Aulani Resort & Spa Trip Planning Guide
Aulani is Disney’s resort & spa hotel (that’s an understatement!) in Oahu, Hawaii. This trip planning guide offers tips for planning a vacation at Disney’s Aulani, from when to visit to how long to stay at the resort to what to do while you’re there. It also discusses whether Aulani might be right for you in the first place, and how you can make a visit more economical. We’ve now visited Aulani several times, and have updated this guide based upon each of our experiences at Aulani.
Unlike most other Disney destinations, Aulani is a bit of an odd duck. It’s not attached to a theme park or part of a more comprehensive trip or experience put on by Disney, but it’s not “just” a hotel, either. The most apt comparison we can think of is to other resort complexes on Oahu, or in other tropical settings that offer a multitude of things to do on the premises, but really are best enjoyed alongside other experiences in that locale. It’s also somewhat like a cruise ship on land.
Aulani is a great place for guests to stay who independently want to travel to Hawaii, but it’s difficult to recommend to Disney fans as a “Disney Destination” if those fans aren’t also interested in visiting Hawaii. The good news is that Hawaii is an amazing place in its own right, so most people contemplating a stay at Aulani are probably not solely interested in Aulani. The bad news is that a trip to Hawaii is very expensive, so even being a Disney fan plus being curious about Hawaii may not be sufficient for justifying the trip.
We’ll explore that all below, for now let’s dig into the Aulani – A Disney Resort & Spa planning guide…
Is Aulani Worth It?
We’ve already started to explore this question above, and there’s really no direct answer we can provide to you. In terms of the hotel/resort itself, Aulani is incredibly nice. I want to keep this trip planning guide manageable in length, so you can read our separate Aulani 1-Bedroom Villa Room Review to get an idea of the quality of the rooms, themselves. Suffice to say, Aulani is our new favorite Disney hotel.
That Aulani is incredibly nice should come as no surprise. It’s virtually brand new, has staunch competition from real-world luxury hotel brands on Oahu, and does not benefit from its proximity to a Disney theme park as a convenience-advantage. To the contrary, it’s a bit removed from Honolulu and Waikiki Beach where most of the major players are (having stayed in Waikiki and the upstart Ko Olina where Aulani is located, I’ll take Ko Olina any day of the week). Plus, in the more adult market of Hawaiian vacations, the Disney brand doesn’t have quite the same pull as the name does for families traveling to theme parks.
In other words, Disney had to come out swinging for the fences with Aulani in order for the resort to be a success. Fortunately, Disney did exactly that, and while the resort does command the typical Disney premium, arguably for what you are getting, it offers a significantly better value than any of the theme park-adjacent hotels in the United States.
To be abundantly clear, it ranks right up there with hotels like the Grand Floridian and Grand Californian in terms of cost (or exceeds them), but it also offers a lot more. The rooms are incredibly nice, and successfully blend luxury with themed accommodations. This is something with which we find Disney constantly struggles, and the balance is not an easy proposition. Aulani just works in both regards.
The rooms are artfully and tastefully decorated, feeling culturally appropriate, but also with the type of high quality furnishings, fixtures, and design that you’d expect of a luxury hotel. It’s exceedingly rare for us to say this about Disney hotels, but Aulani’s rooms nail both luxury and theme. You can see just how gorgeous the resort is in our “The Beauty of Aulani, A Disney Resort & Spa” post, which features a lot of photos.
Of course, room quality is not the only consideration in terms of whether a resort is worth it. Most people aren’t going to visit Hawaii and spend a ton of time in their room, honeymooners excluded. Again, Aulani excels in terms of both the overall resort quality and the available amenities.
From the resort’s impressive Hawaiian art collection to the amazing Waikolohe Valley pool area (including my favorite thing about Aulani, the lazy river) to the daily events and activities, there is plenty to do, see, and enjoy at Aulani. If you’ve ever done Disney Cruise Line (or another ship, for that matter), it’s sort of like that in terms of activities. We did a ton of these activities at Aulani, and had a blast just enjoying the resort.
The other part of the equation is whether Hawaii, and the island of Oahu in particular, is worth visiting for you. We cannot answer that (although we offer some insight in the “Things to Do Beyond Aulani” section of this post). If things like Pearl Harbor, hiking, beaches, or island culture (among many other things) interest you, chances are a visit to Aulani and Oahu will be worth it for you.
