Midnight flight leaving Honolulu Airport

[tgropp]

We are a family of 9...6 adults, a 10 year old, a 6 year old and a 1 year old. We are going Maui seven nights, Wakiki Beach 4 nights and finishing off at Aulani on Saturday Feb 12. Our flight home looks like a 11:50 PM departure. Last time that my wife and myself went to Hawaii, we stayed at Aulani for the day, used the courtesy shower and then left at 6 PM for a 10 PM flight home. I am toying with the idea to get a couple of hotel rooms near the airport to relax until 9 and then head to the airport. The younger children will make things a bit difficult. Is there anyone that has had a similar situations ITG a young family. Appreciate any help.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

We are a family of 9...6 adults, a 10 year old, a 6 year old and a 1 year old. We are going Maui seven nights, Wakiki Beach 4 nights and finishing off at Aulani on Saturday Feb 12. Our flight home looks like a 11:50 PM departure. Last time that my wife and myself went to Hawaii, we stayed at Aulani for the day, used the courtesy shower and then left at 6 PM for a 10 PM flight home. I am toying with the idea to get a couple of hotel rooms near the airport to relax until 9 and then head to the airport. The younger children will make things a bit difficult. Is there anyone that has had a similar situations ITG a young family. Appreciate any help.

Aulani itself is only 20 minutes from the airport, I wouldn't bother booking something closer.

There's also a dedicated lounge at the airport only for confirmed guests of the Ko Olina resorts. Reservations are required.

https://www.koolinalounge.com/

 

[nkereina]

Aulani itself is only 20 minutes from the airport

Aulani is 20 miles from the airport, which ends up being a 30+ minute drive, especially in rush hour traffic. Plus, booking an extra night at Aulani to not even actually stay there for the night seems cost prohibitive. But I agree that would be the easiest solution.

OP, there is not a huge selection of traditional airport hotels near the Honolulu airport, so I do agree with PP that you should consider that when deciding if its worth schlepping everything to a different hotel that still has a bit of a commute. The Waikiki area is 9 miles to the airport but is inclined to have heavy traffic, especially if its a weekday. I know there is a Best Western that is closer and a couple other non-brand name hotels. I can't speak to how they are. I'm not sure if its the best option with a 1 year old, but if the hotel you choose has an airport shuttle, you could also save time by returning your rental car before going to the hotel and then using the hotel's airport shuttle to get dropped off at the airport.

 

[vacay77]

My family and I always have a late flight out of Honolulu, too. Will you have rental cars? We spend the last day, driving around the island, touring it. This time around, I plan on leaving our luggage with the bell services at Aulani, then we have a tour scheduled at Kualoa Ranch, etc. We'll go back to the Aulani, collect our suitcases, then drive to return the rental car, and I have reservations at the Ko Olina Lounge at the airport. Normally, we'd just bring our luggage with us when we check out, but I'm hearing reports of cars being broken into, so that's why I'll keep them at bell services. I plan on giving ourselves ample time for the traffic. Anyway, if you are planning on doing any tours at Kualoa Ranch, it might be worth seeing if you can book them on your last day so it will fill your time.

 

[badiggio]

I'd see if i could stay the extra day at Aulani.Enjoy your day up until it's time to head to the airport.No traffic at night to worry about.i think it's worth it in this instance rather than to get up early to check out and head to another hotel and again leave that hotel to head to the airport.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

Aulani is 20 miles from the airport, which ends up being a 30+ minute drive, especially in rush hour traffic. Plus, booking an extra night at Aulani to not even actually stay there for the night seems cost prohibitive. But I agree that would be the easiest solution.

OP, there is not a huge selection of traditional airport hotels near the Honolulu airport, so I do agree with PP that you should consider that when deciding if its worth schlepping everything to a different hotel that still has a bit of a commute. The Waikiki area is 9 miles to the airport but is inclined to have heavy traffic, especially if its a weekday. I know there is a Best Western that is closer and a couple other non-brand name hotels. I can't speak to how they are. I'm not sure if its the best option with a 1 year old, but if the hotel you choose has an airport shuttle, you could also save time by returning your rental car before going to the hotel and then using the hotel's airport shuttle to get dropped off at the airport.

 

[charmed59]

The only place where traffic would be an issue 9:30 on a Saturday night might be Waikiki. If it’s not cost prohibitive, I’d keep at least one room for the last day at the Aulani. Freshen up and leave for the airport from there.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

I'd see if i could stay the extra day at Aulani.Enjoy your day up until it's time to head to the airport.No traffic at night to worry about.i think it's worth it in this instance rather than to get up early to check out and head to another hotel and again leave that hotel to head to the airport.

You don't need to add a night to your reservation to do that. Everyone has full access to the pool and resort amenities on their checkout day.

 

[corgi_monster]

Local mom with a 5yo and 2yo here so I totally understand your need to have a home base between 11am-9pm. The kids need somewhere to nap!

1st Choice: Add a studio/hotel room on to your stay. Let the hotel know what you're doing and see if they can have the room available for you at 11am.

2nd Choice: Rent a cabana until 5pm, head on over to the airport, and use the Ko Olina Lounge to get cleaned up. When we rented a cabana, we closed the curtains, turned on the fan, and it was dark/peaceful enough for the kids (and my husband lol) to get a couple hours of sleep.

3rd Choice: Check out of Aulani and head over to the mall in Kapolei, Ka Makana Alii. There is a fairly new Hampton Inn attached to the mall and all 9 of you could rotate in/out of the room as needed. The mall has a great indoor playground called Kid's City and it would appeal to all three kids. There's also an arcade, movie theaters, restaurants, and a bunch of chain stores. The drive from the mall to the airport at that time of night is about 20 minutes.

The airport hotels make All Star Sports look like a deluxe hotel. They're in a bad area and you'll be confined to the room with nothing to do. I would highly recommend against them if at all possible. Your money would be better spend on airport lounge passes.

 

[monsterkitty]

Ko Olina lounge at the airport: Don't count on using it as a place to clean up or rest. We used it in March. You can only stay for two hours.

Also, the bathrooms are not very large or clean. It was just a regular bathroom with one sink and two stalls. I just happened to be in a stall and when I was done I couldn't get to the sink as there was a person there already and another standing waiting to wash her hands.

I actually just changed into leggings in a regular airport bathroom because there was more room and it was cleaner.

Ko Olina lounge was fine for DH and myself, but not so much for a family wanting to nap or clean up for a flight home.

 

[DVC Doctor]

I would stay most of the day at Aulani, check out by 11am, have bags left in valet, and then enjoy nice dinner at Monkeypod or something like that, then rent ONE studio hotel to shower and change and relax until 9pm or so and then head to the airport.

The community shower and changing room at Aulani is CLOSED and the airport is a mixed bag of lounges and I would NOT rely on those.

Residence Inn by Marriott Oahu Kapolei is a solid choice

 

[CaptainAmerica]

The community shower and changing room at Aulani is CLOSED...

Is that permanent, or a COVID measure?

 

[tgropp]

And this is why I love the Dis Boards. Thank you all for the suggestions! The renting of a studio makes so much sense.

 

[monsterkitty]

Is that permanent, or a COVID measure?

The community shower/room at the Marriott Ko Olina is also closed. The Marriott said that it was due to COVID and that it would reopen when it was more feasible to stay within COVID restrictions due to cleaning requirements and time between guests.

 

[nkereina]

View attachment 573492

Your map doesn't show mileage. Its still a 20 mile drive, so time would be subjective depending on time of day. Always better to over-estimate than under-estimate, especially when you're figuring on timing to drive to the airport.