We're going to.... Aulani!

[mickeyd78]

So excited - our DVC rental has just been confirmed and we are heading to Aulani in November! Cannot wait.

We had been thinking of doing a relaxing resort holiday with the kids (age 3 and 1). We looked at Aulani but it was just too expensive. A few weeks ago looked into renting DVC points and found that we could get a standard hotel room through DVC for less than 50% of the cost! Yippee. The Jetstar Easter sale sealed the deal we we got return flights for $707pp. Booked the room through DVC rental store. It was super easy and quick and the staff were very helpful.

So here is the plan
4 nights in Waikiki to do shopping and touristy things

Then

10 nights Aulani to relax by the pool, explore other parts of the island. I know 10 days is a long time, but with little kids we want to take things slow and really make use if the pool.

I realise we'll probably have to rent a car for the Aulani part of the trip, particularly if we what to explore other things. And eating there for 10 nights will get $$$. From what I have read the food isn't that great. Car rentals seem reasonable, but neither my wife or I have ever driven in the US, so we are a bit anxious about staying on the right side of the road.

Does anyone have any tips or suggestions for Aulani or Hawaii in general?

I haven't booked a hotel in Waikiki yet. Currently looking at Outrigger Reef, Outrigger Waikiki or Holiday Inn. Does anyone have any suggestions or feedback on Waikiki hotels?

 

[Meemoo]

Hello,

How exciting for your family to be traveling to Hawaii. I am a DVC Owner at Aulani, we purchased on our first trip there - this giving you an idea of how impressive it was as we never had considered this prior to our visit

I was glad to read that you were heading to Waikiki first, as we did it the other way round on our first visit and ended up leaving and heading back to Aulani because we missed it so much On our last visit, we rented a car, which proved to be fantastic. My husband was at ease with the driving and quite enjoyed the freedom of driving everywhere like a local and yes, being able to eat what we wish for our meals. I was not too impressed with Aulani's dining, in particular the Makahiki. I tried it twice on 2 separate visits but the food was very disappointing for the price which was a shame as the restaurant itself is really pretty with wonderful atmosphere. We ate twice at Ama Ama for lunch and enjoyed it thoroughly on both occasions. I also quite enjoyed the pool side dining, like from Mama's Snack Stop, the Chicken Tenders and Coconut Shrimp are yummy but after a few days you begin to get over them, thats where the car comes in handy!

We loved our day trip around the North Shore with our car. There is so much beautiful scenery and that side of the island is like a whole new world, looking so much more remote and natural, I loved the clouds that drift over the stunning mountains and the jungle like bush. Everything was so green.

Things we enjoyed at Aulani were: Aunty's Beach House. Your children are younger but they have open house from 8am - 10am every day where you can accompany them and do crafts and explore the place. They also have Disney Junior mornings for toddlers. We loved the Ohana Movie Nights under the stars and the beach and pools of course.

You will have a great time! I'm happy to answer any of your questions, as you can see I could go on about this place forever!

 

[Meemoo]

Did you use David's Rentals for your DVC Rental or some place else?

 

[mickeyd78]

Hi Meemo

Thanks for the info. We are so looking forward to it.

We rented through DVC Rental Store.

Where did you stay in Waikiki. Any suggestions?

 

[zanzibar138]

Sounds like a great trip! Hawaii has been on my wishlist for a while

We hired a car on our last trip to the US and it was fine. Just be aware that it does require a lot more concentration to drive though with everything on the wrong side so you may need to plan to switch drivers more often than you would in Australia. We had to swap about every hour on our way to the Grand Canyon.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Congrats! Seems like you're going to have a great time in Oahu.

I can't help on the accommodation. Been a long time since I've been in Hawaii and I'm pretty sure we stayed at the Holiday Inn. But it's way too long ago for any feedback to be relevant or helpful.

 

[Meemoo]

We stayed at Holiday Inn Waikiki Beach, it was newly refurbished but I'd say it was around a 3 star for accommodation. I have heard (and at the time wished that I had chosen) to stay at Hilton Hawaiian Village. It is not right in the middle of Waikiki but I think with kids it is better as it is a resort, there is plenty to do in your down time after the chaos of shopping etc, lots to do for the little ones and they have some wildlife there too, it is also just across from the major shopping center there.

 

[ColinA]

Staying at Aulani on DVC points you should be able to park a hire car for free. The normal hotel fee is $35 per night.

For a cheaper option on dining you could try the new Ulu Cafe with a good range of fruit, snacks and hot food and is open from 6am to 9pm. Ama Ama is A la carte. Makahiki being a buffet is a fixed cost and maybe out of the price range for a group.

Hawaii for dining is dearer than the mainland US.

For transport to Aulani we always use Charley's Taxi who have an agreement with Aulani for a set cost. We call for the taxi when we arrive at the airport, and also get bell services to book for the return.

http://charleystaxi.com/

 

[mickeyd78]

Thanks for the advice.

I contacted Charley's Taxis, and they offer a fixed rate taxi from Waikiki hotels yo Aulani for $89. I think the fixed rate from Aulani back to Honolulu airport is spurned $55.

Thinking we'll rent a car at Aulani for 7 days or so to do some sightseeing over that side if the island and pop out for meals.

In terms of Waikiki accommodation, we are thinking Outrigger Waikiki over Outrigger Reef. Both or pretty central, but Outrigger Waikiki is a bit more central, and we'd like for one of us to pop out an do things while the other stays in the room while the 1 year old takes naps.

The Hilton Hawaiian Village looks good too, but a bit pricer and further away from the main drag.

 

[ColinA]

Thanks for the advice.