While we think Hawaii is a better couples’ destination than it is a family vacation spot, Aulani is a great place to get a mix of both. The kids can have fun with the activities geared towards them, and the adults in the family can enjoy a romantic experience.
If the resort experience or Hawaii don’t really interest you, and you’re primarily a passionate Disney fan who is thinking about visiting Disney’s newest destination, it’s tough to say Aulani will be worth it for you. Aulani is not a theme park experience, and really is only “Disney” in terms of some character motifs and the overall quality and attention to detail. Unless money and vacation time are no object, we do not recommend Aulani to Disney fans who otherwise aren’t interested in visiting a luxury resort in Hawaii.
Another category for whom Aulani may not be worth it is those passionate Disney fans on tight budgets who are interested in the Aulani experience and visiting Hawaii, but would have to forgo an annual visit to the theme parks in order to afford Aulani. Unlike Tokyo Disney Resort, which we strongly advocate skipping the US parks for a year (or two) to experience, Aulani is unlikely to satisfy those looking for a Disney theme park “fix.”
We absolutely love Aulani, but we want to try to be objective in analyzing who will enjoy the experience the most. Aulani will be an amazing destination for a lot of people, but it also won’t appeal to a lot of people–just like virtually any vacation destination out there. Of course, without knowing you and your interests specifically, we can’t say definitively how you’ll feel about it, but hopefully this section gave you an idea of how it might appeal to you.
When to Visit?
Hawaii essentially has high seasons dictated by two things: winter and school breaks. The latter is especially true at Aulani, which is a mixed family and couples’ destination, rather than primarily a couples’ destination like the rest of Oahu. The former is generally true at Aulani and throughout Hawaii, as many guests flee cold weather for a dose of paradise.
There’s also weather to consider. Hawaii is pretty warm year-round, but it gets even hotter in the summer. No matter when you visit, you can except highs in the 80s and lows in the 60s or 70s. Still, the better times for weather in Hawaii are generally the spring and fall.
Based upon all of these factors, the “sweet spots” for trips to Aulani are late-April through mid-May and September through October. You avoid all significant school breaks with these dates, and you’re also outside of the range of snowbird season. Plus, these are good seasons as far as weather goes. These are educated guesses on our part based upon things we read and travel intuition, and are not at all observation based. Frommer’s seems to agree with us, but note that they’re working off of Hawaii travel trends in general.
Our educated guesses paid off with our early-May visit (just after Japan’s Golden Week–we’d probably go a week later next time to avoid this popular travel week for Japanese visitors, but crowds were still light), as the we were told that Aulani was less than half-full, Pearl Harbor had no significant crowds, and the weather was excellent. Your mileage may vary–do your own research into dates to confirm our speculation isn’t just crazy.
Things to Do at Aulani
Let’s break this down into two separate questions. First, what to do at Aulani. Second, what to do beyond Aulani. If you’ve ever done a Disney Cruise before, you know that it’s kind of a go at your own pace, do as much or as little as you want type of thing. Aulani is the exact same way. Like the Disney Cruise Line, there are daily newsletters printed out with schedules of daily events, and there’s pretty much a scheduled event every hour of the day.
The schedule is definitely lighter than Disney Cruise Line’s personal navigator, but considering that everyday you have numerous pools and other on-site options, plus the whole of Oahu to explore, it’s pretty full of activities.
Some of these activities are repeated every day, every other day, or at some random interval, but some may happen only once per week. We definitely recommend reviewing the sample schedule online so you can plan meals and other day trips around the schedule events at Aulani that are must-dos for you.
Listed below are a few things you can do at Aulani:
- Ka Wa’a Luau
- Laniwai – A Disney Spa
- Fireside Mo’Olelo
- Ho’ Okani Pila (Learn the ‘Ukulele)
- Menehune Adventure Trail
- Morning Beach Yoga
- Rainbow Reef Snorkeling
- Aunty’s Breakfast Celebration at the Makahiki
- Character Meet & Greets
This is just a partial list of things that we did do at Aulani, and doesn’t include ordinary stuff like lounging around the pool, taking dozens of laps around the lazy river, wandering the grounds, or hanging out at the bars. It also doesn’t cover activities specifically for kids and teens. It’s also worth pointing out that there were about 5-10 other daily activities we would have liked to do, but simply didn’t have the time. We’ll cover some of these activities in future posts if you’re interested in learning about them in more detail.
