Wantilan Luau at Royal Pacific

[minniebeth]

Ok, so I wasn't able to gather much info. about the Wantilan Luau at RPH before we went, so I bit the bullet and decided to go for it anyway. We didn't have any expectations going into it. We went last Sat.--Myself, DH and 11, 8, 4 yos. Overall it was a good experience. Check in was a big headache. They recommend getting there 15 mins. prior to starting (6pm).
I would say, get there at least 1/2 hr. early as the line gets long. Check in is slow. The tables seat 10, so be aware that if there are not 10 in your party, you will be seated with another party. The service was pretty good. They filled drinks and took finished buffet plates away in a pretty timely fashion.
The buffet has decent choices, including a good children's buffet. The food, in my opinion was good. It is all you can eat, but they consolidate the buffet tables quickly, so eat up fast if you want to go back. Deserts were good too.
One thing to be aware of, is that many of the foods contain nuts or nut products which was a problem for us since we have a nut allergy in our family.
The servers stop serving, including drinks as soon as the show starts, so make sure you have something fresh before they are fininshed, otherwise it can be a thirsty show (especially if it is hot).
The show was good and entertaining. In my opinion, they probably did too much audience participation and got a little long after a while with that.
Overall, it was a little long for my 4yo, but my other kids really liked it.
It cost about $180 for 2 adults and 3 children...it was pretty pricey, but we considered it a once experience. (We attempted to do Disney's Polynesian Luau 2 yrs ago, but it got rained out so I really can't compare it to that.)
Hope this helps anyone who might be interested.

 

[coachyo]

minniebeth,
You have great timing. I was just talking with DW about going and surprising our DD's 10 & 13 with it. I was just going to ask for info about it. We are staying RPR Club for 4 nights in June! Can't wait
I'm gonna fire away with some questions and maybe you can help or someone else can.

Will my DD's at their age enjoy it?
Do you remember the prices for adults and kids?
What is the kids age cut off?
Do they take lots of kids up for interaction?
What kind of food is it?
How long was it?
Is it right in the RPR?
Do I need to get reservations now for June?
Does it run every night?
Are seats reserved when you make your reservation or is it 1st come 1st seated?
Any seats you want to get or not get?


Hope that wasn't too much.

Thanks, YO

 

[minniebeth]

I do think that 10 and 13 yo girls will like the Wantilan Luau...it was fun to get dressed in tropical clothes and be in a tropical theme. The tables are set up pretty.
The price is $49.50 for adults and $29 for children 12 and under. This includes tax and gratuity.
They pulled up some kids for interaction, but chose more adults. As I said before, I think this goes a little long.
They had lots of salads with different dressings...green salads, veggies, and mixed salads with chicken and fish. They had sweet and sour chicken, beef, fish, rice, vegetables and several choices of pork including carved off the traditional luau pig. ( My kids thought it was gross to look at, but the pork is very tender) They have several different choices of bread, johnny cakes and REAL butter. The kids buffet had fresh fruit, salad with veggies, shredded cheese, dressings, chicken strips, PBJ sandwiches, pizza. Desserts were things like chocolate banana cake, macadamia nut pie, mango cheesecake and some others. Drinks were sodas, beer and mai-tais.

The luau lasted from 6-8pm with a photo op. with the dancers afterwards.
Yes, the luau is right in RPH and I was surprised that there were a lot of people from the other hotels there as well. Starting mid-May, the luaus run Friday and Saturday nights. I'm not sure how long in advanced they take reservations. We booked only about a week and a half in advance.
The number you can call for info and reservations is 407-503-DINE (3463).
I'm not sure how seating is arranged. We were somewhat in the back, but still had a decent view of the show. The tables are staggered.

Hope this helps!

 

[coachyo]

minniebeth,
Thank you for the infomation. It sounds like we all would have some fun!
Thanks for the # to call in. I think I'll call today and make a reservation.
W won't be there until June 14th so maybe we can get in close. My girls would love to see me do the hula.
I just hope it doesn't scar them for life

Thanks, YO

 

[kimberh]

We have done the real luau's in Hawaii so for a hotel this is a good luau and I thought the show was pretty good. It's a lot cheaper than Hawaii too.

 

[coachyo]

kimberh,
That's good to hear. I made a reservation for June 16th. They told me they seat in the order you are in line, so if I want to be up close with good seats we should be early. She said about 5:35, but something tells me it should be earlier than that.

Thanks, YO

 

[minniebeth]

Coachyo, that is good that they told you that they seat you in line order. I wish they had told us that. It would be nice if they did it in reservation order instead. Oh well, like I said, there really are no bad seats. Have fun!

 

[coachyo]

Minniebeth,
I hope this helps others. Thanks for starting the thread . And thanks for your input.

YO