Help us decide on Aulani vs Waikiki

[Nicsjtp]

We are travelling to Honolulu following a hectic 2 weeks in LA and Las Vegas. Family of 7 from Australia - made up of 9 year old, 2 x 12 year olds, 14 year old and 16 year old. None of us have ever been to Hawaii. Our initial thoughts were Waikiki - based on having "older" children - we think this will appeal more to them. However we stumbled upon Aulani - and having travelled to Florida years ago with the younger children and using DVC for our stay - I thought I would look into Aulani.

We have a total of 7 nights in Honolulu. Do we do a split stay - say 3 nights in Waikiki then 4 nights in Aulani? We want the Hawaii portion of the trip to be relaxing - which means we want the kids occupied and not "bored" .. so the adults can have some downtime.

Is Aulani going to be the best option for our children and their ages... or are there other resorts that would suit our kids ages better but also cater to adults only pool etc.

Any advice/experiences welcome.....

 

[Midoria]

One good thing about Waikiki is that your 14 and 16 year olds can walk around alone and even ride da bus to to the mall and even into town (Iolani Palace, Chinatown, Kamehameha Statue, etc). They'll have a bit more agency unlike Aulani that's set up to be quite isolated from the rest of the island.

 

[Aviator621]

I think it depends on a couple of factors--will you tour the island at all? What do the kids enjoy? Big picture, Waikiki is like any big city, lots of shops and restaurants but crowded and bad traffic. It is closer to the Windward side and saves driving time if you want to explore. Aulani is big resort (lots of on site activities), but is isolated being in Ko Olina. However, it is far more relaxing in environment. There are also some good dolphin watching and snorkeling tours you can take from the Ko Olina marina just down the road, and the Paradise Cove Luau. (Depending on the season Aulani pools can get crowded however.) Given just the description you provided, I think a split stay is a good option for you, as long as you don't mind losing a half day to moving and traffic. To minimize impact, maybe use that day to do a North Shore tour via the Windward side and get a whole different taste of Oahu from both Aulani and Waikiki.

 

[longboard55]

I would split if you have 7 days, a lot of the things Aussies love will only be Waikiki. Things like shopping, cheap makeup and the all you can drink cokes

 

[cuchu2005]

Like Aviator621 commented, it depends on your desire to tour the island. The first time we stayed at aulani, we did 4 days and our girls cried when we left. Even though we were headed to Ka'anapali. Granted, our kids were younger. That's regarding entertainment, which Aulani has plenty of. Even for teens.

Going back to touring, Aulani to me, is a bag of mixed emotions. It forces you to stay and relax (which is great), while outside there are tons nature wonders to discover (which is also great).

That decision is easier if you stay at waikiki, as hotels usually offer less entertainment options.

At least that was our experience.

Having said that, we love aulani and we are going back soon for 10 nights.

I recommend having a car.

Have fun!

Mx

 

[GooglyBear808]

Aulani is great but, the included children's club (Aunty's Beach House) is only for ages 3 - 12. For my family I felt the only thing to really do is swim which you can do at any other hotel in 'Oahu. Aulani offers nice pools, a waterslide, and a beautiful (tame) beach. By tame I mean you can't boogie board or surf. I always feel that with the price I pay to stay at Aulani (DVC or directly booking with Disney) I want to do just that, 'stay' and enjoy what they offer. I don't want to pay the price to stay there and leave for the day to explore the island. With that said, I would really think about what you are after. If you want relaxation, then stay a few nights at Aulani. If you also want to experience the island (food, sights, other beaches, activities) I would split up your stay and have a few night in Waikiki. Either way, enjoy Hawai'i and it's wonderful aloha spirit!

 

[Midoria]

Big picture, Waikiki is like any big city, lots of shops and restaurants but crowded and bad traffic.

Waikiki isn't a city. Perhaps you meant Honolulu?

 

[cuchu2005]

Waikiki isn't a city. Perhaps you meant Honolulu?

Poster said it was 'like' any big city. I think this describes waikiki really well, being actually a city or not.

Mx

 

[nkereina]

We stayed 3 nights in Waikiki and 6 nights at Aulani. We liked doing both because it gave us two different perspectives, and we experienced the two very different vibes.

Staying in Waikiki we were able to walk to a lot of restaurants and shopping, and we also did excursions like Diamond Head and Pearl Harbor during our time at Waikiki. While I do agree that it's comparable to Miami Beach, or really any city that has chain restaurants/stores in a central district, it was still fun to walk around and experience the culture, check out the hotels, etc. Once we got to Aulani, we used this as time to relax and drive around other parts of the island. We slept in more, went at a slower pace. It was nice to experience both sides for us.