The only thing you definitely need to know about at this point is the Starlit Hui is no more. Part of me wants to preface that with “sadly” since I really loved this show–and because the replacement for this free show costs over $100 per person, but the new Ka Wa’a Luau is a full scale luau.
Previously, many Aulani guests who wanted the full luau experience had walked 5 minutes down the road to Paradise Cove, where a similarly-expensive full luau is held. We attended that on our most recent trip and enjoyed it (see our full Paradise Cove Review & Oahu Luau Tips post); it’s cheaper than Ka Wa’a and is a fun show. There is potential for Ka Wa’a Luau to be a nice addition; it just stinks to lose a free experience for something that costs extra–and a lot extra at that.
One thing to note is that Ka Wa’a Luau is held on Aulani’s Halawai Lawn, so if you request a room overlooking that lawn, you will be able to see the luau from your balcony for free. Obviously, not the same as attending it…but much cheaper!
Things to Do Beyond Aulani
You’re hopefully not going all the way to Hawaii and staying at a Disney resort the entire time. Listed below are just a few of the things you can do on Oahu alone:
- World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument (Pearl Harbor)
- Diamond Head Hike
- Paradise Cove or Polynesian Cultural Center Luau
- Visit Kualoa Ranch
- Koko Head Crater Hike
- Visit ‘Iolani Palace
- Manoa Falls Hike
- Visit the North Shore
This is just a partial list of things that actually interest us. It doesn’t even include the beaches, spas, shopping, dining, entertainment, and nightlife for which Hawaii is known. You’ll want a guidebook to help plan what else you should do on Oahu. We like Oahu Revealed, which is written by a local and is not superficial fluff you could find on TripAdvisor (I’m looking at you, other Hawaii guides…).
You should definitely consider island-hopping while in Hawaii. Round-trip flights between the islands are about $150-200/person, or you can do one-way flights for half that, and head back to the US out of a different airport in Hawaii than the one into which you flew. This is what I’ve done, and recommend doing both in terms of cost-savings and time-savings.
On the Big Island, my strong recommendation is a visit to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, which is one of my favorite National Parks anywhere. Read our Things to do in Volcanoes National Park post for more on this. (Notwithstanding Aulani, we both actually prefer the Big Island to Oahu.)
If you want more insight into what we’ve done in Hawaii, things we enjoyed (and did not our Hawaii category of postsenjoy–which includes a really popular tourist spot), check out on TravelCaffeine.
How Long to Visit?
We recommend no fewer than 7 days in Hawaii, with time on Oahu plus one other island. I’ve done the Big Island twice, so that’s my default recommendation, but Maui also looks intriguing to me. Hawaii is an incredible state, with a wide array of offerings. The islands are small, but there’s truly something for everyone.
On my first visit to Hawaii, I spent 14 days there and didn’t run out of things to do. Sarah and I have been to Hawaii 3 times together, and only stayed at Aulani one of those times. On our more recent visit, we were in Hawaii for 7 days split between Oahu and the Big Island, and it was not nearly enough time.
Dedicate at least 2 full days to enjoying and exploring Aulani. The resort offers a lot of entertainment, activities, etc., and it’s difficult to do these all in a couple of days, plus enjoy their excellent pools, hot tubs, spas, etc. Also, you’re spending a lot of money to stay at Aulani, so you should make it a priority to enjoy the resort.
If the entertainment really interests you, or you love lounging by pools or in lazy rivers, you could spend even longer at Aulani. If neither of those things interest you, maybe 2 nights will suffice. Basically, what we’re saying is that only you know what you enjoy doing, so we can’t make a definitive recommendation because we don’t know you.
Whether you should spend the duration of your stay on Oahu at Aulani largely depends upon your budget and priorities in Hawaii. Even by Hawaii standards, Aulani is pricey. While you will find high prices at just about any resort in Hawaii, many are much less expensive than Aulani, and offer a high caliber resort experience. Cheaper still are basic hotels and motels that you won’t want to spend time “enjoying,” but instead might function as good shower/sleeping bases for the days you explore the rest of Hawaii.
Still, there is something to be said for the convenience of just staying at one hotel in Oahu, and having that hotel be a resort to which you can come back in relax in a nice hot tub or enjoy other entertainment at the end of the day in Hawaii. In our view, if money is not a significant concern, stay at Aulani for the duration of your visit to Oahu.
If money is a concern, spend 2-3 nights at Aulani and stay elsewhere the rest of the trip. If money is somewhat of a concern, let convenience (or lack thereof) of Aulani as a home base when looking at your general Oahu itinerary be the deciding factor that pushes you off the fence one way or the other.
