Trip Report: First Timer at Aulani

[DCPhotoGal]

The DIS forums were incredibly helpful in preparing for our first time out at Aulani, so I thought I would add my impressions with hopes that it will help other travelers as well.

We were coming from the East Coast, a family of 4 with daughters ages 10 and 12.

We initially flew into the Big Island and stayed at the Hilton Waikoloa Village. We had 4 nights there so by the time we flew up to Oahu we had adjusted pretty well to the time difference. I was still waking up with the sunrise every morning, but I actually started to enjoy that

We flew on an early morning flight from Kona to Honolulu, and when we arrived to the airport in Honolulu we had to claim our luggage and the wait for a shuttle to grab our Alamo rental car. I was surprised (and a little horrified, since we were in a rush) to find that the Alamo shuttle was a full sized bus, and it was completely full of people arriving to claim rental cars at the same time as we were. I appeared that there must have been a large international flight from Asia that arrived at the same time as our little island hopper. I was worried that it might take forever to get our car, but when we arrived at Alamo my husband went directly to a computer kiosk and checked in online. We avoided the long line of people waiting to talk with a person, and were directed outside right away, where we were shown to the area of the lot with the class of car we rented. You can choose your car from what is there, and the keys are already inside, you just drive it out. It was the fastest car rental experience we have ever had. I was very impressed with how well they handled the masses of people.

Just a side note and caveat about car rental: we rented a convertible and I am not sure that was a good idea. We had 4 people, two medium-sized suitcases, two roll-on sized suitcases and 4 backpack sized bags. Only the two larger bags fit in the trunk, the rest were on our laps for the ride to the hotel. It was definitely awkward.

The ride from the Alamo rental to the hotel was about 30 minutes, and there was no problem with traffic despite being morning rush hour on a Thursday.

When we arrived at Aulani, we pulled up to a wonderful reception. We chose to valet the car (for non-DVC members, parking is the same price-$37-for valet or self park). We were greeted with leis and cups of ice water and escorted to the front desk to check in. Despite being 10am they had a room available for us to check into immediately and we had a fast check-in experience.

We booked a 1 bedroom ocean-view DVC villa directly from the hotel (full priced). After I booked this I realized there were better ways I could have planned this, but it was spring break and rooms were limited. The villa is lovely and worked well for our family of 4. The bedroom has a king-sized bed, and the living room had a large sofabed and a Murphy bed, so my girls could each have their own bed. This was very important for keeping the peace with the siblings.

 

[DCPhotoGal]

On our first day at Aulani we had scheduled to take the Kualoa Ranch Excursion that can be booked through Aulani. This excursion only runs on Thursdays, so I changed my itinerary to make this work. The excursion leave the hotel at 11am. We got on the bus with several other Aulani families and a Disney guide (although he had a Disney nametag, he was actually employed by the tour company). The bus ride takes you past Honolulu and through a lovely view of the valley on the way over to Kualoa. When we first arrived at the Ranch, we stopped at the gift shop. This was fun for the kids, and it ended up being some of the best prices we saw on the island for food gifts. For example, the Dole packaged food was less expensive there than it was even at the Dole Plantation.

The first part of the excursion was time on the "private beach" with a barbeque lunch, water sports and an optional boat trip to see sea turtles. This was a complete disaster and definitely below our expecations. Kualoa had apparently double-booked the "private beach" with another group the day we came and we ended with sharing the beach with over 200 people (teenagers, parents, etc) associated with a marching band from South Carolina. It was loud and full and they were using most of the free water sports equipment, so my kids were afraid to go in the water. We had a private food line separate from the other group, but in the same location. Then it started raining, so we were huddled under the picnic area for most of the time at the beach. We took the rainy boat ride, and did see some turtles from the boat, but it wasn't much of an experience. I got the impression from the guide that this is not the norm and that he was equally frustrated by the situation.

