crystal1313
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 25, 2012
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Controversial Topics
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"What ocean are we on?" - An Aulani/Hawaii Honeymoon Trip Report! NOW COMPLETE & WITH PHOTOS!
- Thread starter nkereina
- Start date
nkereina
Last chance to lose your keys.
- Joined
- Feb 11, 2009
Tuesday September 27th
Today was our spa day which I was very excited about! DH had never had a spa treatment before, so I was more excited for him! Our appointment was at 10am, but our confirmation said to arrive at 9am to use the spa amenities beforehand, like the hydrotherapy gardens. We were up early that morning, so we grabbed breakfast at Ulu Café – I had the croissant sandwich and DH had the burrito, both were ok. Both were pulled out of warming drawers, so I suspect whatever is fresh that they are serving that day is the better option.
I don’t remember if I mentioned this earlier, but DH and I both got the refillable mugs at Aulani as well. We’ve had them before as part of the dining plan at WDW and don’t use them much, but found them to come in handy at Aulani. We brought them to breakfast and filled them with coffee so no need to buy a drink at breakfast, and we’d fill them up throughout the day when sitting by the pool or beach. The closest restroom was usually by Mama’s and the shave ice stand and there was a refill stop right there, so we found the refill locations convenient with always nearby. Options were different at each location, but we always found something we liked. Various teas, juices, sodas, etc.
At 9am, we headed over to Laniwai Spa on the first floor of the Waianae Tower. While the CM walked us back to our respective locker rooms, they have you each choose a stone out of a basket with an inspirational word on it that is your focus for your day of relaxation. I got strength and DH got balance. We threw them in the little pool on the way to the locker rooms and made a wish.
The locker rooms were amazing. Since you have to wear your swimsuit for the hydrotherapy gardens, they provide lockers with a 4 digit lock code for you safely store your stuff. They also have a sauna, steam room, showers, hair dryers, lotions, hair products, etc etc. Everything you could need. After changing and storing our stuff in the lockers, I met DH in the gardens. We started in the standard jacuzzi, and went over to the therapeutic hot tub, the tub that was slightly cool, and DH built up the nerve to go in the cold plunge pool. We tried out the showers, and ended up in the co-ed relaxation room for a bit before being called for our couples’ massage. The massage was great, and the total at the end includes an automatic 20% gratuity. I thought the pricing was actually good and on par with other resort/cruise ship spas, so not overpriced. It was also the nicest spa I’d ever been to with the most amenities to offer. I’d highly recommend showering after your service and even bringing your stuff to get ready in the locker room afterward because the space was so nice. And the shampoo, washes, and lotions smell incredible!
After our service, we found seats by the pool. For our entire trip, we never once had an issue finding chairs somewhere. There were always seats open in front of Ama Ama which is where we sat. I had bought a KYSS bag before going, which has a combination lock on it that you can use to secure both the zippers and to your chair. Because of this, I was comfortable leaving it at our chair while we went on the lazy river or went in the lagoon. Worked out well!
For dinner that night, I had made a reservation for Makahiki at 6:30pm. I didn’t know that the Menehune Mischief character dinner was being held, so we tried to see if we could get in around 5:45pm instead. The CM explained that the character dinner was already in progress so while they could seat us, the show was halfway through and we’d still be charged an extra $2 per person since the character dinner was more expensive. Since the first seating after the character dinner was at 6:30, we decided to wait and have a drink at the Olelo Room instead. Eventually we went back to Makahiki, and it was almost a ghost town. The seatings after the character dinner is over is much more quiet, relaxing, and far less busy. The food selections were awesome which I was not expecting, being a picky eater. I found a ton of different things to eat, all of which was good. Our server was the only one to acknowledge our honeymoon the whole week, and brought out a cute little cake for us that was delicious although we were stuffed! We really enjoyed dinner here and I was bummed we wouldn’t have another opportunity to return, though that was probably good for our wallets – it was a high priced buffet, I don’t recall how much, but remember it being on par with Vegas buffet pricing (although not as large).
