Just Returned from Aulani here are my thoughts.....

[PMGuernsey]

My wife and 3 kids (ages 8,6,and 3) just returned from 7 days at Aulani. We were somewhat apprehensive about going because so many services were not available, therefore I thought I would give my post travel reaction. We have never been to Aulani before so I don't have much to compare it to. Crowd levels were minimal to non existent most days. I don't know if this is typical for January? It could possibly be because of covid? I have read of people having to get to the pool early to save a chair and long lines for slides and such, we never experienced this even on the weekend when there was a uptick in local visitors. On multiple occasions our family found ourselves to be the only ones in the infinity pool as well as the pool that used to be adult only.... Beach was also never crowded. We mostly ate off resort or in our room (We bought breakfast food from Costco upon arrival), but felt like there were sufficient food options on the resort as well.

Things we did..

Hawaii Nautical dolphin and snorkel tour... Probably the highlight of the trip for our kids. We saw dolphins (bottle nose and spinner) up close, whales, as well as got time to snorkel and view octopus up close. There was only one other group on the tour. Our boat captain said that we are very lucky to be there during COVID as the boat is usually full of people... They also provided a very good lunch.

Hanauma bay.... The highlight of the trip for my wife and I.... We did not experience any problems getting in for a Friday. We arrived at 7:45 AM got tickets for the show for 8:15 and spent time on a very uncrowded beach and snorkeling until around 2:00 PM.... I have heard its hard to get in here, we did not experience crowds or any difficulty getting in.

Waimea Valley.... Very enjoyable experience walking to the waterfall and swimming in the pool at the base. Life jackets and changing area was provided.

Bonzai Pipeline beach.... Watched the waves and surfers

Polynesian Cultural Center.... It had recently reopened and was a bit expensive for an exclusive experience, but worth it in our opinion. The luau and show were phenomenal, capacity was limited so it was less crowded. Would have been nice if they opened earlier. If you are to go here I recommend booking it as soon as possible to choose your seats for the show. We booked weeks early and had front row seats. No price difference for selecting better seats.

Paradise cove near Aulani.... We saw several sea turtles

Dole Plantation.... Our kids loved the train ride and maze... I would skip the garden tour if I was to do it again

Diamond Head.... I would get there early, this is the only place we experienced high crowds, but we went on a Sunday mid day... We had to wait about 30 minutes to get a parking spot

Makapuu Light House.... Beautiful easy paved trail to light house with views of Maui... We also saw whales off the coast from here.

Places we ate...
Uncle Clays house of Pure Aloha... Our favorite Shave Ice on our trip, Natural syrups and added fruit
Matsumoto Shave Ice.... We heard it was great, better than aulani shaved ice. No line to get it which was nice
Giovanni Shrimp..... My wife loved it, I dont like shrimp so I had crepes for a truck near buy fantastic and once again no crowds
Kono.... Amazing breakfast pork wrap
Rainbow Drive in.... I had the Moco Loco bowl and it was amazing
Monkep Pod.... Across the street from the resort with incredible food
Pizza Corner.... Also across the street decent pizza
A few other places that I have forgotten the name of.....



Final thoughts.
To anyone who is thinking of going during COVID I would recommend going....... I understand that both Aulani and Oahu are usually more crowded. I would trade the less services (although I dont know what I am missing) for the low crowds. It literally never felt crowded and we never had to wait long for anything except for parking at diamond head... It reminded us of our visit to Disney World in early August (No one was there!!!!) We enjoyed it so much we are considering looking into a trip to Maui in April if crowds stay like this because of COVID....

My Question.....
Is Aulani usually less crowded in January, or is this because of COVID?

After our trip we are considering DVC purchase there, but I don't want to buy in if it is usually crowded chaos. My thought would be to alternate trip to DW and to Aulani every other year.....


Let me know if you have any questions or thoughts

 

[JC1984]

My wife and 3 kids (ages 8,6,and 3) just returned from 7 days at Aulani. We were somewhat apprehensive about going because so many services were not available, therefore I thought I would give my post travel reaction. We have never been to Aulani before so I don't have much to compare it to. Crowd levels were minimal to non existent most days. I don't know if this is typical for January? It could possibly be because of covid? I have read of people having to get to the pool early to save a chair and long lines for slides and such, we never experienced this even on the weekend when there was a uptick in local visitors. On multiple occasions our family found ourselves to be the only ones in the infinity pool as well as the pool that used to be adult only.... Beach was also never crowded. We mostly ate off resort or in our room (We bought breakfast food from Costco upon arrival), but felt like there were sufficient food options on the resort as well.