Getting There
Unless you’re an incredibly strong swimmer or an Olympic canoeing champion, you’re going to be flying to Hawaii. Honolulu International Airport is nearly halfway between Los Angeles and Tokyo, so you’re in for a long flight (approximately 9 hours from Chicago). Flight prices vary widely depending upon your city of origin and season, but expect to pay over $600 per person, and in some rare cases over $1,000.
Redeeming frequent flyer points for tickets to Hawaii requires more miles than an average domestic flight on most major airlines, but can be worth it. If you’re considering visiting Tokyo Disney Resort and/or Hong Kong Disneyland, Hawaii can be a free stopover. We have a post that explains how to visit multiple Disney destinations (including Aulani) on a single airfare.
Once you’re on the ground in Honolulu, you can either take public transportation, a shuttle service, or rent a car to get to Aulani. Be aware that Aulani is farther from Honolulu International Airport than traditional tourist spots on Oahu, like Waikiki Beach hotels. It takes about 25 minutes to get from the airport to the Ko Olina area where Aulani is located in no traffic.
Parking at Aulani is free for Disney Vacation Club members (or rather, your annual dues pay for it), so if you’re a DVC member, we highly recommend a rental car. If you’re not a Disney Vacation Club member, parking costs $37/night. If we were not Disney Vacation Club members, we would probably take a shuttle/Uber to Aulani.
Don’t worry, you can still explore Oahu if you do this, as there is an Alamo Rent-A-Car location at Aulani, and it’s cheaper to rent a car for a day or two and establish those days as our days for exploring Hawaii outside of Aulani. $37/night for the duration of a stay is just unreasonable for parking and really adds up over the course of the trip. If you elect not to rent a car, the best option for getting to Aulani is Uber. There’s also the Ko Olina Transportation Shuttle, which will drop you off directly at Aulani. Public “TheBus” transportation is a cheaper option, but it requires a long walk (nearly 2 miles) and a transfer. Not advisable with luggage. Go to Page 2 for Saving Money at Aulani, What to Pack, Where to Dine, and More…
Your assumptions about the Veto Beach and Hilton Head resorts are correct, it is a very different experience. My wife and I enjoyed both resorts (we’ve been to Veto Beach three times), but Aulani is a whole othereexperience. Several cast members pointed out the name difference,as well as the emphasis of Hawaiian culture. The story behind the characters at the hotel is supposed to be that Mickey and company are also guests there. It was easy to believe when we saw Goofy playing in the lazy river.
I stayed at AuLani for a week in January and regretted it from beginning to end. Not only was it insanely expensive the service offering was dreadful, we flew in late and couldn’t get room service, we couldn’t get transfers to other tourist spots and we couldn t even get a shower cap at $450 a night. The dining was woeful, the fast dining was like what I imagine a prison is like, lining up for ages, soggy paper plates and a choice of coffe or juice (not both) on the breakfast menu. The whole place is a cynical grab for cash. Take a disney cruise instead, you will love it.
I was there this past December for the first week of a two week stay on the Islands (our second trip to Hawaii). We were there just before the holiday crowds started. Surprisingly, my wife enjoyed the resort so much, she did not want to leave. It’s not that she just wanted to stay longer. Once there, she lost interest in further exploring Oahu (not even to walk across the street for Dole Whip). If I knew that was going to happen, I would not have rented a car. Our experience was that the resorts on the Mainland have a great deal to learn from Aulani,from the level of service on up (that said, quick service dining is quick service dining no matter where you are). Having previously been to Waikiki, I would recommend staying elsewhere, even if it is no at Aulani. I would disagree that this is an “odd duck” compared to other Disney Resorts. DVC does have two other resorts not attached to the park. That said, the naming of the resort does set forth some differences. That is, look at how other resorts are named: “Disney Vero Beach Resort,” “Disney Hilton Head Island Resort,” “Disney’s Grand Floridan Resort and Spa,” etc. This is “Aulani, a Disney Resort and Spa.” There is an intentional change in emphasis to put forth Hawaiian culture first, and Disney second (part of the battles/debates/discussions Disney had when putting this concept forward). And yes, it is expensive (but so is Hawaii, in general, and this is Disney). Can wait to read the rest of your review.