Today was our spa day which I was very excited about! DH had never had a spa treatment before, so I was more excited for him! Our appointment was at 10am, but our confirmation said to arrive at 9am to use the spa amenities beforehand, like the hydrotherapy gardens. We were up early that morning, so we grabbed breakfast at Ulu Café – I had the croissant sandwich and DH had the burrito, both were ok. Both were pulled out of warming drawers, so I suspect whatever is fresh that they are serving that day is the better option.
I don’t remember if I mentioned this earlier, but DH and I both got the refillable mugs at Aulani as well. We’ve had them before as part of the dining plan at WDW and don’t use them much, but found them to come in handy at Aulani. We brought them to breakfast and filled them with coffee so no need to buy a drink at breakfast, and we’d fill them up throughout the day when sitting by the pool or beach. The closest restroom was usually by Mama’s and the shave ice stand and there was a refill stop right there, so we found the refill locations convenient with always nearby. Options were different at each location, but we always found something we liked. Various teas, juices, sodas, etc.
At 9am, we headed over to Laniwai Spa on the first floor of the Waianae Tower. While the CM walked us back to our respective locker rooms, they have you each choose a stone out of a basket with an inspirational word on it that is your focus for your day of relaxation. I got strength and DH got balance. We threw them in the little pool on the way to the locker rooms and made a wish.
The locker rooms were amazing. Since you have to wear your swimsuit for the hydrotherapy gardens, they provide lockers with a 4 digit lock code for you safely store your stuff. They also have a sauna, steam room, showers, hair dryers, lotions, hair products, etc etc. Everything you could need. After changing and storing our stuff in the lockers, I met DH in the gardens. We started in the standard jacuzzi, and went over to the therapeutic hot tub, the tub that was slightly cool, and DH built up the nerve to go in the cold plunge pool. We tried out the showers, and ended up in the co-ed relaxation room for a bit before being called for our couples’ massage. The massage was great, and the total at the end includes an automatic 20% gratuity. I thought the pricing was actually good and on par with other resort/cruise ship spas, so not overpriced. It was also the nicest spa I’d ever been to with the most amenities to offer. I’d highly recommend showering after your service and even bringing your stuff to get ready in the locker room afterward because the space was so nice. And the shampoo, washes, and lotions smell incredible!
After our service, we found seats by the pool. For our entire trip, we never once had an issue finding chairs somewhere. There were always seats open in front of Ama Ama which is where we sat. I had bought a KYSS bag before going, which has a combination lock on it that you can use to secure both the zippers and to your chair. Because of this, I was comfortable leaving it at our chair while we went on the lazy river or went in the lagoon. Worked out well!
For dinner that night, I had made a reservation for Makahiki at 6:30pm. I didn’t know that the Menehune Mischief character dinner was being held, so we tried to see if we could get in around 5:45pm instead. The CM explained that the character dinner was already in progress so while they could seat us, the show was halfway through and we’d still be charged an extra $2 per person since the character dinner was more expensive. Since the first seating after the character dinner was at 6:30, we decided to wait and have a drink at the Olelo Room instead. Eventually we went back to Makahiki, and it was almost a ghost town. The seatings after the character dinner is over is much more quiet, relaxing, and far less busy. The food selections were awesome which I was not expecting, being a picky eater. I found a ton of different things to eat, all of which was good. Our server was the only one to acknowledge our honeymoon the whole week, and brought out a cute little cake for us that was delicious although we were stuffed! We really enjoyed dinner here and I was bummed we wouldn’t have another opportunity to return, though that was probably good for our wallets – it was a high priced buffet, I don’t recall how much, but remember it being on par with Vegas buffet pricing (although not as large).
nkereina
Last chance to lose your keys.
- Joined
- Feb 11, 2009
Wednesday September 28th
Wednesday morning we were up early to make the drive to the other side of the island to see Kualoa Ranch! Our tour was at 9am and the instructions said to check-in by 8:15am. Google Maps showed it as a 45 minute drive, so I wanted to be leaving Aulani around 6:45am just to make sure we had enough time. We ended up leaving right on time, but unfortunately ran into an accident on the H1 which backed up traffic quite a bit. It was a slow crawl for a while and set us back about 25 minutes. We also ran into regular rush hour traffic once we got to the windward side of the island, which is mostly one lane in each direction. We ended up pulling into the Kualoa Ranch parking lot right at 8:15am, so it worked out ok. Definitely recommend giving yourself plenty of time.