Things we did..

Hawaii Nautical dolphin and snorkel tour... Probably the highlight of the trip for our kids. We saw dolphins (bottle nose and spinner) up close, whales, as well as got time to snorkel and view octopus up close. There was only one other group on the tour. Our boat captain said that we are very lucky to be there during COVID as the boat is usually full of people... They also provided a very good lunch.

Hanauma bay.... The highlight of the trip for my wife and I.... We did not experience any problems getting in for a Friday. We arrived at 7:45 AM got tickets for the show for 8:15 and spent time on a very uncrowded beach and snorkeling until around 2:00 PM.... I have heard its hard to get in here, we did not experience crowds or any difficulty getting in.

Waimea Valley.... Very enjoyable experience walking to the waterfall and swimming in the pool at the base. Life jackets and changing area was provided.

Bonzai Pipeline beach.... Watched the waves and surfers

Polynesian Cultural Center.... It had recently reopened and was a bit expensive for an exclusive experience, but worth it in our opinion. The luau and show were phenomenal, capacity was limited so it was less crowded. Would have been nice if they opened earlier. If you are to go here I recommend booking it as soon as possible to choose your seats for the show. We booked weeks early and had front row seats. No price difference for selecting better seats.

Paradise cove near Aulani.... We saw several sea turtles

Dole Plantation.... Our kids loved the train ride and maze... I would skip the garden tour if I was to do it again

Diamond Head.... I would get there early, this is the only place we experienced high crowds, but we went on a Sunday mid day... We had to wait about 30 minutes to get a parking spot

Makapuu Light House.... Beautiful easy paved trail to light house with views of Maui... We also saw whales off the coast from here.

Places we ate...
Uncle Clays house of Pure Aloha... Our favorite Shave Ice on our trip, Natural syrups and added fruit
Matsumoto Shave Ice.... We heard it was great, better than aulani shaved ice. No line to get it which was nice
Giovanni Shrimp..... My wife loved it, I dont like shrimp so I had crepes for a truck near buy fantastic and once again no crowds
Kono.... Amazing breakfast pork wrap
Rainbow Drive in.... I had the Moco Loco bowl and it was amazing
Monkep Pod.... Across the street from the resort with incredible food
Pizza Corner.... Also across the street decent pizza
A few other places that I have forgotten the name of.....



Final thoughts.
To anyone who is thinking of going during COVID I would recommend going....... I understand that both Aulani and Oahu are usually more crowded. I would trade the less services (although I dont know what I am missing) for the low crowds. It literally never felt crowded and we never had to wait long for anything except for parking at diamond head... It reminded us of our visit to Disney World in early August (No one was there!!!!) We enjoyed it so much we are considering looking into a trip to Maui in April if crowds stay like this because of COVID....

My Question.....
Is Aulani usually less crowded in January, or is this because of COVID?

After our trip we are considering DVC purchase there, but I don't want to buy in if it is usually crowded chaos. My thought would be to alternate trip to DW and to Aulani every other year.....


Let me know if you have any questions or thoughts

Thanks for the info. I have never been to the Aulani but generally Hawaii in January is a great time to visit as it is considered the low season. Even for DVC the month of January (after the 3rd or so) is the lowest points. I am sure with COVID it is even less busy than normal but I would say it is a good time to visit. I have been in January before and had a fantastic time and being a veteran do not deal well with crowds. We are currently under contract for a Aulani DVC resale and plan on going in January. Thank you again for the report and good luck if you pursue a DVC there.

 

[Dallas_Lady]

Final thoughts.
To anyone who is thinking of going during COVID I would recommend going....... I understand that both Aulani and Oahu are usually more crowded. I would trade the less services (although I dont know what I am missing) for the low crowds. It literally never felt crowded and we never had to wait long for anything except for parking at diamond head... It reminded us of our visit to Disney World in early August (No one was there!!!!) We enjoyed it so much we are considering looking into a trip to Maui in April if crowds stay like this because of COVID....