From there we tried our best to rinse off the sand and put on our riding clothes, and by the time we got to the part of the ranch with the horses the rain had luckily cleared up. For the riding, the children were required to wear helmets but the adult were not. We were all given a horse and split into smaller groups with 2-3 families. We then took a 2 hour riding tour around the ranch. This was very pretty and one of the highlights of our stay on Oahu. But I will say, 2 hours straight on a horse as a long time, even for my girls who do riding camp every summer!

 

[DCPhotoGal]

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[DCPhotoGal]

Other excursions around Aulani:

Dole Plantation
We tried to balance our time at the resort and off the resort to every other day. In the end, I wish we had done a few more days around the island. The resort is really nice but as my husband pointed out, it is a really long way to fly just to spend time at a water park (which was mostly what my kids were doing). One way we headed up to the Dole Plantation. We enjoyed this more than the reviews I had heard had led us to think we would. The kids enjoyed the train ride and loved the Dole Whips. It ended up being quite hot in the maze, even though it was early in the morning and March. But it was fun to do nevertheless. It didn't take too long to drive there and back and there was no problem with traffic.

Pearl Harbor/Swap Meet
I took the advice of many previous posters and planned my trip to Honolulu on a weekend to avoid traffic. I booked my Pearl Harbor "free" tickets online the day they opened up and got 9am tickets. One thing I didn't realize is that you need to arrive and claim your tickets 1 hours before that. So we needed to leave Aulani by 7:20 for the 9am tour. It ended up working out well because we got an early start before it was too hot and arrived by 8am to see the flag-raising ceremony. In the hour before our tour we walked around the museum and the grounds. There is plenty to read. Then the tour starts with a movie that gives background on Pearl Harbor with actual video footage from the event. My girls are 10 and 12, and I don't think this tour is something I would take much younger children on. It is definitely something that is meant to be taken with respect and solemnly, and I think younger kids may now understand that. Then there is a short boat ride over to the Arizona Memorial. Of note, no purses are allowed. I had a clear waterproof iphone case with a strap that I was able to fit my cash and ID in and used that.

After Pearl Harbor we stopped at the Stadium Swap Meet. This was much larger than I had expected. There were tents lined up in a circle in the parking lot all of the way around the stadium. We parked and walked all the way around. Of note, there is less food than we expected, so don't plan to eat there. The craft stands were very repetitious. But I did find a lot of goodies there, especially gifts. To give an example of pricing, a shell necklace that was priced for $15 at my first hotel in Waikoloa cost only $2 at the swap meet.

We stopped for lunch on the way home at the Plantation Tavern. Highly recommended! This was one of our favorite meals we had on Oahu and it was also kid-friendly. http://plantationtavern.com/

Ko Olina Ocean Adventures
We were supposed to go on a dolphin/snorkel tour. We got up very early to arrive 45 minutes before departure as directed, and sat and waited for the tour. After waiting until the tour start time, the captain came out to tell us our tour was canceled due to high surf. This was completely understandable but frustrating since it was our last day and we couldn't reschedule. Also frustrating that they didn't tell us before spending so much time at the marina waiting. So lesson learned, do not book excursions for your last day in case they need to reschedule for weather. This seems to happen often.

 

[alohamom]

Loving your report so far! Thanks for the link to Plantation Tavern, is it in Kapolei? IT looks like it from the map and the menu looks more authentic than most luaus! This is now on our "must do" list, thanks for posting!!!!

 

[DCPhotoGal]

Eating at and around the hotel

We found Off the Hook and Ulu Cafe good options for quicker food. My kids are 10 and 12, and those are awkward ages for Disney dining since they say the kids meals are only for ages 9 and under. Both of these places allowed us to order kids meals for my kids even though they are over that age, which I was very happy about. We liked the fish tacos at Off the Hook, and the flatbreads at Ulu Cafe. My husband got a refillable mug, but the rest of us did not as my kids don't drink a lot of soda.