We had pre-booked the VIP Movie Tour, which was a 2.5 hour tour in a 10 passenger air conditioned van. We chose this tour because we were only interested in the movie sets/sites at the Ranch. We got to see just about everything there, and even made our way through the jungle and down near the dock for the secret island. The coolest part of the tour was seeing the set for the Indominous Rex pen from Jurassic World. We got to go inside the observation deck too! I believe this experience is only part of the VIP Movie Tour. We also saw filming in progress for Jumanji, along with Escalades rolling up to drop off the stars of the movie – The Rock and Kevin Hart! Pretty cool. There were also props from King Kong still around too. Overall, the tour was fun and worth the money. We got lunch at the Ranch after which was good, definitely recommend the buffet.
We left the Ranch by 12pm, and stopped down the road at the Byodo-In Temple. This was in the TV show LOST which we were big fans of. There is a small parking lot, but it wasn’t busy, and it was a $3 admission per person I believe. The temple is beautiful and very peaceful and spiritual. They do ask you to remove your shoes before entering. We browsed around and took photos for about 20 minutes. The temple is a cool stop if you have time to kill in the area, but I wouldn’t say it’s worth going out of your way for.
After the temple, we headed down the road to Kailua. We parked the car and walked to a few of the shops, and then drove over to Kailua Beach Park. The beach and water here are just gorgeous! I wished we had brought our swimsuits to change into. The water was a clear turquoise blue, different than the water at Aulani or any of the other places we had been. The beach was a soft white sand. Just gorgeous! Had I known, I may have planned a day out there.
On our way back to Aulani, we stopped at Anna Miller’s for an early dinner. I had read about this place on the boards and heard it recommended in the Dis Unplugged podcasts about Aulani. It’s a 24 hour diner type place near Pearl Harbor, but on the way back to Aulani from where we were. DH and I both got pancakes and a piece of pie. Our bill was $20, so definitely a very affordable stop with good food. We didn’t think it was anything special, but good for anyone watching their food budget. Our last stop before getting back to Aulani was the Leonard’s Malasada truck! You can see it from the H1, so we exited and pulled into the plaza near the outlets. There was no line either. They were SO GOOD! It’s a pretty convenient stop to and from Aulani, so worth the effort. Right off the highway.
Wednesday morning we were up early to make the drive to the other side of the island to see Kualoa Ranch! Our tour was at 9am and the instructions said to check-in by 8:15am. Google Maps showed it as a 45 minute drive, so I wanted to be leaving Aulani around 6:45am just to make sure we had enough time. We ended up leaving right on time, but unfortunately ran into an accident on the H1 which backed up traffic quite a bit. It was a slow crawl for a while and set us back about 25 minutes. We also ran into regular rush hour traffic once we got to the windward side of the island, which is mostly one lane in each direction. We ended up pulling into the Kualoa Ranch parking lot right at 8:15am, so it worked out ok. Definitely recommend giving yourself plenty of time.
We had pre-booked the VIP Movie Tour, which was a 2.5 hour tour in a 10 passenger air conditioned van. We chose this tour because we were only interested in the movie sets/sites at the Ranch. We got to see just about everything there, and even made our way through the jungle and down near the dock for the secret island. The coolest part of the tour was seeing the set for the Indominous Rex pen from Jurassic World. We got to go inside the observation deck too! I believe this experience is only part of the VIP Movie Tour. We also saw filming in progress for Jumanji, along with Escalades rolling up to drop off the stars of the movie – The Rock and Kevin Hart! Pretty cool. There were also props from King Kong still around too. Overall, the tour was fun and worth the money. We got lunch at the Ranch after which was good, definitely recommend the buffet.
