Well, I'm not sure what class hotel Aulani is considered (just googled....it's a four star resort)...but we're going to Hawaii for the first time ever....for our 25th wedding anniversary. Our trip has morphed a bit, at first we were doing Maui and Kauai, then just Kauai, but now we're spending 5 nights on the south shore of Kauai at a 4 star Ko'a Kea in the Ocean Front One Bedroom Suite. And five nights on the BI at Auberge's 5 star Mauna Lani in an Ocean Front room (the room is nearly 700 sq ft though...so it's a big room), and we're spending 15K on our 10 nights...taxes and resort fees included.
Then you start looking at excursions...etc....and that's all really expensive as well. I booked us for a deluxe valance helicopter tour....that alone was $714 each! I've looked at some of the menus of restaurants that we've booked...and again, almost all are 30-50% more than we just paid on a 5 star vacation in Costa Rica.
Obviously, I think you can spend *way* less to travel to Hawaii if you stay in less fancy hotels, or Air BnB it and cook in your unit....etc. But we've just concluded it's just a very expensive place to visit. But...we're excited to be going
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I'm also booking a two week trip to South Africa....5 days in Cape Town, 9 days at Safari Lodges....all transport, excursions in Cape Town, all meals except for lunches and dinners in Cape Town included (and obviously the safari game drives are included)....and that trip is coming in at 30K (no flights included). But still....on a daily rate with excursions/entertainment/food/ground transportation included...it's definitely a cheaper trip than Hawaii.