We ate the dinner buffet and breakfast character buffet at Makahiki. I did not have reservations before I arrived and despite the fact that they were very full they were able to fit us in for both during our stay. Both of the buffets were great food-wise, but incredibly expensive because we had to pay full adult price for our two kids. My husband felt he got his money worth out of the dinner buffet, but the kids definitely did not, and I have shellfish allergies so I didn't have any many options. Of note: I did talk to the chef about my allergies and stuck to what he recommended (there is hidden shellfish in some sauces you woudn't expect, so be sure to ask!), and despite being careful I still got a little sick afterward so I suspect some cross contamination. The breakfast buffet was fun and it was nice to see the characters. Of note: the photo package for this is separate from the Photopass and will cost more.

Outside of the resort we got food at the ABC store, Hawaiian Barbeque, and had one meal at Roy's. The food from the ABC store was fast and inexpensive. The Hawaiian Barbeque was like a Chinese takeout type place, but Hawaiian style. The food was not great, but large quantities so we were able to store and reheat leftovers in our room kitchen. Roy's was definitely one of our favorite places to eat, especially because of the way they treated the kids. Here my kids still qualified for kids meals (12 and under) and the kids meals were 3 courses and "real food" rather than your standard burgers and fries. The girls got salmon and short ribs, and they came with an appetizer of cheese quesadilla/fruit/veggies and an ice cream sandwich for dessert. The adult meals there were also top notch. There is a free shuttle to Roy's from the hotel, or it's a fast walk.

 

[DCPhotoGal]

I'll talk about the rooms, resort activities and our experience with the photography services when I have a few more minutes to sit down and type it out

 

[SingingMom]

Good recap so far. Coming from the East Coast, I felt the same way your husband did. The Aulani beach was a disappointment and we spent most of our time at the adult pool. A long way to go when we could have sat by the pool in our own backyard. I'm glad we went, but I wouldn't return. I'd rather go back to Bermuda.

 

[OKW Lover]

Appreciate you posting your experiences. Aulani (and the whole island) is just beautiful.

 

[Regan117]

Thanks for the recap!

 

[DCPhotoGal]

Room view:

We booked an ocean view 1 bedroom villa. When we arrived early on a Thursday, they were kind enough to set me up with a room immediately. We had to quickly turn around go on our excursion, so we put our stuff in the room and then left for the day. When we got back to the hotel after 6pm I was able take some time to look around the room and I was pretty disappointed by the ocean view. Lesson learned: not all ocean views at the hotel are created equal. We were in room 1513, and the view did include the ocean in the distance, but in the foreground there was an active construction site (the hotel next door) and parking garage. I was on my balcony watching paving happening right below. It was pretty disappointing for an ocean view, especially since I paid premium pricing for the view. I decided this was going to frustrate me for my 6 night stay, so I asked the front desk if there was an inward-facing ocean view room available. After much discussion about procedure we were able to move to a better room. Well same exact room on the inside, but such a more pleasant view. The new room was 1406. I highly suggest the inward-facing ocean views rooms right now while the neighboring hotel is under construction. We loved our second room, and enjoyed watching the water park, character greetings, and ocean from our balconies (the villa has 2 balonies). We also could hear the live music in the evenings. I will include examples of both views below.

Room interior:

I loved the 1 bedroom villa. It was probably more space and facilities than we needed, but in the end we used the kitchen and the washer/dryer because they were there. The kids liked having their own beds, but were frustrated that the room cleaners kept putting the sofa back together so they had to pull out their beds at night. Because we paid hotel rates we got the cleaning service each day, but when we were in the room (there were a couple rainy afternoons where we ended up just sitting in the room) they just asked if we needed trash/towel service. They provided everything we could have needed including paper towels, a dish sponge, dish detergent, dishwasher soap, and laundry soap, and replenished daily.