Thank you for your thorough information! We are planning a trip in June (though not staying at Aulani) and plan to visit several of the locations you've listed. We've never been to Oahu and the possibility of low crowds is a big draw for us.

 

[kyton]

Depends when in January - the first two weeks are busy for all of Oahu. Then once most mainlanders return home for school it does quieten down.

 

[travelbug]

I really enjoyed your report. It was so interesting to hear what it's like over there during COVID. I've stayed at Aulani twice before and loved it. What was the weather like during your stay? Both times I was at Aulani, it was in June. I'd like to try going in January or February, hopefully next year.

Also, did you see big waves at the Bonzai Pipeline beach? Seeing big waves on the North Shore is on my bucket list.

 

[JC1984]

I really enjoyed your report. It was so interesting to hear what it's like over there during COVID. I've stayed at Aulani twice before and loved it. What was the weather like during your stay? Both times I was at Aulani, it was in June. I'd like to try going in January or February, hopefully next year.

Also, did you see big waves at the Bonzai Pipeline beach? Seeing big waves on the North Shore is on my bucket list.

The weather is hit and miss in January the few times I have been. One time great weather another time rain a few days but not long. I think that the savings you can have outweighs the weather chances.

 

[PMGuernsey]

I really enjoyed your report. It was so interesting to hear what it's like over there during COVID. I've stayed at Aulani twice before and loved it. What was the weather like during your stay? Both times I was at Aulani, it was in June. I'd like to try going in January or February, hopefully next year.

Also, did you see big waves at the Bonzai Pipeline beach? Seeing big waves on the North Shore is on my bucket list.

For the most part we had great weather... It did rain one day but it was only half of the day.... It rained really hard the morning we left. Temperature was 70s and 80s which was a nice escape from our home weather...

We did catch some big waves on the North Shore and watched several surfers crazy enough to ride them... Could of sat there and watched all day if it weren't for the little ones with us.

 

[PMGuernsey]

Depends when in January - the first two weeks are busy for all of Oahu. Then once most mainlanders return home for school it does quieten down.

Good to know we straddled Jan/Feb

 

[PMGuernsey]

Thank you for your thorough information! We are planning a trip in June (though not staying at Aulani) and plan to visit several of the locations you've listed. We've never been to Oahu and the possibility of low crowds is a big draw for us.

Hope you have a great time!!!

 

[disneydesi]

My wife and 3 kids (ages 8,6,and 3) just returned from 7 days at Aulani. We were somewhat apprehensive about going because so many services were not available, therefore I thought I would give my post travel reaction. We have never been to Aulani before so I don't have much to compare it to. Crowd levels were minimal to non existent most days. I don't know if this is typical for January? It could possibly be because of covid? I have read of people having to get to the pool early to save a chair and long lines for slides and such, we never experienced this even on the weekend when there was a uptick in local visitors. On multiple occasions our family found ourselves to be the only ones in the infinity pool as well as the pool that used to be adult only.... Beach was also never crowded. We mostly ate off resort or in our room (We bought breakfast food from Costco upon arrival), but felt like there were sufficient food options on the resort as well.

Things we did..

Hawaii Nautical dolphin and snorkel tour... Probably the highlight of the trip for our kids. We saw dolphins (bottle nose and spinner) up close, whales, as well as got time to snorkel and view octopus up close. There was only one other group on the tour. Our boat captain said that we are very lucky to be there during COVID as the boat is usually full of people... They also provided a very good lunch.

Hanauma bay.... The highlight of the trip for my wife and I.... We did not experience any problems getting in for a Friday. We arrived at 7:45 AM got tickets for the show for 8:15 and spent time on a very uncrowded beach and snorkeling until around 2:00 PM.... I have heard its hard to get in here, we did not experience crowds or any difficulty getting in.

Waimea Valley.... Very enjoyable experience walking to the waterfall and swimming in the pool at the base. Life jackets and changing area was provided.

