PARADISE LOST AND FOUND – Our family’s first trip to Aulani & Hawaii - updated 9/2/16

[ProudMommyof2]

Awesome pictures!!! I love taking pictures as well but would adore someone behind me giving tips! Great use of, I am sure, a well needed alone time!

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

The boys were eager to have special time with Grandma, who is very sweet to them and allows them a few extra privileges that we might not.

How much ice cream did they have for lunch?

I turned to the right and took some of shots of this when I ran out of ideas for how to shoot the sunrise.

My wife would have loved doing this. She's been taking classes and learning how to play with the DSLR as well.

This is near Makapu'u Lighthouse, at the overlook area:

Gorgeous spot!

The only low-point of the tour was my breakfast burrito. It came highly recommended, but was loaded with piles of black beans, and I don't think there was any cheese in it. It did have bacon and eggs, but they could not overcome the abundance of beans.

I'm not a fan of beans, either. Even if they are a magical fruit, and good for your heart.

Fantastic waterfall pictures! Somebody remembered a tripod, I see.

 

[MNtwinsplus1mom]

Awesome pictures!!! I love taking pictures as well but would adore someone behind me giving tips! Great use of, I am sure, a well needed alone time!

Thanks very much! Yes, it was nice to treat myself to a special outing, since I am normally at home with my boys. I love it of course, but this was so good to do. Plus, I am generally taking pictures of them, so I figure I am investing in my family by taking the tour. Right?

 

[MNtwinsplus1mom]

My wife would have loved doing this. She's been taking classes and learning how to play with the DSLR as well.

Cool! You guys have some amazing photos in your trip reports. You should perhaps keep an eye out for photo tours, since you love to travel. I hear there are many of these kinds of tours offered around the country.

I'm not a fan of beans, either. Even if they are a magical fruit, and good for your heart.

The funny thing is I forgot that the menu said there were beans in it, and for a long time I thought they were just heaps of mooshed, bland black olives. Gross. Had no idea there would be so many.

Fantastic waterfall pictures! Somebody remembered a tripod, I see.

Thanks very much! I sometimes forgot the tripod in the room during the trip, but it did come in handy on many occasions. I think about trying to bring one to Disney World next time for at least a couple of days in the parks. We'll see. Seems like it might be kind of a bother to carry it there on rides...

 

[MNtwinsplus1mom]

When I got back to the room, everyone was ready for lunch. We had reservations at A Cup of Tea, a tea room in Kailua, because my mom and I like that kind of thing for a special treat. I had found the place online at home before our trip. Our boys are good sports, so although it would not have been their first choice for a restaurant I was pretty optimistic they would find something they would like.

The drive to Kailua provided my first opportunity to drive on the island, and while it went okay, it made me even more appreciative of the Disney transportation system. I know it is not perfect, but for me, I really appreciate letting someone else drive when I’m on vacation. Much more relaxing. We did find a fun Hawaiian music station (105.1). I was happy, because it just made me feel more like I was really in Hawaii.

I have to admit that while the tea room was cute and my mom and I found the food tasty, the choices proved to be inadequate for the boys.


They shared a pot of hot chocolate in lieu of tea and ate the scones and dessert, but the tea sandwiches were not a hit with them. Oh, well. They were sweet and let us have our girly outing, so I can’t really complain.






After we finished lunch, we rewarded the guys with a swim in the ocean. First time for them! (I realize there is also an ocean near Disney World, but it is oh so hard for me to consider leaving the Disney Bubble when there!) We went to Kailua Beach, which was just beautiful. They LOVED the ocean. At first they were a bit tentative.


That lasted just a moment. Then, they were loving it and just laughing and shrieking with delight. So fun!



Benji declared loudly, “This is THE life!” and “I could get used to THIS!”

I took some photos with my new waterproof camera. This was a debate in advance of the trip, incidentally – whether it would be worth it to buy one. The conclusion: YES. It enabled us to get pictures we never would have gotten otherwise. One problem that we did not realize until later was after submerging the camera in the water, beads of water can easily sit on the lens and appear later in the photos, which generally ruined the affected photos. Most pictures I took this particular day were like that, but I learned my lesson and would wipe the lens off before taking photos if it had gotten wet. That usually worked.

