I’m almost done with the Alaska trip report, but I’m taking a tiny break to switch climates for a minute. I just had a long conversation with a friend about vacationing on Oahu and because of that, I’ve spent the last 24 hours reading everything I can about Aulani. We’ve been thinking about going to Hawaii for years, but now I think 2019 might be the year we finally go. I know that lots of you have been to Aulani and I would love your feedback and suggestions! Any and all opinions and tips would be greatly appreciated! I have scoured the Aulani website, and watched the official videos which you can see here. I also requested this vacation planning info:
Here are some of the questions I have:
What is the best time of year to go for weather?
What is the best time of year to go for low crowds and prices?
Do I need to rent a car?
What type of room should we get (there are 5 of us)?
What should we make sure and see outside of the resort (kids will be 9, 12 and 14)?
For those of you that have been, please share your knowledge with me! You can comment on my Facebook page or in the comments section below, or send me an email at disneycruisemomblog@gmail.com.
I spent 5 nights at Aulani in June 2013. It was not crowded & the weather except for one rainy day was perfect.
It was just myself & my husband, so I can’t speak to the issue of your family of 5, but we were able to book a ‘garden view’ room, but it had an ocean view out of one side of the balcony. If you call and make such a request, they will honor it if they can. So we paid garden view price but if we sat on one side of the balcony, we could see the ocean. Of course the ocean-facing rooms are pricier, but this was an excellent compromise.
Do not miss:
Turtle Beach. It is not a tourist attraction, but rather a natural place where sea turtles come to sun themselves. https://www.to-hawaii.com/oahu/beaches/laniakeabeach.php
Nuʻuanu Pali Lookout –
DiamondHead – I am overweight & out of shape and climbed without issue, stopping for rest and water. A real experience!
Pearl Harbor is free, but you do need a ticket, which you can get online ahead of time.
You do need a car. One day we drove the entire perimeter of the island. Lovely.
I stayed 5 nights at Aulani in June 2013. Not crowded, near-perfect weather with one rainy day.
I was able to call and had booked a ‘garden view’ room but requested a partial ocean view, and they will accommodate you if they can. If we sat on one side of our balcony, we had an ocean view. While the full ocean-facing views are certainly more desirable, this was a nice compromise with the pricing.
You do need a car to explore the island. Vacuum the sand out before returning it to avoid a hefty fine.
You’ll of course have read about all the major attractions but some lesser-known ones that were wonderful experiences are:
* Turtle Beach – Not a tourist attraction, but where they naturally sun themselves http://traveltips.usatoday.com/time-year-turtle-beach-oahu-106738.html
* Pali Lookout – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nu%CA%BBuanu_Pali
And then of course Pearl Harbor (free ,but you do need to prebook a ticket online), and Diamond Head (I’m overweight & out of shape and hiked it ok – a great experience & stunning photos).
Be sure to schedule several days at the resort itself – so much to see and do.
Thank you Cindy!
Just got back from our fourth stay at Aulani. I am DVC and this is my home resort. And my favorite place to visit in the world. You and your family will love it, especially never having been to Hawaii. Oahu is my favorite Island because of the numerous things to do and see.
What is the best time of year to go for weather?
The temperature on Oahu is about 85 degrees every day, year round. It rain somewhere on the Island every day. The locals don’t let the rain bother them and you shouldn’t either. No need to pack rain gear.
What is the best time of year to go for low crowds and prices?
Summer is the busy season due to school vacations, but last week there were lots of people at Aulani but not uncomfortably so. As the weather is great year round just choose a time that works for you. You can look at the points chart on the DVC website for the different month point fluctuations and that will give you a general idea of pricing and crowds.
Do I need to rent a car?
Never having been to Oahu I would say definitely yes. You can take a shuttle or taxi to KoOlina but you can get a good priced rental car through Costco. Parking is expensive, unless you’re DVC and it’s free, so factor that into the cost. The resort is about half an hour from the airport and an hour from Waikiki so a car would be most convenient to get around and see the sights.
What type of room should we get (there are 5 of us)?
We get a dedicated two bedroom villa for the 5 of us. King bed in master, two queens (may be doubles) in the other bedroom, a pull out sofa in the living room and three bathrooms (one has only a sink and toilet). A lock off two bedroom has a king, one bed and a pull out sofa, a murphy bed and pull out chair and only two bathrooms.
What should we make sure and see outside of the resort (kids will be 9, 12 and 14)?
