ammendment to "1 day tour"

[rlk]

Oh boy, We will have to see how this day goes. We have 2pm tix, do you think if We get there asap in the morning we might get an earlier tour time? Or maybe they will let us on an earlier tour time?

When we went to Pearl Harbor in 2014, we arrived two hours before our scheduled time. We asked about getting into an earlier tour and they were able to accommodate our party of four people.

 

[trs518]

Oh boy, We will have to see how this day goes. We have 2pm tix, do you think if We get there asap in the morning we might get an earlier tour time? Or maybe they will let us on an earlier tour time?

I believe you said that you'll be getting your vehicle at 7am. If that is the case, you probably won't get to Pearl Harbor in time to get earlier tickets.

 

[nkereina]

I think that depends on where else people travel when they vacation. Being a Disney vacationer doesn't mean that's the only place that you go. I know a woman who is a hardcore Disney person and goes to both parks in the USA at least once a year - usually more. But she has traveled extensively all over the USA and the world. She would compare Hawaii to other states and countries, not manmade parks.

I was specifically referring to the Disney vacationer that doesn't go anywhere other than Disney. Those who have Disney tunnel vision and decide to branch out to Aulani to experience Disney in Hawaii may not be as astute when they are used to one style of vacation.

 

[Midoria]

I was specifically referring to the Disney vacationer that doesn't go anywhere other than Disney.

Wow. Is that common??

 

[Avery&Todd]

I think @Avery&Todd 's point was that if you're used to being a Disney vacationer, you need to understand how vastly a Hawaii vacation will differ. I'm sure Hawaii is seeing a lot of first-timers who are Disney fanatics since the addition of Aulani. I'm just picturing a lot of these people being used to WDW visits every year and then they come and do Diamond Head without much research and it's too strenuous. They're just very different vacations so it's a good point to make to help manage expectations.

EXACTLY!! I feel that when DH and I visited Hawaii we tried to do everything we wanted to see in the 11 days we were there -well, 9 days if you count the 2 travel days - and we had long, hard and exhausting days!! I have never had a vacation that was so beautiful and so exhausting at the same time because I wanted to see it all and do it all We seriously spent 9 hrs at Pearl Harbour, 12 hrs at the Volcano park, a full day Kualoa Ranch and a 1/2 a day at Diamond Head hiking - and DH and I are "walkers", we walk 18,000-20,000 daily on the weekends and at least 10-12,000 daily during the week and we both felt that if we hadn't been "walkers" then we wouldn't have been able to do what we wanted to do in Hawaii...

I'm sure you can go to Hawaii and just sit on a beach, but DH and I are not "sitters" and even though we did have some relaxing afternoons, just like Disney we GO GO GO....

I can't wait until I can go back to Hawaii and do it all over again!!

 

[Avery&Todd]

I think that depends on where else people travel when they vacation. Being a Disney vacationer doesn't mean that's the only place that you go. I know a woman who is a hardcore Disney person and goes to both parks in the USA at least once a year - usually more. But she has traveled extensively all over the USA and the world. She would compare Hawaii to other states and countries, not manmade parks.

Perhaps I wasn't clear but I wasn't comparing Hawaii (in general) to a man made park I was commenting that someone who was used to a Disney vacation or anywhere else that wasn't really rustic/nature-made might be a little surprised by some of the sights in Hawaii....I found it to be refreshing to find the trail markers in the volcano park made out of stacks of rocks vs. a big ole sign..

and like I said earlier to walk on a trail down the crater side that was not a perfectly paved trail with perfect stone steps and free of tree roots - it was just as nature had it and we loved it, but for some folks that may be out of their comfort zone..

that's all..

 

[cgattis]

Perhaps I wasn't clear but I wasn't comparing Hawaii (in general) to a man made park I was commenting that someone who was used to a Disney vacation or anywhere else that wasn't really rustic/nature-made might be a little surprised by some of the sights in Hawaii....I found it to be refreshing to find the trail markers in the volcano park made out of stacks of rocks vs. a big ole sign..

and like I said earlier to walk on a trail down the crater side that was not a perfectly paved trail with perfect stone steps and free of tree roots - it was just as nature had it and we loved it, but for some folks that may be out of their comfort zone..

that's all..

