John and Kevin's Hawaii Segment

[Halloweenqueen]

LOVED it!

We have traveled to Oahu several times and I would offer some additional tidbits.....

Lei greetings at the airport. There are many companies and kiosks at the airport that offer lei greetings. If you want to be greeted when you arrive check online. There are many online choices.

Totally agree with Waikiki. We spend zero time there. We mostly stay on the Windward (Kailua) and North shore coasts.

Ko Olina is a wonderful area. We have had great success watching whales and dolpins. We even saw dolphins in the exact lagoon where Disney is located. I would mention that the Leeward side is a more crime ridden area. We had our rental car vandalized while there. If you ever watch Dog the Bounty Hunter, 99% of his work is done in this area.

Parking...I would rather pay and have security than worry about my car. Unfortunately there is a break in problem with cars. Never leave anything of value in a rental, especially within sight.

Hiking...Walter...you must watch the youtube series, "Poor Man's Guide to Hawaii". Wayde Fishman does a tour guide that describes all the free things to do in Oahu. Many of these fantastic videos features the wonderful hiking options. A must see.

Wouldn't it be great to have a DVC locker option or grocery service for Aulani? Just a thought.

Totally correct on how Hawaiian's view distance. We bumped into some Honolulu locals at DL and we struck up a conversation about Oahu. We told them we stay on the North Shore and they told us they had NEVER traveled that far into the country! lol We are talking maybe one hour from Honolulu, tops.

Food...yes, go where the locals go. Also stop at the food trucks. We love the shrimp and thai food truck on the North Shore.

Weather...Hawaii is beautiful year round, but there are seasons. The waves of the North Shore only are there during winter. Had John and Kevin ventured North they would have seen beaches as calm as glass. The waves are in the South in the summer....surfers at Waikiki. Kailua beach is gorgeous! Our favorite part of the Island, especially Lanikai beach.

My fear is that many people will visit Aulani and feel that they experienced true Hawaii. As much as Disney does a good job with authenticity, nothing beats getting in a car and experiencing it yourself.

Just a few pictures...

Ko Olina dolphins...

View of the Mountains, for Walter...this is the Buddhist Temple

And Kailua Beach...

 

[choirboy501]

Glad you liked O'ahu, Kevin and John!

The "spam sushi" you had is called spam musubi, a favorite local snack.

What I am curious about is how difficult will it be for local residents to use some of the amenities at the resort. My wife and I are interested in some of the spa services, and have not been able to find a price list on the Disney site, just a place to "request a quote." Has Dreams Unlimited received a price list?

Glad you liked Anna Miller's, but (IMO) there are better local places to eat. If the two of you, or Pete and Walter, make it back here, I wouldn't mind making some recommendations, as I'm sure other local residents on the site would, too.

 

[*NikkiBell*]

I don't know about that syrup though....

 

[DisneyKevin]

Glad you liked O'ahu, Kevin and John!

The "spam sushi" you had is called spam musubi, a favorite local snack.

What I am curious about is how difficult will it be for local residents to use some of the amenities at the resort. My wife and I are interested in some of the spa services, and have not been able to find a price list on the Disney site, just a place to "request a quote." Has Dreams Unlimited received a price list?

Glad you liked Anna Miller's, but (IMO) there are better local places to eat. If the two of you, or Pete and Walter, make it back here, I wouldn't mind making some recommendations, as I'm sure other local residents on the site would, too.

Aulani has given us spa pricing and it should be on the site soon.

As for finding better places to eat....I'm certain that there are far better places....but with limited time and not really knowing where we were going....we were happy finding Anna Millers.

When we come back.....and we will be coming back....I'll make sure to get the inside info from the folks that know.

 

[DisneyKevin]

Oh....we tried another place that was highly recommended in Waikiki.....The Side Street Cafe.

Very good!!!!

Uncle Bo's was highly recommended as well....but we never made it there.

We also found Leonardo's Bakery.

OMG! Incredible, fresh, homemade donuts. You had to get in line outside.....but it was worth the wait.

 

[WebmasterJohn]

What I am curious about is how difficult will it be for local residents to use some of the amenities at the resort. My wife and I are interested in some of the spa services, and have not been able to find a price list on the Disney site, just a place to "request a quote." Has Dreams Unlimited received a price list?

Local residents and folks staying at other resorts will be able to book spa appointments and dining reservations at Aulani. At the time of our visit they didn't know how this would work (i.e. hotel guests get priority, ADR type system, etc). I'm sure we'll learn more as we get closer to opening.

As Kevin mentioned we do have a pricing list for the spa - bug Scott for it so it gets posted sooner

 

[robinb]

And Kailua Beach...

I really like that float. Did you buy it/rent it in Hawaii? We're planning to go to Oahu in about a month (fingers crossed).