While we haven’t done Vero Beach or Hilton Head, my understanding is that they don’t offer quite the ‘all-inclusive’ type experience as Aulani. Could be wrong, on that, though.
Great point about the naming difference–I do think that little ‘detail’ alone speaks volumes about the direction of Aulani.
We have been to Vero Beach 2 times & it sounds like it is very much like Aulani. However, they do not have as many eateries so unless you want to eat at the same places over & over again, you are forced to eat outside of the resort. There are plenty of local places to go to eat (chains & local restaurants). So maybe not as exclusive (most likely not). They have key access to the beach & pool – and they check! Also, there are many activities to do as well that will keep you & your family busy. I did feel that the resort was over priced but I rented DVC points to stay there while visiting my grandmother who lived less than 5 miles away. It is also only 1.5 hours from WDW; we tacked 1 of our stays on the end of our WDW trip 🙂
I am planning a trip to Aulani for 2016 either over the New Year or Spring Break. I need to do research so your reviews come in handy & are very timely! Gotta start saving! I know it’s going to be expensive to go to Hawaii alone!
Sorry for the delay in reply. We always stay at the Mauian Hotel on Napili bay. Its very simple but clean and newly renovated our room is always about 6 ft from the sand.Please read the reviews on Tripadvisor most feels its Maui’s best kept secret. Also we usually never pay more the 250 anight and they have special lowe prices in May and September. When we first visited Maui we did all the tourist things drive to Hana Biking down from the volcano, but now we spend our days swimming and evenings visiting our fave restaurants. Mama’s Fishhouse is the most romantic and beautiful restaurant in the world,and I have been around. Its worth a trip to Maui just for dinner and I can’t say that about to many places! At the Aulani we dined everyday at Roys had dinner across the street at the front restaurant in the shopping center, can’t remember the name but it was good. We also had a local hawaiian plate from bbq place in shopping center and it was also good. Most local food in Hawaii is always superior to standard hotel fare. Though we did enjoy the small plates at Aulani’s bar while listening to all the great music!
So cool that you guys were here recently. I live about 15 minutes away from Aulani. We’ve been meaning to stay there for a weekend, but even the kama’aina rates are a bit much for us.
Did you and Sarah try any plate lunches from anywhere on the island? Good eats for a good price. Especially from the lunch (food) trucks.
We didn’t eat anywhere *good* outside of Aulani. Basically just one place near Pearl Harbor, and that definitely doesn’t bear mentioning. Next time we want to explore some of the near-to-Aulani off-site dining options so we can recommend our favorites of those. If you have any we should try, please share them!
Oahu is small, so everything is “Near to Aulani.” 😉
That said, the drive along the North Shore has some amazing shrimp trucks, several of which are highly recommended. I stopped at Giovanni’s, and had some incredibly spicy shrimp.
In downtown Honolulu, Helena’s Hawaiian Food is a little hole in the wall joint, and you know it’s good as the place is always packed with locals. I chatted with Helena on our last trip … or I should say, she talked my ear off about her new great granddaughter, who she was very proud of. The food came out fast, and was incredibly good.
Lastly, while the Dole Plantation is a total tourist trap, it’s fun to stop and get a Dole Whip for that Disney-esque experience. I got mine in a plastic souvenir pineapple that doubles as a piggy bank.
So thrilled to read about your trip to Aulani! I visited last March with my husband and 4 year old daughter. We have a favorite spot on Maui we visit every few years but after our week at Aulani we may be giving it up for Disneys Hawaii. I really am not a fan of Oahu my least favorite island but Disneys Aulani is so fantastic we may have to change islands, atleast till we get enough of the Aulani. Disney did an amazing job and put my two favorite places together,Disney and Hawaii,so it is about perfect in my book. Restaurants are mediocre but other ones walking distance are fabulous especially Roys across the street! We love the beach and pools but most of all the ability to swim all day and then listen to some of the best live Hawaiian music every night. Each evening the hotel brings different performers in from all parts of the island and by the end of the week you have heard some of the best Hawaiian music ever! Their free Hawaiian show is also amazing. For some its a long way to travel, but we feel its really worth it, and definately as enjoyable as a Disney cruise. For all those Disney world vets, this is a nice mellow change of pace and as always Disney does it so well!
I didn’t mention it in this article (that’ll be coming in the entertainment one), but I totally agree about the Hawaiian music being amazing! Such great performers.
If you don’t mind, what do you recommend on Maui (both for things to do and the favorite spot to stay?). Any other restaurants besides Roy’s near Aulani that you recommend? Thanks in advance!
