Aulani activities--Christmas gifts?

[sgrap]

We are going on our first trip to Aulani in June and I thought about giving our 4 'kids' (24, 21, 14 and 13) a gift of something fun to do there as a gift for Christmas this year. We haven't booked anything besides our room, airfare and rental car yet, so we are wide open. I know we want to do Pearl Harbor, but that's it so far on my list. What are some awesome activities/excursions you can suggest we look into?
Thanks!

 

[gwensgoofy]

3 years ago I gave my kids (then 14, 16) and hubby surfing lessons from the Hawaii Fire School (i think that's the name). They also did a nighttime shark fishing expedition.
There are a ton of snorkeling/paddleboating/whale watching excursions if you google them. I didn't book anything through Disney, figured I would just be paying Aulani additional money.

 

[alohamom]

Kualoa Ranch offers some great activities that you can book directly on their website, including ATV rides, ziplining and "movie tours" of the valley which has been a set for many productions. I am not sure if they do gift certificates but you can certainly contact them and ask, I'd be surprised if they dont.

http://www.kualoa.com/

 

[sgrap]

3 years ago I gave my kids (then 14, 16) and hubby surfing lessons from the Hawaii Fire School (i think that's the name). They also did a nighttime shark fishing expedition.
There are a ton of snorkeling/paddleboating/whale watching excursions if you google them. I didn't book anything through Disney, figured I would just be paying Aulani additional money.

Awesome, thank you! I know my daughter wants to try surfing.

 

[sgrap]

Kualoa Ranch offers some great activities that you can book directly on their website, including ATV rides, ziplining and "movie tours" of the valley which has been a set for many productions. I am not sure if they do gift certificates but you can certainly contact them and ask, I'd be surprised if they dont.

http://www.kualoa.com/

Thank you! These look awesome! I'm thinking I could just book a couple of the excursions directly, so no need for gift certificates. Have you done any of these excursions yourself?

 

[alohamom]

No but I am thinking of buying the ATV tour for my hubby and kids as a Christmas gift as well! I know fellow Diser Dugette did the Movie tour with her young daughter and there are some pics in her Aulani trip report. There have been a few others as well.

 

[Amw1064]

I answered in the other thread before I saw this one but forgot to add that we did a surf lesson and you can rent paddleboards to use right in Aulani.

 

[gwensgoofy]

We are here now and had some great experiences. LOVED the snorkel/whale watching/dophin swim with the The Wild Side in Wainae Harbor. Its a 20 minute car ride from Aulani. We did "Best of the West" which is limited to 6 people. We had a boat captain, and 2 marine biologists on board. I'm not comfortable in the water, but my kids and husband snorkeled less than 2 feet away from giant sea turtles, and swam with wild dolphins. Its a little pricey, but the enthusiasm and focus of the staff made this event totally special for my kids. They also did the shark cage dive on the North Shore and loved it-around $75 per person for the dive, 200 per person for the Wild Side, but that was 4 hours. PM if you want more details. My kids are 18 and 20.

 

[Nanny oly]

I have been to Kuola ranch twice!! Our last visit they had some of the set from Jurassic World still in place.....Its a great place to visit, and my kids really enjoyed it,we have done the full day and you pick 4 activities and get a bbq lunch in between!

 

[twodogs]

To my reading, don't the kids have to be 10 (zip line) and 16 (ATV) to go on those tours at Kuola ranch?