Please help me with my plan :)

[hswillia07]

Hi all,

We've never been to Aulani before and are looking at booking October 2019. It will be me, my husband, and our two daughters who will be 8 and 5 at the time. My mom and brother may also be coming along.

My youngest has severe food allergies, so we have to really thoroughly plan all travel before we make any moves.

I'm thinking of doing this...

Leaving on a Wednesday morning (from Canada) - flying to California, uber or taxi or something to Disney partner hotel
Thurs - Disney (Halloween Party)
Friday - Disney
Saturday to Friday - Aulani (fly home Friday)

I'm looking at booking a standard room with David's (seems to be half the cost of booking through Disney). I understand that I would need to book in October of this year in order to get a room.

What are my chances of getting a room if I book a year early? What about getting two rooms if my mom and brother decide to come?

Any other tips? I'm certainly checking out all of the other tips and tricks in this forum, I just want to know if my plan is completely off!

Thanks so much

 

[thedogatemyhomework]

booking that early through renting points, deluxe studios probably won’t be too overly difficult, standard hotel room might not be available...anything higher than a studio and there should be no problems at all until maybe the 7 month window opens.

there aren’t many standard rooms available through dvc, and deluxe studios might not be available for all nights even before the 7 month window comes around.

depending on when in october you go...aulani has done halloween stuff as well so activities may be different from “normal”, and characters might be in halloween outfits. the closer to halloween you go, the more likely this becomes. food offerings may also be slighty different (most likely just some added “limited time” snacks)

tho as with all disney resorts, if you inform the server/receptionist/note it on a reservation...a chef comes out and helps figure out something you can eat.

with how long your overall trip sounds, a 1 or 2 bdr villa might not be a bad idea...the extra space for eating in your room, laundry, etc. might be worth it, and could provide your mom/brother with more time/flexibility to decide...but the cost is going to be higher so budget constraits might make that a non option.

 

[alohamom]

One thing to consider is that the Hawaii schools traditionally have a break in October. This year it was the week of the 8th to the 14th so make sure your timing doesnt coincide with this as you might find the resort busier than other weeks in October and it could change availability through Davids as well.

I will say I think choosing to fly home to Canada on a Friday is a good idea. It is what we always do as the time change brings us home to Toronto the next day and then we sleep. There is no way I would want to return on a Sunday and then try to get up for work the next day, I would be dragging myself around for days!

 

[princessbride6205]

It's a great idea to build in those days in California.
I agree with previous post that you shouldn't have a hard time booking rooms with so much pre-planning.
I'm not sure exactly how David's works (if there is a waiting list in advance), but with DVC points the earliest you can actually book a reservation is 11 months out.
As for food, the Disney buffets have a ton of variety and options. We were also pleased with the pool menu for varied selections. As you get closer you'll want to map out more of your non-Aulani food to accommodate your family's needs. Outside of the few restaurants close by, everywhere we ate was more of a shack or mom-and-pop place, which I'm not sure would have allergy-friendly options.

 

[hswillia07]

Thanks so much everyone! Sounds like my plan might work We're thinking later in October, so I think we'll miss the school holidays.