Fun Occasional Alternative To Aulani

Paul Stupin

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We own at Aulani, absolutely love it, and plan on going there for years. Just recently, though, we tacked on an extra week at the Grand Hyatt Kauai, a large sprawling resort near Poipu Beach. We loved that too! Thought I’d list some pros and cons if anyone is considering it.

Pros

1. The grounds are beautifully landscaped and extensive, with lots of waterfalls, streams and pools. There aren’t any towers, just a series of six floor buildings that appear separate (even though they’re actually all connected), with green roofs and a modern Hawaiian style. It’s very picturesque.

2. The pools are enormous…larger and more fun than Aulani. There’s a huge enclosed salt water swimming pool lagoon with a sandy bottom that’s incredible, and another enormous pool, plus a great adult area / pool that’s not pushed off to the side.

3. We like Aulani’s dining offerings, but found those at the Hyatt a bit better, and with surroundings equal or superior to Aulani.

4. The open air lobby is quite dramatic and beautiful, with live trees and live parrots!

5. No need to reserve pool seating or get up at the crack of dawn, the enormous pool area has seats everywhere. There’s one other positive about the pools being so huge and extensive. None of the pools, especially the ones intended for kids and families, seem overrun with kids. And that’s not because the resort wasn’t busy, either. Even with a considerable amount of families and children there, there is so much more pool space that the area doesn’t feel crowded at all, which makes for a considerably more relaxing time.

6. Much nicer and more extensive gym / spa.

7. Poipu Beach is a less than 5 minute drive away with hotels, restaurants and shops.

8. Amazing scenery to explore in Kauai, with fun hikes, ranging from easy to challenging.

9. Nice big, up to date rooms.

10. Very immersive and feels like you’re in a Hawaiian fantasy.

11. A lei at arrival! I don’t really care, and it got thrown out almost immediately, but I know this matters to some people.

Cons

1. I don’t think the kids club is at the level of Aunty’s Beach House. Can’t say for sure, though, since we don’t have kids.

2. There’s one water slide which isn’t bad, but no volcano or similar theming.

3. Small lazy river that’s ok but not great, but the actual pool area, with its large multiple pools, is, my guess, about four times the size of Aulani’s.

4. This is a big one. There’s a beach right there, called Shipwreck Beach, which has rough surf and is not suitable for kids. I think they compensated pretty well with the enormous saltwater lagoon, but the Aulani lagoons are of course pretty incredible. That said, getting a small body board and riding some of those waves was super fun.

5. No characters, of course.

6. The large outdoor pool area is terraced, and descends to the beach, which means there are a lot of uphill paths and stairs. We liked it because it was a bit of a workout, but it is something to keep in mind.

7. This didn’t bother us, but Kauai is alot less developed, and there are amazingly beautiful sights, but not a whole bunch of touristy attractions.

8. Pricey, and of course you can’t use DVC points that over the long run make the trip considerably more cost effective. Hyatt does have done sort of loyalty program but I’m not familiar with it.

Anyway, that’s it! My wife and I will no doubt return sometime in the future, and we really enjoyed it as an occasional Aulani alternative.
 
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Thanks for the report. We've been itching to head back to Hawaii but are wanting to try something other than Kaanapali. We've been looking a lot at the Grand Hyatt.
 
Each island is unique and definitely worth it as an alternative to Aulani every so often. That's why I really love Hawaii, as I can go each time to a different island, and feel like they are totally different vacations, although they are all still Hawaii.

Great3
 
Grand Hyatt Kauai is my favorite place I’ve ever stayed. We’re going to Aulani for the first time in April and I’m still worried that it won’t measure up
 

Hyatt does have done sort of loyalty program but I’m not familiar with it
For many, many years an ocean view club room at GH Kauai was fixed at 33,000 points, which transferred 1:1 from Chase, and it was the greatest steal on the planet.

There are still nights where a standard king room is a dirt cheap 25K points.
 
Grand Hyatt Kauai is my favorite place I’ve ever stayed. We’re going to Aulani for the first time in April and I’m still worried that it won’t measure up
Spoiler Alert: It won't measure up. Just my honest opinion!!! Unless you have to have characters greetings, but I get that fix at WDW and Disneyland.

But Aulani is still nice, and I don't go just for the resort experience. It's everything else on the island that makes the trip worth it!

Great3
 
Love the Grand Hyatt Kauai. We sometimes do a split stay with Kiahuna Plantation down the road because we LOVE Poipu Beach but it's been a while since we have been to either.