Hey Tom I thought I would comment on this one since when we were there we tried to make a point to try as many “local” places as we can.
Sushi Bay
One of my favorite places on the trip was about 5min drive down H1 Called Sushi Bay. It is a conveyor belt sushi place. That looks like a little hole in the wall(in a little strip mall), but everything was very fresh and tasted amazing. I tried “The Don” which is a very large bowl of rice topped with tuna and spicy tuna that I could not finish myself and it only costed about $8.00. It was the freshest best tasting tuna I have ever tried.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/sushi-bay-kapolei
Highway Inn
Heard about this one on Dinners Drive-in’s and Dives. We wanted a place to try the traditional “Plate Lunch” and this place was recommended. It was a very nice plate and very tasty.
http://www.myhighwayinn.com
Awesome–thank you for sharing these!!! 🙂
My wife grew up in Hawaii and we’ve visited twice. Our most recent trip was this past February. We priced out Aulani and we’re non-DVC so our choices were to rent points for a villa or book a rack rate hotel room. Either way it was too much. We ended up staying at the iconic Hilton Hawaiian Village on Waikiki Beach, which was not quite what we’d hoped for. Waikiki is definitely worth a visit for a first timer, but we find it way too urban to truly be enjoyable. Sure you can walk to lots of things, but there’s a lot of traffic and a lot of shopping that we can do at home. We don’t plan to stay in that area again.
Being Disney fans, we wanted to at least visit Aulani for the day while in Oahu. We booked lunch reservations at Ama Ama, and ate an amazing meal overlooking the lagoon- actually one of the better meals we had on our trip! We spent an hour or two exploring the public areas of the resort, but in our experience, the resort staff was on the lookout for non-guests. Despite our Disney attire and the fact that we had a one-year old, when we took a seat at an empty lounge chair while waiting for our table, we were approached in less than two minutes and asked if we were hotel guests! (Hotel guests get wristbands like at SAB and there are people looking for them!)
While they will allow you to park for free (with validation at the restaurant) and enjoy restaurants and gift shops, resort hopping to Aulani is nothing like resort hopping at WDW! If you’re not a paying guest, you’re not setting foot near most of the amenities. We had planned to walk down to the beach, but to get back to the resort it was keycard access, so we didn’t end up doing that.
That being said, the grounds are beautiful and relaxing- very reminiscent of Animal Kingdom Lodge. It truly felt like “vacation.”
One other note- as has been noted, Aulani is pretty far from many tourist areas and is pretty remote. At least when we were there, it also seemed to be hotter on this part of the island. While the temperatures in Waikiki were closer to the mid-70s the whole trip, our few hours at Aulani were closer to the mid-80s. Not a huge difference, but noticeable.
From what we saw, we are definitely considering Aulani for a future Hawaii vacation.
Interesting about the staff and wristbands. Maybe it was because we were there during slow season, but we often didn’t have wristbands at the pool (we only got them when we finally picked up towels) and no one ever said anything to us.
Good to know that our experience wasn’t the norm–thanks for sharing.
After reading your post on renting DVC points a few months back, we booked Aulani for our first DVC stay to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary this fall with a 3 day stop for our first trip to Disneyland on the way back.(Was not able to book DVC rental at GC and paid more for a pool view at Disneyland Hotel than our ocean view studio at Aulani). Looking forward to more reviews and photos of the restaurants and activities at Aulani as well as offsite activities. Keep the Aulani posts coming!
That sounds like it’s going to be an incredible 30th anniversary trip. Please report back on how you enjoyed it! 🙂
A great post! We are considering visiting in the next year or two. I’d love to see reviews of the rooms/villas and restaurant reviews.
They’re coming soon!
I was waiting your take on this after seeing you were there on Instagram.
We have been to Hawaii three times and been to all four major islands. Our four year old was asking to go, so we went this past September for our first trip with the kiddos (ages 4 and almost 2). I completely disagree that Hawaii isn’t a family destination. We had the most amazing time, and both girls actually shed tears on our last day; we have been pestered since with questions of when we are going back (and only put them off by reminding them of a planned Guatemala trip next Spring). There is so much to do, and Oahu is the island I would definitely recommend to families. We didn’t go to Waikiki at all this trip, I should note. We spent very little time there on our last trip and no desire to return.
