Just booked 1n Aulani in Feb

[Chereya]

I'm so excited! We just booked a night to check out Aulani in Feb! We already have a trip to Oahu planned for a family wedding and this was kind of a last minute splurge. I have some questions I hope someone knows the answers to! Since this was a last minute decision, we're hoping to keep the costs down. We will have a car

- Early check in? I know that I can check in early and don't expect the room to be ready until 4pm but what is the process for using the pool and facilities? Should we dress in our swim wear (to avoid having to change in the public bathroom) and have bell services store our bags? Is there a valet service or do we self park? I am guessing we will be able to keep the car in a loading area while we check in?

- Pool floats/tubes? Are pool tubes provided for the lazy river or should I pick some up at Target on our way down? We have our own snorkeling gear.

- Aunty's Beach House? Realistically since we're only going to be there for 1 night, are my kids going to be able to do any of the Beach House activities? Should we just aim for poking our noses in Open House style and stay with our kids? Only my 7 yo daughter is really the right age group, my older boys are 11 and 13.

- Ulu Cafe Meal plan? Has anyone done this? Has anyone had the Roast Honey Chicken and can comment on the taste and portion size? Since there will be 4 adults and 1 child, if we order a pizza and 2 hot plates to share for dinner, can we pay out of pocket for sides or dessert and save the remaining 2 credits the following day for breakfast?

- Facilities after you've checked out? Is there a locker room or some other kind of facility to use after we've checked out and no longer have a room to shower and change in? Has anyone had luck calling down the morning of departure and requesting late check out?

 

[adisneyaunt]

No help to offer but wanted to say...
WOoHOo for you.. have a wonderful visit. I hope you ll post ur thoughts after your visit.

 

[alohamom]

- Early check in? I know that I can check in early and don't expect the room to be ready until 4pm but what is the process for using the pool and facilities? Should we dress in our swim wear (to avoid having to change in the public bathroom) and have bell services store our bags? Is there a valet service or do we self park? I am guessing we will be able to keep the car in a loading area while we check in?

There is a change room and lounge area called The Luana Lounge for just this kind of situation. They have lockers for your valuables or you can leave them in a lock box at the front desk.I would probably do what you have suggested however and just wear your swim stuff to save a step, Hawaii is pretty casual. I wouldnt be surprised if they have your room ready though (unless it is during Presidents Day week) The valet will hold your car till you check in. Here is a link to another Disboards post about the lounge

http://www.disboards.com/threads/aulani-check-out-day.3194240/

- Pool floats/tubes? Are pool tubes provided for the lazy river or should I pick some up at Target on our way down? We have our own snorkeling gear.

The tubes are supplied

- Ulu Cafe Meal plan? Has anyone done this? Has anyone had the Roast Honey Chicken and can comment on the taste and portion size? Since there will be 4 adults and 1 child, if we order a pizza and 2 hot plates to share for dinner, can we pay out of pocket for sides or dessert and save the remaining 2 credits the following day for breakfast?

We have not done the meal plan but we have eaten here many times. The pizza is pretty good, my son actually commented the other day that he wished he had some pizza from Ulu. Portion sizes of the hot plates are substantial, even the breakfast plates are very generous and the food is pretty good for "quick service". I think your plan is a good one to maximize your time at the resort (rather than having to leave to eat )

- Facilities after you've checked out? Is there a locker room or some other kind of facility to use after we've checked out and no longer have a room to shower and change in? Has anyone had luck calling down the morning of departure and requesting late check out?[/QUOTE]

Again, you will be able to use the Luana Lounge to get the most bang for your buck but I have walked past it and seen it very very busy at times so keep that in mind. We have had check out extended till 1:00 but they would not go any later than that.

 

[Chereya]

- Pool floats/tubes? Are pool tubes provided for the lazy river or should I pick some up at Target on our way down? We have our own snorkeling gear.

The tubes are supplied

- Ulu Cafe Meal plan? Has anyone done this? Has anyone had the Roast Honey Chicken and can comment on the taste and portion size? Since there will be 4 adults and 1 child, if we order a pizza and 2 hot plates to share for dinner, can we pay out of pocket for sides or dessert and save the remaining 2 credits the following day for breakfast?

We have not done the meal plan but we have eaten here many times. The pizza is pretty good, my son actually commented the other day that he wished he had some pizza from Ulu. Portion sizes of the hot plates are substantial, even the breakfast plates are very generous and the food is pretty good for "quick service". I think your plan is a good one to maximize your time at the resort (rather than having to leave to eat )

- Facilities after you've checked out? Is there a locker room or some other kind of facility to use after we've checked out and no longer have a room to shower and change in? Has anyone had luck calling down the morning of departure and requesting late check out?

Again, you will be able to use the Luana Lounge to get the most bang for your buck but I have walked past it and seen it very very busy at times so keep that in mind. We have had check out extended till 1:00 but they would not go any later than that.[/QUOTE]

Thank you so much for all of your helpful info, alohamom! This is really useful to know!

 

[nkereina]

- Pool floats/tubes? Are pool tubes provided for the lazy river or should I pick some up at Target on our way down? We have our own snorkeling gear.

Tubes are provided in the lazy river, but you are permitted to use your own tubes/floats in the lagoon. We bought some at Target for this purpose. We did have to buy a hand pump as well because Aulani will not inflate them for you, but the pump was $2 across the street the ABC Store.

- Facilities after you've checked out? Is there a locker room or some other kind of facility to use after we've checked out and no longer have a room to shower and change in? Has anyone had luck calling down the morning of departure and requesting late check out?

As PP mentions, there is a lounge that can be used for this however it's relatively small and can get quite busy. A lot of people have late night red eye flights, so it tends to get busy later in the afternoon with people getting ready to head to the airport. I've also heard that its a one time entrance for the lounge so in other words, you can't keep going back and forth to the lounge at your leisure.

As for late check-out, we asked it we could have until 11:30am (30 minutes past check out) so we could return to our room after our 10am breakfast reservation. We were told no. I tried pushing back, because I thought it was ludicrous. Will housekeeping really be coming to our room within 30 minutes of check out time? Doubt it. But it was a firm no. And this was in September which is a relatively slow time of year. They did offer the option to pay $150 to keep the room until 3pm, which we declined. Not sure if that option is always available and I suspect that price fluctuates depending on capacity, time of year, etc.