 

[DCPhotoGal]

Resort activities:

Aunty's Beach House: We registered online and preregistered for two free activities. The first activity was the aloha party. When we showed up we were charged $13 for each child's bracelets. They are similar to the magic bands used at the Disney Parks, except they say Aunty's Beach House and they are "locked" on. We were told if we return them we will get the money refunded. The girls made wrist leis and some other crafts there. They are 10 and 12 and were the oldest there. They decided they weren't too keen on coming back. Later in the week we saw in the daily Iwa that they were having a special evening craft activity for preteens ages 10-12 only. I called over to check availability and was told it was a walk-in event with no registration necessary. My girls went and enjoyed themselves doing crafts on the porch with glow necklaces. On the last night we almost forgot to return the expensive bracelets, but made it right before they closed. Tip: don't forget to turn in your locked bracelets!

Beach: Aulani doesn't have a real beach, at least not by East Coast standards. It's a lagoon, completely sheltered with very little surf or ocean critters. This is great for little guys who want a calm bay-beach type experience. But for the kids who like boogie boarding or jumping waves, this is not that type of beach. The actual oceanfront is all rocky and unsafe for swimming. You can climb up on the rocks, but it is challenging and technically you're not supposed to. In the lagoon there are various water sports equipment you can rent and use. This was popular, but we had done this at our previous resort so didn't try them here.

Pools: My kids enjoyed the lazy river. There are plenty of free rafts you can use, some single and some double. It is a nice ride along the lazy river and you will sometimes encounter the Disney photographers and some Characters along the way. Goofy even gets wet! There are two slides, one that you use a raft on, and the other you go down alone. The lines for both were crazy long in the afternoons, so my daughters waited until 5-6pm to use them when the lines were shorter. There are a few hot tubs the kids can use and they were crowded. There was a larger pool that seemed more for younger children. This pool closed almost every day for various reasons (they didn't explain why) but I imagine bathroom accidents or water quality issues. One day the lazy river also closed for mysterious reasons. My personal favorite pool was the adult only infinity hot tub. It was peaceful and a great view of the lagoon.

Photopass: There are photographers around the resort, but interestingly not always with the characters. They will also do sunset photos for your family by the beach as part of the regular Photopass. It costs $100 for all of the images for your visit, so it makes sense to use them as much as possible. We prebooked a separate photography session with one of the resort photographers. We did a sunset beach session. I am a photographer myself, and I was pleased with the services they provided. She did a mix of natural light and flash photography. She carried a strobe light with a softbox to the beach, and did not use on-camera flash. The session was a separate fee but included all 250 images from the session, and was a very reasonable price.
Starlit Hui: This is a little like a "luau light" or luau without food. They provide everyone with mats and you sit on the mats on grass. The show was very nice, it starts out with a traditional Hawaiian show, and ends with the Disney characters. It was a kid-length show. I definitely recommend going especially since it is free. If you arrive early there are crafts for the kids.

We didn't take advantage of the group exercise classes, which seemed to be most of the activities on the Daily Iwa.

Slightly off the resort, we walked down to Paradise Cove Beach. To get there you have to go out the front of the resort, the same way you go to the ABC store. Then you keep walking until you reach the parking lot before the Luau site. There is a small sandy path public access that leads to the cove. This little beach and cove were so fun. There was a mother/child pair of seas turtles there when we were there and we snorkeled with them.

 

[DCPhotoGal]

I think that's about it. Let me know if I can help with questions.

 

[jtba]

thank you for your report!

how cold was the water at the lagoon?

 

[jtba]

... when we arrived to the airport in Honolulu we had to claim our luggage and the wait for a shuttle to grab our Alamo rental car. I was surprised (and a little horrified, since we were in a rush) to find that the Alamo shuttle was a full sized bus, and it was completely full of people arriving to claim rental cars at the same time as we were. I appeared that there must have been a large international flight from Asia that arrived at the same time as our little island hopper. I was worried that it might take forever to get our car, but when we arrived at Alamo my husband went directly to a computer kiosk and checked in online. We avoided the long line of people waiting to talk with a person, and were directed outside right away, where we were shown to the area of the lot with the class of car we rented. You can choose your car from what is there, and the keys are already inside, you just drive it out. It was the fastest car rental experience we have ever had. I was very impressed with how well they handled the masses of people.

also, did your husband need to check in online first before using the computer kiosk? anything to avoid that long line sounds very helpful!