I contacted Charley's Taxis, and they offer a fixed rate taxi from Waikiki hotels yo Aulani for $89. I think the fixed rate from Aulani back to Honolulu airport is spurned $55.

Thinking we'll rent a car at Aulani for 7 days or so to do some sightseeing over that side if the island and pop out for meals.

In terms of Waikiki accommodation, we are thinking Outrigger Waikiki over Outrigger Reef. Both or pretty central, but Outrigger Waikiki is a bit more central, and we'd like for one of us to pop out an do things while the other stays in the room while the 1 year old takes naps.

The Hilton Hawaiian Village looks good too, but a bit pricer and further away from the main drag.

As far as geography goes I think Waikiki from the airport is the opposite direction to Aulani so the price of $89.00 is probably correct. $55.00 from Aulani to the airport is the standard cost.

Can't help you with Waikiki accommodation as Aulani is too tempting!

 

[WanderlustNZ]

Sounds wonderful. This year I'm trying Aulani for 3 nights, but your 10 sound even better

 

[Zosha]

We have just come back from a week in Hawaii. We stayed at the Hyatt Place Waikiki which was down the Zoo end. It was about 100m easy walk to the quiet end of the beach. It was a lovely hotel. It only had a small pool but it is right near the kids beach... Breakfast is included as part of the deal. We would stay there again. It was nearly $1000 cheaper than staying at one of the beachfront Waikiki hotels. We rented a car but my partner is comfortable driving in the US as he has done it before. If you do rent a car, rent a small ish one, because the roads there are nothing like the ones on the mainland - much smaller and more random!
We drove out to Ko'olina Marina for the day and did a catamaran snorkel tour and it was beautiful. Aulani looked lovely too.

 

[mickeyd78]

Ok, just booked The Outrigger Waikiki on the beach for four nights. Ended up with a AAA rate of $219 plus tax per night for a partial ocean view room. Not the cheapest place, but a pretty reasonable price for right on the beach right in the middle of Waikiki. With taxes added in, the room rate is close to what what we ended up paying for out room at Aulani with the DVC rental. So I feel like we are getting a relative 'bargain' for Aulani.

Next step is to work out transfers that can cater for two young kids (we won't be taking our own car seats). Then to work out how many days we should rent a car at Aulani. Thinking 5-7 days, as we want to spend most of our time at the resort, but maybe head out for some meals.

 

[zanzibar138]

Congrats on your latest booking! And your Aulani bargain

 

[JessL]

If you hire a car, make sure you get a Sat Nav with it. The North Shore is pretty easy to navigate, but if you get on the freeways it's pretty confusing.

If you're interested in snorkelling, buy or rent a snorkel and go to Shark Bay on the North Shore rather than Hanauma Bay with a tour. Much less touristy, but still tons of tropical fish in knee deep water. Even your kids could paddle around and see the fish. Although having said that, you might be heading into surf season rather than snorkelling season.

If you're interested in surfing lessons, I'd highly recommend Uncle Bryan's Surf School. We had a lesson for just our family with 2 instructors for the 4 of us, plus a professional photographer who gave us all the images on a disc for a really reasonable price. They'll even take your kids out if you want them to!

If you like food, go to the Haleiwa Farmers Market. It's only open on Thursdays from 3pm to 7pm at Waimea Falls. It's a great option for dinner and they have live music too.

I found a great shop in Haleiwa (my favourite town) where they make custom made swimwear. It was called North Shore Swimwear I think. Small shop, but well worth a visit.

I could go on and on about Oahu. I love it so much! I'd love to stay at Aulani next time for part of our stay.

 

[Meemoo]

Ok, just booked The Outrigger Waikiki on the beach for four nights. Ended up with a AAA rate of $219 plus tax per night for a partial ocean view room. Not the cheapest place, but a pretty reasonable price for right on the beach right in the middle of Waikiki. With taxes added in, the room rate is close to what what we ended up paying for out room at Aulani with the DVC rental. So I feel like we are getting a relative 'bargain' for Aulani.

Next step is to work out transfers that can cater for two young kids (we won't be taking our own car seats). Then to work out how many days we should rent a car at Aulani. Thinking 5-7 days, as we want to spend most of our time at the resort, but maybe head out for some meals.

For transfers we used Charleys Taxi, they have a flat rate agreement with Aulani. You can visit there website and ask re: child seats. There apparently don't legally have to be in one for public transport, I asked this question last time, but you can inquire if you want to see if you can request one. We booked the car seats with our car rental through Aulani. After shopping around for car rentals, Aulani worked out the cheapest for us because it includes all the insurance we need as an international tourist that most other companies add on at the end.

 

[mickeyd78]

Meemoo,

Did you pre book online with Alamo? Going through the Alamo UK site I'm getting a rate of about AUD$560 for 7 days on a Corolla with insurance, extra driver, tank of fuel, 2 child car seats a GPS. I tried Hawaiian Discount Rentals but by the time I add in all the 'extras' it come out more expensive than pre booking direct with Alamo UK.

 

[Meemoo]

Yes, we pre-booked online with Alamo. The price never changed for us, as some of the US residents suggest you to keep checking closer to the date for a price drop, this only happens for them I believe and we have a fixed rate as international tourists. That price sounds about right, similar to what we paid.

 

[DVCAustralia]

Congratulations on your stay.

It might be worth checking with Aulani in regard to parking, just generally not in regard to a specific booking. My understanding is that DVC members staying at Aulani on points are entitled to free self-parking, otherwise parking is charged as normal even if the stay is booked using DVC points.

Anyway I highly recommend a car for some of the time, not only to look around the island but even just to go down to the local shops including Target, Costco (if a member), Safeway etc. Non-restaurant food is limited at the resort and all of it is expensive.