We left the Ranch by 12pm, and stopped down the road at the Byodo-In Temple. This was in the TV show LOST which we were big fans of. There is a small parking lot, but it wasn’t busy, and it was a $3 admission per person I believe. The temple is beautiful and very peaceful and spiritual. They do ask you to remove your shoes before entering. We browsed around and took photos for about 20 minutes. The temple is a cool stop if you have time to kill in the area, but I wouldn’t say it’s worth going out of your way for.
After the temple, we headed down the road to Kailua. We parked the car and walked to a few of the shops, and then drove over to Kailua Beach Park. The beach and water here are just gorgeous! I wished we had brought our swimsuits to change into. The water was a clear turquoise blue, different than the water at Aulani or any of the other places we had been. The beach was a soft white sand. Just gorgeous! Had I known, I may have planned a day out there.
On our way back to Aulani, we stopped at Anna Miller’s for an early dinner. I had read about this place on the boards and heard it recommended in the Dis Unplugged podcasts about Aulani. It’s a 24 hour diner type place near Pearl Harbor, but on the way back to Aulani from where we were. DH and I both got pancakes and a piece of pie. Our bill was $20, so definitely a very affordable stop with good food. We didn’t think it was anything special, but good for anyone watching their food budget. Our last stop before getting back to Aulani was the Leonard’s Malasada truck! You can see it from the H1, so we exited and pulled into the plaza near the outlets. There was no line either. They were SO GOOD! It’s a pretty convenient stop to and from Aulani, so worth the effort. Right off the highway.
nkereina
Last chance to lose your keys.
- Joined
- Feb 11, 2009
Thursday September 29th
Thursday was sadly our last full day in Hawaii. After being there for two weeks at that point, we had really acclimated to island life and the thought of going home was devastating at that point! We started our last morning with breakfast at Ama Ama. I can’t emphasize just how good this breakfast was, and I’m still kicking myself for leaving it until the end of our trip. I got a coffee and DH had OJ. I had the vanilla mac nut pancakes and DH had the breakfast sandwich with lobster. It was one of the best meals of our trip! Our bill was pricey for breakfast at around $50, but worth every penny IMO.
View while eating at Ama Ama
We spent the day rotating between the lazy river, lagoon, and laying out in our chairs in front of Ama Ama. We got lunch that day from Off the Hook which was good but basic fare.
I’ll mention that the lagoon was a pretty awesome thing to have – it made swimming much easier since the lagoon breaks up the larger waves from the ocean. It was near impossible for me to swim in the ocean in Maui and Kauai because the waves were large and rough and I’m not a good swimmer. I was able to freely enjoy the lagoon at Aulani. It does get deep so you’d need to watch any kids, but its very easy for them to swim. As for the lazy river, we loved it and had fun pushing each other under the waterfalls. My only complaint with the lazy river is that they don’t require you to be on an inner tube, so there were always people swimming by you, under you, pushing past you. It wasn’t terribly crowded, so not a huge deal.
After finishing up our day lounging outside, we got cleaned up and decided to take a walk down the main street to see more of Ko Olina. We went all the way down to the Marriott and walked around their grounds. I thought the Marriott was beautiful and was a perfect size – smaller than Aulani, and noticeably less crowded. Longboard’s looked like a very casual outdoor bar & grill for anyone looking for another close by dining option. We walked the path along the beach back to Aulani, and then went across the street to Monkeypod for dinner. We caught happy hour so I got a pizza which was very good. DH had the pork again, since it was so good the first time. This time we were seated on the upstairs patio which was nice, but I think I preferred the ground floor patio. Our last dinner in Hawaii was very good!
View of Aulani from the walkway heading towards the Marriott.
Thursday was sadly our last full day in Hawaii. After being there for two weeks at that point, we had really acclimated to island life and the thought of going home was devastating at that point! We started our last morning with breakfast at Ama Ama. I can’t emphasize just how good this breakfast was, and I’m still kicking myself for leaving it until the end of our trip. I got a coffee and DH had OJ. I had the vanilla mac nut pancakes and DH had the breakfast sandwich with lobster. It was one of the best meals of our trip! Our bill was pricey for breakfast at around $50, but worth every penny IMO.
