Currently At Aulani...Random Thoughts!

[Paul Stupin]

Other places you might want to look into for dining are Longhi's next door to Aulani. I really enjoy their various eggs benedicts at breakfast. For dinner we love Roy's with molten chocolate cake for dessert! A family fave! Monkeypod at Happy Hour is a great deal! Since you have a car, Kalapawai Deli is also delish! Counter service for breakfast & lunch then table service for dinner. ENJOY!

We ate at Longhi’s for dinner...loved it! We tried Roy’s last night and both ordered their pre fixe dinner for $59 each, with the main course being a combination of macadamia crusted fish and a beef short rib. It was good, but the fish had a piece of a hard bone (or something!) that was an unpleasant surprise, and the beef short rib was just ok. Also, the first course came out about 30 seconds after we ordered it, which tells me it was not made to order. We normally don’t order dessert, but of course ate the molten chocolate cake and it was delicious.

The place was very busy, and I didn’t feel particularly safe eating indoors with no windows open or apparent ventilation and so many people (even though the tables were spaced apart there were a bunch of them in a large enclosed space) so luckily they found a table for us outside. Service was friendly enough but overall I got the impression the place was a bit of a high end assembly line, a little stodgy, and not as good as either Makahiki, Longhi’s or the Olelo Room. Not sure we’ll be back.

Thanks for the Kalapawai Deli recommendation. We might try it out tonight!

 

[Paul Stupin]

Aulani has an Explore the Stars activity on select nights. Check the daily schedule. If it's not available there, Stars Above Hawaii is at the Marriott Ko Olina property which is a short walk along the beach to the Marriott. We did it a few years ago. Great experience!

Great info. Thanks!

 

[OKW Lover]

Is the Four Seasons next door open now? Friends went to Aulani in November of 2019 and found that the bar over at the 4S had better small plates than the Oleo Room at Aulani.

 

[Paul Stupin]

Is the Four Seasons next door open now? Friends went to Aulani in November of 2019 and found that the bar over at the 4S had better small plates than the Oleo Room at Aulani.

No it’s still closed. I think it’s opening in March.

 

[Paul Stupin]

Today’s thoughts!

1. Our sunset catamaran cruise from Ko Olina Harbor was cancelled an hour before it was supposed to start yesterday. Bummer! That said, they were very nice and the excuse seemed credible: water conditions were apparently a little rough and would not make for an enjoyable experience. The water in the lagoon did seem a tiny bit choppy, and the visibility by the rocks for snorkeling was reduced by sand being churned up.

2. So, instead, we walked on the rocks to the north of the lagoon to Paradise Cove Beach. Lots of interesting little black crabs crawling on the boulders. A fun little adventure, but walking on the rocks was more fun than the beach itself, which is small and not that impressive.

3. Secret cavern alert! My wife found a little walkway leading into the volcano slide that leads to a small, enclosed little cavern, lit with mysterious blue light!

4. A fun little thing. The pool bands for DVC members are sparkly and shiny, different than the ones they give out to “civilians.”

5. Next time we’re here, we’ll take a tour of that ranch in the other side of the island where Jurassic Park was shot. It looks super interesting, but we’re just too lazy to make the drive over to that side of the island again. That said, when we were there a few days ago, we drove up to a botanical garden built around an artificial lake created to control flood run off. It’s called Hoomaluhia Botanical Garden. It’s beautiful, free admission, and right at the base of those majestic green mountains. It’s not huge, but there’s a beautiful walk to the lake.

6. Today will be another relaxing pool / lagoon day. We are going to snorkel at Rainbow Reef, though. It’s smaller than I thought it would be, but looks fun...kind of like snorkeling in an aquarium! They feed the fish at 10:15, which should be interesting.

Later!

 

[islandsnoopy]

5. Next time we’re here, we’ll take a tour of that ranch in the other side of the island where Jurassic Park was shot. It looks super interesting, but we’re just too lazy to make the drive over to that side of the island again. That said, when we were there a few days ago, we drove up to a botanical garden built around an artificial lake created to control flood run off. It’s called Hoomaluhia Botanical Garden. It’s beautiful, free admission, and right at the base of those majestic green mountains. It’s not huge, but there’s a beautiful walk to the lake.

Kualoa Ranch is beautiful. The movie tour was fantastic! So much to see and do on Oahu that you always have a reason to return.

 

[ZephyrHawk]

Thank you for your random thoughts! They are fun and helpful for planning my own trip in February (hopefully).

 

[Paul Stupin]

Jan. 15 2021!

