What are the DOWNSIDES to staying at Aulani?

[andcarro]

People often talk about why to stay here. Sometimes it’s helpful to understand why NOT to stay somewhere. Let’s ignore cost and void on the resort. Talk me out of it!

 

[mort1331]

People often talk about why to stay here. Sometimes it’s helpful to understand why NOT to stay somewhere. Let’s ignore cost and void on the resort. Talk me out of it!

What kind of question is that....lol
So negatives. Need a car or some paid transportation to get around. Not a city, so no real nightlife or places to walk and sightsee.
No real shopping close by. Either food or retail. Yes there is small marts near,,but not what you would call shopping.

 

[J-Dog]

What kind of question is that....lol
So negatives. Need a car or some paid transportation to get around. Not a city, so no real nightlife or places to walk and sightsee.
No real shopping close by. Either food or retail. Yes there is small marts near,,but not what you would call shopping.

I agree. The only real negative (or positive, depending on your point of view) is that it's not in Waikiki. But that's easily solved by renting a car and driving to Honolulu. Nowhere is very far away on Oahu.

Mayyybeee food quality at the resort itself could be higher, based on some reviews, but I personally don't have any problem with Aulani's food. And there are multiple other sources of high-quality food within walking distance as well.

 

[VGCgroupie]

To us the food on site wasn't great, but we also eat a limited diet so our options were limited.
Lots of kids so depending on where you are at in life kids may or may not be a plus.

Would like to see more options for excursions that leave directly from Aulani and more premium experience offerings.

 

[Tigger's ally]

Coming home?

 

[andcarro]

Coming home?

I know you can do better than this!

 

[andcarro]

What kind of question is that....lol
So negatives. Need a car or some paid transportation to get around. Not a city, so no real nightlife or places to walk and sightsee.
No real shopping close by. Either food or retail. Yes there is small marts near,,but not what you would call shopping.

Thank you for the thoughtful reply.

 

[Tigger's ally]

I know you can do better than this!

Sorry, I often forget that some folks don't have any sense of humor. Most people liked it though.

 

[jimmymc]

It can be crowded, even compared to other resorts in the area at similar prices.

If you're paying in cash, the resort is expensive. I think it's a great value for DVC points, even renting DVC. But the cash rooms can be a lot.

 

[NothingClever]

We just got back and had a wonderful time, but there are definitely some downsides. I found it to be very overcrowded (we were there for Spring Break) and unnecessarily stressful just to do simple things like finding a place to eat or a place to sit by the pool. Finally, the costs at the surrounding restaurants and market are outrageous; if possible, . Having said all that, we are still very happy that we went.

 

[AstroBlasters]

The lagoons aren’t the best if you want to see and feel big waves….

There are kids everywhere…. not a peaceful adult only retreat.

Not a great place for “single and ready to mingle”… Which possibly includes teenagers up to mid-20s.

You are paying for character meet and greets and entertainment…. which you may or may not care about….

 

[VGCgroupie]

The lagoons aren’t the best if you want to see and feel big waves….

There are kids everywhere…. not a peaceful adult only retreat.

Not a great place for “single and ready to mingle”… Which possibly includes teenagers up to mid-20s.

You are paying for character meet and greets and entertainment…. which you may or may not care about….

These are all the reasons I love Aulani

 

[Kwami]

The food is very overpriced for the quality. You can get much better food in Kapolei for must less money!

Aulani is kind of far from most other things on Oahu. The traffic is especially bad during rush hour. It usually takes 45-60 minutes to get anywhere and another 45-60 minutes to get back.

Disney's commitment to quality is... iffy, at best. When I was last there (November, 2022), I was never able to get a decent soda anywhere. Every machine ran out of carbonation or water or syrup, all day, every day. Also, the pool heating was broken and management didn't bother to tell us, so the water was much colder than expected.

The app doesn't always have everything listed. And even when it does have activities listed, you usually have to go sign up for them in person instead of just doing it through the app.

You said not to focus on the price, but it's hard not to. Aulani charges very high rates.

But otherwise, Aulani is pretty great! I definitely enjoyed my time there!

(Oh, and everything for sale says "Aulani, a Disney Resort and Spa". I really wish that they just went with "Aulani".)

 

[DisneyMountainWoman]

The main negative I have is no welcome leis... I will forever ask for them back. There is no reason they do not have them back... four season has them next door... and Poly in wdw even gives out leis...

 

[Flossbolna]

My biggest drawback is that it’s on Oahu. I much prefer the other islands of Hawaii and would love to he able to use my points there.

Otherwise I think the nature of the Ko Oli a development which puts you in an artificial bubble (man made lagoons, only resort restaurants near by, many hotels) can be a drawback.

But it depends on the personal preferences.

 

[JennyDrake]

Otherwise I think the nature of the Ko Oli a development which puts you in an artificial bubble (man made lagoons, only resort restaurants near by, many hotels) can be a drawback.

I agree. I was expecting more of an isolated location. You are surrounded by other resorts on the same side of the street- when you cross the road it is a glorified, OVER priced strip mall.

No "adults only" section except for a very small pool and hot tub subsection.

Limited restaurants might affect some though I LIKED the counter service place a lot. The character meal was disappointing- no surprise. Aside from the character meal I found the food to be much better than I expected - and I'm a Hard Core Foodie.

Limited shopping within the resort - a SHOCK for WDW and DL fans alike. Only 2 stores and none had bathing suits!

The spa is outrageously overpriced even by Disney and Hawaiian standards.

The luau had better food than I expected, very weak drinks and good service. The show went on wayyyyy too long and included a depressing song about a dead mother.

It is a wonderful escape from reality - with that said, I was bored after a few days and I'm not high maintenance/energy.

 

[WinterSolider]

Only 2 stores and none had bathing suits!

There are 4 stores and at least 2 of them have bathing suits.

 

[J-Dog]

The character meal was disappointing- no surprise. Aside from the character meal I found the food to be much better than I expected - and I'm a Hard Core Foodie.

Not meaning to discount any of your opinions, but the prevailing opinion seems to be the opposite of this. Makahiki is one of the stand-outs as far as food at Aulani, and possibly one of the best character meals that Disney provides on any of their properties.

It is a wonderful escape from reality - with that said, I was bored after a few days and I'm not high maintenance/energy.

Did you leave Aulani? Seems like it would be very hard to get bored on Oahu in just a few days. There is easily at least 10-14 days of stuff to do just on that one island.

 

[AstroBlasters]

There are 4 stores and at least 2 of them have bathing suits.

The store in the volcano has had bathing suits the last few times I was there.

If not…. the “strip mall” has an ABC store as well as other stores that have swim wear.

People can also take a car and run over to target and Costco not too far away.

 

[MsChristy12]

I agreed with a couple of posters about location (need a car or some sort of paid transportation), it's a bit of drive going back out to Honolulu, no sightseeing or shops around the resort, food is meh and overpriced. If we didn't have DVC, we would never stay there.