Thinking of first time to Aulani June 2017, which airport and what room? Lots of questions!

[Disneyfun1]

We are thinking of going to Aulani for the first time and first time ever to Hawaii in June 2017 for my birthday. Lots of questions

What airport do we fly into for the resort, is it Honolulu Internation Airport?

Which room should we get? We have DVC ownership, not in Aulani though, so I guess we have to wait until 7 month window to book it, correct? On the point chart, it lists a Hotel room and the Deluxe Studio which there is only 2 of us, which room is better? if we did the studio, does the view really matter or if we want to save some points, is one good enough?

If we want to see pearl harbor memorial, how do we get there?

What activities is there to do at Aulani? Any restaurants we need to book there or do we need to book one everyday?

What else is there to do while we are there? having never been, what should we go see?

Do we need a rental car while there? will Disney pick us up and take to resort or do we need one anyways or should we only rent one a day at a time from resort if needed?

What am i forgetting??????

Thank you so much.

 

[lizard1]

What airport do we fly into for the resort, is it Honolulu Internation Airport?
Yes

Which room should we get? We have DVC ownership, not in Aulani though, so I guess we have to wait until 7 month window to book it, correct? On the point chart, it lists a Hotel room and the Deluxe Studio which there is only 2 of us, which room is better? if we did the studio, does the view really matter or if we want to save some points, is one good enough?
Chances are the hotel rooms (which there are VERY few DVC standard hotel rooms at Aulani) and standard view studio rooms may be taken before your 7 month window. I would look to having enough points for an ocean view and be pleasantly surprised if a cheaper view studio is available.

If we want to see pearl harbor memorial, how do we get there?
Its about a 30 minute drive. Will you be renting a car?

What activities is there to do at Aulani? Any restaurants we need to book there or do we need to book one everyday?
If you want to eat at a restaurant at Aulani that takes reservations, definitely make those reservations in advance of your stay. If you know of other restaurants in the area that take reservations that you KNOW you want to eat at (I know Roy's is popular), I would make those reservations in advance as well.

What else is there to do while we are there? having never been, what should we go see?
Are you looking for other things only at the resort, or on the island in general?

Do we need a rental car while there? will Disney pick us up and take to resort or do we need one anyways or should we only rent one a day at a time from resort if needed?
Disney does not have a shuttle from the airport but you could hire your own service to take you to Aulani. I would start looking at rental car prices now. Depending on how many days you might want to rent a car, you may be able to get a cheaper rate by booking now for your entire trip. Since you will be staying on points, parking at Aulani would be free for you. If you decide day of that you might want to rent a car, there may not be any available, especially at the time you desire (which may use up valuable touring hours, since most of the island seems to close very early). So, even if you want to do a couple of daily rentals, you may be better off to try to book them before your trip.

 

[sgrap]

We just did Aulani a month ago for my birthday! If you are Costco members, check their travel website and their rental cars. That seemed to have the best price. You can book and cancel with no fee if you find something cheaper. I was glad I booked mine way in advance because it more than doubled as we got closer to our trip.

We own elsewhere too and got on our computers 15 minutes before the 7 month window opened and clicked book the second it was available. I would recommend looking the week or so before to see what is available and get a hang of the room choices, etc.

You can book 'free' tickets to the Arizona memorial 60 days before the day you want to go. Go on first thing in the morning to book. There is like $1.50 convenience fee. Try to book earlier in the day because they frequently have to cancel later visits because of the wind. We had 10 a.m. tickets and they cancelled everything from 11:45 on our day.

There are so many things to do on the island! We thought having a car was invaluable. Plus we bought food at Target and Costco which made the meals much less expensive.

Here's my trip report: http://www.disboards.com/threads/trip-report-hale-koa-6-6-to-6-8-and-aulani-6-8-to-6-15.3521757/

 

[Dis_Yoda]

Your planning sounds very close to mine. I just got back from my 30th birthday trip to Aulani & I'm writing a trip report about it (its in my signature)

You can reserve your boat time at Pearl Harbor 2 months in advance. You need to get there early even with tickets as the line to pick them up gets long and you have to go through security!

Are you renting a car?

 

[Disneyfun1]

we will probably be renting a car. seems like it would be much easier with one. anyone know who rents convertible mustangs?? is it hard to get a room for aulani at the 7 month window for mid june? looks like we are leaving there just as it changes to the premier season, so luckily we would be in choice season still. just want a studio for 2 of us. im not even sure what a good price for airfare is from phoenix either, this trip would be entirely new for us to book.