1. Ok, let’s talk about the Rainbow Reef. I was a little hesitant because A) why pay to snorkel in a very small lagoon that’s built into the pool area when you can snorkel for free on beautiful, non artificial beaches, B) seemed like something for little kids, and C) the water isn’t cold, buts it’s maintained for the fish at a temperature cooler than the pool and was probably uncomfortable.

And, yes, I was right. Wait! Just kidding. I was dead wrong on all counts! This is a must do for every visitor to Aulani! Are you snorkeling in, basically, an aquarium? Yes! And it’s amazing! Unlike actual snorkelIing, you don’t have to worry about cloudy water, muted colors, and potentially few fish that don’t look anything like the color enhanced pics you see in brochures. I’d even call this experience “fantasy snorkelling,” because the water is impossibly clear, the fish are bright, colorful, spectacular, numerous, and not just darting around 10-20 feet away, but swarming all around you! My wife and I were also the only ones there.

I‘ve snorkeled many many times, but I’ve never been surrounded by what appeared to be multiple schools of fairly large, colorful, stunning fish! Inches away. Initially, it’s even a little off putting (in a good way), because you’d probably never experience this anywhere else. Several times it was impossible to move without my hand brushing up against one (ok, kinda gross, but still fun), but then they’d swim away, only to return a minute or two later.

The $25 fee includes as many visits as you want in one day. You can also pay more, I think $45, for length of stay. We actually only did it once, but we’ll remember it forever and loved it. Get a waterproof pouch for your iPhone and take some great pics too! (We’re going to tell everyone we took them at some out of the way beach we found.)

2. I would also recommend that you get one of those free astronomy / star gazing apps for your iPad or iPhone that identifies constellations. As I‘ve mentioned before, the nighttime sky is clear and beautiful, and it was fun last night learning what we were seeing up in the sky.

3. Today’s our last day, but it feels nice as new DVC owners to know that we’ll be back!

4. Ok, off to the beach for another great day!

 

[Paul Stupin]

Oh! My wife Just reminded me about another practical piece of advice.

We rented a car for the length of stay, but only wound up using it for about three days. I don’t think car rentals are available right now at the hotel, but when things are back to normal, we’ll just rent one for the day, and repeat when we want.

 

[dreamit]

Oh! My wife Just reminded me about another practical piece of advice.

We rented a car for the length of stay, but only wound up using it for about three days. I don’t think car rentals are available right now at the hotel, but when things are back to normal, we’ll just rent one for the day, and repeat when we want.

I recall on one of the Dis Dreams Unlimited podcasts they touched on daily rentals. They recommended if renting a car for the day while at Aulani that you make the reservation online before heading down to get the car. I guess it can be a materially different price online versus in-person.
Thank you for all your updates! They brought joy to my week.

 

[DRussell83]

Enjoying your post and making me so excited to go again in Sept! Apologies if you have already mentioned in another post - is Aulani your home resort?

 

[corgi_monster]

Jan. 15 2021!

1. Ok, let’s talk about the Rainbow Reef. I was a little hesitant because A) why pay to snorkel in a very small lagoon that’s built into the pool area when you can snorkel for free on beautiful, non artificial beaches, B) seemed like something for little kids, and C) the water isn’t cold, buts it’s maintained for the fish at a temperature cooler than the pool and was probably uncomfortable.

And, yes, I was right. Wait! Just kidding. I was dead wrong on all counts! This is a must do for every visitor to Aulani! Are you snorkeling in, basically, an aquarium? Yes! And it’s amazing! Unlike actual snorkelIing, you don’t have to worry about cloudy water, muted colors, and potentially few fish that don’t look anything like the color enhanced pics you see in brochures. I’d even call this experience “fantasy snorkelling,” because the water is impossibly clear, the fish are bright, colorful, spectacular, numerous, and not just darting around 10-20 feet away, but swarming all around you! My wife and I were also the only ones there.

I‘ve snorkeled many many times, but I’ve never been surrounded by what appeared to be multiple schools of fairly large, colorful, stunning fish! Inches away. Initially, it’s even a little off putting (in a good way), because you’d probably never experience this anywhere else. Several times it was impossible to move without my hand brushing up against one (ok, kinda gross, but still fun), but then they’d swim away, only to return a minute or two later.

Thank you for the info! This is something I might want to try on my next stay.

Do they force you to wear life jackets?

Are you allowed to free dive down to the bottom?

 

[Iceman93]

Do they force you to wear life jackets?

Are you allowed to free dive down to the bottom?

Yes, they force you wear life jackets. And no, you can't free dive--you must float along on top of the water.

 

[corgi_monster]

Yes, they force you wear life jackets. And no, you can't free dive--you must float along on top of the water.

Thanks for the info!