Jeff had a reception for the conference he was attending and he wanted me to join him, so after our time at the beach we returned to the hotel. We left the boys in the room with Grandma watching National Treasure (and probably jumping on the beds) and went to the reception. We had a simple dinner in the room after that, because everyone was tired. I think we grabbed food from the ABC Store. There were several on the Hilton’s property, which was convenient. We picked up a new Aloha shirt for Jeff while there, because the chair of one of the sessions in which he was presenting wanted everyone to wear them.

Up next: Breakfast at Duke’s Canoe Club, Waikiki Beach, and Fireworks on our last night before leaving for Aulani. Yes, we are finally getting to Aulani. I can’t wait to re-live it.

 

[alohamom]

Kailua is tied with Hapuna (Big Island) for my all time, any where in the world favorite beach spot. It almost spoils you for any other beach you might go to afterward because the sand is so soft and fine my kids nick-named it "teddy bear sand". So glad your boys enjoyed it!

 

[luvs2cruise]

Following along and looking forward to more updates.

 

[MNtwinsplus1mom]

Kailua is tied with Hapuna (Big Island) for my all time, any where in the world favorite beach spot. It almost spoils you for any other beach you might go to afterward because the sand is so soft and fine my kids nick-named it "teddy bear sand". So glad your boys enjoyed it!

That is so cute - teddy bear sand! Yes, the sand was amazingly soft. We meant to go to Lanikai Beach, also, which is nearby, but did not make it there. I had heard it was excellent as well. Have you been there?

 

[MNtwinsplus1mom]

Following along and looking forward to more updates.

Welcome! So glad you are here.

 

[DisneyAngel05]

Hi Karin!

Loving the TR so far. I'm one of those crazy Australians that loves to travel to Hawaii - it's actually super good value from here.

There are so many similarities with what I hope our trip will be! I have twins too - though they are boy/girl and are 4. They'll be turning 5 when we hope to go to Aulani next year. Like you, I love to vacation in the US in May - the weather is great and it's never too crowded.

We are actually looking at staying at Hilton Hawaiian Village in a suite when we start - we are travelling with my parents for my Mum's 60th birthday, and then they will go on to Canada after our Hawaii stopover. What did you think of the Hilton? I'm worried it will be too crowded, but I loved the idea of my twins getting to experience such a great kids club with other children from a different country.

We then hope to use DVC to book a 2-bed villa at Aulani, so any tips on vacation club rental would be appreciated! I've never done it before but it seems like great value.

Really looking forward to the rest of your report!

Thanks for sharing

 

[alohamom]

That is so cute - teddy bear sand! Yes, the sand was amazingly soft. We meant to go to Lanikai Beach, also, which is nearby, but did not make it there. I had heard it was excellent as well. Have you been there?

Oh yes, we have been to Lanikai too and it is just as nice but a lot of it is fronted by homes so it almost feels like you are invading private space (even though all beaches in Hawaii are public) Also, parking is tough for Lanikai where Kailua has a great public parking area.

 

[MNtwinsplus1mom]

Hi Karin!

Loving the TR so far. I'm one of those crazy Australians that loves to travel to Hawaii - it's actually super good value from here.

There are so many similarities with what I hope our trip will be! I have twins too - though they are boy/girl and are 4. They'll be turning 5 when we hope to go to Aulani next year. Like you, I love to vacation in the US in May - the weather is great and it's never too crowded.

Welcome! Thank you so much for reading and for your very kind words! It's always nice to meet another mom of twins. They will love the trip you are planning. And I have to say up front that you are my hero - visiting all the Disney Parks around the world. Yay you! I'll never achieve that level of Disney-awesomeness, but Disneyland is a couple years away for me cool1 I also would love to stay at all the Disney hotels at Disney World. (It's a very long-term goal. Score so far: 1. More coming soon, though!)

We loved that the crowds were so low in May - no trouble with lines for Auntie's in the morning, as I had heard is typical. And no trouble getting chairs by the pool ever.

We are actually looking at staying at Hilton Hawaiian Village in a suite when we start - we are travelling with my parents for my Mum's 60th birthday, and then they will go on to Canada after our Hawaii stopover. What did you think of the Hilton? I'm worried it will be too crowded, but I loved the idea of my twins getting to experience such a great kids club with other children from a different country.

