Starting to plan but...

[sugliac]

I am starting to plan my first trip to Aulani but cannot justify going until everything is back open, especially 'AMA 'AMA and the Spa. It just seems like it is not worth going yet. Planning to do 3-4 nights at Aulani, then 3-4 nights at the Ritz Carlton nearby. For those who have gone during the pandemic (or others who have chosen not to), am I crazy?!

 

[Iceman93]

I have not gone during the pandemic, and will not until 'Ama 'Ama (or another on-site fine dining site replaces it), the spa, and Aunty's Beach House are fully operating. So no, I don't think you are crazy.

By "the Ritz-Carlton nearby" do you mean the residences on Waikiki Beach, or the Kapalua resort on Maui?

 

[sugliac]

I have not gone during the pandemic, and will not until 'Ama 'Ama (or another on-site fine dining site replaces it), the spa, and Aunty's Beach House are fully operating. So no, I don't think you are crazy.

By "the Ritz-Carlton nearby" do you mean the residences on Waikiki Beach, or the Kapalua resort on Maui?

Kapalua! More remote feeling. Have you been?

 

[sugliac]

Sorry I didn't specify I honestly thought everyone would be so Aulani focused they wouldn't care about my second part of my future trip! haha

 

[Iceman93]

Yes, my family has stayed at the Ritz Kapalua and really enjoyed our time there. It is (as you pointed out by calling it remote) on the far northwestern side of the island, so chances are that once you get there you'll just want to stay. Most of the sights on Maui (e.g. road to Hana, Haleakala) are quite a drive from Kapalua, but luckily there is plenty to do right there at the resort and the beach areas nearby. When we went (well pre-pandemic) they offered a "Ritz Kids" program with edutainment programs that my 6 year-old really enjoyed (about as much as Aunty's).

That being said, if you've only got 3-4 nights at Aulani, I can't recommend spending more than one night away from the resort there either. Aulani is this amazing, relaxing, high-end experience that was so wonderful it convinced us to buy into DVC after decades of WDW visits where we resisted it. Have you ever taken a Disney cruise? Aulani is the only place that reminded us of that level of guest services, amenities, and magic that's not in-your-face Disney but represents the best of what Disney can offer in terms of hospitality.

 

[nkereina]

I think your concerns are valid. DH and I wanted to return for our anniversary in August, but have decided to wait. IMO, at least for us in NY, a trip to Hawaii is generally a big trip - its usually longer and its always expensive. I'd rather wait until things are open and closer to normal so we get the best bang for our time and money.

All that said, if time is of the essence for someone and its now or never, I think its still worth going. But if a person can wait, that would get my vote.

 

[vacay77]

I think it just depends on what is a dealerbreaker for you. No harm in waiting. My family and I were just there, and it didn't matter to us that Ama Ama, the spa, and Aunty's Beach House weren't open. But I knew that when I booked the reservation. The beach, the pools, and the slides were the biggest draw for us and those were open. If they had been closed, we would have waited, too.

Edited to add - the only thing that would have been included in the price of the stay is Aunty's Beach House so I can see how that would be a huge benefit for families. But Ama Ama and the spa, while it would have been nice to be an option, we would have had to pay extra for those anyway. We ate at Ama Ama five years ago, and while it was a nice restaurant, it's not something that I needed to try again (like other upscale restaurants at resorts, it's very pricey). I also tried the spa 5 years ago and it was very nice. If it had been open this last time we went, I probably would have booked a spa service. But again, it wasn't a dealbreaker for me. But if you haven't experienced it all before, then I can totally see you wanting to wait until it's all open again. It's a wonderful resort.

 

[happymommy]

We’ve been to the Ritz Carlton Kapalua twice when we lived on Oahu. Once was for Thanksgiving, and it was a nice weeklong break for us. It can be chilly and windy, especially in the winter. It was too cold to swim, but we did get into the hot tub a couple times. We enjoyed being able to wear winter type clothing, but the staff told us they frequently have guests check out early and go down to Kaanapali or further south to Wailea during the winter months, as they didn’t quite expect such cool weather up there.

