Days Needed in Oahu

[2prettygirl]

We are looking to book a stay over Christmas 2021 at Aulani for a family vacation. We have never visited Hawaii and would love to island hop but I think for this trip, we are going to plan on 11 nights at Aulani only and see and do as much as we can in Oahu, in hopes to maybe visit the islands again in the coming years (with the uncertainty of covid, island hopping just doesn’t seem reasonable to plan on). I am just curious to hear from others who have visited Oahu, is 11 nights “too much” or will there be plenty to see and do to occupy our week and a half there on top of the days we plan to lay low at the resort?
FYI, We are renting points so our stay is very comparable price wise to other resorts in Oahu.

 

[happymommy]

We don’t do Aulani, but own at the Marriott Ko Olina. I never go for less than 2 weeks, so no, I don’t think it’s too much! In 2017, I spent a month and still enjoyed it! We enjoy spending time relaxing at the resort, grilling sometimes for lunches (but I think at Aulani the grills aren’t open all day like they are at the Marriott), a few outings, but mostly just relaxing (we lived on Oahu in the late 90’s). We’ve met lots of other owners who also go for a month there! We also don’t island hop; been to the other islands already, but Oahu our home base now.

 

[Mamasarges]

There is plenty to do and see on Oahu....more than you could fit in in 11 days!

 

[abdgeek]

Depending on what you want to do, as OP have said, 11 days will not be too long to spend on Oahu. I spend a week in Oahu each time I go to Hawaii and I’m still trying to cross everything off my bucket list. If you haven’t done so already, make a list of what you want to do and see and what part of the island it is on. You definitely want to maximize your time and not spend every day driving all over the island.

Oahu does have rush hour traffic, so you will need to plan for it if you are driving to Waikiki, the North Shore, or other parts of Oahu for activities. You can easily combine 2-4 activities in a day if they are close by. If you plan to book your own excursions, you will need to drive to Waikiki to get most of them. However, Aulani does have tours that pick up there, but they only leave on certain days.

 

[happymommy]

I’d have a car, and have never done any tours (of course we lived there). I don’t see a need for tours unless you are unable to rent a car.

Yes, rush hour is a major thing. When we go to the Swap Meet (used to be called the Aloha Flea Market) at the stadium (Wed, Sat, and Sun), we go first thing. It gets hot! Bring water, and a big shopping bag! Even as a local, I went there to shop for items for us and to send to family back on the mainland. Now I mainly just get candles and soaps.

 

[CateinPhoenix]

We recently went for 2 weeks and had a good mix of downtime, activities like hiking, parasailing, diving with the Sharks, ziplining, rented bikes and rode to the zoo, paddleboarding and never felt over scheduled or bored! There is tons to do.

 

[nkereina]

I agree with PPs that 11 nights is a good amount of time to spend on Oahu, but I do think its too much time to spend at Aulani. The resort is in an isolated location. If you plan to tour the island, you will need a rental car for the duration and will have to factor in traffic and commute times from Ko Olina. There's also not much in walking distance. Aulani itself is not that large, and frankly after 6 days, we were sick of the food options - and that was with spending 3 of those 6 days off-site touring the island, and doing our own light grocery shopping. People also get aggravated with the crowded pool areas and chair saving situation, though I'm not sure that's an issue now in the current environment. Who knows how that will be by end of next year.

If it were me, I would either consider a split stay with another island or at least a split stay elsewhere on Oahu. We spent a total of 9 nights on Oahu, with 3 nights in Waikiki and 6 nights at Aulani. Staying a couple nights in Waikiki lets you experience that area, which is a completely different vibe and atmosphere than anywhere else on the island. Lots going on at all hours, which is a contrast to Aulani/Ko Olina which is a dead zone after dinner time. There are also many tourist spots and places to visit in and around the Waikiki area which would be easier to accomplish while staying in that area, leaving any things you want to do on the North or windward side of the island for the Aulani portion of the trip. Because of the Waikiki trolley and walkability of the area, we also saved money by not having a rental car during that time.

 

[Lilsia]

We have a 16 nights booked at Aulani and another 5 nights at a hotel in Waikiki for this coming May/June. We rent a car for our Aulani portion and do our excursions around the Island from there and also have several resort days. Our Waikiki portion is going to be about what we can do in that area. It is just my daughter and me so we are happy walking around the shops in Waikiki. But some of the things we do are horseback riding at Kualoa Ranch, Waimea Falls and botanical gardens, touring the North Shore, and visiting beaches and other botanical gardens. We did a catamaran tour the last time but my daughter got a bit sea sick so we will see about how she feels about that. My daughter fell in love with paddle boarding at Aulani and is looking forward to doing that again.

