What you’ll find at Aulani: the complete Aulani resort guide

Curious about what Aulani is like? Come take a walk with me as we explore all of the spaces at Disney’s Hawaiian resort with this Aulani resort guide!

Recently I got to try a very new experience – visiting Aulani, Disney’s resort in Hawaii! Aulani is located on the island of Oahu, in the area called Ko Olina. It’s a wonderful place to stay with great accommodations, a number of restaurants, an incredible pool complex, activities, characters, and more.

It’s a bit different than most other Disney experiences – definitely a step above the the theme park resorts. That makes sense, since the resort itself is really the only “attraction.” It has some similarities to a cruise, but of course a lot of differences too.

So if you’ve never been, I put together this Aulani Resort Guide. I thought you might want to take a walk through Aulani with me to get an idea for what it’s all about!

Map of Aulani

You’ll also find some cool details on the floor and the ceiling. We did an art tour of the resort and I learned a lot, so I’ll share more in a coming post! The lobby is the meeting spot for both the art tour and the nature tour.

Ewa Tower & Wai’anae Tower

These two towers are where the rooms are located. The lobby is in the center, and then the rooms are on either side, extending towards the ocean. While not every room has an ocean view, they do a good job of angling the rooms and balconies so many of them have a great view.

As a Disney vacation club resort, they have studios and villas (mostly 1 and 2 bedroom villas).

Pau Hana Room

This is the community room, located in the Ewa Tower. It’s the location that hosts many of the activities (especially arts and crafts). You can also come here any time they are open to check out their collection of books and games, or pick up a tablet to play their interactive game: Menehune Adventure Trail.

Luana Lounge

On your checkout day, you can request access to the Luana Lounge if you have a later flight. It’s a nice option if you want to use the pool or beach but need a spot to shower after. It’s fairly basic, and the main appeal is definitely the showers and changing areas. It does also have some tables and 2 couches, plus two TVs. You can get a card to get in here when you checkout, but it’s one time use only.

Hoku Hideaway

Aulani is a DVC resort (Disney Vacation Club), and they have a pretty huge space dedicated to DVC. It’s about what you’d expect – mostly sales and promotional – but if you are a DVC member, make sure you stop by for your free welcome gift.

Ma Haku Pavilion & Koi Pond

Outside of the Olelo Room & Makahiki is a pretty outside area with a koi pond. There are several cascading waterfalls here and they sometimes use the space for character photos. Look to see what animals you can find hidden in the rocks!

Makiki Jo’s Beach Rentals

Here you can grab some items to enhance your time at the beach. Boogie boards and life jackets are complimentary for Aulani guests. You can also opt to pay to rent snorkel equipment and paddleboards.

Mo’olelo Fire Pit

Most evenings this fire pit hosted storytelling with Uncle. I don’t know if the person doing the storytelling changes, but we had Uncle Mahina during our trip and he was fantastic. Each story is short but sweet, and it’s great for all ages. They are told from Polynesian folklore and mythology, and I feel like we don’t experience enough old-fashioned storytelling anymore.

It’s usually scheduled 3-4 times throughout the evening, but the stories change at each one. So if you’re free, go back and catch multiple stories!

Aunty’s Beach House

This is the place to be for kids! They host a number of activities for kids throughout the day – some are included, though a few have a fee. I did not go inside as I don’t have kids, but we could hear them playing outside from our balcony during the day and it sounded like they were having a great time! It has an enclosed “backyard,” a movie room, and an arts and crafts area.

Rainbow Reef

A collection of tropical fish is available to view at Rainbow Reef. You can watch through the viewing windows or do some snorkeling in this area (for a fee). There are feeding times throughout the day as well.

There are also two water slides that empty into this pool. One is a tube slide and one is a body slide, and they are not your average pool slide! Think more like a water park slide, they are long and go pretty fast. I didn’t try the body slide but it sounded pretty intense because there were a lot of screams coming from there!

Waikolohe Stream

Around the edge of the Waikolohe pool you’ll find a lazy river called Waikolohe Stream. The lazy river continues living up to its mischievous name, because if you go all the way around you’ll encounter some waterfalls, faster “rapids” areas, caverns, and more.

Menehune Bridge

The interactive splash area of the pool looked like a ton of fun! It’s limited to those 48 inches and under plus their adults. There were things to climb on, a few smaller slides, and many fun things that would shoot water or spin around.

Keiki Cove

Another splash area for kids, this one is designed for younger kids as it’s a little more tame. There are some fun water jets and areas to splash around.

Ka Maka Grotto

There is a second large family pool closer to the beach, which gives you great views of the ocean. It actually has what they call an “infinity edge” overlooking the beach, which creates a cool visual effect of looking like the pool connects directly to the sea. It was very pretty when lit up at night, too.

Wailana Pool

It might not have as many “features” as the other pools, but this one is adults only – so if you’re looking for a quieter place to get away from the splashing and noise, we found this a peaceful option. There are a number of lounge chairs here and a pool bar which makes it very convenient.

Whirlpool Spas

There are also 4 whirlpool spas (hot tubs) spread out around the pools. One of these is adult-only, and it’s a really nice one with an infinity edge looking out onto the beach.