 

[softballpooh]

Thank you for taking the time on your trip to post these thoughts!! Great ideas for planning our future trip! I loved them mostly because it felt like an easy going conversation with new found friends! Safe returns home!

 

[Paul Stupin]

Enjoying your post and making me so excited to go again in Sept! Apologies if you have already mentioned in another post - is Aulani your home resort?

We have three home resorts. Aulani, Copper Creek, and The Grand Floridian!

 

[Paul Stupin]

Thank you for the info! This is something I might want to try on my next stay.

Do they force you to wear life jackets?

Are you allowed to free dive down to the bottom?

Good questions! Yes, they do force you to wear life jackets. Mild Ugh. But at its deepest Rainbow Reef is I’d guess about 6 feet, so it’s not like you’d really be diving anyway.

 

[Paul Stupin]

Ok, one last update!

1. After dinner we were just walking around the expansive pool area, and noticed some guy in Hawaiian type clothing talking about something over a small PA system to a bunch of guests across the pool in lounge chairs. Of course this warranted further investigation. Turns out he was this “storyteller” we’ve heard about, telling a Hawaiian story of myth and romance! You see, there was once a princess who fell in love with a lowly fisherman, but their love was alas forbidden, but the gods took pity on them and turned them into two different kinds of flowers. His type of flower grows by the sea, while hers grows up in the hills where the palace was, and if you’re ever in the mountains you’re supposed to bring one of her flowers down to the shore, and reunite the lovers!

Ok, the story is certainly better than my brief description, and it was totally fun hearing it told. A little taste of Hawaiian culture and magic in a beautiful outdoor space that at night feels almost enchanted. Give it a try when you’re here. It’s a unique experience.

2. Watched the sunset earlier in the gigantic two level jacuzzi facing the water. Another must do!

3. Great musicians tonight playing outside on the Olelo Room patio. We left our screen door open so we could hear them in our room on the 10th floor.

Not looking forward to checking out tomorrow. But these nine days have been a wonderful experience we won’t ever forget!

 

[corgi_monster]

Good questions! Yes, they do force you to wear life jackets. Mild Ugh. But at its deepest Rainbow Reef is I’d guess about 6 feet, so it’s not like you’d really be diving anyway.

I thought it would be fun to dive down to the viewing windows and surprise my kids. My 2yo son is OBSESSED with marine life. He's speech delayed and one of the few words he can say is "fish". I thought it would be fun to show him a mommy fish lol! Thanks for the info, though!

 

[Blondie58]

Got here on Thursday, staying until 1/16. Not really planning on doing a daily update of the entire trip, but thought it might be fun to chime in somewhat randomly with thoughts that might be either helpful or interesting.

1. Hawaiian Airlines testing in LA went flawlessly. The test was drive thru and self administered while they watched. We got our results 6 hours later and had zero problems getting our QR codes from Hawaii’s website.

2. We’re in an ocean view studio with a pool view as well, it’s beautiful!

3. Room could use a little updating. The only USB ports are built into the clock radio. The particular studio we’re in does not have enough room for a nightstand on my wife’s side of the bed. She misses it. Not a deal breaker, just a minor annoyance. The incredible view and nice balcony overshadow any small inconvenience.

4. The dinners we’ve had at Olelo Room and Makahiki were delicious. So was Monkeypod.

5. Plenty of seating available at pool. We love the lounge chairs facing the ocean in front of Ama Ama, which sadly is still closed.

6. Odd detail alert! One of the bridges we pass under in the lazy river has a concrete plaque labeled “1923.” I wonder what that means.

7. Yesterday we drove up to the north shore, and did a taste test of the Garlic Shrimp from both Giovanni’s and Zane’s food trucks in Haleiwa. Both great but Zane’s was fresher and less greasy. Also Zane’s shrimp is already peeled so it’s possible to eat them without making a complete mess! Afterwards, we continued driving to Waimea Valley and Waimea Falls. Admission is $20 each but it’s a somewhat long, beautiful nature walk and worth it. After that, we continued driving on Kamehameha Highway, which took us to the other side of the island. It’s less developed, and super green and lush, though more cloudy with rain. The dramatic green mountains, very Jurassic Park-esque, are spectacular. Then we cut across the island to get back to Aulani, on a highway that took us up into the mountains. I’d say it’s a 3-4 hour drive with no traffic. It took us longer because there was North Shore traffic, but we didn’t really care because we were having so much fun.

8. Today is a pool/beach day. Tomorrow we’re going to hike up Diamond Head and wander around Waikiki for a bit. It’s nice to have a rental car.

I think that’s it for now. Later!

Great post. Thank you. Enjoy!!!