How important is the view?

[mort1331]

Honest question. When at WDW we dont worry about the view. Hoping to go to Hawaii next march. Looking at points, for the cost of a 1bdrm ocean, I can almost get a 2 bdrm. We are staying for 1 week. Just the 4 of us. Stretch out in a 2 bdrm or up the view of a 1 bdrm. Also if pool or island view, the higher up you would see part of the water as well would you not?
Thanks

 

[kdonnel]

I have stayed with several different views.

One trip I overlooked the conference center on a low floor, still had a view of the island itself.

One trip I overlooked the pool on a low floor, no glimpse of the ocean, still though it was a decent view

Other trips I had high pool/ocean views. I don't remember sitting out on the balcony any more often than the non view trips.

I say get the 2 bedroom.

 

[PalmettoPath]

I think you almost answered your own question. I am big on view. So I will always pay for a good view at WDW or anywhere else for that matter. But if you don't worry about view at WDW, then you may as well up your game and get a 2BR. I mean sure, you may not have those great ocean view photos from your balcony, but you will still enjoy your surroundings and find a ton of other great spots to get a sense of the views. Yes, higher views are better perspective for sure. I like an upper (top if possible) floor in Iwa Tower overlooking Waikolohe Valley for great photos. But I do care about view. In your case, I think you'll really enjoy the added space of 2BR if you're on the fence about view.

 

[Kristie71]

To us the view is important. We like to spend a lot of time out on our balcony.

 

[rentayenta]

The view is very important to us.

 

[Great3]

View is only important to me when I am at a resort with possible ocean view, the only time I will pay added points/$$$ for a view. But yet, I really don't spend much time in the unit to enjoy the view as much, as I like to go out and explore the island. But, it's something to wake to each day and got out on the Lani and enjoy the view before the start of the day.

So, I agreed, at WDW, I am go, go, go at the parks, than view doesn't matter. But in Hawaii, things move a lot slower, so view is more important. If you don't plan on going to Hawaii often, than I would just splurge for the view, otherwise, it's a toss up of what's more important for you.

Good luck with whatever you decide, and let know us if you think it's worth it if you do end up booking that ocean view.

Great3

 

[Nagle]

I would opt for the 2 bedroom.

 

[Lilsia]

Depends on how much time you think that you will be in your room, out on the balcony. We get the Island garden view and both times requested high floor, EWA tower and got a view overlooking the luau garden and we could see the ocean. I would not use more points for an ocean view because we rather stay longer, then have a "view". I can easily spend those extra days down on the beach looking at the ocean. So I would figure out what your days will look like. Would you rather be down on the beach or out exploring, or spending a bunch of time in your room. Same concept goes for what room type. We get a studio because I rather stay longer. Our last trip was 16 nights at Aulani and I would not give up any days for a bigger room or ocean view.

 

[Budzooka]

Just got back with standard view and it was fine. I got plenty of views all around the island. Go for the 2 bedroom.

 

[DLgal]

Those units are small. Get the 2 bedroom.

 

[Iceman93]

This is obviously a very personal decision. In general, I would advise going for the extra space of a 2br over the view, but I'm biased because on my very first stay at Aulani I paid cash for a 2br ocean view that could just barely see a glimpse of the ocean if one leaned way out over the edge of the balcony. Needless to say, I felt ripped off regarding the "view". Still, we loved Aulani enough that we became DVC members and on subsequent stays we've been extremely happy in poolside garden view 2br's.

Two things are in your favor even if you get a "substandard" view. One is that Aulani is a gorgeous resort so most rooms will still look out over nice things to see (some standard view rooms don't). And the other is that you can see the ocean from many other places, so even if you can't sit on your balcony with a cup of coffee (or glass of wine, or mai tai, or...) and see the water, you can still see it a whole lot.

 

[RedVines2001]

Depends on how much time you think that you will be in your room, out on the balcony. We get the Island garden view and both times requested high floor, EWA tower and got a view overlooking the luau garden and we could see the ocean. I would not use more points for an ocean view because we rather stay longer, then have a "view". I can easily spend those extra days down on the beach looking at the ocean. So I would figure out what your days will look like. Would you rather be down on the beach or out exploring, or spending a bunch of time in your room. Same concept goes for what room type. We get a studio because I rather stay longer. Our last trip was 16 nights at Aulani and I would not give up any days for a bigger room or ocean view.