Both trips to Oahu, we have stayed in Ko’Olina. First at the JW Marriott Ihilani, and last trip, at the Marriott Ko Olina Vacation Club. We loved both places, and the lagoons are perfect for small children.
I had wanted to go to Aulani originally, as we enjoy Disneyland and Disneyworld so much. But in the end, I couldn’t justify the cost comparison when we could get a full two bedroom unit with kitchen at a Marriott hotel for just a little more than a single bedroom at Aulani. I did book the character breakfast for us, with mixed feelings. I was sure I would regret that we weren’t staying at Aulani. The opposite happened, actually. I was so glad we hadn’t! The breakfast was the most hectic and stressful I have experienced, and we are no strangers to character dining. The pool areas were so crowded and we could hardly move through the area. All the extra “stuff” they put in completely blocked the natural view. I couldn’t wait to scurry back to our hotel where we could swim with a lovely view of the ocean and not fight through such crowds. Our lagoon was also far less crowded. We could easily walk down to the even less crowded one after ours, too, which isn’t near a hotel. I should note we were there at low season in September.
Two not miss beach areas on Oahu: the North Shore and Kailua Beach. The latter was one of the most phenomenal beaches I have ever seen and not a popular tourist destination.
Just my opinions, though. There are certainly many, many people who love Aulani, and I didn’t stay there, so my opinion is really only based on cost, pictures, and how I felt in the public areas. But speaking as a huge Disney parks fan, I think we will stick to other hotels in Oahu.
Just to clarify, I’m not saying Hawaii isn’t a family destination. I’m saying it’s not as much of a family destination as Walt Disney World or Disneyland. It’s still a good spot for families (depending upon interests), but not as good as the parks, in my opinion.
Interesting perspective on the other nearby hotels versus Aulani. I think next time we will book one of those for a night or two so we can do a fair comparison. We didn’t experience any of the crowding issues you mention at Aulani, but obviously the season plays a huge part in that. I know Aulani wasn’t even close to capacity during our visit.
Thanks for the feedback and recommendations on other places to visit! 🙂
I’m so excited to read your reviews about Aulani! I hope this post is the first of many.
Question — Do you think you’ll do a trip report? I would absolutely love to read one about Aulani.
I’m not sure. I don’t know what a trip report would bring to the table that the individual posts I plan on doing will accomplish. It would probably just have a lot of “floated around in lazy river again,” and as much as I’m sure you’d all love to read my deep analysis of that lazy river, I’m not sure it’d be *that* entertaining.
Plus, I still owe you all a Hong Kong Disneyland trip report, and (hopefully) a May 2014 Walt Disney World trip report…
That’s fair! 🙂 My parents were there in November and they said Aulani was amazing.
Tom, great article, I love your site. I have question about your preference. My wife and I love Hawaii and are planing to return soon. However, this time around we will be going with our son, who will be 7. We have never been on a cruise before and we are trying to decide between a Disney Cruise during spring break or a visit to Hawaii/Aulani during the summer. Which one do you recommend? Chances are we will eventually do both but I wanted to see if you if you had a compelling reason to do one over the other (besides price). Thanks!
I can’t say I have a “compelling” reason to recommend one or the other, but Sarah and I both preferred Aulani to Disney Cruise Line. Don’t get me wrong, we really like Disney Cruise Line, but the experience at Aulani just “felt” better to us. I really can’t entirely say why that it, it just is. Perhaps part of it is that we haven’t done a Disney Cruise Line itinerary that involved places that really wowed us. Ask me again after we do an Alaska trip on Disney Cruise Line and my answer might be totally different!
I have to disagree a little with your suggestion on when to go. The highlight of both of my trips to Hawaii was whale watching. The whales are typically there November through mid-May.
I’ve been to Kauai, Oahu and the Big Island and I would say spend a couple days in Oahu and then move to the Big Island. It was more relaxed. Although if you like the party scene Oahu is the place to be.
I can’t wait to read more about your trip – the sneak peeks on instagram had me so excited. Next, please review the camera lens that could make me look like Sarah does in these photos… just kidding! Looks like you guys had a wonderful time. Keep the Aulani tips coming!
The Laniwai hydrotherapy garden was the highlight of the trip for me. For my wife, it was a close second to only the lazy river. If they still offer a day-pass to the hydrotherapy garden, DO IT. You won’t regret it.
I second this, Laniwai was nice. We booked a one hour couples massage. It was overpriced but the hydrotherapy spa helped to make it a little more worth it. Laniwai is definitely a must try at Aulani.
