Aunty's Free Activities Registration

we're going in december....so my 90-days is still about 5 months away. i was wondering though....if i understand all of this correctly, assuming i pre-register online and i get the sessions that i register my girls for, on the DAY OF the activity in december, i go straight to the check-in desk? no extra paperwork? what if the activity starts at 8:30am and there is a line out the door for registration? i presume, i by-pass that long line since i've already pre-registered and hopefully check-in is quick and easy?

i'm interested in hearing folks' experience with checking in for an activity after online registration...
 
we're going in december....so my 90-days is still about 5 months away. i was wondering though....if i understand all of this correctly, assuming i pre-register online and i get the sessions that i register my girls for, on the DAY OF the activity in december, i go straight to the check-in desk? no extra paperwork? what if the activity starts at 8:30am and there is a line out the door for registration? i presume, i by-pass that long line since i've already pre-registered and hopefully check-in is quick and easy?

i'm interested in hearing folks' experience with checking in for an activity after online registration...

well, i pre-registered then printed out the paperwork they sent me at home, but i left it up in my hotel room when i took my kids down the first day. so i ended up filling out another sheet but they did have all my info already, so it was just the bare minimum, like our name, room number, date of check-out, simple stuff like that. then we had to wait for them to enter it into the computer, then also to get the kids their bands. all in all it took about 10 minutes because there were other people too. so i would not wait until the day of your activity to do this. maybe get it done as soon as you check-in, esp. if your assigned time is early.

our first activity was at 3:00 and we were to show up at 2:30. but we were running late and got there around 2:40. there wasn't a long line. maybe 3-4 families. not too bad.
 
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we're going in december....so my 90-days is still about 5 months away. i was wondering though....if i understand all of this correctly, assuming i pre-register online and i get the sessions that i register my girls for, on the DAY OF the activity in december, i go straight to the check-in desk? no extra paperwork? what if the activity starts at 8:30am and there is a line out the door for registration? i presume, i by-pass that long line since i've already pre-registered and hopefully check-in is quick and easy?

i'm interested in hearing folks' experience with checking in for an activity after online registration...

The activities don't start that early. They have an "open house" each morning until about 9:30 or 10 (I think) where the parents can come check out Aunty's and the little ones who are younger than 3 can come play with their parents. They also have 2 lines that are clearly marked - one says registration and the other says check-in.
 
our first activity was at 3:30 and we were to show up at 2:30. but we were running late and got there around 2:40. there wasn't a long line. maybe 3-4 families. not too bad.

Did you mean to say your activity was at 3:00 and you were to check in at 2:30? We never were asked to check in one hour prior to an activity.
 


If I only want to do drop in play (DH and I want to spend a few hours at the spa) do I pre-register our son online then go to check in line to drop him off?

Sorry, I haven't had a chance to read through all the post. This is kind of confusing, I wish the wording on their website was more detailed.
 
Did you mean to say your activity was at 3:00 and you were to check in at 2:30? We never were asked to check in one hour prior to an activity.

oops my bad. yes, show up 30-45 minutes prior to the start of activity. will edit my post above.
 
If I only want to do drop in play (DH and I want to spend a few hours at the spa) do I pre-register our son online then go to check in line to drop him off?

Sorry, I haven't had a chance to read through all the post. This is kind of confusing, I wish the wording on their website was more detailed.

If you want to be sure they will get in, you should try to pre-register them for one of the free activities, and then book the spa around that. I've heard sometimes they get to capacity and drop-ins are not allowed. That would be awful to miss the spa because of that! Once they assign the free activity dates and times, you can call Aulani to try to move them if needed. Then book your spa for when they are in the activity. Even if Aunty's is at capacity, your kids will be allowed in if they are registered for an activity. You can register for the free activities 90 days out. I recommend doing it then and booking spa right away after that so you get the times you want. See my first post on this thread about how to do the free activity registration online. Have fun!
 


[GALLERY=][/GALLERY]We're at Aulani right now, April 13, 2016. I did preregistration for my kids & I highly recommend doing so. Made everything so much easier.

Today, we had spa appointments & I wanted to make sure my girls got could attend the Aloha party, get lunch & attend Stitch's space goo, so I was in line outside Aunty's about 6:45am& was 12th in line. By7:30, the line was all the way down to the BBQ grills!

One tip about Spa appointments & Aunty's. We went to Aunty's the night before our Spa Day & talked to the Lead. We explained we had multiple spa appointments booked the next day and were concerned about our girls not being able to get in due to capacity. They called the spa, verified our appointments & put our girls names down on a list that would guarantee them access. I just had to bring them at 9:20am.

I still did have to do the standing in line thing for lunch & activities, but if they were just going for free play, that wouldn't have been necessary. Very delightful not to have that stress.
 
