Oahu Luau

[PixieDustandEeyore]

Well I am still puttering away at my honeymoon planning.
We really want a luau and were planning on the polynesian culture center but then I had people on the boards recommend Germaines and Paradise Cove.
Guy Fieri endorses Germaines and i watch too much triple d... so now I'm confused which to go to.

Anyone who's beenn to more than one want to weigh in, or does someone want to say why they loved or hated a certain luau in Oahu. If you have a different recommendation I'm all ears!
Thanks so much DIS'ers!!!!!!!!!

 

[emma'smom]

We had fun at the Polynesian Cultural Center.....

 

[PixieDustandEeyore]

We had fun at the Polynesian Cultural Center.....

Which package did you choose? I get confused with how its listed how it works and such

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

I can only report on my experience at Paradise Cove. We did a package that included bus transportation from the hotel (honestly though, I didn't realize that the pickup times accounted for traffic, so the whole ride, I thought we were going to be REALLY late .) Our bus driver was also our server, which was an odd surprise. We got the package where the food is brought to us and mom and dad got 2 drinks. (I was pregnant, so I had an unlaced drink ). We had small children and I just wasn't in any kind of mood to deal with them in a buffet line (again--I was pregnant, the buffet line would have been fine if we went that route).

the show was fun, it was kind of long though from arrival through all the different activities and ceremonial things they did. To the pregnant woman who was hungry, it got on my nerves. (sense a theme? )

But it was good. I honestly do not recall why we chose it over Germaine's.

Polnesian Cultural center would have been neat. Not that it mattered to us, but just an FYI for you, they do not serve any alcohol their due to who runs the facility. But if you are looking for a good luau, you should not let that impact your decision. I have heard it was phenomenal.

Family of mine during the same trip (we did some things together, some separate) did the luau at Hale Koa, the military hotel. They had a blast and it did cost less than other luaus. I cannot recall if that is available to the public or military guests only. But it is another one you could look into. They don't do it nightly, so it was a schedule conflict for us.

 

[MissMet]

I have only been to paradise cove but I did a ton of research that ended with the great decision of paradise cove! We had a rental car, so we drove ourselves. We made sure to get there early. They had all kinds of traditional games, events, etc before the dinner & show started. We splurged for the nice seats in the back, raised, covered area. It's in the back, but I loved it because you are raised up, so you have a perfect view. It's not a very large area. Plus I have stage freight & being back there I knew odds were slim I'd get called out. It also felt a lot more intimate in our seats. We were at a table of 6 rather than the rows & rows of people on the "floor seats". (i.e. orchestra vs front row mezzanine)

I mainly didn't like Germaine's because you either sit on the ground or picnic tables. Paradise cove has normal chairs with backs, which seems kinda high maintenance but the show is a little long to be sitting in a backless chair/bench. They also didn't have all the traditional games, activities & events before the show.

Enjoy!

 

[Pakey]

I'm not a fan of the traditional luau; it's a bit boring to me (after 4 Hawaii vacations I'm skipping them next month when we go again).

I did love the Polynesian Cultural Center show. The food was crap and I'd skip that but the show was very entertaining.

 

[jsmith]

The Polynesian Cultural Centers night show is amazing-but the food is horrible-and mostly not traditional luau food. and because PCC is owned by the LDS church they do not serve alcohol. We are military and the Hale Koa has a nice luau-good food and a really nice show-and not obscenely expensive-but not available to everyone. The other one we enjoy was the Old Lahina luau on Maui.

 

[Rumpus]

The Polynesian Cultural Centers night show is amazing-but the food is horrible-and mostly not traditional luau food. and because PCC is owned by the LDS church they do not serve alcohol. We are military and the Hale Koa has a nice luau-good food and a really nice show-and not obscenely expensive-but not available to everyone. The other one we enjoy was the Old Lahina luau on Maui.

That is my opinion too. The last time we went to the Hale Koa Luau, we sat with a non military family. Apparently they do make it available closer to the date of the show to the general public in order to fill the sits. If I could snag tickets for that, it would be my first choice, both for the show and affordability.

 

[wvjules]

I've only been to Germaine's. We loved it. The show was awesome and the food was amazing. It was ocean front so you could see the waves and hear them crashing on the shore. We are going back in December and I would like to take DD there.

 

[mjkacmom]

Family of mine during the same trip (we did some things together, some separate) did the luau at Hale Koa, the military hotel. They had a blast and it did cost less than other luaus. I cannot recall if that is available to the public or military guests only. But it is another one you could look into. They don't do it nightly, so it was a schedule conflict for us.

We did the Hale Koa, but we were staying there (BIL was stationed there). I do remember SIL thought it was better than others, and they had been to others on the island.

 

[daughtersrus]

Our trip was with Make A Wish. We just told them that DD wanted to go to a luau and they set it up for us at Paradise Cove. The pickup for us was right behind the Hyatt Regency so it was convenient for us since that is where we were staying. The food was ok but to be honest, we had better kalua pork at the restaurant/bar that is in the basement of the Hyatt. We had the Orchid Luau package. As others said, the bus host was also our drink server once we were there. The games and entertainment before the show were nice but for us it was difficult to bring DD to some of the activities because it was on a beach and difficult to push her regular wheelchair. My older girls (23 and 20 at the time) loved it. They crafts to participate in (lei making, headband making...) as well as some games stations were you could get a temporary tattoo. All of this was free. They gave us a few drink tickets. One I think was for a premium drink and the others "shelf" drinks. There was some deal that if you bought a glass, you could use the lower tickets for the upgraded drinks. DH collects pint glasses so of course we had to get that. The seating was pretty close and we got a flower lei instead of the shell necklace. We also got one free photo but I think that had more to do with Make A Wish than the package that we got.

One thing that I don't know if I mentioned in the previous thread was that every Friday, they have "Aloha Friday" in the lobby of the Hyatt right in front of the waterfall. The Hyatt is right across the street from Waikiki Beach. It's pretty much a smaller luau. Before the show, they have free crafts as well as some free food. The show includes hula and fire dancers. If you're in the area, you may want to check it out. No one asked us to see our room key and since it's in the lobby that is open to the public, I would assume that the show is as well.


Have a great time!

 

[Bearvet]

I highly recommend buying the Hawaii Entertainment book before you go. The coupon for the Polynesian Cultural Center saved us $45 (per couple!) and I'm pretty sure there were coupons for the other luaus too. We also used a few for some other restaurants and attractions (USS Missouri at Pearl Harbor) and the Bishop Museum.

We did the luau at PCC and enjoyed it - it was our first one. We figured you need to eat while you're there and staying for the nighttime show (which is incredible) so why not do the luau? We didn't do the others on Oahu but did the Old Lahaina Luau on Maui.

If you haven't been to www.fodors.com or www.tripadvisor.com I recommend their discussion forums (kind of like the Dis but for travel). We planned a 3-week trip to Hawaii last summer (3 islands) and the information from these sites was invaluable.