Resort is booked, but can we visit Aulani for the day?

dizzneebabe

SOME IMAGINATION!!!
DVC Silver
Joined
Apr 1, 2004
My husband has a work trip in Waikiki in two weeks, so I'm tagging along and adding a couple of extra days. I was hoping to stay at Aulani for the one or two extra days, but nothing is available.

Would we have any issues visiting the resort and checking out the amenities?
 
You need a wrist band which comes with a room key in order to use pools. That said you sometimes see people in the pool without a band. It depends how diligent the lifeguards are to catch you or not. You can always use the lagoon because all beaches are public but you are not supposed to use the beach chairs. You can walk around and see the characters but I’ve seen people turned away from getting a picture if they didn’t have a wrist band. Also parking is 37 unless you are there for a meal.

Anyone can make a reservation for the character breakfast or the luau. But during busy times you need to do well ahead.
 
I have not done it, but have heard the Aulani time share presentation is pretty low key and does not take a lot of time, and they give you a wristband for a few yours after. They also drive you there. You can confirm when you get there, they have Aulani desks around Waikiki.
 


You can certainly visit the resort - they encourage it! If it were me, I would book a spa treatment (the spa is amazing!) or just have a meal there and browse the property and store. They also have a luau that might be fun.

As PP mentions, you'd be prohibited from using any of the pools, Aunty's Beach House, and the character meets. You can swim in the lagoon and sit on their beach, but you can't use their lounge chairs or umbrellas.
 
We visited for a few hours last week and worked out awesome. Went to Oahu for the first time to visit family who just moved there. We contemplated staying at Aulani but decided not to as it's a 30 minute drive from my BIL place and booked the character breakfast instead. We heard bad things about the breakfast before going but ours turned out AMAZING. Better than any buffet I've had at WDW so far. Afterwards we toured the resort and got Mickey Bars. When leaving we agreed the resort was beautiful but too crowded and we would have been disappointed if that was the only part of Oahu we saw.
 


Thanks for the info! We ended up doing a driving tour up along the North Shore and then came down, ending at Aulani, before heading back to Waikiki. We used the valet and stayed within the 2.5 hour limit--which was a perfect amount of time for us to walk around, shop a little, grab some drinks/snacks at one of the pool bars and listen to some music. The model was open, so we were able to see the rooms, too (never took the time at WDW when they had it there). Our purchases in the store validated the parking, so it was free. We were hoping to see sunset, but we couldn't see it from the beach (oh well). We did see folks trekking through bushes to the neighboring beach to do just that, but we opted for drinks and apps instead. Overall, it was a nice visit and the resort is beautiful, but we wouldn't spend a week there; we preferred the beach and resort area in Waikiki.
 
Glad I found this post. We are visiting next month for a few hours while in Hawaii for a friends wedding. A little bummed that we would be turned away for character meet and greets but we have a reservation for character dinner.
 

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