 

[LittleStinkerbelle]

Thank you for your report! I really enjoyed reading about your stay! I'm glad to hear they were able to move you to an inward facing room. We'll be there this month and have booked an ocean-view hotel room and I'm a bit worried that we'll be on the side overlooking the Four Seasons construction. We called an added a request that we be facing the valley with the pools etc. and I really hope we get it .

Also glad to hear that you had a positive experience with your photo session. We have one booked as well (afternoon in the gardens). Question about the locked wristbands from Aunty's - I assume locked means they stay on for the entire stay? Was wondering if it could be taken off during our photo session so it's not in all the pics.

 

[DCPhotoGal]

thank you for your report!

how cold was the water at the lagoon?

The lagoon wasn't bad temperature-wise. A little colder than the pool, but not much.

 

[DCPhotoGal]

also, did your husband need to check in online first before using the computer kiosk? anything to avoid that long line sounds very helpful!

No, we didn't check in online, just went the kiosk, and it asks you to scan your driver's license. It was actually a pretty clever machine, since the reservation was in my name, but it managed to figure out that he was with me and use that reservation (maybe same last name, address?). The computer asks a ton of questions about adding on various insurances (be prepared to have to go through many screens), but then just prints out the rental agreement, and then you walk out to the lot and pick a car. You barely talk to anyone if you don't want to.

 

[DCPhotoGal]

Thank you for your report! I really enjoyed reading about your stay! I'm glad to hear they were able to move you to an inward facing room. We'll be there this month and have booked an ocean-view hotel room and I'm a bit worried that we'll be on the side overlooking the Four Seasons construction. We called an added a request that we be facing the valley with the pools etc. and I really hope we get it .

Also glad to hear that you had a positive experience with your photo session. We have one booked as well (afternoon in the gardens). Question about the locked wristbands from Aunty's - I assume locked means they stay on for the entire stay? Was wondering if it could be taken off during our photo session so it's not in all the pics.

We checked into Aunty's after our photo session so I didn't have to think about the bands at the photoshoot. I'm not sure exactly how the locks worked, I didn't try to remove them myself because I didn't want to be charged the $13/band fee. You could probably have them removed and put back on for the session.

Our photographer was Brooke. She was really nice. Being a professional photographer myself, I would note that their photographers will take the photos and you get the digital images, but they are not retouched in any way like you might get from a regular professional photographer. So they won't photoshop out bands, etc. I fixed up a lot of the photos myself when I got home to fix stray hairs, etc.

Definitely hold your ground about the room view. It made a big difference to me and the pool facing ocean view was just so much better. We also enjoyed being able to listen to the live music at the restaurants and watch the kids in the pool from the balcony.

 

[LittleStinkerbelle]

We checked into Aunty's after our photo session so I didn't have to think about the bands at the photoshoot. I'm not sure exactly how the locks worked, I didn't try to remove them myself because I didn't want to be charged the $13/band fee. You could probably have them removed and put back on for the session.

Our photographer was Brooke. She was really nice. Being a professional photographer myself, I would note that their photographers will take the photos and you get the digital images, but they are not retouched in any way like you might get from a regular professional photographer. So they won't photoshop out bands, etc. I fixed up a lot of the photos myself when I got home to fix stray hairs, etc.

Definitely hold your ground about the room view. It made a big difference to me and the pool facing ocean view was just so much better. We also enjoyed being able to listen to the live music at the restaurants and watch the kids in the pool from the balcony.

Thanks for the info! I'll ask about getting the band temporarily removed. And I was wondering about whether or not the images were edited, so thank you for that info as well. I'm planning to hold my ground about the view - fingers crossed!