Bonzai Pipeline beach.... Watched the waves and surfers

Polynesian Cultural Center.... It had recently reopened and was a bit expensive for an exclusive experience, but worth it in our opinion. The luau and show were phenomenal, capacity was limited so it was less crowded. Would have been nice if they opened earlier. If you are to go here I recommend booking it as soon as possible to choose your seats for the show. We booked weeks early and had front row seats. No price difference for selecting better seats.

Paradise cove near Aulani.... We saw several sea turtles

Dole Plantation.... Our kids loved the train ride and maze... I would skip the garden tour if I was to do it again

Diamond Head.... I would get there early, this is the only place we experienced high crowds, but we went on a Sunday mid day... We had to wait about 30 minutes to get a parking spot

Makapuu Light House.... Beautiful easy paved trail to light house with views of Maui... We also saw whales off the coast from here.

Places we ate...
Uncle Clays house of Pure Aloha... Our favorite Shave Ice on our trip, Natural syrups and added fruit
Matsumoto Shave Ice.... We heard it was great, better than aulani shaved ice. No line to get it which was nice
Giovanni Shrimp..... My wife loved it, I dont like shrimp so I had crepes for a truck near buy fantastic and once again no crowds
Kono.... Amazing breakfast pork wrap
Rainbow Drive in.... I had the Moco Loco bowl and it was amazing
Monkep Pod.... Across the street from the resort with incredible food
Pizza Corner.... Also across the street decent pizza
A few other places that I have forgotten the name of.....



Final thoughts.
To anyone who is thinking of going during COVID I would recommend going....... I understand that both Aulani and Oahu are usually more crowded. I would trade the less services (although I dont know what I am missing) for the low crowds. It literally never felt crowded and we never had to wait long for anything except for parking at diamond head... It reminded us of our visit to Disney World in early August (No one was there!!!!) We enjoyed it so much we are considering looking into a trip to Maui in April if crowds stay like this because of COVID....

My Question.....
Is Aulani usually less crowded in January, or is this because of COVID?

After our trip we are considering DVC purchase there, but I don't want to buy in if it is usually crowded chaos. My thought would be to alternate trip to DW and to Aulani every other year.....


Let me know if you have any questions or thoughts

This is awesome to hear! I am planning to go to Hawaii in April and would like to add two or three nights at Aulani. My grandparents live there near Hanauma Bay, but I haven't spent as much time on the Aulani side of the island.

 

[ZephyrHawk]

Thanks for the report! I'm headed to Maui next week, with Aulani the following week. I'm glad to hear about Hanuama Bay as I've had concerns about getting in. Did you go mid-week? Or on a weekend?

 

[SnappySerape]

Thanks for the write up PMG! I appreciate it! I'm looking at a trip in May. Having never been before, was there anything about your trip that you found frustrating or wish you knew ahead of time? Was there anything closed on the island or at Aulani that your group was really disappointed in not being able to do?

 

[PMGuernsey]

Thanks for the report! I'm headed to Maui next week, with Aulani the following week. I'm glad to hear about Hanuama Bay as I've had concerns about getting in. Did you go mid-week? Or on a weekend?

We went on a Friday.... We had friends go at 9:00am yesterday (Thursday) and they had no problem getting in either.

 

[PMGuernsey]

Thanks for the write up PMG! I appreciate it! I'm looking at a trip in May. Having never been before, was there anything about your trip that you found frustrating or wish you knew ahead of time? Was there anything closed on the island or at Aulani that your group was really disappointed in not being able to do?

The only thing I feel like we missed out on was the kids club not being open.... It would have been especially nice for my wife and I to have some alone time...

 

[DVC California]

Great review and trip report, thank you for sharing!

Haven't been to Aulani in January but I would think it would be an attractive "snow bird" destination. Maybe a lot of DVC Canucks are hunkered down this winter. I'm glad you had a chance to enjoy it crowd free. We love the resort and Oahu in general.

 

[alohamom]

Uncle Clays house of Pure Aloha... Our favorite Shave Ice on our trip, Natural syrups and added fruit

I am so glad to hear Uncle Clays is still open!
We love it, it is a logical stop to or from Hanauma Bay for us.

 

[lizard1]

Were magic bands implemented there yet? If not, was there any indication of when they would be? Thanks!