View while eating at Ama Ama
We spent the day rotating between the lazy river, lagoon, and laying out in our chairs in front of Ama Ama. We got lunch that day from Off the Hook which was good but basic fare.
I’ll mention that the lagoon was a pretty awesome thing to have – it made swimming much easier since the lagoon breaks up the larger waves from the ocean. It was near impossible for me to swim in the ocean in Maui and Kauai because the waves were large and rough and I’m not a good swimmer. I was able to freely enjoy the lagoon at Aulani. It does get deep so you’d need to watch any kids, but its very easy for them to swim. As for the lazy river, we loved it and had fun pushing each other under the waterfalls. My only complaint with the lazy river is that they don’t require you to be on an inner tube, so there were always people swimming by you, under you, pushing past you. It wasn’t terribly crowded, so not a huge deal.
After finishing up our day lounging outside, we got cleaned up and decided to take a walk down the main street to see more of Ko Olina. We went all the way down to the Marriott and walked around their grounds. I thought the Marriott was beautiful and was a perfect size – smaller than Aulani, and noticeably less crowded. Longboard’s looked like a very casual outdoor bar & grill for anyone looking for another close by dining option. We walked the path along the beach back to Aulani, and then went across the street to Monkeypod for dinner. We caught happy hour so I got a pizza which was very good. DH had the pork again, since it was so good the first time. This time we were seated on the upstairs patio which was nice, but I think I preferred the ground floor patio. Our last dinner in Hawaii was very good!
View of Aulani from the walkway heading towards the Marriott.
nkereina
Last chance to lose your keys.
- Joined
- Feb 11, 2009
Friday September 30th
Friday was the day we flew home, so very bittersweet for us! We missed our bed and our dog, but were sad that our honeymoon was ending. Not only did that mean all of our wedding festivities were over, but the trip we had been planning for a year – the trip of a lifetime for us – was now over too. I got teary eyed several times that morning, particularly when we were leaving our room at Aulani for the last time!
We had time to kill before our Makahiki breakfast reservation, so we got the tablets from the Community Room and did the Menehune Trail! This is such a cute thing and we had fun with it, even as two adults. It reminded us of the interactive Harry Potter wands at Universal and it was cool to see all the little hidden things at Aulani that did stuff that we wouldn’t have seen otherwise. I’d recommend this to anyone, young or old!
We had a 9:30am character breakfast reservation at Makahiki. It was extremely busy and took us maybe 15 minutes to get seated. This was a very different Makahiki than our dinner a few nights prior – now it was very loud, chaotic, crowded. However, the breakfast food selection was great and all of it was very good. The character interaction was great too. We aren’t much into characters, but had fun with Minnie and Goofy. Minnie even made it a point to come back to our table since DH was in the buffet line when she came by the first time. We declined the photo with Mickey before we were seated. Our server was a little slow here, but it was very busy so it was to be expected. We felt the prices were no different than a character breakfast at WDW. The whole experience reminded us a lot of breakfast at Chef Mickey’s, for comparison.
Prior to breakfast, we had stopped by the front desk to ask if we could have our room until 11:30am (check out was 11am). I was told no. Our only option was to pay $150 which would give us the room until 3pm, which we did not need. She said they couldn’t do a complimentary late check-out. I know that it’s not guaranteed, but I did think it was a bit in bad taste that they couldn’t give us the 30 minutes we needed. Luckily, we finished breakfast before 11am so we made it back to the room before they locked us out. We called bell services who came to get our bags, and we met them out front after pulling the car around.
Hidden Mickeys even in the water cooler!
The ride to the airport was quick with no traffic. It was very easy to find Alamo again, and returning the car could not have been faster or easier. A shuttle pulled up right away and took us to the airport very quickly. The Honolulu airport was also not busy, and security was a breeze. We now had almost two hours to kill before our 4pm flight home.