 

[Halloweenqueen]

It's one of those collapsible ones from Walmart. You just deflate the rim and twist it into a circle. It reminds me of the old playhut structures. It is completely flat in it's mesh case. We have several and put them in the zipper compartment of our suitcases. Works out well!

 

[choirboy501]

We also found Leonardo's Bakery.

OMG! Incredible, fresh, homemade donuts. You had to get in line outside.....but it was worth the wait.

You found Leonard's on Kapahulu - excellent! You must have had the malsadas, well worth the wait. You can get fresh, hot ones there from early morning to late at night.

 

[choirboy501]

Local residents and folks staying at other resorts will be able to book spa appointments and dining reservations at Aulani. At the time of our visit they didn't know how this would work (i.e. hotel guests get priority, ADR type system, etc). I'm sure we'll learn more as we get closer to opening.

As Kevin mentioned we do have a pricing list for the spa - bug Scott for it so it gets posted sooner

Fantastic. My wife and I have tried a number of different places around Honolulu for couples massages, and your review of Aulani has us interested in what Disney has to offer.

Thanks for the great review, I enjoy listening to your reports each week.

 

[DisneyKevin]

Leonard's....not Leonardo's.

Incredible.

 

[choirboy501]

As for finding better places to eat....I'm certain that there are far better places....but with limited time and not really knowing where we were going....we were happy finding Anna Millers.

When we come back.....and we will be coming back....I'll make sure to get the inside info from the folks that know.

I have my own picks, but if you are wanting a resource to learn about local cuisine, check out Aku Eats, a website run by a local named, well, Aku. Good resource.

http://akueats.com/

 

[DisneyKevin]

I have my own picks, but if you are wanting a resource to learn about local cuisine, check out Aku Eats, a website run by a local named, well, Aku. Good resource.

http://akueats.com/

I'll be looking for you when it's time to go.

 

[choirboy501]

I'll be looking for you when it's time to go.

 

[starwood]

Coconut syrup is the best. We haven't been to Hawaii in 20 years and I had forgotten about that. I wish there was someplace on the mainland where you could get it.

Pete - the wilderness on Hawaii is not that dangerous. There are NO SNAKES in Hawaii.

This whole podcast is making me want to go back to Hawaii but it is such a longggg trip from NJ.

Kevin - you have to go to Maui next time you are in Hawaii (short 20 minute plane flight). The shopping district in Lahaina is so quaint.

 

[ospopo5]

Thank you so much for the review. Great insight! Can't wait to plan a trip there soon! Now I have to buy more points!

But the choice is with Kids or No Kids.

Suggestion....

any thoughts on tips for travel to Hawaii? Airfare, best place to look, tips, hints and tricks for travel, since a lot of people will be traveling with kids.

 

[WebmasterJohn]

any thoughts on tips for travel to Hawaii? Airfare, best place to look, tips, hints and tricks for travel, since a lot of people will be traveling with kids.

As far as air goes it would be the same suggestion as traveling anywhere - check multiple sites and resources and check often.

The best travel tip I have for Hawaii is if you are looking to get a rental car definately place a hold on one - don't think you can wing it and just show up and get one.

There are a limited number of cars to rent and if you don't secure one you may not be able to get the car you want, even with the larger rental car companies.

Now I'm not saying there will only be 3 cars and all will be gone but we found it difficult to get a larger vehicle for Kevin and I since we were traveling so soon. We eventually found one but it wasn't like Orlando or Vegas where they have a huge inventory and you can change your mind when you get there.

Also, renting a car is expensive in Hawaii. This goes back to the whole inventory thing. We found it hard to get any kind of deal unless we were willing to take a sub-contact. Again, could be related to the last minute booking but my research pretty much said that would be the experience no matter when you booked.

All rental car companies are off-site so be prepared to take a shuttle. They were quick to arrive, very friendly and offered advise on what to do on the island.

Going back to eating - we were told to look for the food trucks - and we did - but it seems like every time we found one we had either already eaten or on our way somewhere when we couldn't stop. We really were looking forward to trying one - maybe next time.

 

[ospopo5]

Thanks John! Great podcast.

I've been listening for about 4 months now and it makes the 2 hour roundtrip train ride that much more enjoyable.

Hopefully our first Aulani trip will be in 2013!

 

[choirboy501]

Pete - the wilderness on Hawaii is not that dangerous. There are NO SNAKES in Hawaii.

What are you doing? I just noticed "Hawaii snakes" trending in Yahoo, seriously - Pete must have their servers working overtime.


j/k

 

[starwood]

What are you doing? I just noticed "Hawaii snakes" trending in Yahoo, seriously - Pete must have their servers working overtime.


j/k

Maybe no one believed me.