 

[Dis_Yoda]

we will probably be renting a car. seems like it would be much easier with one. anyone know who rents convertible mustangs?? is it hard to get a room for aulani at the 7 month window for mid june? looks like we are leaving there just as it changes to the premier season, so luckily we would be in choice season still. just want a studio for 2 of us. im not even sure what a good price for airfare is from phoenix either, this trip would be entirely new for us to book.

Avis had the convertible mustang as an option but it was double the cost of the full size sedan so we just went with the Camry.

 

[Disneyfun1]

whats a good price for a week rental? seems to be about $400 online for a decent car when i look it up now for june 2017.

 

[lizard1]

whats a good price for a week rental? seems to be about $400 online for a decent car when i look it up now for june 2017.

I think that is a little high, but that might depend on what you consider a "decent" car. Try discounthawaiicarrental.com as they tend to have some cheaper rates (a Toyota Corolla right now is about $200 on their site for the first full week of June), there is also no cancellation penalty so if you do find a cheaper rate, you can change. When I booked, I got a van for 10 days for $500 from Hertz. I used a discount through my car insurance company, but I have see others recommend Costco (if you have a membership there).

 

[happymommy]

I used to live on Oahu, and trust me, you likely do not want a convertible.

#1) crime theft from cars is high many places, and a convertible screams 'tourist'.
#2) it may rain as you go over the Koolau's. No fun having to find somewhere (where?) off the road or highway to put the top up.

For two people, I'd go with the cheapest small car you can find. It's just not worth it really! If you find a good price, book it and if it goes down rebook! We usually pay around $250 a week. That's for a smallish car. But in my opinion I would definitely have a car the whole time.

Start researching airfare now! I start at 11 months (we always use miles for our flights - I've taken my kids back 8 times now, son was born there though!). Start looking, and look for sites like flyertalk, The Points Guy, etc... for good info on decent fares. It pays to do research - from Phoenix there have been decent sales in the past as low as $400 RT, but we don't normally go through PHX (we're near BWI/DCA/IAD). Definitely sign up for notices from Hawaiian Air! Usually by 8 - 9 months out we're booked.

PS: I'll be at the Marriott Ko Olina (timeshare) next to you mid June to mid July next year! I took our two weeks and locked off so 2 weeks is my daughter and me in the studio, then the following two weeks my husband and son are coming (and for a few days she & I are going to the Big Island). We have no details on flights yet, but sometimes using miles we have booked a day or two in Waikiki if we need to to get free flights (haven't in a while though). It's way too far out to book rental cars yet!

 

[Disneyfun1]

thanks for all the tips so far, love the information.

 

[Nanny oly]

we traveled this past 4th of july and we actually didn't book on points until 3 months before..... I'm sure you will find something available at the 7 mos mark. I agree that a car is really handy....we did a 2 week trip but we only stayed for a few days at Aulani and didn't leave the resort at all.....we were all over once we got into our rental house. I did find making reservations online helped for dinner....and I made what I could well in advance everything seemed to book quickly....but then a few days before our trip I went back and double checked and everything was wide open so I was able to adjust the times I wanted at that point based on more research and better understanding of how I wanted to schedule my meals.
Although we LOVED Aulani. The main draw for me at the resort was the pools, the lazy river etc.... Rainbow reef was cute BUT we had a much better expiernce at the North shore where we snorkeled and saw sea turtles. the kids did meets and greets, the character breakfast, pin trading and the menehune scavenger hunt. I feel like If we are going to spend all that money to fly to Hawaii and do it again the more memorable stuff for us was off site. we hiked Diamond dead and Manoa falls trail.... both we drove our car too and paid about $5.00 for parking. We did the movie tour at Kuoloa Ranch, the Polynesian cultural center, Byodo-in temple and Dole pineapple plantation.... we also wented Standup paddle boards from the North shore and had a great expience and paddled along sea turtles again.

 

[AZMermaid]

We paid $536 a person non stop from Phoenix for the first week of June in 2015. This was on Hawaiian. I watched for a while and this was a good price. I don't think I saw lower but it's possible I missed some sale or something.

We paid somewhere around 150 for a full size car for the week. We booked through Costco and cancelled and rebooked a few times as it got cheaper.