Our red eye Delta flight from Honolulu to Atlanta was identical to the flight we had on our way there, with the same entertainment, drink, and meal services. We got to Atlanta at 6am the next day, right on time, and connected to Buffalo. We were in our house by 1pm!
Well, that concludes my first ever trip report! Thanks for reading! Overall, it was a great trip and experience. We enjoyed every minute. I am envious of those of you that have trips coming up soon – have the best time! I know you will!
For those wondering, I would do the same trip over again without any changes. If we ever visit Hawaii again, I’d stay at Aulani and do one other island – probably Kauai because it was the least commercialized place we visited with just crazy natural beauty. I'd also recommend to book any inter-island flights for early morning or late at night. Our mid-morning flights just ate up too much of the day, and we probably could have done a little more if we had those hours back.
Can’t wait to read all of your trip reports!
Friday was the day we flew home, so very bittersweet for us! We missed our bed and our dog, but were sad that our honeymoon was ending. Not only did that mean all of our wedding festivities were over, but the trip we had been planning for a year – the trip of a lifetime for us – was now over too. I got teary eyed several times that morning, particularly when we were leaving our room at Aulani for the last time!
We had time to kill before our Makahiki breakfast reservation, so we got the tablets from the Community Room and did the Menehune Trail! This is such a cute thing and we had fun with it, even as two adults. It reminded us of the interactive Harry Potter wands at Universal and it was cool to see all the little hidden things at Aulani that did stuff that we wouldn’t have seen otherwise. I’d recommend this to anyone, young or old!
We had a 9:30am character breakfast reservation at Makahiki. It was extremely busy and took us maybe 15 minutes to get seated. This was a very different Makahiki than our dinner a few nights prior – now it was very loud, chaotic, crowded. However, the breakfast food selection was great and all of it was very good. The character interaction was great too. We aren’t much into characters, but had fun with Minnie and Goofy. Minnie even made it a point to come back to our table since DH was in the buffet line when she came by the first time. We declined the photo with Mickey before we were seated. Our server was a little slow here, but it was very busy so it was to be expected. We felt the prices were no different than a character breakfast at WDW. The whole experience reminded us a lot of breakfast at Chef Mickey’s, for comparison.
Prior to breakfast, we had stopped by the front desk to ask if we could have our room until 11:30am (check out was 11am). I was told no. Our only option was to pay $150 which would give us the room until 3pm, which we did not need. She said they couldn’t do a complimentary late check-out. I know that it’s not guaranteed, but I did think it was a bit in bad taste that they couldn’t give us the 30 minutes we needed. Luckily, we finished breakfast before 11am so we made it back to the room before they locked us out. We called bell services who came to get our bags, and we met them out front after pulling the car around.
Hidden Mickeys even in the water cooler!
The ride to the airport was quick with no traffic. It was very easy to find Alamo again, and returning the car could not have been faster or easier. A shuttle pulled up right away and took us to the airport very quickly. The Honolulu airport was also not busy, and security was a breeze. We now had almost two hours to kill before our 4pm flight home.
Our red eye Delta flight from Honolulu to Atlanta was identical to the flight we had on our way there, with the same entertainment, drink, and meal services. We got to Atlanta at 6am the next day, right on time, and connected to Buffalo. We were in our house by 1pm!
Well, that concludes my first ever trip report! Thanks for reading! Overall, it was a great trip and experience. We enjoyed every minute. I am envious of those of you that have trips coming up soon – have the best time! I know you will!
For those wondering, I would do the same trip over again without any changes. If we ever visit Hawaii again, I’d stay at Aulani and do one other island – probably Kauai because it was the least commercialized place we visited with just crazy natural beauty. I'd also recommend to book any inter-island flights for early morning or late at night. Our mid-morning flights just ate up too much of the day, and we probably could have done a little more if we had those hours back.
Can’t wait to read all of your trip reports!
pepperandchips
[melinda]
- Joined
- Mar 16, 2014
Very very helpful! Thank you so much for writing your report. I loved it!
BaymaxForever
The amulet is green...it’s probably an emerald...
