Aulani: A Review

[heathpack]

Have any Disney-ers been to Marriott's Ko Olina property? It's practically next door to DVC Aulani, it is way cheaper to purchase resale and the annual MFs are less. Plus, if Aulani's units are anything like Saratoga Springs units, the Marriott is nicer. Lastly, Ko Olina is a true deeded property, with no RTU expiration to worry about.

Just a thought.

Marriotts KoOlina Beach Club is indeed very, very nice and they have some things up on Aulani for sure- namely, a decently priced pool bar and an adults-only hot tub. The grounds are beautiful and very spacious and open-feeling; Aulani on the other hand is landscaped on berms and is more visually full, but also a little more "crowded" visually and literally.

Aulani is a much more elaborate resort with a more Hawaiian feel. Much more of an attempt to teach you Hawaiian words, to feed you Hawaiian-inspired cuisine, to sing you Hawaiian songs. The pool area is more over-the-top with the lazy river and volcano slides. Restaurants (pricewise) and poolside service are not so hot at Aulani, though.

It depends on what you are looking for, both resorts are very nice. Aulani significantly better but the current prices completely unjustifiable IMO. The Marriott very nice, but would be a second choice place to stay for me personally. However since its way cheaper for me to trade in to the Marriott (vs use my DVC points), I could for sure see staying there again.

H

 

[frank808]

Have any Disney-ers been to Marriott's Ko Olina property? It's practically next door to DVC Aulani, it is way cheaper to purchase resale and the annual MFs are less. Plus, if Aulani's units are anything like Saratoga Springs units, the Marriott is nicer. Lastly, Ko Olina is a true deeded property, with no RTU expiration to worry about.

Just a thought.

The Marriott is a very nice property. I have stayed in studio, 1br and 2br at the marriott and the same at Aulani. I will say that the units at MKO are about the same size in the studio category but MKO is larger in 1br and 2br. You have a bigger living room and master at MKO. Also the ocean view units are closer to the water at MKO than Aulani.
Pool area is bigger at Aulani and more exciting although MKO is no slouch when it comes to pool area also. MKO does have more and hotter hot tubs and Aulani trumps it with their infinity tubs right at the edge of the property looking out onto a beautiful sunset. If you want to just lounge around and soak up the sun, MKO is the better destination. There are way more activities at Aulani. You could not leave Aulani all day with the amount of activities to do on site from sunup till way past sundown. While at MKO you will feel the need to venture out and do things.
As previous posters have chimed in Aulani has some pretty expensive dining options. MKO has one restaurant and a nice lagoon bar. Prices are way better at MKO for food and beverages.
Grounds are very nice at both locations but Aulani has better kept common areas than MKO. There are no grills at Aulani yet but I have heard they are putting them in.
Money wise it is a little cheaper to stay at MKO than Aulani. But MKO doesn't have Auntys beach house, menehune trail, Disney characters and the disney magic. So if Aulani is what makes my son happy and gives him a great staycation experience, it is worth the small price to pay for that smile on his face. Granted that mom and dad like MKO better for the relaxation and less crowded feel of resort. Just wish MKO had an Auntys beach house also! Can't beat some quiet time for mom and dad too!
If you have any more questions, just drop me a pm. Hope this reply helps.

 

[ciscogizmo1]

I've stayed at Ko'Olina twice and will be staying at Aulani this summer so, I can't wait to do a comparison. I don't own at Aulani so, I did my trade at 7 months and had no problems. Anyways, it will be a tough comparison because Disney knows how to decorate. I know to some people that isn't important and may not care but I love visually appealing resorts. I will have to say the Ko'Olina does have some very nice decor pieces in their lobby. But I have feeling Disney will out shine them in this department. At least so far from what I have seen in pictures, Aulani is beautifully decorated. I'm the type of person that would rather spend a lot extra dollars and stay onsite at Disney then not to.

 

[gblotter]

Thanks for the very detailed review - so helpful. Another tugger (alwysonvac) posted some awesome Aulani photos here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/40089311@N05/sets/72157629608370877/show/

We took an Aulani sales tour in April 2011 (mid-construction, complete with hard hats) before the official opening.

The tour was great. They showed us a finished model unit on the 2nd or 3rd floor, and you could see the pool area and other parts of the resort under construction. The model unit would be classified as a "Pool View", but we thought the location was quite ideal.

We found the resort to be heavy on Hawaiian theme, but still very tasteful. The water park (lazy river, volcano, slides) looked spectacular - a dream vacation for any kid.

I love many things about Aulani, but my biggest concern is the unavoidable overcrowding that will come as a result of putting so many people onto such a small piece of real estate. The resort is HUGE! I'm willing to tolerate crowds at Disney theme parks, but not so much at a destination like Hawaii where I expect a degree of peace and relaxation. The overcrowding concern was the single biggest reason why we decided not to purchase during our sales tour.

We are owners at Marriott Maui Ocean Club (also a crowded resort). We know how unpleasant it can be when you can't find even a single lounge chair at the pool. Not interested in paying a hefty price for a repeat of that experience. As the Aulani resort gradually fills out and reaches full occupancy, I'll be watching the congestion issue.

During our sales tour we had an unexpected treat. At the same time, they happened to also be giving a VIP tour of the Aulani resort to Bill Marriott who was staying next door at the JW Marriott Ihilani Hotel. The Senior Vice-President for Disney Vacation Club was there to personally conduct the tour for Mr Marriott. Our tour overlapped with theirs while we were in the model unit, so we got to shake the hand of Mr Marriott.

Fast forward to April 2012:

We have some good friends who recently returned from spring break at Aulani. They are a wealthy family who paid handsomely for the Disney experience, so perhaps their expectations were quite high.

Apparently during spring break week the resort was completely packed. Pool, lounge chairs, beach, restaurants - all very crowded (and the second tower is not even complete/occupied yet). The staff were working hard, but they seemed overwhelmed with the crowded conditions. Our friends vocalized their unhappiness to Aulani management, but there wasn't much that could be done. I think our friends are experiencing serious buyers' remorse now.

 

[brianfox]

I've stayed at Ko'Olina twice and will be staying at Aulani this summer so, I can't wait to do a comparison.

I will be at Ko Olina for 3 weeks (end of June thru mid July). Will you be there then?

 

[frank808]

I will be at Ko Olina for 3 weeks (end of June thru mid July). Will you be there then?

I'm planning on going to MKO again in june and july. If i can get a trade in lets get a meet up planned.