Okay, okay. I know it's not WDW but I figure a trip report here could help people who are on the fence about going or who have signed up and are wondering what to expect.
I think we've known we were going to Aulani for our Honeymoon since the fall of 2014, when we got engaged at Cinderella's castle at WDW. We knew it would be costly, so we registered for it using Disney's Honeymoon Registry "Honeymoon Wishes," I think it's called. Not only did we have super generous friends and relatives, some even got us a little something for our home abode. We have lived together for awhile, so we really didn't need anything for the house, but managed to get a few nice things, anyway.
Knowing how special Disney is to our family, I have been saving a few dollars here and there for our next Disney trip, on Disney gift cards. When we combined all that money with the sweet cash gifts relatives gave us, we had the seven night stay paid for! 
Yesterday, we sat down and decided all the things we wanted to do: Spa, snorkeling in Rainbow Reef, breakfast and dinner at both Ama Ama and Makahiki during our stay, trip to Pearl Harbor and
we chose going out on a boat and watching for dolphins, with lunch included for our other excursion. We chose this because we wanted out on the water, it wasn't so expensive compared to other excursions Aulani offers and it includes lunch.
This is where I sing Disney's praises about having menu's online! We were able to price: the spa, the snorkeling (we plan to get a weekly pass), we plan to do the dinner meal for 2 at Ama Ama and the price of the Makahiki buffett for two ($47 each), and the luau out and figure out how much that all was going to cost. Like anything, even though we rounded up, it doesn't include tips or all the alcohol we plan to drink! I am planning on a drink or two a day. We are still hoarding our gift cards to take care of our: shave ice, cocktails, and some other food options!
All that priced out to about what we have left in our Honeymoon fund (after we paid off the last $120 on the room). Again, we aren't expecting it to be accurate, but we're happy we have a ballpark number for the things we want to do. Another added bonus was that we were able to book the excursions to Pearl Harbor and the dolphin adventure in advance, so they won't show up on our final bill at check out!
We are so excited this trip is coming together and planned!!! April 8th will be our 60-day mark for the luau! Can't wait to make that reservation official, too!
Thanks for following along! I'll take the best notes I can while we are there!
I think we've known we were going to Aulani for our Honeymoon since the fall of 2014, when we got engaged at Cinderella's castle at WDW. We knew it would be costly, so we registered for it using Disney's Honeymoon Registry "Honeymoon Wishes," I think it's called. Not only did we have super generous friends and relatives, some even got us a little something for our home abode. We have lived together for awhile, so we really didn't need anything for the house, but managed to get a few nice things, anyway.
Knowing how special Disney is to our family, I have been saving a few dollars here and there for our next Disney trip, on Disney gift cards. When we combined all that money with the sweet cash gifts relatives gave us, we had the seven night stay
paid for! Yesterday, we sat down and decided all the things we wanted to do: Spa, snorkeling in Rainbow Reef, breakfast and dinner at both Ama Ama and Makahiki during our stay, trip to Pearl Harbor and
we chose going out on a boat and watching for dolphins, with lunch included for our other excursion. We chose this because we wanted out on the water, it wasn't so expensive compared to other excursions Aulani offers and it includes lunch.
This is where I sing Disney's praises about having menu's online! We were able to price: the spa, the snorkeling (we plan to get a weekly pass), we plan to do the dinner meal for 2 at Ama Ama and the price of the Makahiki buffett for two ($47 each), and the luau out and figure out how much that all was going to cost. Like anything, even though we
rounded up, it doesn't include tips or all the alcohol we plan to drink! I am planning on a drink or two a day. We are still hoarding our gift cards to take care of our: shave ice, cocktails, and some other food options!All that priced out to about what we have left in our Honeymoon fund (after we paid off the last $120 on the room). Again, we aren't expecting it to be accurate, but we're happy we have a ballpark number for the things we want to do. Another added bonus was that we were able to book the excursions to Pearl Harbor and the dolphin adventure in advance, so they won't show up on our final bill at check out!
We are so excited this trip is coming together and planned!!! April 8th will be our 60-day mark for the luau! Can't wait to make that reservation official, too!
Thanks for following along! I'll take the best notes I can while we are there!