Wow, traveling with your mom [and dad], too?! This does sound familiar.

We were very pleased with the Hilton Hawaiian Village. I had read some good and bad things in advance, so was a bit concerned, but the service was decent and the room was great for our family. The resort was very large, but easy to navigate and had lots to go and lots of shops, restaurants, etc. We liked using the Hilton as a convenient launching point to explore Oahu, knowing that when we arrived at Aulani we would want to relax and enjoy it and not do much off-site.

We then hope to use DVC to book a 2-bed villa at Aulani, so any tips on vacation club rental would be appreciated! I've never done it before but it seems like great value.

We used a company to handle the rental process for us (David's Vacation Club Rentals, but there are other similar places). The price was higher than renting from an individual directly ($14 per point), but we felt it was worth it, in part because our travel dates were inflexible & we wanted to maximize the chance of getting a room. We contacted them before the 11 month point at which vacation club points can be rented by people who have Aulani as their home resort, because we thought that would help our chances. We were still on a waiting list, as I said before, but not too long. We were SO happy when we heard we had the rooms. The whole process was very smooth. One thing about renting the points through a broker like this: you cannot cancel them for any reason, and the entire cost must be paid when the reservation is made for you. We did make sure to get trip insurance that would have covered the cost of Aulani (and all our other nonrefundable expenses), if for some reason we needed to cancel or there was some other problem. It was worth it for the peace of mind it bought us.

I hope you are enjoying your planning... Love the planning.

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

When I got back to the room, everyone was ready for lunch. We had reservations at A Cup of Tea, a tea room in Kailua, because my mom and I like that kind of thing for a special treat. I had found the place online at home before our trip. Our boys are good sports, so although it would not have been their first choice for a restaurant I was pretty optimistic they would find something they would like.

I have to admit that while the tea room was cute and my mom and I found the food tasty, the choices proved to be inadequate for the boys.

They shared a pot of hot chocolate in lieu of tea and ate the scones and dessert, but the tea sandwiches were not a hit with them.

No shocker there. Needs more bacon.

Oh, well. They were sweet and let us have our girly outing, so I can’t really complain.

Your boys are nicer than me. I would have been whining and moaning from the start.

After we finished lunch, we rewarded the guys with a swim in the ocean. First time for them!

Cool!

That lasted just a moment. Then, they were loving it and just laughing and shrieking with delight. So fun!

I took some photos with my new waterproof camera. This was a debate in advance of the trip, incidentally – whether it would be worth it to buy one. The conclusion: YES. It enabled us to get pictures we never would have gotten otherwise.

I agree. Although we didn't realize our camera was set for tiny photos through the whole trip.

es, we are finally getting to Aulani. I can’t wait to re-live it.

 

[DisneyAngel05]

Thanks Karin! I am an ex-Disney store cast member so some of the park travel was almost a requirement for work haha. When you live as far from many countries as we do, you just kind of have to live with the crazy flights. I live for the planning! We are headed to NYC in December for a wedding, but I am so focused on the Hawaii trip that I keep forgetting to organise basic things for this other trip

We loved that the crowds were so low in May - no trouble with lines for Auntie's in the morning, as I had heard is typical. And no trouble getting chairs by the pool ever.

That's great to know! I was just reading on trip advisor that there have been crazy lines, but I suppose the summer holidays would be really busy times for everyone. Did your kids spend much time there? Is there much to do outside of the kids club?

We were very pleased with the Hilton Hawaiian Village. I had read some good and bad things in advance, so was a bit concerned, but the service was decent and the room was great for our family. The resort was very large, but easy to navigate and had lots to go and lots of shops, restaurants, etc. We liked using the Hilton as a convenient launching point to explore Oahu, knowing that when we arrived at Aulani we would want to relax and enjoy it and not do much off-site.

So good to hear you liked it! I've been a bit worried - my DH and I went to Hawaii for our first wedding anniversary and loved it so so much that we raved about it when we got home. I want to choose somewhere everyone will love. My DS is SUCH a noisy sleeper that I don't think any of us could sleep if we only have the one room together. It seems like great value. Did you kids go to the kids club and did you hire a car?

