ADRs at Ama Ama or Makahiki

[J-Dog]

So I was mostly hoping to clear something up.

There was just a thread on here, less than a week ago, titled "Book Ama Ama Early...Or else!" by Paul Stupin. In it, the discussion is about ADRs at Aulani, and the recommendation was to be on the website at midnight (Hawaii time) 30-days out to successfully book a reservation.

However, when I look at the website, it clearly states "Dining reservations are available 14 days in advance. For information on dining availability please call (808)-674-6200." And that seems to bear-out when trying to book - only the next 14 days are clickable.

So...is there a different/better website for booking (I'm looking at the Aulani website)? Or is the 30-day booking only available by calling? Or did I completely read that thread wrong?

Thanks for any help!

 

[ksromack]

It is 30 days out if you are an Aulani guest. I believe the 14 day out thing is referring to non-Aulani guests. I was able to book at 30 days out but when I did so, my inbox was full and I never received emailed confirmations. That freaked me out so I must have booked several because when I called to verify I had reservations I was told I had 3! The thing about booking Ama Ama at 30 days is really if you want a table for sunset viewing.

 

[J-Dog]

It is 30 days out if you are an Aulani guest. I believe the 14 day out thing is referring to non-Aulani guests. I was able to book at 30 days out but when I did so, my inbox was full and I never received emailed confirmations. That freaked me out so I must have booked several because when I called to verify I had reservations I was told I had 3! The thing about booking Ama Ama at 30 days is really if you want a table for sunset viewing.

Okay, that makes sense, because I don't have a reservation for another couple of months to get to the 7-month mark. So I wasn't logged-in under a reservation.

Thanks very much!

 

[Paul Stupin]

Okay, that makes sense, because I don't have a reservation for another couple of months to get to the 7-month mark. So I wasn't logged-in under a reservation.

Thanks very much!

Sounds like your question was answered! Hope you get the time you want!

 

[gregf71]

When I, 30 days out, recently got up 3 separate mornings at 245am California time to get my Aulani dining reservations, the 2 that I really thought needed it was Ama Ama dinner around sunset and the Makahiki character breakfast. Makahiki dinner proved to still offer reservations for several days. Ama Ama dinner at 5pm, which was what we wanted, and times before 7pm managed to stay available into the later morning hours I noticed, but they were gone that morning.

Either way, if they are important to you, then it is worth the effort.

Also...I had a heck of a time logging into the Aulani site using the Sign In link. It kept loading an error page. I recommend trying to login a bit early and if Sign In doesn't work, try using one of the My Aulani links to then login. Plus, make sure that beforehand you have your Aulani reservation linked to your account.

 

[Paul Stupin]

When I, 30 days out, recently got up 3 separate mornings at 245am California time to get my Aulani dining reservations, the 2 that I really thought needed it was Ama Ama dinner around sunset and the Makahiki character breakfast. Makahiki dinner proved to still offer reservations for several days. Ama Ama dinner at 5pm, which was what we wanted, and times before 7pm managed to stay available into the later morning hours I noticed, but they were gone that morning.

Either way, if they are important to you, then it is worth the effort.

Also...I had a heck of a time logging into the Aulani site using the Sign In link. It kept loading an error page. I recommend trying to login a bit early and if Sign In doesn't work, try using one of the My Aulani links to then login. Plus, make sure that beforehand you have your Aulani reservation linked to your account.

At exactly the 30 day mark, the 6:30 pm availability at Ama Ama was gone by the time I tried to book online at 6AM LA time, three hours into the reservation window considering the time difference. It‘s for a Friday night, when I believe they have live music, so maybe those go faster. Our rez is for 7 pm.

Just fyi, sunset this month in Hawaii is around 7:15 pm. For us, the Ama Ama dinner usually lasts a couple hours, so if your dinner is in June the 5 pm time might be a tad too early.

 

[J-Dog]

At exactly the 30 day mark, the 6:30 pm availability at Ama Ama was gone by the time I tried to book online at 6AM LA time, three hours into the reservation window considering the time difference. It‘s for a Friday night, when I believe they have live music, so maybe those go faster. Our rez is for 7 pm.

Just fyi, sunset this month in Hawaii is around 7:15 pm. For us, the Ama Ama dinner usually lasts a couple hours, so if your dinner is in June the 5 pm time might be a tad too early.

Excellent information! Thanks again!

 

[gregf71]

At exactly the 30 day mark, the 6:30 pm availability at Ama Ama was gone by the time I tried to book online at 6AM LA time, three hours into the reservation window considering the time difference. It‘s for a Friday night, when I believe they have live music, so maybe those go faster. Our rez is for 7 pm.

Just fyi, sunset this month in Hawaii is around 7:15 pm. For us, the Ama Ama dinner usually lasts a couple hours, so if your dinner is in June the 5 pm time might be a tad too early.

Yep, I had checked sunset times beforehand. We didn't actually want to be at Ama Ama for sunset. We'd rather be out by the water to enjoy it, so our 5pm reservation will hopefully work well for that. Plus, our Ama Ama dinner is our last night at Aulani, so earlier dinner, sunset, perhaps a little stroll around property and then up to pack for our departure the next morning.

 

[Paul Stupin]

Yep, I had checked sunset times beforehand. We didn't actually want to be at Ama Ama for sunset. We'd rather be out by the water to enjoy it, so our 5pm reservation will hopefully work well for that. Plus, our Ama Ama dinner is our last night at Aulani, so earlier dinner, sunset, perhaps a little stroll around property and then up to pack for our departure the next morning.

Sounds like a good plan!

 

[Irondraco]

So I was mostly hoping to clear something up.

There was just a thread on here, less than a week ago, titled "Book Ama Ama Early...Or else!" by Paul Stupin. In it, the discussion is about ADRs at Aulani, and the recommendation was to be on the website at midnight (Hawaii time) 30-days out to successfully book a reservation.

However, when I look at the website, it clearly states "Dining reservations are available 14 days in advance. For information on dining availability please call (808)-674-6200." And that seems to bear-out when trying to book - only the next 14 days are clickable.

So...is there a different/better website for booking (I'm looking at the Aulani website)? Or is the 30-day booking only available by calling? Or did I completely read that thread wrong?

Thanks for any help!

We booked AMA'AMA 30 days out at midnight. But we noticed there were tons of open tables and we were able to goto dinner at Makahiki one night with no reservation and got a great table next to the Koi pond.

 

[J-Dog]

We booked AMA'AMA 30 days out at midnight. But we noticed there were tons of open tables and we were able to goto dinner at Makahiki one night with no reservation and got a great table next to the Koi pond.

Thanks for the info. I am not involved in the restaurant industry, and I'm sure that they have a reason for doing it, but I don't really understand why a restaurant's reservations are full, but tables are empty. Maybe it's a staffing issue? That happened to us at Space220 last year - very hard-to-get ADR, but when we finally got it and arrived, less than half of the tables were occupied.