Aulani, A Disney Resort & Spa

Reviews

• MR

  M R

  3 days ago
  4.0
  Disney...but not 100% Disney. This resort hotel is not like staying at a park hotel, and not overly Disney-themed like the Disney Hotel in Paris. Very nice room. Good restaurants and small places to eat by the pools. We never made reservations for meals and didn't have issues. Lazy river is great. Pools were fun but occasional maintenance shut one down each day for part of the day. Many things to do on property. Star gazing was great, snorkeling was too. Plenty of things for small kids to do as well. Car valet service is a great plus and costs the same as self parking. Service was usually good, although sometimes a bit inattentive. Only drawback is the resort location. They had to build it somewhere, but it's well north of Honolulu and traffic is really an issue. Without traffic, it's 25 minutes from HNL airport. During the morn/eve commute it can easily be an hour. Avoid rush hours at all costs, or add an hour to usual non-peak travel time. Long jogging trail on and around the property. Private man made beach. Take the time to do the Hawaiian boat ride that sets off from the beach. We saw turtles and dolphins. If you book last minute, you might get a private ride at the same cost. The Luau is vibrant and nicely acted, but the storyline feels forced and not believable. But the food is good, so it's worth going. There is a small plaza with shops and restaurants across from the property, and a larger shopping area about 3 miles away that includes a Target.
• CG

  Craig Gaylord

  4 days ago
  4.0
  My wife and I always stay at Disney properties when we go to the parks. We came out to Oahu but stayed in Waikiki, so we decided to come over and check out hotel and see if it's something that we would want to stay in the future. Even though I love staying at the Grand and the Disneyland hotel, I don't think I would stay at the Aulani. First off its location is very far from a lot of things. It's kind of out in the middle of nowhere. There's are other hotels nearby there, and it has beautiful grounds. I can tell you this, they don't want you to do anything if you are not staying in the hotel. For instance, you're not even allowed to meet the characters unless you have a hotel photo pass. Everything was extremely expensive, (a banana was $4!!)even for Disney prices, and I feel like part of it was due to you being a captured guest, since there's not a whole lot of choices around the area. The cast member we talked to was extremely friendly. It kind of had that Disney feel, and it did have the Disney smell. I wish they could bottle that smell,whatever it is, they put into the air. Pool looked incredible, like kids would have a blast, the beach was really nice, and it definitely had the Disney class, as expensive as that place is. I'm just not sure if it's worth it. One of the draws of staying on property at the parks..... Is you are right there at the park. THERE IS NO DISNEY PARK HERE!! Yet they were charging when I looked (supposedly this had a discount) and wanted $750 a night! Without a park, I don't feel this is worth it. You can find much cheaper at some of the hotels in Waikiki. Such as the Hilton Hawaiian Village.
• JG

  Joe Garcia

  6 days ago
  3.0
  We recently stayed 5 nights at Aulani, and overall it was a nice family vacation, but it didn’t quite live up to the “Disney amazing” standard we expected. The positives: this resort is incredibly kid-friendly, the grounds are absolutely beautiful, and the character presence is fantastic. It really felt like the characters were always around, which made the experience extra special for our son. The resort itself is stunning and very well designed for families. That said, there were some disappointing aspects. For a 5-night stay, our room was never serviced, which was surprising for a resort at this price point. The food pricing was also pretty extreme, even by resort standards, and unfortunately the quality was average at best. Our character breakfast for two adults and one child (plus the photo) was over $200, dinner was nearly $300, and even quick-service items like waffles and a PB&J came out to around $20 each. We expected premium pricing, but not for average food. The biggest letdown was the inconsistency with pool staff. On our first day, my son and another child were roughhousing and apparently not listening to staff, so they were suspended from the slides for the rest of the day. While it felt strict, I completely understood and supported the decision. The issue came the following day. After having a serious talk with my son, he was behaving appropriately, but another child was repeatedly being rough and handsy with multiple kids. We reported it to staff, who lightly addressed it, but within minutes the behavior continued. After reporting it multiple times and seeing no meaningful intervention, I eventually had to tell the child myself to keep his hands to himself. This led to the other parent confronting me while staff stood by and said nothing, despite witnessing the situation. That lack of consistency in enforcing rules was frustrating, especially after seeing how quickly consequences were applied the day before. Overall, Aulani is a beautiful resort with a lot to offer families, but between the service inconsistencies, overpriced average food, and disappointing handling of guest issues, it fell short of the Disney-level experience we were expecting.
• MM

  Madeline

  May 4, 2026
  3.0
  My honest Aulani review! I am going to start off with the good, because they are definitely doing alot right. The property is extremely well kept. The grounds are gorgeous. The rooms are very clean and spacious. Nothing too fancy but, very clean and nicely decorated, and most importantly comfortable. The staff is super friendly, helpful, and attentive! I give them lots of praise. There is an amazing water playground for children that our son absolutely loved. Although the food is nothing fancy, I will say it is solid pool/ resort food. I did read a number of reviews complaining about the food and food quality, but personally I found all my pool lunches to be delicious, as well as the breakfast at ulu cafe. We really loved the pizza. Awesome coffees and snack options! Is it fine dining? No. But there are so many higher end options near by in the Ko Olina area, including the four seasons directly next door. So we were perfectly happy with the food and drink options, and dined off property for dinners. Unfortunately what I cannot see past is that this resort is absolutely MOBBED. It is not go at your own pace or relaxing. If you want to secure good pool chairs or beach chairs, you need to be down by 745 each morning. Securing the seats and going back up to your room to come down at your leisure is also not an option, your things will be moved to lost and found by cast members! Dining reservations also must be planned months in advance. They book up FAST. Each pool we went into was at max capacity. You could not float down the lazy man river without numbing into another tube. Think magic kingdom crowds, at a tropical resort. That is exactly what you get at Aulani. If you don’t mind crowded pools, beaches, and highly competitive chair securing, then ignore this review! You will be very happy. Personally we like to go about at our own leisure on tropical vacations, and coming from staying at the ritz in Maui and the Marriot, we were absolutely shocked by the over pouring of guests at this resort. My husband and I both decided that we would not be returning to this resort despite being Disney lovers. The mobbed environment was just not worth it for us.
• SA

  salim abene

  May 1, 2026
  2.0
  Should do better for the price asked. I’d like to share some feedback on my recent stay at Aulani, specifically for international travelers. The Aulani app is not available on European app stores. But even more surprising is the photo pass pricing: international guests are charged €30 (roughly $33–34), while American guests pay just $25. The only workaround is to change your device’s region settings, but doing so requires canceling all your active Apple subscriptions — which is simply not acceptable. Beyond that, be warned: for a nightly rate approaching $900 USD, the level of service falls short of international standards — even compared to other “premium” Disney hotels around the world. • The room includes a mini-fridge, but no beverages or water bottles are provided. There isn’t even a water fountain near the rooms (unlike Disney hotels in California). • No bathrobes or slippers are provided in the room. • No houskeeping service every day. • In the evenings, the resort is swarmed with small mosquitoes, and no insect repellent is made available (unlike the Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel). • During our visit, the main pool was closed. We received no advance notice, no mention of it at check-in, and no apology for the inconvenience. For a hotel of this caliber, that level of indifference is simply inexcusable. That said, the cast members are truly fantastic. Their kindness and genuine hospitality were a real highlight of our stay. To the hotel management: there is significant room for improvement in your services. International travelers, consider yourselves warned — this hotel does not live up to its premium billing.

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