I’ll echo this about getting an island view room on a high floor on EWA tower. I think it’s a great value for your points. Go through the thread showing all the room views and you can see that your pretty much get an ocean view from certain rooms. Of course the ocean view rooms that over look the pools has more line of sight theming and may add to the Disney magic factor but I’m not sure if the extra points needed are worth it especially for a longer stay. Good luck

 

[kyton]

Go the 2 bedroom. Not DVC, but we’ve rented 2 bedrooms units for each of our 5 trips. Each time I’ve chosen the cheapest option and never had a bad room yet. We also rarely spend time on our lanai - we‘re always out and about or beachside.

 

[kungaloosh22]

View is a big deal for us. My husband especially loves to end his day with a mai tai on the balcony, soaking in the view, and we both love to start the day with coffee on the balcony.

That said, space is also important, and the Aulani rooms are a bit small (relatively speaking). I guess this depends on your family and how old your kids are, but with 4 people, if push comes to shove I'd probably opt for the 2 bedroom.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

For me, the points chart at Aulani fairly corresponds to what you're getting, *except* for the Poolside Garden View, which I think is a tremendous ripoff and I would never even consider it.

One possible drawback of Island Garden view is noise. We had a high floor over the convention center and the view was great, but there were a few weddings and the constant clinking and clanking of dishes was very annoying when we were trying to sleep. Keep in mind, coming from the mainland you'll probably be going to bed earlier than normal. We like to keep the sliding glass door open at night with the AC off, but it wasn't an option on the nights there were events.

You didn't say ages, but if you're one married couple and two kids, I think the 1 bedroom is plenty if one of the kids is small enough to sleep on a child-sized bed or they're willing to share. 2BR would be overkill for your party IMO. If I were in your shoes, I'd be committed on 1BR and deciding between Ocean View or saving some points and trying for Island Garden.

Keep in mind that the points glut caused by COVID is having significant impact on Aulani availability right now. Based on historical availability, I should have had no trouble getting my 8 nights in February, but I currently have a cobbled-together itinerary of cash and points reservations with a few waitlists. The decision might be made for you based on what's available.

Also if pool or island view, the higher up you would see part of the water as well would you not?
Thanks

Not really. The view types are sort of stacked on top of each other. Roughly speaking, the rooms that face "in" are pool view on the lower floors and ocean view on the higher floors. The rooms that face "out" are standard view on the lower floors and island view on the higher floors.

 

[tankin]

This is a personal question with no right answer. I'm a "I don't care about the view" kind of guy so I'd take the bigger room. Keep in mind that because the views were set when the resort was built and are fixed there are island views that look out over the front of the resort but there are also rooms that look out over the "resort" next door that is nothing but a large open field. We had one of these the last time and our view would have qualified as a WDW "water view" (ie you could see the ocean pretty well). It was only classified as "island" because you won't have the view if a resort ever gets built next door.

My personal rule ... get an island view and sit on the pool deck or the beach for the view.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

Keep in mind that because the views were set when the resort was built and are fixed.

Since when?

Animal Kingdom Lodge changed a bunch of savanna view rooms to standard view because they were partially obstructed by beams.

Saratoga Springs introduced "Preferred Room" as a brand new category.

Unless there's something unique to Aulani, Disney can recategorize rooms as long as the total points allocation doesn't change.

 

[helenk]

If you have to book at 7 months you may be "stuck" with whatever views are left. My first trip was in May of 2017, it was just me and my adult daughter. I was able to book a studio Oceanview and it was great...except in the evenings we could hear the music from the Oleo room. And until we adjusted to the time difference it was a bit annoying in the evening. 2 years ago I needed a 2 bedroom for the end of June and when my booking window opened the only views that were left were the Island views. But after reading these boards I requested and got a room in the Ewa building over looking the luau lawn and a high floor. The view was gorgeous you could see the ocean over to the right really without even leaning over. We are going again this year 8/7 to 8/14. This time at the 7 months for a 2 bedroom there were pool views and island views. I booked the island view and put in the same request for our room location as before. Fingers crossed our view will be just as nice.

 

[vacay77]

Views usually don't matter to me, but if there's one place I'll splurge for an ocean view, it's Hawaii and the Aulani. But as others mentioned, it's a very personal decision.

 

[chicagodisneyguy]

If I was in the OP shoes the decision would be based on the ages of the 2 kids. If they are younger I'd probably get the ocean view 1BR. The kids can do a mid-day nap or be in bed and the parents can sit on the balcony and enjoy a cocktail. If the kids are closer to high school age I'd probably go with the lesser view to get the extra space and real beds the 2BR provides.

We've been to Aulani 4x now and have had standard view twice, pool view once, and got upgraded to an ocean view once. We really didn't use the balcony at all other than mornings to sip our coffee.