Waving Goodbye To My 20s - Aulani Trip Report - Update 9/25 Going Home (The End)

Sounds like you are in a pretty good situation for debt. Much better than I was. I'm just lucky that Fran and I can be comfortable in our aging years.

I hope when we hit our aging years we are as comfortable as you and Fran! Life goals!

Binge read the whole TR and loved it! I'm planning an aulani/Kauai/Disneyland trip for my 30th in summer 2017 and I am definitely hitting some of your highlights! It looks like you guys had a great time and you had me cracking up with some of the antics between you and DH. Sounds a lot like the dynamic between me and my beloved R (who is also a veggie lover and primary veg eater though not totally vegetarian) and he is a much more devoted fitness buff than I am.

Your car lockout gave ME anxiety too! You poor thing!

One question- I saw on trip advisor that when you come to the stairs at Diamond Head you can either do the stairs (which is apparently a shortcut) or you can take a longer, gentler incline path. Was that an option in your experience? I almost passed out coming up about eleventy billion stairs after visiting a waterfall in Costa Rica, so I am worried about the stairs at Diamond Head.

Thanks for sharing your birthday trip!!! I enjoyed the mini vacation reading it. :flower3:

Melinda

Glad that you enjoyed my report as you plan your 30th for next summer! You hopefully will have a great as a time as I did! Too funny that my relationship's antics echo to your relationship as well! Makes for a fun life! How long have you two been together? We're at 12 years now - married for almost 9, which seems so crazy nowadays as not many relationships seem to make it that long when they start at 18 years/20 years old. Luckily we grew together well with my college and various job moves!

Have you done Disneyland before? We love Disneyland! Such a different experience than WDW with how close the parks are.

There are actually 2 sets of stairs at Diamondhead. The first set of 78 or so - you can't skip. The 2nd set of 90something you can with doing the longer gentler incline path. I was too wiped after the 70something stairs to do either path without the break but apparently that was too long for my DH! Oh well!

I thoroughly enjoyed your birthday trip to Hawaii; thanks so much for sharing. The USS Arizona Memorial is on my bucket list; I don't understand people not attending this in complete reverence. Loved your food adventures.

I have read some of your past threads on WDW F&W; how I want to do this one of these days. Your posts only increase my wants:) It does seem like it has really gotten crowded now though.

I looked through your Tauck and National Geographic adventures in Italy; have you ever used one of these companies in the past? I have never seen something like this where it is a small group and is for the more adventurous. They are both so different but each are amazing. A friend just returned from a trip through Italy, but not the way I would be doing it. She took a bus tour; ugh. Too many people and too much bus time.

Thank you again for posting! Late happy birthday to you.

Glad you enjoyed reading along on my birthday trip! It was such a great vacation! One of our best (despite the one problem) I'm glad we did the USS Arizona! I felt we couldn't go all that way and not to go there! Such an historic moment in American History to not treat it with respect. Then again you see similar things happen at other sacred sites around the world.

WDW F&W is one of my favorites! We are lucky to have gone as much as we have but I grew up in Florida so WDW was one of our go to places. Less than 2 weeks until we are back! It has gotten a lot more crowded over the years but if you know that going in - I find it can be manageable. Expectation alteration can help a lot of things. Some people got really spoiled traveling post 9/11 but those days are long behind us now!

I have never traveled with Tauck or National Geographic before or actually any foreign travel group (unless you count college sponsered travel but professors were with us). I refused to do a bus type tour. We originally were going to do Adventures by Disney but the Adult Only departure doesn't work for our schedules in 2017 which made me look elsewhere. I knew of National Geographic Tours as I've had two friends use them for their Cuba Expeditions - one did the photography centric one, the other did the people/culture centric one. They had amazing things to say about them! I found Tauck through research for higher end tour groups. Looking at their website led me to see they had the small group adventures as well. I read a lot of reviews to see they had great things said about them in general. The most common 'bad' theme in all the reviews was the age of the tour groups but that is a non-issue for my husband and I. I rather spend extra to know I have less to worry about and I know I'm staying at nice places and many of the activities are included - yes - there is some free time at the sites but every day there is something interesting. The tour groups that cater to the 20 to early 30 somethings stay at hotels that um, I've outgrown now. Quality over Quantity!
 
Thank you for the info Dis_Yoda. I am going to look more into the Nat Geo and Tauck trips. DH and I call ourselves "young" 50's. We hike a lot and love outdoor activities such as kayaking, etc. I don't want to go to Europe without some type of structure, and this seems right up our alley.

I am looking more into F&W for next year; I will be keeping up with you!

Take care!
 

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