Also, Aloha Stadium Swap meet is a great tip. Aside from Aloha wear, it is a great place to buy locally made art and freshly grown produce and other foods. Lots of cheesy stuff to avoid, but plenty of unique items to make the trip to the stadium worth while.
We took a family trip to Oahu(family of 5). Waikiki was not for us and we spent about 2 hours total there. The rest of the island is so much more exciting to explore. The North Shore, many secluded beaches that are not well marked, hanauma bay to snorkel with sea turtles, Sea Life Park, Pearl Harbor of course and that us just to name a very few.
What many may not know is that Aulani is on a series of public man made lagoons. One is completely public with no resort on it. The rest appear to be part if resorts because the resorts supply lounge chairs, but in fact, these are completely public lagoons and fabulous places to swim. One day of our trip was to the lagoons. After a few hours swimming, we all got dressed in our tourist garb and “crashed” Aulani. Basically the entrance from the beach has a room key scan and an attendant. Since we looked the part we walked right in after some others without a question. We checked out the resort and it is beautiful.
With that said we booked a private house on the ocean on the less popular, but much more beutiful, leeward coast at $150 a night. Loved seeing Aulani and might stay a night or two, but as much as I love Disney, I would not want it as the focus of a Hawaii trip with so much beauty on the island. But with that said, we are not the type to stay at a resort. We are constantly moving and trying to see as much local culture as possible.
Good Post! It’s funny my wife and I were just there a few months before you in late March. It was also about the same as far as it was not very busy at all. We were there for about seven days and my wife is already trying to get me to plan another trip. You are right a week is just not enough time to get everything in.
Unfortunately my wife follows you on Facebook and she read this post it has renewed her interest in going there again and she is trying to get me to plan another trip out there.
One tip I have is to try to get a flight that is going to Japan after it stops over in Hawaii(they cost about the same). We had a flight from Atl -> HNL. The flight after went to Japan, because of that it was a true international flight so it was a larger aircraft(Delta Airbus A330) so we had more room, on demand video, and seats the turn into beds(in first class) on the way back we had older 747’s which did not compare the the comfort of the Airbus. It was a 9hr flight but it went quickly and much better then a bunch of layovers.
Excited to read this guide and for more Aulani posts in the future! I’ve been pricing out Aulani trips since it first opened. So far it hasn’t worked out, but maybe in the next few years it will. I’ve only ever been to Hawaii in an airport with a layover, so our first trip will be split between the resort and exploring Oahu (with Aulani as our base). Tom’ requirement for going to Hawaii is Pearl Harbor. All the other big tourist destinations on Oahu I’m less committed to, so I’ll be interested if you do any of those type of reviews too.
I did the “Passport to Pearl Harbor,” which I really enjoyed. http://www.pearlharborhistoricsites.org/deals
The vast majority of visitors to Pearl Harbor just do the USS Arizona, but that was actually my least favorite (it was still incredibly moving and worth doing) of the attractions included on the Passport. It took the better part of the day to do everything, but I would absolutely recommend it.
I have not stayed at Aulani, we stayed in Waikiki last time I went to Hawaii, but decided to drive over to that resort area and eat lunch and spend an hour or so walking around. Our lunch was ok, but was more expensive than in the Waikiki area. What I found interesting was that it is in the arid section of the island, almost like they took an undesirable area, and created an artificial resort area.
I would highly recommend a trip to Hawaii, but I think I liked Kauai better than Oahu and liked the Waikiki area since when we got home at night it was easy to walk around to tons of restaurants and bars.
Thanks for the feedback. For some people, the Waikiki ‘scene’ is definitely preferable. I like getting my party on just as much as the next person, but Waikiki just felt overdeveloped for me, and I don’t have a ton of interest in bars or shopping on vacation. I’d rather be out in the more ‘rural’ setting, and to me Ko Olina felt like it was really coming into its own in terms of development. A good amount of things to do in the general area, but not flooded with people.
I know plenty of people LOVE Waikiki, so thanks for that perspective!
We were only ever in the Waikiki area at night – the rest of the time was spent exploring the island. I loved the North Shore area seeing all the surfers, the windward side is where we managed to see whales and I also enjoyed Pearl Harbor (We did it all, including the Heart of the Missouri tour). My 1st trip was to Kauai and I prefer the laid back environment of that island over Oahu. I think my next trip will be to Maui or Kauai again.