 

[Midoria]

To clarify, to me, "big cities" are places like NYC, LA, Dallas, San Fran, Chicago, DC, etc. Compared to those, Waikiki is more of a large town than a "big bity". It is only 1 square mile and can be walked in the span of 30 minutes if you go from the convention center and end at the gates of the zoo. Very small.

 

[nkereina]

To clarify, to me, "big cities" are places like NYC, LA, Dallas, San Fran, Chicago, DC, etc. Compared to those, Waikiki is more of a large town than a "big bity". It is only 1 square mile and can be walked in the span of 30 minutes if you go from the convention center and end at the gates of the zoo. Very small.

You're taking it to literally mean the size of the city. I'm thinking of it more in terms of population, or even tourist population. To me, the area of Waikiki is comparable to the above mentioned cities because when you walk down the street, you'll find almost every high end retailer, various chain restaurants, and virtually anything you could want within that 1 square mile. I live in Buffalo which is much larger than one square mile, but Louis Vuitton wouldn't dream of coming to Buffalo. And I would never compare Buffalo to the likes of Waikiki or even Chicago, LA, etc.

 

[longboard55]

I know we could never walk from one end to the other in 30 minutes, too many stops to make, starting with the Honolulu Cookie Company free samples

 

[ConnecticutFlea]

When staying in Waikiki you can hope on Da Bus for $2 per person. The bus will take you to Diamond Head, Hanauma bay (incredible snorkeling and very reasonably priced), Pearl Harbor, the zoo, Iolani Palace, the Bishop Museum, and just about anywhere you want to go.

Aulani is beautiful but isolated. They have tours but you will pay a lot more.

 

[nkereina]

I'll add the Waikiki Trolley was also very convenient. $2pp and the pink line had various stops throughout Waikiki, all the way to Ala Moana Center. Made it very convenient for us to go there from the opposite end of the strip, since we did not have a car.

 

[Vernie822]

I don't think a split stay can hurt. Personally, we wanted to relax and had no desire to go to Waikiki. So much so that my husband didn't even want to venture over there, though eventually I'd like to explore it. We just didn't want to worry about the traffic and all that! So on the Aulani aspect because we did go there, it is unbelievably relaxing. At the very least, I would do a split stay There is so much to do and see on the island, for sure, but it's worth it to relax a bit at Aulani!

 

[Midoria]

You're taking it to literally mean the size of the city. I'm thinking of it more in terms of population, or even tourist population. To me, the area of Waikiki is comparable to the above mentioned cities because when you walk down the street, you'll find almost every high end retailer, various chain restaurants, and virtually anything you could want within that 1 square mile. I live in Buffalo which is much larger than one square mile, but Louis Vuitton wouldn't dream of coming to Buffalo. And I would never compare Buffalo to the likes of Waikiki or even Chicago, LA, etc.

Waikiki is a resort town set up for tourists (I'm willing to bet 80% of the population at any given time consists of them). There isn't anything wrong with that, though, because it's great for the local economy and people enjoy themselves!

 

[nkereina]

Waikiki is a resort town set up for tourists (I'm willing to bet 80% of the population at any given time consists of them). There isn't anything wrong with that, though, because it's great for the local economy and people enjoy themselves!

Right - Waikiki is the "main tourist area" of a larger city, Honolulu. Of the cities we've compared it to - LA, Chicago, etc. - those cities also have the equivalent of a tourist strip with restaurants, shopping. So by comparison, Waikiki is akin to that IMO. It just happens to be on the ocean which is a bonus!

 

[Loveallthingsmouse]

I would do a split stay...we do both. Our 1st visit to Aulani, we stayed all 9 nights there, which we loved, but felt we spent a lot of time driving to see the things we wanted to see. Our second visit we spent 2 nights in Waikiki and 10 nights at Aulani. We loved seeing two sides of the island, Aulani is much more relaxing, but we enjoyed the hustle and bustle of Waikiki, plus we visit during the summer and DH was able to surf in Waikiki. Our next visit next year we are doing 4 night in Waikiki and 9 at Aulani (obviously we like the split stay). We felt we didn't get to explore as much in Waikiki, so we are looking forward to that. Our kids will be 16 & 14. Either way, I don't think you can go wrong. Aulani is beautiful and relaxing!!

 

[PattiPB]

We're doing a split stay. All the recommendations I read said to do Waikiki first, so that's our plan this summer. 3 nights/7 nights.

 

[Amw1064]

We're doing a split stay. All the recommendations I read said to do Waikiki first, so that's our plan this summer. 3 nights/7 nights.

Sounds perfect!