I registered Tuesday and got a response around 10:30pm pacific time last night (Thursday). I got all the activities I wanted. I got 3 for a 7 night stay. I'm only concerned about the timing of the first one, which is at 7:30pm on our first full day of being at the resort. Hoping my boys can stay awake with the time change. It's the comedy one and I think they will enjoy that. I am so happy I can do this online. :)
 
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I registered Tuesday and got a response around 10:30pm pacific time last night. I got all the activities I wanted. I got 3 for a 7 night stay. I'm only concerned about the timing of the first one, which is at 7:30pm on our first full day of being at the resort. Hoping my boys can stay awake with the time change. It's the comedy one and I think they will enjoy that. I am so happy I can do this online. :)
We had the exact same thing happen with the comedy show on our first full day (a Saturday). They must try to do that whenever possible. I thought the same thing about the time change, but we at least are only coming from PST and our kids are 7 and almost 11, not little-little. Ultimately I decided it would be a nice start to our vacation for DH and me to have a little alone time to get drinks or go to the adults-only pool. We so, so rarely consider our own wants or needs with our vacations!! And since I'm positive we aren't going to end up on the other side of Oahu b/c no way will the kids want to leave Aulani on our first full day... we're just going with it! The one thing I wasn't so thrilled with was how top-heavy the pre-reg activities are. We're staying 8 nights. (Fri through Sat). We got the comedy show Sat 7:30p, Stitch's space goo Mon 3:00p, and Aunty's Aloha party Tues 12:30p. Since this is over Memorial Day weekend and will be crowded, I figured "oh well, at least we know we have something to do" and booked our spa appts accordingly. But it's weird that they don't try to space it out somewhat over the course of your stay.
 
We had the exact same thing happen with the comedy show on our first full day (a Saturday). They must try to do that whenever possible. I thought the same thing about the time change, but we at least are only coming from PST and our kids are 7 and almost 11, not little-little. Ultimately I decided it would be a nice start to our vacation for DH and me to have a little alone time to get drinks or go to the adults-only pool. We so, so rarely consider our own wants or needs with our vacations!! And since I'm positive we aren't going to end up on the other side of Oahu b/c no way will the kids want to leave Aulani on our first full day... we're just going with it! The one thing I wasn't so thrilled with was how top-heavy the pre-reg activities are. We're staying 8 nights. (Fri through Sat). We got the comedy show Sat 7:30p, Stitch's space goo Mon 3:00p, and Aunty's Aloha party Tues 12:30p. Since this is over Memorial Day weekend and will be crowded, I figured "oh well, at least we know we have something to do" and booked our spa appts accordingly. But it's weird that they don't try to space it out somewhat over the course of your stay.
Interesting!! We are staying Monday to Monday and we got Tuesday for the comedy show, Thursday for the space goo and sat for the aloha party. When I told my husband I was worried about the late time on our first full day, he mentioned a nice dinner and cocktails. Lol. So we are also thinking the same about going with it as well. :)
 
I had the WORST experiences getting my kids into Aunty's. It's an awful process. However, they will "make room" if you have a dining reservation AT aulani or at the spa. Happened to us twice.
 
I had the WORST experiences getting my kids into Aunty's. It's an awful process. However, they will "make room" if you have a dining reservation AT aulani or at the spa. Happened to us twice.

Can you elaborate on what made it so bad?? Many of us have upcoming trips and are trying to minimize the Aunty's pain by pre-registering etc.
 
I had the WORST experiences getting my kids into Aunty's. It's an awful process. However, they will "make room" if you have a dining reservation AT aulani or at the spa. Happened to us twice.
Was this before they started the pre-registration process at Aunty's, maybe?
 
Can you elaborate on what made it so bad?? Many of us have upcoming trips and are trying to minimize the Aunty's pain by pre-registering etc.

Was this before they started the pre-registration process at Aunty's, maybe?

This was after the pre-registration. I did that online. Mine were signed up for their first event our first day there. We went that morning around 9AM and, while they said we didn't have to wait in the line that had wrapped all the way back to the lawn and grills, we still waited in the reception room for about an hour just to get their bands. I would recommend going to get bands even if you preregistered later in the day, not first thing in the morning.

Aunty's was often full for drop ins when we went by and there would be a sign on the door to come back later, with a handful of people just waiting in line for someone to leave so they could be the first in.

In the mornings, people started lining up at 5:45AM to sign up for the lunches and dinners and activities that take day-of reservations. I know they got there that early because every day I asked the first person in line what time they arrived.

Bottom line, unless you are willing to be up VERY early don't count on getting in to any special activities and don't promise them to your kids (outside of the 3 you get with a weeklong stay through preregistration). They did allow our kids in when we had spa appointments and on site dining reservations - I had to complain but they accommodated us both times. If you are used to the amazing kids clubs on the cruise line, you will likely be disappointed.

I was there from April 2-9, if that helps. Not peak season, but resort was at full capacity.

I should have added that we loved Aulani and this did not in any way deter from a wonderful trip. My expectations were just too high!
 
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Yeesh, 5:45, that's nuts. I don't need my kids to stay at Aunty's that badly!! We have our 3 pre-reg activities, and frankly, I doubt my kids will be all that interested in going more than that. But thanks for the post, now I will make sure to get their bands at a slow time of day the day before we need them!
 
Thanks for the tip! Did it today for our October trip. Can you pre-book the paid activities?
 
Thanks for the tip! Did it today for our October trip. Can you pre-book the paid activities?
Back in the spring, they told me yes - up to 90 days before. Same as the spa, so probably not a coincidence!
 
Definitely pre-book the paid activities, as they fill up at busy times as well. Then book some spa time!!
 

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