They will want to spend a lot of time in the numerous pools, water slides and lazy river. Probably won’t like Aunty’s Beach House since they don’t like the kid’s clubs on DCL. I hate Waikiki Beach but I think it’s a must-see for a first time visitor. North shore for Turtle Bay, Kailua (windward coast) for beautiful beaches, Polynesian Cultural Center. I’ve never been to Kualoa Ranch but I want to, Waimea Falls, Pearl Harbor, Dole Plantation (I’m not a fan but the rest of my family loves it) … I could go on and on. It really depends on your preferences and what you want to experience.
Well I hope that is helpful. You can email me with any specific questions if you like.
Thanks Helga!
We are also DVC owners and Aulani is our home resort. I don’t think I can say anything that Helga above hasn’t already covered. Food is very pricey at Aulani (most of Hawaii, actually!) so renting a one or two bedroom through a DVC rental is ideal as you will have a full kitchen and laundry vs the hotel rooms where you will not get that. I think a car is a must so that you can explore the island but parking is also something to factor in, like Helga mentioned, unless you are DVC. I have been to Hawaii in February, April, May and August and I don’t think there is a bad time to go although I will say our most recent trip (this past February) it rained solidly the first day and a half but again, it was WARM and didn’t stop us from doing activities.
Thanks Angela! I would love to visit Hawaii as often as you do. Jealous!
I haven’t done Aulani, but my parents have done Hawaii in general several times. Their favorite time to go is early spring because there are whales there at that time of year! My mom said peak time for whales is February. I know you just saw whales in Alaska, but seeing them anywhere and anytime is cool, right?
Thanks Lela!
We had a wonderful week there a few years ago. We got a one bedroom for our family of four. There was a pull down in the entertainment center so it could have slept 5. Yes, you will probably have to rent a car.
We spent two separate days away from the resort to site-see. The best thing we did outside of Aulani was the Pearl Harbor Memorial- but it was actually the tour of the USS Missouri there that was the absolute highlight for the kids and adults. You can get your tickets there that day. We were warned by Aulani staff not to drive there during “rush hour” in the morning, so we waited until mid morning to leave the resort. Our next favorite trip was to the Dole Plantation. They have a maze and train tour and Dole Whip! We also just drove around highway 83 and stopped at lookouts to explore and take pictures. We did visit Diamond Head and loved that.
Within walking distance to Aulani is Paradise Cove Luau where we had an amazing meal and show experience. At the time Disney did not have their own luau as they do now.
When we took our trip, the only return flights we could find leaving Oahu were red eye flights that departed in the evening. So, after on our last day after hitting the beach and pools we spent a fair amount of time in Luana Lounge. It is a day room that you can get a card for one time use access with TV and lounge areas to relax in and showers to get cleaned up before heading to the airport.
Thank you Desi!
Read dixiesdelights blog report. She does the best job covering everything!
Thanks Megan! I will check it out!
So pleased you are looking into Aulani – my daughter and I are going early Dec 2019 (my daughter finishes primary school and goes to high school – grade 7 the following year so this will be our last big trip for a while)- we are planning on staying 6-8nts in Waikiki to do all the touristy things and then having 4-5nts at Aulani to just relax and take in all or nothing on offer. I will possibly look into renting DVC points as an option. I look forward to all the tips and tricks you gather.
Thanks Janine!
We visited Aulani and Oahu for our first time last November, week of Thanksgiving. Here is my input:
What is the best time of year to go for weather? – The weather was not as warm as we hoped so it got a little chilly in the pools after a few hours. I heard this was not the norm. We are visiting next December so will let you know, although you might have already gone by then. We are tied to breaks now since our daughter (12) is in AP classes.
What is the best time of year to go for low crowds and prices? Thanksgiving is a busy time for travel from Japan, but we did not find it to be overwhelming.
Do I need to rent a car? I would say yes. Ko’Olina is about 45 minutes from airport and Honolulu. Unless you just want to stay at the resort then entire time, which from reading your posts I would think you would want some adventures. It was easy to travel the island in rental car and we appreciated having it.
What type of room should we get (there are 5 of us)? I would say a one bedroom vacation club villa or a two queen hotel room with a portable bed for your third daughter. We stayed in a studio vacation club room and it has a queen and pull out couch which would not accommodate your family.
What should we make sure and see outside of the resort (kids will be 9, 12 and 14)? Our daughter is 12. The number one thing we did was zip-lining at the North shore. https://www.climbworks.com/keana_farms/
We also did a helicopter tour. It was amazing. I am afraid of heights but handled it well. My daughter did get a little motion sick, so not for everyone or come prepared.
Dole pineapple tour and Diamond Head were great