We felt the same way. We were surprised that such an iconic vacation destination has maintained such a rural/rustic feel almost everywhere. It was very cool to feel like we were discovering this hidden place and not just cranking our way through some big tourist attraction. It was very much like Alaska in a lot of ways, except Hawaii gets way more visitors, so it was a great surprise. And I, like you, can't wait to get back and see more!!!

 

[Avery&Todd]

We felt the same way. We were surprised that such an iconic vacation destination has maintained such a rural/rustic feel almost everywhere. It was very cool to feel like we were discovering this hidden place and not just cranking our way through some big tourist attraction. It was very much like Alaska in a lot of ways, except Hawaii gets way more visitors, so it was a great surprise. And I, like you, can't wait to get back and see more!!!

YES!! Its' like they somehow managed to maintain a "newness" of every place we visited and it wasn't so commercialized...

it's just a beautiful, fabulous place!

 

[olafLover]

.

 

[nkereina]

Wow. Is that common??

Over to the TP&S boards, there's tons of people who take their annual family vacation to WDW and nowhere else. Its not that surprising. Some people prefer the same vacation over and over every year, hence the popularity of DVC and timeshares in general. I know people like this in my own life too - I know some who do the same WDW vacation each year and some who do the same beach vacation, etc. Not everyone wants to see the world nor can afford it.

 

[olafLover]

.

 

[Midoria]

Over to the TP&S boards, there's tons of people who take their annual family vacation to WDW and nowhere else. Its not that surprising. Some people prefer the same vacation over and over every year, hence the popularity of DVC and timeshares in general. I know people like this in my own life too - I know some who do the same WDW vacation each year and some who do the same beach vacation, etc. Not everyone wants to see the world nor can afford it.

I understand the concept of going the same place every year. We had the same beach vacation and Christmas in New York every year when I was a kid because my parents have two timeshares. But we’d stop at/drive to other places outside of the city and the beach. On the way to Virginia Beach, we’d stop at Colonial Williamsburg and a few times took Amtrak to North Carolina to see the Smokey Mountains and Biltmore (which I loved). When we went to NYC, we took day trips to explore Philly and Boston.

As for traveling the world being too expensive, I highly disagree that’s the case for people who live on either coast. When I lived in the DC area, going down to Orlando and going to Europe we’re actually extremely similar in price. I know this for sure because I was simultaneously planning to go to Disney with my best friend and England with my father. I ended up dropping the Disney trip because the UK was actually cheaper overall and I found going to England to be way more exciting. We also took a day trip to Paris. People that reside on West Coast and Hawaii can get amazing deals to Asia, other parts of Polynesia, Australia, and New Zealand. I’m saving money for a trip to Thailand that is only $1000 with airfare, 3-star hotel, and a few days of professional tours.

Now, if you’re in the middle of the USA I’m pretty sure it’s more expensive to get out of North America. But Canada and Mexico have tons to offer in terms of history and culture.

Of course, I’m talking about people who want to expand their travel experiences. I understand and respect people who are satisfied with the comfort consistency of a single location.

 

[buffettgirl]

Back to the thread at hand: The biggest issue isn't that you want to do a lot of things. It's that Aulani is way out of the way in terms of all the other things to do on Oahu. If you're staying at Aulani, you really do a need a car if you want to do a lot of things. Certainly more than 1 day of a car. You might, in the end, find that all those days sitting around the resort aren't all that exciting. It's not a very large resort after all.

 

[Karlan29]

Back to the thread at hand: The biggest issue isn't that you want to do a lot of things. It's that Aulani is way out of the way in terms of all the other things to do on Oahu. If you're staying at Aulani, you really do a need a car if you want to do a lot of things. Certainly more than 1 day of a car. You might, in the end, find that all those days sitting around the resort aren't all that exciting. It's not a very large resort after all.

Thank you..maybe we will rent a car more than 1 day. I guess we will just go with the flow.