We used a company to handle the rental process for us (David's Vacation Club Rentals, but there are other similar places). We did make sure to get trip insurance that would have covered the cost of Aulani (and all our other nonrefundable expenses), if for some reason we needed to cancel or there was some other problem. It was worth it for the peace of mind it bought us.

Thanks for the advice about David's rentals. I'm looking it up right now, seems like a good idea and such good value!

Thanks again Karin - happy trip-reliving!

 

[teslascar]

I'm suffering from "missing Aulani a lot syndrome" after reading your posts. Thanks for this. Time to plan our 2nd trip.

 

[CBEB]

Thanks for the advice about David's rentals. I'm looking it up right now, seems like a good idea and such good value!

We just booked our Aulani stay through David's rentals. Was easy, very straight-forward to do. We have our official documents now from Aulani and everything is exactly as we expected. Really a great savings over booking directly with Disney if you aren't a DVC member!

 

[MNtwinsplus1mom]

If you recall my prior post about the tea I subjected the boys to, here is a photo my son Sam took that I think captures their angle on the outing nicely.


On Friday morning we had an early reservation for breakfast at Duke's Canoe Club in Waikiki. My brother-in-law, who is in the Air Force, had been stationed on Oahu a couple years before & highly recommended the place. We were happy to get a seat right next to the railing with a great view of the beach. The breakfast buffet was fantastic, one of our favorite meals of the trip. Made-to-order omelets, french toast, eggs, bacon, hash browns, tons of fresh fruit, and everything else you could want. I thought the price was reasonable at about $16 per adult. The atmosphere was as good as the food, with a beautiful view and fun music. A perfect beginning to the day.







Jeff and I drove to the convention center after we finished eating. I joined him, because he was presenting in a couple sessions, including the first one of the day at 9am. I used to go to these conferences with him years ago, before the kids, because we worked in the same field. (We even presented together once at a conference in San Diego. ) It was good to have a chance to see him in action again. Unfortunately, I had not slept well the night before (woke up in the middle of the night and couldn't get back to sleep) and made the mistake of drinking only decaf coffee and POG juice at breakfast, so.... guess who made made her man proud by struggling to stay awake during the other speakers' presentations? So embarrassing. In my defense, it was a pretty technical kind of session, but I did feel dreadful about it. If I had sat in the back, it would have been better. After the first session ended I chugged a large CAFFEINATED coffee, pausing to apologize to Jeff between gulps. The second session was great and I had no further difficulties after the coffee.

Here’s a photo we took at the convention center:


The convention center was used as the airport in countless scenes in LOST. In case there any LOST geeks out there, here’s another with more background.


While we were busy, my mom took the boys to the Honolulu Zoo. They did not love it, I have to admit. They reported that there was a lot of walking and that the zoo at home was better. There was a cool, huge banyan tree, though:


We don’t have these at the MN Zoo, so that was interesting:


Sam greeted me with this when I got back to the room.


Here’s our view from one of the lanais:


Jeff had meetings in the afternoon, and my mom was taking the Sunset version of the photo tour I’d done the day before. So, the boys and I gathered our beach supplies and set out for Waikiki Beach. We had lunch at Hale Koa, a military hotel near the Hilton. Sam tried Calamari and enjoyed it.


Our boys loved playing in the ocean again.




After a while, we decided to head back to the room to get something and the strangest thing happened upon our return about an hour later: all along the shoreline was a line of random small pieces of garbage. It must have come in with the water. We’d noticed that the waves that were coming in were strong and sandy. It was really disgusting. Sad, and such a startling change. We played a little while and then just headed back to clean off and use the pool instead. On our way we saw some penguins.





Up next: Some fireworks!

 

[MNtwinsplus1mom]

Your boys are nicer than me. I would have been whining and moaning from the start.

Ha! Nice photo. They really were polite and nice about it, but their true feelings were clear in the photo in today's installment of the TR. Yeah, my husband had no interest in the tea room either. Lesson learned. I was considering the tea room at the Grand Floridian for an upcoming trip, but I'll pass for now.

I agree. Although we didn't realize our camera was set for tiny photos through the whole trip.

Bummer!

 

[ProudMommyof2]

LOVE the picture from the tea! It is perfect! A little culture never killed anyone

 

[luvs2cruise]

I love Sam's take on the tea!
Great update.