I'll throw another Aulani alternative into the ring. There are Hilton managed condos over on the Big Island called Kings Land. Staying there gives you full access to the Hilton Waikoloa Village which has an pretty impressive pool system (although I find it very cold) plus an big onsite snorkelling lagoon. It has a boat/tram system to get around with because it is so sprawling and although there is really no beach, just up the highway about 15 mins is one of the most beautiful beaches I have ever been to called Hapuna Beach. Pictures do not do this place justice, it is never overcrowded, the sand is like golden soft powder and the water is warm and shallow. I wouldn't say the Hilton Waikoloa Village or the Kings Land condos are comparable to Aulani, but certainly an alternative for a two island stay combined with Aulani and a way to stay a little bit upscale without breaking the bank.
 
Love the Grand Hyatt Kauai. We sometimes do a split stay with Kiahuna Plantation down the road because we LOVE Poipu Beach but it's been a while since we have been to either.

I'll throw another Aulani alternative into the ring. There are Hilton managed condos over on the Big Island called Kings Land. Staying there gives you full access to the Hilton Waikoloa Village which has an pretty impressive pool system (although I find it very cold) plus an big onsite snorkelling lagoon. It has a boat/tram system to get around with because it is so sprawling and although there is really no beach, just up the highway about 15 mins is one of the most beautiful beaches I have ever been to called Hapuna Beach. Pictures do not do this place justice, it is never overcrowded, the sand is like golden soft powder and the water is warm and shallow. I wouldn't say the Hilton Waikoloa Village or the Kings Land condos are comparable to Aulani, but certainly an alternative for a two island stay combined with Aulani and a way to stay a little bit upscale without breaking the bank.
Absolutely, Hapuna Beach is one of the most beautiful beaches and is my absolute favorite beach in Hawaii!!!

I do love HGVC King's Land also, but here I will say Aulani is nicer.

Great3
 
Absolutely, Hapuna Beach is one of the most beautiful beaches and is my absolute favorite beach in Hawaii!!!

I do love HGVC King's Land also, but here I will say Aulani is nicer.

Great3
We considered staying at the Westin Hapuna Beach before deciding on the Grand Hyatt Kauai, but the grounds just didn’t seem quite as expansive or inviting. The beach did look nice, though.
 
We considered staying at the Westin Hapuna Beach before deciding on the Grand Hyatt Kauai, but the grounds just didn’t seem quite as expansive or inviting. The beach did look nice, though.
Yes, I would agree. I stayed at the Westin Hapuna Beach before, and while nice, it doesn't measure up comparatively speaking. Glad you found a nice play you love in the Grand Hyatt Kauai.

Great3

ETA: Oh, and to make matter worse, Westin Hapuna lost power for over a day while we were there. While I don't fault the resort, I didn't feel they tried to do anything to make it up to the guests for the poor experience. Nor did they seem to show any empathy, at least they could have done that. Having said that, I will still go back. LOL!!!
 
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Yes, I would agree. I stayed at the Westin Hapuna Beach before, and while nice, it doesn't measure up comparatively speaking. Glad you found a nice play you love in the Grand Hyatt Kauai.

Great3

ETA: Oh, and to make matter worse, Westin Hapuna lost power for over a day while we were there. While I don't fault the resort, I didn't feel they tried to do anything to make it up to the guests for the poor experience. Nor did they seem to show any empathy, at least they could have done that. Having said that, I will still go back. LOL!!!
Ha! I thought hotels had generators and such to prevent this kind of thing. I guess not!
 
We considered staying at the Westin Hapuna Beach before deciding on the Grand Hyatt Kauai, but the grounds just didn’t seem quite as expansive or inviting. The beach did look nice, though.

The Westin used to be a Prince Hotel and maybe it was something else before that but its been there a loooong time. I don't know if I would ever stay there just because it is so isolated.

The area of Waikoloa that Kings Land is in has just a little more to offer and I do agree that it isn't quite as nice as Aulani.

For me, nothing beats the river pool at Aulani. Plus we always drive over to Kailua/Lanikai for our beach fix.
 
The Westin used to be a Prince Hotel and maybe it was something else before that but its been there a loooong time. I don't know if I would ever stay there just because it is so isolated.

The area of Waikoloa that Kings Land is in has just a little more to offer and I do agree that it isn't quite as nice as Aulani.

For me, nothing beats the river pool at Aulani. Plus we always drive over to Kailua/Lanikai for our beach fix.
Agree about Waikoloa as well. Don't know about Kings Land, but through some Hawaiian Airlines promotion, we were contacted about a very low cost stay at Hilton Waikoloa Village, so long as we sat through the inevitable time share pitch for Hilton Vacation Club. I turned them down but did a little research on the place anyway because I was curious.

