Aulani in the rain

[SteveNZ]

we arrive at Aulani 1st May thru 5th. Right now my phone is telling me it’s going to be raining on all but the first day which is a devistating thought given we booked the trip 9 months ago and have been thinking about it every day since!

I know weather is never guaranteed, but has anyone here experienced a stay at Aulani with prolonged bad weather? Do they scale up the indoor entertainment in any way?

And having never been to Hawaii before, should we expect Florida style passing showers or will it most likely rain all day?

Sorry for the dumb questions.

 

[kyton]

Aulani is located in the drier part of Oahu. For instance two weeks ago there was massive flooding on Kauai as well as parts of Oahu (Hawaii Kai had multi million dollars worth of damage) - all we had down at Ko Olina was a small amount of rain (so small we didn’t even know as it happened in the 45mins we were sitting in Outback Steakhouse).

Normally when it does rain it is more like scuds passing quickly - we don’t even move from whatever beach / lagoon we may be sitting at. We learnt that in 1992 on our first visit to Oahu. 5-10mins and it’s normally gone.

It also depends on what website you are looking at. The guys on Trip Advisor normally only recommend 1 or 2 weather sites that are more accurate.

 

[alohamom]

I will second that Aulani is on the west side of Oahu and it tends to be drier than other areas. Sometimes it will pouring rain on the east side and sunny on the west.

Having said that, Aulani in the rain is fun! Certainly less people out in the pools. I have read many times that here the Luau or movie nights get cancelled at the resort due to rain so if that is on the agenda it might be a let down.

I will say it has been very very very wet this spring in Hawaii

 

[Cruising Engineer]

My DH and I were at Aulani in October 2014 when Hurricane Ana hit the island. It was cloudy and raining the day before it hit and constant rain the day it passed by the resort. Nothing changed. Weddings, they seem to originate from Japan, went on as scheduled at the chapel near by. Full wedding dress, tuxedos, and umbrellas for all (even the camera man). They say lucky the bride when it rains on her wedding day. The lazy river pool was full. Once you are wet, you're wet. Coming from New Mexico, a full day of rain is once in a life time and we were outside enjoying it, plus a hurricane to boot!

 

[FireflyTrance]

It rained several times during our last Aulani trip. Honestly we just kept swimming and it didn't bother us. It's so warm there this time of year that's not really an issue as long as it's not a huge storm.

 

[Combo60]

we arrive at Aulani 1st May thru 5th. Right now my phone is telling me it’s going to be raining on all but the first day which is a devistating thought given we booked the trip 9 months ago and have been thinking about it every day since!

I know weather is never guaranteed, but has anyone here experienced a stay at Aulani with prolonged bad weather? Do they scale up the indoor entertainment in any way?

And having never been to Hawaii before, should we expect Florida style passing showers or will it most likely rain all day?

Sorry for the dumb questions.

We were at Aulani sept ‘17 and had 10 mins rain in 10days. it was soooo dry, hope you have a lovely time!

 

[NancyDVC]

As mentioned by other posters Aulani is on the drier side of the island. We watched heavy, dark clouds with pouring rain over Honolulu that only left light showers as they passed over us. The East side of all the Hawaiian Islands is the windwards side where the trade winds blow in from the ocean brining moisture and rain. The West side is the leeward side and by the time the clouds pass over the mountains and get there much of the moisture has dropped already. The place to really notice this is on the Big Island (Hawaii) where the windward side is very tropical, hot and humid. and the leeward side is desert like in some places because of the height of the large volcanoes.
So I wouldn’t worry about rain spoiling your fun. Like WDW put on a poncho and go. You will probably take it off rather quickly.

 

[Pete W.]

So I wouldn’t worry about rain spoiling your fun. Like WDW put on a poncho and go. You will probably take it off rather quickly.

And unlike WDW, when it rains at Aulani it's rarely a thunder and lightning event so the pools and lagoon stay open!

 

[SteveNZ]

Thanks guys, it rained yesterday in the morning and late afternoon, but as everyone has said it was still heaps of fun. The lazy river was especially fun in the rain, felt like being in a tropical rainforest.

 

[glassslipper2004]

This is really good to hear!