy Thanksgiving!!
 


It's a regular hotel room. Of course, much of my commentary is outside of the room, so I hope this is helpful. I haven't seen a whole lot On Aulani posted here, so I hope this adds some color to the resort.

Thanks for posting your trip report!!

One question, though: Are you in a DVC villa or in a regular Aulani hotel room?
 
I had a mahimahi covered in a crunchy egg roll type thing - in fact, think of it as a giant eggroll. It was fine. My wife had the duck and our daughter the pizza and a milk shake / Mickey Mouse mousse thing.

Our daughter said that the pizza was the best in the world, but I think she was just hungry. We the adults enjoyed our food, but it was simply not special. The service was great, the food came fast, so I can't pinpoint what it is.

As a point of reference, my wife and I went to Roy's across the street the following night. The butterfish was SO good, the sashimi platter excellent. The souffle was awesome, the sorbet was beautifully presented. Could it be that this dinner was better because it was a dinner for the two of us? Maybe, but I think the variety and quality at Roy's was simply better.

If you want other choices, there is Azul and the Japanese restaurant at JW Marriott, which is right next door.

Thanks so much for sharing your trip! :goodvibes

How was Ama Ama? What did you have? Just curious- it's been getting some REALLY awful reviews, and I'm hoping they have figured it all out now-

Thanks, and Happy Thanksgiving!!
 
I'd say try the restaurant once, and try something else... Don't limit yourself to just the resort restaurants, because you really only have three choices - Ama Ama, Makahiki and the poolside food.
 
Loving this trip report- interesting with good details and food for thought. We are already planning on going to Roy's. Have been there before and really liked it.

Did you order grocery delivery or which store did you shop?

Thanks!

Do they dress the boys in pirates or anything at Aunty's?
 
The grocery store is literally across the street from the resort, so it takes less than 10 minutes to walk there (you have to walk down the hill of the resort, cross a small set of railroad tracks and walk past the ice cream store). You'll find fruits, veggies, general groceries, etc. You'll find everything you need to cook on your own. I'll have to look up the name, but it's called something like The Country Market or something. You'll see the picture of the store name on Shuweb.com.

Once you are at Aulani, the concierge can give you a map of Ko Olina - you'll find that map is useful. My site has the link to Ko Olina's website, and you will find a map there.

The kids at Aunty's can wear the character "dresses," available for both boys and girls. The costumes are available to be worn any time. My daughter was Cinderella one day, Snow White for a few, and Ariel and Aurora on the next. I believe I saw some boys' costumes for Woody, Cars, etc., but I admit, I didn't pay much attention on the boys' side.

What's also cool about Aunty's is that the characters come to visit them - Chip & Dale have a party in the evening (you can pre-arrange your kids to be served dinner there) once or twice a week, and the photographer will be there to take pictures, and you can find them on Photo Pass. My daughter for example took photos with the characters dressed as Ariel.

Loving this trip report- interesting with good details and food for thought. We are already planning on going to Roy's. Have been there before and really liked it.

Did you order grocery delivery or which store did you shop?

Thanks!

Do they dress the boys in pirates or anything at Aunty's?
 
By the way, if you have a car, go to Alan Wong's, it's a great restaurant. And if you find yourself traveling east near Waimanalo, there is a great pancake place called Boots & Kimo's, where you can eat macademia nut sauce covered pancakes.

Loving this trip report- interesting with good details and food for thought. We are already planning on going to Roy's. Have been there before and really liked it.

Did you order grocery delivery or which store did you shop?

Thanks!

Do they dress the boys in pirates or anything at Aunty's?
 
Thanks for the report. Good to hear that the character breakfast is getting better ... leaning against it for our weekend trip coming up, but still toying with the idea since we love Goofy's kitchen so much and there's no park attached to Aulani so we won't be missing park time in the morning!
Glad to hear your DD loved Aunty's Beach House so much. I'm sure DS5 will love it just like he loves the Oceaneer's Club on DCL, hoping he'll interact more and play computers less in there if they have dress up, etc. Just have to make sure he comes out to spend family time with us at some point! ;)
 
I just figured out that we at Aulani are having it so good... We went to the adjacent hotel, the Ihilani JW Marriott. It's obviously an older hotel - they have a small pool with hammerhead sharks, which is pretty cool - they otherwise have a decent size pool but nothing special about it - but anyway, we ate at their casual restaurant, the Naupaka Terrace.

Oh. My. Goodness. The place was crammed, the food was so so (Thanksgiving theme tonight), the service pretty bad, and screaming kids, noisy crowd, it was a rude awakening! Folks, compared to this joint, Ama Ama is a true blessing!

Let's say the obvious: those at Ihilani Marriott wish that they are staying at Aulani. That is why the Aulani restaurants require reservations, and why the gate from the beach requires key access to get in, and why you need to get your wrist band to be around the pool. And, why you should eat at Ama Ama.

Thanks so much for sharing your trip! :goodvibes

How was Ama Ama? What did you have? Just curious- it's been getting some REALLY awful reviews, and I'm hoping they have figured it all out now-

Thanks, and Happy Thanksgiving!!
 
Good news is that even if he doesn't do the breakfast, he will have plenty of opportunity to interact with the characters - the Starlit Hui, the poolside event in the afternoon with Mickey, Goofy and Stitch, the beach house party with Chip & Dale, an event on the Rainbw Reef with Goofy and Donald - just keep in mind that these events don't happen daily, and you probably won't know what event will take place until the night before.

Thanks for the report. Good to hear that the character breakfast is getting better ... leaning against it for our weekend trip coming up, but still toying with the idea since we love Goofy's kitchen so much and there's no park attached to Aulani so we won't be missing park time in the morning!
Glad to hear your DD loved Aunty's Beach House so much. I'm sure DS5 will love it just like he loves the Oceaneer's Club on DCL, hoping he'll interact more and play computers less in there if they have dress up, etc. Just have to make sure he comes out to spend family time with us at some point! ;)
 
I just figured out that we at Aulani are having it so good... We went to the adjacent hotel, the Ihilani JW Marriott. It's obviously an older hotel - they have a small pool with hammerhead sharks, which is pretty cool - they otherwise have a decent size pool but nothing special about it - but anyway, we ate at thir casual restaurant, the Naupaka Terrace.

Oh. My. Goodness. The place was crammed, the food was so so (Thanksgiving theme tonight), the service pretty bad, and screaming kids, noisy crowd, it was a rude awakening! Folks, compared to this joint, Ama Ama is a true blessing!

well, to be fair, the equivalent restaurant at the Ihilani to 'Ama'ama is Azul which is a pretty nice restaurant. I tend to think that holiday restaurant meals are in general overrated so not surprised about the food being so-so at Naupaka for Thanksgiving.
 
"The grocery store is literally across the street from the resort,"

Cool. Are the prices similar to Safeway you think? We will have a car. Thanks for the restaurant suggestions.
 
Great TR! I really appreciate the details like which days the character meals are. What is Starlit Hui? An interactive show? Are reservations required?

Are you given a list of activities each evening for the next day or a list for the week at check-in? I wonder if anyone has posted theirs online?

We're going to Aulani in February and thought we would do some other things in Oahu in our 6 days their. Sounds like the resort may keep us busy enough.

The pancakes sound good too! Their used to be a place in waikiki that awesome tropical pancakes with macadamia nut syrup...but it closed. How far away is the place you mention? I will drive for good pancakes! Maybe it will be on the way to one of our excursions away from the resort--if we do decide to go anywhere.
 

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