Aulani Trip Reports PLEASE!!

[living20057]

A chair swap sounds good.

I'm trying not to get scared away from Aulani by the prices of everything!

Do you have to pay to rent a chair by the pool, or just the beach chairs and umbrellas? Wondering if someone will start a chair swap, like they do at Vero.

I am hoping DVC members can park for free. There seems to be a little ambiguity there.

It seems like we will have to make some meals in the villa, and def. eat off site. So renting a car will be a priority.

$35 for a refillable mug seems ridiculous. We don't drink tonic (what we call soda in Boston) so it's a non issue. But I would think you would have to drink a lot to justify that purchase.

I really want to visit Aulani, but flying four people out from Boston, we're looking at around $4000 for airfare (give or take). Then factoring food, and rental car, this is def. going to be splurge. Still trying to decide if it's something that we're going to do. But it certainly looks beautiful.

 

[DisneyMomJen]

Did you see the Starlight Hui? Is it a don't miss? We are thinking of switching Luau to Friday so we can see it as well.

Yes, we saw the show and it was really good! I think it is definitely something that you would want to see. Get there a little early since they had 3 different 'activities' set up while you were waiting for the show. One was make your own flower hair pin or a flower lei for your wrist, another was making a hat out of what looked like palm tree leaves and I am not sure about the 3rd. They were all locals brought in to do these and it was not just for kids. There were also alot of locals watching the show.

 

[WebmasterCorey]

I just scanned a week's worth of the daily events and activities.
http://www.wdwinfo.com/disney-resorts/aulani-hawaii-resort/#iwa

I'm still adding photos here, but you can check out what I have so far. http://photopost.wdwinfo.com/g1324-aulani-resort26-spahawaii.html

 

[justkeepswimmin]

I just scanned a week's worth of the daily events and activities.
http://www.wdwinfo.com/disney-resorts/aulani-hawaii-resort/#iwa

I'm still adding photos here, but you can check out what I have so far. http://photopost.wdwinfo.com/g1324-aulani-resort26-spahawaii.html

These are awesome! THANK YOU! It seems similar to the daily schedule you get on the cruises and that makes me very happy. My almost 12 year old is a little bummed she is not old enough for Painted Sky Spa. Seems like they have a lot of fun events scheduled there.

 

[emilymad]

I have been at Aulani for a couple of days now and have a few thoughts. We arrived Sunday afternoon and the whole resort was packed. There seemed to be a lot of people not staying here but just wondering around checking out the resort. The pool was very crowded. We weren't looking to go swimming yet but I am not sure we would have found a chair. Come Monday the place is empty so I think it was a lot of locals. The wrist band system is fine but I can see how people could easily just hand their card to someone else. Yesterday I did see the pool people with a list of last names that they were highlighting when you picked up a wrist band. Hopefully they are working on improving things.

All of the cast members we have come across are fantastic. I really think they are the best group of cast members we have ever experienced at any Disney hotel. Hopefully their enthusiasm continues as time goes on.

We bought one of the refillable mugs. It is a much better quality mug than the ones in Disney World. It has been working out for coffee (real Kona) and sodas. Haven't seen too many people with them but there aren't too many people here right now. We wish that Disney would use these mugs in WDW instead of the cheaper ones they have now.

Our biggest frustration is food choices. None of this was a surprise to us from what we had read before we arrived but it is getting a little annoying. There just aren't that many places to get something to eat. We did the dinner buffet which was good but we see no need to do it again. It wasn't that memorable of a meal. The menu at Ama Ama doesn't appeal enough to us to pay the prices. The quick service and two lounges have burgers or Hawaiian/Asian food selections. The problem is that the menu of these three places are basically the same. You can get a burger at the quick service or sliders at the lounges. It is just a little surprising that Disney didn't put in a little food court like they have at AKL. The convenience store across the street has decent food at good prices.

We are having a fantastic time. The resort is just spectacular. The pictures don't do it justice. I am just not sure when the resort is completely open and fully booked that it isn't going to be uncomfortably crowded.

 

[dreamlinda]

One of the frequent questions for mainlanders traveling to Hawaii is what to do on the last day. Many of the return flights are overnight so have late evening departures. Check-out is 11:00 am and on our upcoming trip our flight is at 11:00 pm. I know bags can be checked with bell services. I read somewhere that Aulani has some arrangements to assist with this situation, like locker rooms with showers or something so you can spend the day in the resort or at the pool and clean up prior to the flight. Has anyone seen or experienced these accomodations? What should we expect?

 

[Harleyis#1]

Great question, looking forward to ideas for that last day a Aulani.