 

[PMGuernsey]

I am so glad to hear Uncle Clays is still open!
We love it, it is a logical stop to or from Hanauma Bay for us.

That's exactly when we stopped there. It was soooo good!!!!! Wish we could have gone twice

 

[PMGuernsey]

Were magic bands implemented there yet? If not, was there any indication of when they would be? Thanks!

I didn't see anything indicating magic bands being used.

 

[hardineliz]

My wife and 3 kids (ages 8,6,and 3) just returned from 7 days at Aulani. We were somewhat apprehensive about going because so many services were not available, therefore I thought I would give my post travel reaction. We have never been to Aulani before so I don't have much to compare it to. Crowd levels were minimal to non existent most days. I don't know if this is typical for January? It could possibly be because of covid? I have read of people having to get to the pool early to save a chair and long lines for slides and such, we never experienced this even on the weekend when there was a uptick in local visitors. On multiple occasions our family found ourselves to be the only ones in the infinity pool as well as the pool that used to be adult only.... Beach was also never crowded. We mostly ate off resort or in our room (We bought breakfast food from Costco upon arrival), but felt like there were sufficient food options on the resort as well.

Things we did..

Hawaii Nautical dolphin and snorkel tour... Probably the highlight of the trip for our kids. We saw dolphins (bottle nose and spinner) up close, whales, as well as got time to snorkel and view octopus up close. There was only one other group on the tour. Our boat captain said that we are very lucky to be there during COVID as the boat is usually full of people... They also provided a very good lunch.

Hanauma bay.... The highlight of the trip for my wife and I.... We did not experience any problems getting in for a Friday. We arrived at 7:45 AM got tickets for the show for 8:15 and spent time on a very uncrowded beach and snorkeling until around 2:00 PM.... I have heard its hard to get in here, we did not experience crowds or any difficulty getting in.

Waimea Valley.... Very enjoyable experience walking to the waterfall and swimming in the pool at the base. Life jackets and changing area was provided.

Bonzai Pipeline beach.... Watched the waves and surfers

Polynesian Cultural Center.... It had recently reopened and was a bit expensive for an exclusive experience, but worth it in our opinion. The luau and show were phenomenal, capacity was limited so it was less crowded. Would have been nice if they opened earlier. If you are to go here I recommend booking it as soon as possible to choose your seats for the show. We booked weeks early and had front row seats. No price difference for selecting better seats.

Paradise cove near Aulani.... We saw several sea turtles

Dole Plantation.... Our kids loved the train ride and maze... I would skip the garden tour if I was to do it again

Diamond Head.... I would get there early, this is the only place we experienced high crowds, but we went on a Sunday mid day... We had to wait about 30 minutes to get a parking spot

Makapuu Light House.... Beautiful easy paved trail to light house with views of Maui... We also saw whales off the coast from here.

Places we ate...
Uncle Clays house of Pure Aloha... Our favorite Shave Ice on our trip, Natural syrups and added fruit
Matsumoto Shave Ice.... We heard it was great, better than aulani shaved ice. No line to get it which was nice
Giovanni Shrimp..... My wife loved it, I dont like shrimp so I had crepes for a truck near buy fantastic and once again no crowds
Kono.... Amazing breakfast pork wrap
Rainbow Drive in.... I had the Moco Loco bowl and it was amazing
Monkep Pod.... Across the street from the resort with incredible food
Pizza Corner.... Also across the street decent pizza
A few other places that I have forgotten the name of.....



Final thoughts.
To anyone who is thinking of going during COVID I would recommend going....... I understand that both Aulani and Oahu are usually more crowded. I would trade the less services (although I dont know what I am missing) for the low crowds. It literally never felt crowded and we never had to wait long for anything except for parking at diamond head... It reminded us of our visit to Disney World in early August (No one was there!!!!) We enjoyed it so much we are considering looking into a trip to Maui in April if crowds stay like this because of COVID....

My Question.....
Is Aulani usually less crowded in January, or is this because of COVID?

After our trip we are considering DVC purchase there, but I don't want to buy in if it is usually crowded chaos. My thought would be to alternate trip to DW and to Aulani every other year.....


Let me know if you have any questions or thoughts

Thank you for the info!! We were looking at either a HI trip or FL trip. This is great info!