...I had a great time. I was there from Feb. 11-16 (after 5 nights on Maui). The resort is beautiful. I know others have posted nice photos of the resort and pools, so I'll just give my opinions of what I liked and didn't like.
The LIKES:
1. Gorgeous resort and room. Everything was clean and well kept.
2. Pools. There are several pool areas, as well as the lazy river, hot tubs, and water slides. I think the infinity hot tub (2 levels) has the best view ever, especially at sunset (looking over the cove)
3. Staff were wonderful. Everyone was friendly and upbeat. They couldn't be more helpful.
4. Starlit Hui - very entertaining show. Singers, dancers and musicians were great and really got the audience involved. The characters and dance party at the end had a big beach party vibe to it. Just an FYI - after the Starlit Hui the characters will pose for photos. You can use your own camera or the Photopass Photogs will take a pic for you. But they won't put it on your photopass card. They put all pics on their card and then you can go to the marketplace in the lobby to view. I don't know if you can have them put on your card at that time as I used my own camera and didn't check the store photos.
5. Built around the resort (booth inside and out by the pool) are several hideaway sections where you can sit and relax and be a little secluded. One that stands in mind is in the pool area across from Off the Hook, there is a little deck section with about 3 lounge chairs. It's still close to everything, put kinda away from the crowds too.
6. The fitness room was very nice. Lots of stuff to do and very well-kept.
7. Beach was very nice. You could rent snorkel gear, kayaks, paddle boards right in front of the resort. They also had three large floating pads in teh water that the kids could climb on and then jump back into the water. The kids I saw were having a ball. Can't beat watching sunset from the beach there.
The DISLIKES:
1. There's not a lot to do in the area around the resort. Definitely need a car.
2. The food is expensive and not a lot to my taste. I'm more of a meat and potatoes gal (I don't eat fish, except for shrimp and scallops), so there wasn't a whole lot on the menus that I really wanted. I did eat at Makahiki buffet one night. It was okay, but not really worth $50 for what I ate.
I did have the Kobe beef trio at Off the Hook and a pre-made tuna wrap from Lava Shack. I enjoyed both of those. I also drove to Kapolei shopping area to eat at a few places there.
I think when I go back to Oahu, I would shorten my Aulani stay to 3 days so that I would be there just to enjoy the resort and not worry about going anywhere else for sightseeing. After my stay there, I would go stay in Waikiki for the "touristy" part of my trip.
Overall, I had a great time and am hoping to go back in 2014.
Terri
The LIKES:
1. Gorgeous resort and room. Everything was clean and well kept.
2. Pools. There are several pool areas, as well as the lazy river, hot tubs, and water slides. I think the infinity hot tub (2 levels) has the best view ever, especially at sunset (looking over the cove)
3. Staff were wonderful. Everyone was friendly and upbeat. They couldn't be more helpful.
4. Starlit Hui - very entertaining show. Singers, dancers and musicians were great and really got the audience involved. The characters and dance party at the end had a big beach party vibe to it. Just an FYI - after the Starlit Hui the characters will pose for photos. You can use your own camera or the Photopass Photogs will take a pic for you. But they won't put it on your photopass card. They put all pics on their card and then you can go to the marketplace in the lobby to view. I don't know if you can have them put on your card at that time as I used my own camera and didn't check the store photos.
5. Built around the resort (booth inside and out by the pool) are several hideaway sections where you can sit and relax and be a little secluded. One that stands in mind is in the pool area across from Off the Hook, there is a little deck section with about 3 lounge chairs. It's still close to everything, put kinda away from the crowds too.
6. The fitness room was very nice. Lots of stuff to do and very well-kept.
7. Beach was very nice. You could rent snorkel gear, kayaks, paddle boards right in front of the resort. They also had three large floating pads in teh water that the kids could climb on and then jump back into the water. The kids I saw were having a ball. Can't beat watching sunset from the beach there.
The DISLIKES:
1. There's not a lot to do in the area around the resort. Definitely need a car.
2. The food is expensive and not a lot to my taste. I'm more of a meat and potatoes gal (I don't eat fish, except for shrimp and scallops), so there wasn't a whole lot on the menus that I really wanted. I did eat at Makahiki buffet one night. It was okay, but not really worth $50 for what I ate.
I did have the Kobe beef trio at Off the Hook and a pre-made tuna wrap from Lava Shack. I enjoyed both of those. I also drove to Kapolei shopping area to eat at a few places there.
I think when I go back to Oahu, I would shorten my Aulani stay to 3 days so that I would be there just to enjoy the resort and not worry about going anywhere else for sightseeing. After my stay there, I would go stay in Waikiki for the "touristy" part of my trip.
Overall, I had a great time and am hoping to go back in 2014.
Terri