 

[PrincessYessenia]

One of the frequent questions for mainlanders traveling to Hawaii is what to do on the last day. Many of the return flights are overnight so have late evening departures. Check-out is 11:00 am and on our upcoming trip our flight is at 11:00 pm. I know bags can be checked with bell services. I read somewhere that Aulani has some arrangements to assist with this situation, like locker rooms with showers or something so you can spend the day in the resort or at the pool and clean up prior to the flight. Has anyone seen or experienced these accomodations? What should we expect?

There is a late check out lounge for guests. We also have an 11pm flight on our last day. The lounge is supposed to have lockers, showers, and a tv viewing area. We will be there December 3-10 so we haven't seen it in person yet, but this is what I have read. It would be nice to hear from those who have used this area.

 

[emilymad]

There is a late check out lounge for guests. We also have an 11pm flight on our last day. The lounge is supposed to have lockers, showers, and a tv viewing area. We will be there December 3-10 so we haven't seen it in person yet, but this is what I have read. It would be nice to hear from those who have used this area.

We were offered to use it when we checked in before our room was ready. Our room ended up being ready before we had walked around so we didn't use it. I will try to check it out later today and report back.

 

[dreamlinda]

We were offered to use it when we checked in before our room was ready. Our room ended up being ready before we had walked around so we didn't use it. I will try to check it out later today and report back.

Thanks, that will be great!! Lucky you, it's raining and 53 degrees at our house. Our day will come....

 

[PrincessYessenia]

We were offered to use it when we checked in before our room was ready. Our room ended up being ready before we had walked around so we didn't use it. I will try to check it out later today and report back.

thanks!

 

[DisneyFan68]

There is a late check out lounge for guests. We also have an 11pm flight on our last day. The lounge is supposed to have lockers, showers, and a tv viewing area. We will be there December 3-10 so we haven't seen it in person yet, but this is what I have read. It would be nice to hear from those who have used this area.

The lounge is fairly nice. It is 2 connected rooms with tv's and chairs. There are also restrooms and showers and lockers. It's not terribly big though. I'd say maybe 3 families may be able to fit in there comfortably at a time. If I needed a place to stay until my flight and wanted to save points I'd used it. It's definitely not the most ideal but it's doable.

 

[PrincessYessenia]

The lounge is fairly nice. It is 2 connected rooms with tv's and chairs. There are also restrooms and showers and lockers. It's not terribly big though. I'd say maybe 3 families may be able to fit in there comfortably at a time. If I needed a place to stay until my flight and wanted to save points I'd used it. It's definitely not the most ideal but it's doable.

Thanks a ton for the report!

 

[dreamlinda]

The lounge is fairly nice. It is 2 connected rooms with tv's and chairs. There are also restrooms and showers and lockers. It's not terribly big though. I'd say maybe 3 families may be able to fit in there comfortably at a time. If I needed a place to stay until my flight and wanted to save points I'd used it. It's definitely not the most ideal but it's doable.

Thanks, we don't want to hang out there but want to take a shower and change before our final dinner reservation. Also noticed that there is a day pass option for the SPA, but hate to spend the $ if the lounge will suffice. MAHALO!!

 

[emilymad]

I took a few pictures of the lounge today. I will post them once I get everything downloaded. The bathrooms aren't that different than the ones in the spa.

There were also a few computers in the lounge as well which would come in handy for boarding passes, etc. There were two families in there today and it seemed a little cramped. Doable but any more than that could be a little crazy.

 

[mkymsehi]

Friday I'll be showing friend from California around the grounds for the day. Lunch and cocktails on the agenda.

Saturday we check in for our first official stay. The keiki are excited we get a Disney vacation 35 minutes from our home.

I'm more excited because it doesn't involve airfare for four to Anaheim, Lake Buena Vista, Paris, Tokyo, or Hong Kong!

 

[boscoj]

does anyone know if the villas have a rice cooker?

thanks!

 

[mkymsehi]

does anyone know if the villas have a rice cooker?

thanks!

When I toured the model home at Aulani back in December, the full kitchen had a rice cooker on display. Not sure if they actually have them in the one, two, or villas now.

I'd suggest you just call up and ask.

 

[PrincessYessenia]

does anyone know if the villas have a rice cooker?

thanks!

From the Aulani website:

For the Disney Vacation Club Villas with full kitchens, the following amenities are also available:
Rice Cooker
Chopsticks (reusable)
Rice bowls
Miso bowls

 

[rparmfamily]

Yes, they have a rice cooker as pictured. It's awesome! Chopsticks too!