Ulu Cafe

Ulu Cafe is your main quick service location. So if you’re looking for a casual and easy meal for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, it’s the best spot to go. They have some things that are hot or made to order, as well as a number of pre-prepared items. There’s a nice variety of desserts, too! You can also grab refillable mugs here, as there are two soda fountains. They only have about 4 tables here, but most people are taking stuff back to their beach chairs anyway.

Wailana pool bar

Over by the adults-only pool you’ll find a pool bar. While you can get drinks here, they also have a full dining menu (the food arrives from elsewhere, but they will deliver it to you there or at one of the lounge chairs by the pool). There were some tasty options on this menu, including ahi tuna nachos!

Papalua Shave Ice

Hawaii is known for its shave ice, and at Aulani you can get it Mickey-style! They have over a dozen different flavors, and you get to pick out three of them to add to your shave ice. I went with lilikoi (passion fruit), banana, and guava.

Mama’s Snack Stop

If you want a quick meal, Mama’s has a few to-go options made to order. It’s a nice change of pace from the items at Ulu Cafe. The menu is fairly limited, but the food comes out quickly (and hot!). We had some great fish and chips here.

Little ‘Opihi’s

This stand is located down by the beach, and it’s the place to go for Dole Whips. You can opt to get a Dole Whip sundae (comes in a chocolate lined cone) or a traditional one – pineapple, vanilla, or swirl. They also sell fresh fruit, Dippin Dots, and beverages here.

The Olelo Room

This lounge is connected to Makahiki and has both outdoor and indoor tables, plus a bar. “Olelo” means “word” in Hawaiian, and the bar has some really cool sculptures to teach Hawaiian words and the alphabet. They have their own drink menu and food menu here too, so you get something different from the other bars and restaurants. They don’t take reservations and you might encounter a bit of a wait, but you can also eat at the bar if seating is available.

KA WA’A Lu’au

The Luau isn’t just a meal – it’s a show and an experience. The first hour or so you can enjoy some drinks as well as some cultural activities (they had quick ukulele lessons, pound your own taro, lei-making, and tattoos). Food was then served with a small pre-show. It’s a buffet, so you can get whatever you’d like from it (and go back for seconds!).

During the last hour is the full show, complete with hulu dancing, singing, storytelling, fire dancing, and more. It was a great experience!

Makahiki

This table service restaurant serves both breakfast and dinner, and takes reservations. Breakfast is a character meal, while dinner is a prix fixe 3-course dining experience. I didn’t get the chance to try dinner, but I did have breakfast! I met Mickey before being seated, and then Minnie, Chip, and Dale all came around to the tables. They spent a decent amount of time with each table and I thought it was some good character interactions.

The food was quite good too! They brought out fresh fruit and donuts, and then you picked one entree of the menu. My pork omlette was delicious – one of the best omlettes I’ve had.

‘Ama ‘Ama

This is Aulani’s version of a signature restaurant. It’s open air and has stunning views of the beach, especially during sunset. The food is upscale and locally inspired, featuring a 4-course prix fixe menu. It’s pretty seafood heavy, but there are a number of options (as well as a separate plant-based menu).

All spa treatments also get access to “Kula Wai,” their outdoor hydrotherapy garden, for about an hour before your treatment. This is a wonderful facility, with several hot tubs, different showers, a steam room, sauna, and spaces for relaxing both inside and outside.

There is also a salon where you can get manicures, pedicures, hair styling, and that sort of thing. These services do not include access to Kula Wai.

Painted Sky: HI Style Studio

If younger members of the family want their own pampering, Painted Sky is for ages 3-12 right next door to Laniwai spa. They do makeovers and hairstyling for kids with a number of different options. While you can choose a Moana makeover or a Luau styling, there is also a swimming package, which includes a themed swimsuit and SPF shimmer makeup. Let’s face it, the kids are probably going to be in the pool most of the time!

Mikimiki Fitness Center

There is a fitness center open 24 hours a day, for those looking for treadmills, pelotons, and weights to keep up their workout routine. Aulani also offers some fitness classes every morning (some free, some with a fee). These meet outside by the beach and include yoga, pilates, boot camp, and “Splash and Dash.”

I found a few more unique items here as well, and they were just getting some Halloween merch in! If you want to see photos of pretty much everything in the shop, I posted them all to my blog’s facebook page. I definitely came home with a few things!

There’s also a section with some packaged food items and beverages, plus basics.

Hale Manu

We called this the “fancy store,” as it had more of the higher-end items. Expect to see Disney or Hawaiian inspired clothing items from Tommy Bahama, etc. There was also some nice artwork here, a collection of Dooneys, and items from the spa.

Lava Shack

This shop is much smaller, and located outside in the pool area. It mostly sells swimsuits, sunscreen, and things you’d most likely need in a pinch when you’re at the pool or the beach.

Aulani was a great experience, and I’m excited to go more in-depth on many of these topics covered in this Aulani Resort Guide in a future blog post!

Have you been? What items from this Aulani resort guide would you most want to read about next? (Food, pools, activities, etc?)