I personally don’t think it’s worth the flight and drive for only 3 nights; that being said we now live on the east coast CONUS and always go to Hawaii for 2 weeks at least.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

I absolutely love Aulani but I won't be back until it's fully "back to normal." It's just too expensive to justify a less-than-premium experience, unless I suppose if you have a pile of DVC points that you need to use. I want all of the following:

• Aunty's Beach House open and full programs offered
• AMA AMA open
• Refillable mugs
• No masks on guests, indoor or outdoor
• No masks on cast, indoor or outdoor
• No masks on planes
• No plexiglass dividers or face shields
• Valet parking
• Lei welcome greeting and complimentary infused water

I also personally wouldn't consider island hopping on a trip less than about 10 days, preferably two full weeks. There is more than enough to do on Oahu to fill a week, so I'd cut out the extra time to unpack/repack/fly/drive/unpack that it would take to change hotels/islands.

 

[neurosx1983]

I absolutely love Aulani but I won't be back until it's fully "back to normal." It's just too expensive to justify a less-than-premium experience, unless I suppose if you have a pile of DVC points that you need to use. I want all of the following:

• Aunty's Beach House open and full programs offered
• AMA AMA open
• Refillable mugs
• No masks on guests, indoor or outdoor
• No masks on cast, indoor or outdoor
• No masks on planes
• No plexiglass dividers or face shields
• Valet parking
• Lei welcome greeting and complimentary infused water

I also personally wouldn't consider island hopping on a trip less than about 10 days, preferably two full weeks. There is more than enough to do on Oahu to fill a week, so I'd cut out the extra time to unpack/repack/fly/drive/unpack that it would take to change hotels/islands.

I think all of us on the boards would agree with everything you just wrote, but I think it’s best to think about what are the things that you can live with and what are the things you can’t live with. Same would apply to going to Disney World without fireworks or parades or character interactions…

 

[CaptainAmerica]

I think all of us on the boards would agree with everything you just wrote, but I think it’s best to think about what are the things that you can live with and what are the things you can’t live with. Same would apply to going to Disney World without fireworks or parades or character interactions…

Aulani is about 4x the travel time and at least double the cost of a Walt Disney World trip for my family. I feel zero pressure for my WDW trip to be perfect because I know I'm going to be back a thousand times. I wouldn't describe Aulani as "once in a lifetime," but I feel much more strongly about wanting Hawaii to be a fully post-COVID experience than I do Florida.

I'm spending about $4,000 on 12 hour flights, I want the trip to be fully loaded.

 

[kkayluvsdis]

I am starting to plan my first trip to Aulani but cannot justify going until everything is back open, especially 'AMA 'AMA and the Spa. It just seems like it is not worth going yet. Planning to do 3-4 nights at Aulani, then 3-4 nights at the Ritz Carlton nearby. For those who have gone during the pandemic (or others who have chosen not to), am I crazy?!

We are struggling with the same questions. I can't get excited about planning or booking things because of the uncertainty of what will be offered at the time. We are definitely considering this a once in a lifetime trip and are willing to wait until ALL the experiences have returned. However, how do we know when to pull the plug and rebook? We've already modified dates twice

 

[kkayluvsdis]

I am starting to plan my first trip to Aulani but cannot justify going until everything is back open, especially 'AMA 'AMA and the Spa. It just seems like it is not worth going yet. Planning to do 3-4 nights at Aulani, then 3-4 nights at the Ritz Carlton nearby. For those who have gone during the pandemic (or others who have chosen not to), am I crazy?!

Curious what OP and all others with plans in the works have decided? Pretty sure we are going to move our dates (again). Just hoping for the FULL experience with fewer "asterisks" next to everything.

 

[herrmannpt]

We are probably in the minority, but we totally embraced going while the deals were good (just got back a week ago) We took advantage on the plunge in airfares COVID brought and were able to get 4 round trip tickets from the Midwest fully covered on Southwest points from our visa. We are DVC members so lodging was covered. It was more points than we typically spend on a room, but we also had a 1 bedroom with a full kitchen, which was amazing. Did we miss the lei greeting, hula and ukulele lessons and other little touches? Yes, but it made Hawaii possible for us. We still did the luau and traveled all around the island doing some amazing things. Tourism is definitely picking way up, but I feel like we were there before it got too crazy busy again. I’m totally satisfied with our experience.

 

[Inga]

We are on the east coast of Canada and have booked a tentative trip for Feb 2022. we have been a few times so don’t consider this a ‘trip of a lifetime’ but still a substantial trip. Life is too short, who knows if we will be healthy in the future, so we are going for it. Carpe diem!