The resort is absolutely gargantuan beyond belief, with building after building after building seemingly going on forever, but the little monorail connecting it all is evidently so slow that it’s faster to walk everywhere, and they’ve long since discontinued the boat system, though the canal where they used to run is still there. The extensive series of pools and lagoons (no beach) is impressive, but everything else not so much. It is quite inexpensive by Hawaii standards, though, but in our opinion nowhere near Grand Hyatt Kauai, or Aulani, standards.
 
Waikokoa is definitely huge. Stayed there decades ago as a kid and had a blast. I rode the smaller water slides so many times that my swimsuit wore holes in the bottom. The hotel had a seamstress that sewed them back together. The cool thing was that office was underground. Like Disneyland, the whole complex is built on top of a huge service corridor and complex. It was much easier to get around once we started using those staff tunnels underground. Unfortunately, after about two days we were told we couldn’t do that anymore.
 
Waikokoa is definitely huge. Stayed there decades ago as a kid and had a blast. I rode the smaller water slides so many times that my swimsuit wore holes in the bottom. The hotel had a seamstress that sewed them back together. The cool thing was that office was underground. Like Disneyland, the whole complex is built on top of a huge service corridor and complex. It was much easier to get around once we started using those staff tunnels underground. Unfortunately, after about two days we were told we couldn’t do that anymore.
How fun…I wish I had gone as a kid!
 
I do love HGVC King's Land also, but here I will say Aulani is nicer.
We're going for the first time in February, do you ever bother to use the facilities at Hilton Waikoloa Village? Or is it not worth the hassle and better to just stay at HGVC if you're going to do a pool day? cc @alohamom
 
Rough itinerary for upcoming Big Island trip, would love peoples' feedback.

Day 1: Stay overnight at the Hilton Boston Logan
Day 2: Fly Boston to Honolulu, Honolulu to Kona. Check in at HGVC Kings' Land
Day 3: Church at St. Michael the Archangel, Costco run, and resort time (HGVC or Hilton Waikoloa Village)
Day 4: Leeward side of the island. National Historical Parks, Greenwell Farms coffee tour
Day 5: Beach full day. Kauna'oa (Mauna Kea) or Hapuna
Day 6: Check out. Drive to the town of Volcano around the North side of the island. Waipi'o Valley, Akaka Falls.
Day 7: TBD. Either a beach around Hilo or Volcanoes National Park.
Day 8: TBD. Either a beach around Hilo or Volcanoes National Park.
Day 9: Hilo Farmer's Market, beach, church at St. Theresa.
Day 10/11: Drive back to Kona using the saddle road. Fly Kona to Honolulu, Honolulu to Boston.
 
We're going for the first time in February, do you ever bother to use the facilities at Hilton Waikoloa Village? Or is it not worth the hassle and better to just stay at HGVC if you're going to do a pool day? cc @alohamom
The pools at Waikoloa Village is actually just okay to me, but it's a huge, huge pool. However, the saltwater lagoon is awesome, even have lots of sea turtles. My family went like 3 times because they like seeing the turtles, they all said it was the highlight of their Hawaii trip, to swim and snorkel with the sea turtles. To me, the grounds are absolutely beautiful, and I love just sitting the boat ride and take it a full circle, and also getting off and just walking the grounds. You get free parking if stay at HGVC Kingsland Or HGVC Kohala Suites, but not the Bay Club. You just bring the parking stub to get validated at Valet, they just ask for your room number / last name at most if they even ask at all.

In short, I think it's worth a visit to walk around, and swim with the turtles. But if it's just relaxing by the pools (and using the hot tubs only), I think Kingsland pools are a lot nicer.

Great3
 
We're going for the first time in February, do you ever bother to use the facilities at Hilton Waikoloa Village? Or is it not worth the hassle and better to just stay at HGVC if you're going to do a pool day? cc @alohamom

As @Great3 says, the salt water lagoon are pretty unique and makes it worth the use of the facilities.

I think your itinerary is good and will give you a nice taste of the island.

If you can fit a Kona farmers market into Day 3 or 4, it is worth it for the fruit and veggie. Sooo fresh and good prices.
https://bigislandguide.com/kona-farmers-markets


If you can squeeze in a visit to Hamakua Mac Nut factory on Day 5, it is really worth it. Great prices and fresh mac nut samples
https://hawnnut.com/visitor-center/
It's not much further up from Hapuna, maybe another 15 mins so what we have done in the past is drive up there first and then head back to the beach. Actually, close to there is Spenser Beach park. It is small and quiet but also very nice. (not as nice as Hapuna though) Mauna Kea Beach can be hard to park at. Also, We always bring our lunch with us as there isn't much to eat around there.

Saddle road is wild, we have hit fog patches that are so thick we were scared to drive. Be careful and make sure you travel it in the day time.
 














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