- Joined
- Oct 3, 2016
Congratulations! Your honeymoon looked fantastic! I don't know if I'll ever make it to Hawaii, but your trip report was fantastic and filled with great thoughts and tips. 
alohamom
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Oct 31, 2003
Seriously one of the best beaches we have ever been to. It is my favorite on Oahu and really needs to be visited. It has a totally different vibe then the other beach areas and nkereina is correct, the water is soooo blue and the white sand is as soft as baby powder. It is actually a large bay so it is rare to have huge surf. We went 3 times this last trip, and if you cut through the mountains you totally miss the Honolulu traffic. It is really worth the drive!
crystal1313
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 25, 2012
Ama Ama pancakes are To DIE for!! I could have eaten there every day! SO yummy!!!
CalifLynn
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Sep 13, 2016
Great Trip Report! We are planning our first trip to Aulani and then 2 days in Waikiki at the end. We've done an island a year the last few years and there are things we love about each, they are all so unique, if you ever return make sure to find some time to visit the Big Island too, I didn't think I would like it, but it has become our favorite and the only one we went to 2 years in a row.
One question, I'm a picky eater too (and so is my DD), curious about what kinds of food they had at dinner at Makahiki?
One question, I'm a picky eater too (and so is my DD), curious about what kinds of food they had at dinner at Makahiki?
nkereina
Last chance to lose your keys.
- Joined
- Feb 11, 2009
We knew we wanted to do two islands other than Oahu, and struggled with picking two out of the Big Island, Maui, and Kauai. Our friends and family raved about Maui, and Kauai ended up winning out over the Big Island because of the Jurassic Park stuff! If we ever return, we'd definitely do the Big Island next time!
As for dinner foods at Makahiki, they had a carving station with prime rib and ham, pizza, mashed potatoes, salads, mac & cheese, shrimp, crab legs, pasta with a pesto sauce, broccoli, tater tots (on the kid buffet). Other things like fried rice, sushi, fish, etc. that I didn't try. And the dessert section was huge! All of it was very good. The Hawaiian and Japanese foods are not to my taste, but I found more than enough "basic" foods to fill me up. I was stuffed!
SevenWonkas
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- May 4, 2010
a little late to the game here, but I just found your review. We are flying to Hawaii next year from Atlanta. 4th time to Hawaii, and none of our flights have ever included meal service. I am so thrilled to hear that the Atlanta flight includes meal service now! Hopefully they don't take it away before next May! Seriously though, you can have shorter flights to Europe that do include meal service (because they are international). It just makes sense that they should include it on the loooong Hawaii flights!
nkereina
Last chance to lose your keys.
- Joined
- Feb 11, 2009
Agreed! The Delta gate agents informed us that the meal service began on 9/15/16. We had the same service on our return flight to Atlanta as well, also in Coach. More than enough food for the length of our flight, and we never had to tap into our snacks. And the food was surprisingly good!
SevenWonkas
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- May 4, 2010
We got a great deal on First Class seats on the way home, so we're doing that! Otherwise, we would've stayed overnight on the west coast on the way home. I cannot sleep on red eyes, and getting the hotel on our last trip made for a much happier adjustment back to the Eastern Time Zone.
Lauren1027
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jun 26, 2013
Thank you for this awesome trip report and congratulations on your wedding and honeymoon! We're getting married in 2 weeks and heading on our honeymoon to Hawaii/Aulani right afterwards and your TR has got me sooo excited! I think we'll have a pretty similar itinerary to you and your husband, with a full day exploring the North Shore, one day doing Pearl Harbor and Diamondhead, and for the most part, just relaxing at Aulani. We originally only had AMA AMA booked for dinner, but after reading your review of the breakfast, I'm thinking we might have to add that for one day (maybe the day we check-out). Thanks again for showing all the highlights!
nkereina
Last chance to lose your keys.
- Joined
- Feb 11, 2009
@Lauren1027 thanks! Congratulations to you! You will have an amazing time in Hawaii - enjoy every second! You definitely can't go wrong with AMA AMA breakfast!
starry_solo
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Nov 19, 2010
Great trip report! I saw the link on another post you had so followed it!
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Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.
Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!
