Going to Aulani -- Let's list places to eat

[SingingMom]

I understand the annoyance of shoe packing! My only saving grace is I wear size 4 or 5, so I can bring twice as many as DH. Lol

Seriously, I talked DD out of the horseback riding so we don't need to bring riding clothes and jeans!

Does DH need a sports jacket for AMA AMA or any restaurants at the Marriott? Would silk button down and dress shorts be good enough or should he have long khakis?

Thanks!

"SingingMom" ....Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

 

[Girimama33]

Most of the men in our party wore button down shirts or aloha shirts with nice shorts.

 

[Anal Annie]

You know what? We often pack a duffel full of shoes and miscellaneous stuff. You may have to pay $25 extra for it, but how worth it would it be to have all of those things?

Plus, you are going to buy souvenirs, right? I hope you're going to the Aloha Stadium Swap Meet and Pearl Harbor (right by it).

You'll definitely need the athletic shoes when you hike Haleakala and Diamond Head.... You're doing that, right? What a view! Just don't do it like we did....the morning we checked out and left Ko Olina, so no shower before our flight.

Have a wonderful time! I still dream of it daily, 13 months later. Going back by 2017!

I used to do that too, back in the day, pre-checked luggage fees. Problem with this idea on this trip is that it's not just $25. It would end up being $92 more for each extra checked bag we bring!! We are already up to $276 in checked bag fees if we stick to 1 bag pp. ($25 DC to LAX on Alaska then $25 LAX to HNL on HA then $17 inter-island on HA and then another $25 on Alaska Air for the return trip home!) We managed to do Europe in 2011 with 1 bag pp plus 1 extra shared garment bag - but that was bcuz I packed our dinner dress clothes (suits & dresses) in it or else I wouldn't have brought that. I just have to be super careful when I pack not to bring more than we really need. All bottoms will be double duty for 2 wearings. My packing cubes and packing folders help a lot with this. I will bring the space saver compression bags for dirty laundry which will free up some space for souvies. And I may pack our bathing suits in them going since I'm not so worried about them being wrinkled. Too bad I can't compress the shoes!! We also often use DS's backpack that he puts under the seat underpacked GOING so that we have some extra space for the return trip.

RE: the swap meet - no, probably not. Not our thing. We went by there and the Punchbowl on our last trip. Been there. Done that. Our souvies will likely be t-shirts, beer cozies and a mask if we can find one (we collect masks to hang in our foyer from all of our trips).

As far as Haleakala, yes, I may have to go alone if I can't get DH & DS to get up. We have been before. I am a photographer wannabe so MUST get some updated pics from up there. That's another thing I'm wrestling with bringing - tripod or monopod!! I am planning to bring our "packable down" coats too 'cuz I know how cold it is up there. I sound like a packing fool don't I?! Between snorkel gear, my big DSLR, shoes, tripods, monopods & down coats there is no room for clothes!! Guess we'll just have to live in our bathing suits.

 

[SingingMom]

Most of the men in our party wore button down shirts or aloha shirts with nice shorts.

Thanks!

Is it still warm in the August evenings or is a jacket/sweater needed?

"SingingMom" ....Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

 

[Girimama33]

Thanks!

Is it still warm in the August evenings or is a jacket/sweater needed?

"SingingMom" ....Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

I used to live in Hawaii, and I only remember freezing when it was about 65 degrees. LOL
It is usually about 70-80 all day long. When we there a few weeks ago, I never needed a jacket or sweatshirt at night.

 

[DVCTigger]

Leaving in a week....any new ideas or confirmation on good dining places?

 

[lovetotraveltx]

Never needed sweater or jacket but did capris or maxi dresses at night. Liked monkey pod ok. I personally wouldn't jump up and down. Did only pizza and pupus. Loved paradise cove luau. Recommend both marriotts especially the jw Marriott. On the napuli terrace by the shark pond. Wednesdays and Fridays they have full dinner with soup/salad bar for $30 and with every 2 dinners you can buy a bottle of wine for just $5. One day we picked up big wave shrimp truck and Maui mikes huli chicken and ate in our room!

 

[lovetotraveltx]

Also, loved the food at the character breakfast but if you have young kids that have been to any before they might be disappointed in the lack if characters

 

[Girimama33]

Never needed sweater or jacket but did capris or maxi dresses at night. Liked monkey pod ok. I personally wouldn't jump up and down. Did only pizza and pupus. Loved paradise cove luau. Recommend both marriotts especially the jw Marriott. On the napuli terrace by the shark pond. Wednesdays and Fridays they have full dinner with soup/salad bar for $30 and with every 2 dinners you can buy a bottle of wine for just $5. One day we picked up big wave shrimp truck and Maui mikes huli chicken and ate in our room!

We tried the pizza at Monkeypod (DD ordered it). It was definitely not on par with the rest of the food we tried. Glad you liked Paradise Cove.

 

[dreaming4disney]

My family really liked Giovanni's shrimp truck- they lived it!

 

[snackyx]

. On the napuli terrace by the shark pond. Wednesdays and Fridays they have full dinner with soup/salad bar for $30 and with every 2 dinners you can buy a bottle of wine for just $5. !

Did they just start this? Been there many times but didn't know about it. $5 bottle of wine in Hawaii? When is the next flight out?

 

[lovetotraveltx]

Did they just start this? Been there many times but didn't know about it. $5 bottle of wine in Hawaii? When is the next flight out?

I know my husband got a resie in one second. We just walked over to see the fish and the restaurants there and it happened to be a Friday so it was posted outside the restaurant. Besides the wine, a $30 full dinner with salad bar is pretty awesome too!

 

[Leilanie94]

My family had weekend staycation from Oct 10-12. We enjoyed the garlic bread and "Super" Pizza from Brick Oven Pizza.

Here's their website: http://brickovenpizzahi.com

889 Kamokila Blvd. #206
Kapolei, HI 96707
(808) 674-8561

 

[Redbudlover]

subbing for our trip in February!

 

[TinkandGoofy'sMom]

Opal Thai, Nico's and Monkeypod were our favourite when we visited in August. Opal Thai was amazing!

 

[Mduff]

The Marriott next to Aulani is closed for rebranding I think. What restaurants are in there that I should cross off a list to eat at in August?

 

[amystevekai&bump]

Hi,

I know this would involve a drive, but can anyone comment on either of the Haliewa Joe restaurants? Their prime rib sounds amazing and looking at photos of their Kaneohe location it looks as though it's in a very pretty location (we are thinking of going when we visit the Kualoa Ranch).

Many thanks for any thoughts

 

[BelievesinMagic]

I googled Cheap eats Hawaii and found this link a while ago. It looks like it's kept updated but most of the restaurants are in Honolulu. Great for those who are renting a car or going downtown at some point of their stay.
http://www.k5thehometeam.com/category/193529/cheap-eats

 

[mom_rules]

Just do the one at paradise cove... You can just walk there from Aulani. The others on the island are equally cheesy not worth wasting gas to get to!

Apparently this has been taken off of tripadvisors site as a recommended. Anyone experienced it lately?

 

[Dean]

Apparently this has been taken off of tripadvisors site as a recommended. Anyone experienced it lately?

It's also been removed from some of the companies that broker luau's and other options. But I don't know why, whether it's related to quality and complaints or that they have cut their kickbacks. They would have had to take a major dive for them to get removed from several sites on quality alone, my guess is it's related to other issues such the commissions rate and the like. It's not like there are great Luau's on Oahu in competition. The main competition, Germaine's, isn't world class either and the PCC while better in many ways is not a traditional Luau experience.