 

[dreamit]

We spent 11 nights at Aulani in March and didn’t feel it was too long. It was my first trip to Hawaii and my husband’s first time on Oahu. We had a good mix of downtime and active days. Day 1: Watched the sunrise in Kailua, followed by a guided kayaking tour. Then did sightseeing back down the windward side of the island, stopping at beaches and trails. Then we visited the Japanese Village Walk at the Ala Moana mall where we had dinner and saw Japanese Elvis perform. Day 2: Pearl Harbor, lunch at Anna Miller’s, rented beach chairs on Waikiki where my daughter also participated in a surf lesson. Stopped for Leonard’s malasadas. Day 3: Whale watching, snorkeling, swimming with dolphins with Wild Side Specialty Tours (HIGHLY recommend) on the leeward side. Pool/beach time at Aulani. Luau at Aulani. Day 4: Full day at Aulani. We had a cabana but wouldn’t do it again (preferred being on the beach). Husband had a spa treatment. Rainbow Reef, swimming, etc. Day 5: Hiked Diamond Head (loved and will do again), late breakfast at Bogart’s Cafe, intended to hike Manoa Falls trail, but was closed due to trail conditions (flooding). Day 6: Exploring. Tropical Farms Macadamia Nut Farm. Stops at beaches on the windward side, visited La’ie Point, lunch at Hale’iwa Beach House, Matsumoto for shave ice, watched sea turtles on Laniakea Beach, watched sun set at Aulani. Day 7: I had a spa treatment at Aulani, hung out at the beach, pool and Rainbow Reef all day. Dinner at Makahiki. Day 8: Ziplining at ClimbWorks (definitely not my thing, but even I thoroughly enjoyed this). Lunch from Giovanni’s Shrimp Truck. Visited nearby craft/vendor booths. Spent the rest of the day on the beach at Aulani. Visited the Fireside Mo’olelo fir Uncle’s storytelling (loved, but it was the one negative encounter throughout the entire trip—with a very entitled guest). Day 9: At Aulani all day. Did the Menehune Adventure Trail. Day 10: Breakfast at ‘Ama’Ama. Pool/ beach time. Daughter participated in a tween activity at Aulani. *On either day 9 or 10, we did some sightseeing while driving and again visited the North Shore. I know many talk about drive time and traffic on Oahu, but it didn’t bother us at all. Everyone is so chill while driving and we loved looking at the neighborhoods, mountains, sky, EVERYTHING—it was all spectacular!

 

[margot31]

I think with 11 days you can hit the "main" things on Oahu in that time. Hopefully by Christmas things in Hawaii as far as covid will have calmed down a bit. Also depends on the skill level and health of people in the group. I know Diamond head just re-opened recently. Hanauma Bay just reopened...that is going to be different compared to before covid. But do the research on that one if you want to go. You don't want to do everything in one trip as you may never come back...but for a one time trip thing I think you can hit a lot in those 11 days.

 

[Lperd]

11 days is definitely not too long. We are DVC Aulani owners and stay at least 10 days every year and the time goes so fast and we are always sad to leave. Our kids have loved Aunties kids club so they could’ve happily spent the whole time between there and the pools. Now that they are a little older we’ve started renting a car for the whole trip doing day trips here and there. We’re limited on time by school breaks but could easily spend a month at a time on Oahu and not get bored.

 

[Daisy7425]

We did 8 nights a year ago and wish we could have stayed double that amount of time. There is so much to do. I agree with previous comment that we got sick of the Aulani food. We did not cook much, but the food choices were limited. That was the only downfall. We loved our days where we didn't leave the resort. If you're interested, I could email you the itinerary that we made with some other notes. I hope you have a great trip. Last year was my first time too and it was the most wonderful time.

 

[OKW Lover]

I am just curious to hear from others who have visited Oahu, is 11 nights “too much” or will there be plenty to see and do to occupy our week and a half there on top of the days we plan to lay low at the resort?

That's a good number of nights. Especially if you are flying from the east coast and have to get over jet lag/time change.

Our shortest stay was 5 nights but that was at the end of a long cruise. We didn't do much more than see Aulani and a bit of driving around the island on that trip. Our longest stay was 20 nights. That might have been a little too long as we were all ready to be back at our home by the end of it.

 

[wassily]

Christmas has some "cooler" weather, so this opens up unshaded hiking that is plentiful in Oahu. Did 11 nights in Oahu even though been there multiple times, but first time in the winter.... surprisingly, each day felt full with new adventures. Spent much of the time on the East Side of the island from around the Koko Head area up to around Kaneohe doing various hikes and beach activity. Hit new restaurants and shave ice places... so every day was a food adventure as well.

11 nights won't feel rushed being your first time... and you probably want to slow down a bit as it is the holidays.

 

[Jdlucas24]

We typically travel to Hawaii for 8 nights or so and have always split our stay between islands. We love Maui (especially the Wailea area) - to me its a nice balance between Waikiki/Oahu (commercialized) and Kauai (much more laid-back, minimal commercialization). When possible, I enjoy spending a night or two in Waikiki as its just such a unique spot having this big city with a downtown feel right on a beach in the middle of the ocean.

I agree with others saying 11 nights at Aulani is too long. I would have trouble staying anywhere more than a week and Ko Olina is a ways out there if you are trying to get to the other side of the island. I would probably mix in a few days in Waikiki so you get that experience plus have the ability to get to the windward side of the island much easier.