Guests can save between 20% and 30% on vacations of 4 nights or more to Aulani, A Disney Resort & Spa in Ko Olina, Hawai’i. One offer is available to all guests, while another is available to Disney Visa Cardmembers.
To take advantage of any of the following offers, guests need to book by May 2, 2023. The offers are valid for consecutive-night stays most nights from August 23 to November 18 and November 25 to December 22.
Aulani Offer for All Guests
Guests can save up to 20% on select rooms for stays of 4 nights during the above time period. They can save up to 25% on select rooms for stays of 5 or more nights.
Aulani Offer for Disney Visa Cardmembers
Disney Visa Cardmembers can save up to 25% for stays of 4 nights and up to 30% for stays of 5 or more nights on ocean view and partial ocean view rooms. For other select room types, they can save up to 20% for stays of 4 nights and up to 25% for stays of 5 or more nights.
Aulani, A Disney Resort & Spa
Aulani opened in 2011 on the islands of Oahu. It was Disney’s third standalone hotel that is not near a theme park, after Disney’s Hilton Head Island Resort and Disney’s Vero Beach Resort. “Aulani” in Hawaiian is loosely translated as “orange,” “with deep messages,” or “message from the chief.” Then-Imagineer Joe Rohde was the lead designer of the Disney Vacation Club resort.
Several Disney characters, including Duffy’s friend ‘Olu Mel, meet with guests at Aulani.
“American Idol” usually films episodes at Aulani once per season.
Disney fans have begun to panic after seeing some terrifying images surface on the internet. The photos show a major infrastructure concern that could potentially be extremely dangerous. With no sign of Disney doing any maintenance to remedy the situation, the public has begun to panic.
One thing to know about Walt Disney World Resort is that it is massive. The Resort sits on 43 square miles of the property, making it way bigger than Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. There is so much to see and do inside Walt Disney World Resort, but because everything is so spread out, navigating yourself can be difficult.
Driving your own car can be time-consuming with traffic and parking and getting an Uber or a Minnie van can be expensive. Luckily, Disney does offer some complimentary transportation options for Guests to use.
Guests can use Disney’s busses, ferryboats, water taxis, Skyliner, and monorail to get around the Resort. For many Guests, taking the monorail is the preferred option. The Walt Disney World Monorail System is an elevated transportation system that is used to take Guests to different areas of the Resort. The monorail is supported by concrete beams that extend up into the air.
Theme Park photographer @bioreconstruct snapped a photograph that showed some troubling “concrete problems” on one of the support beams for the monorail. The beam looks to be in horrible condition, and Guests are very concerned about the safety issue of the damage. The beam that is crumbling is on the EPCOT monorail track near The Seas Pavilion in Future World at EPCOT.
Guests have begun to panic over the safety of the monorail. One user comments, “Welp, guess it’s driving to EPCOT only for a while.” Many Guests wonder if the Monorail beam will be able to handle the heavy load for much longer. It is a shame to see the infrastructure of Walt Disney World in such bad shape. Hopefully, Disney gets to work and service this issue as soon as possible.
The worst part of visiting Walt Disney World is having to leave the Disney bubble and return to reality at the end of your trip. Even though most Disney trips are action-packed and exhausting, it is still so hard to leave the theme Park and go back to normal life. Some Disney Guests love the Parks so much that they even move to Anaheim or Central Florida so they can be close to Disney at all times. Still, there is nothing that compares to an on-property Disney vacation. This brings up an interesting question, if money was no object, how long could you really vacation at Walt Disney World Resort? For one woman, her Disney vacation lasted over twenty years.
Vacationing at Walt Disney World Resort is not cheap. Park tickets, food, merchandise, and accommodations all cost a lot of Disney property. Walt Disney World Resort has lots of different hotels to choose from when planning a trip. There are three tiers of Disney Resort Hotel at Walt Disney World; Value, Moderate, and Deluxe. Even at the Value Disney Resort, the rooms are not cheap and will run you hundreds of dollars a night.
If you were trying to stay at Walt Disney World Resort for an extended amount of time, you might be interested in staying at the cheapest accommodation on the property, Fort Wilderness. Here, you can rent a tent campsite for $76-$105 or an RV site for around $150-$250. While these prices are still expensive, some Disney fans do pay the premium to stay on property for an extended amount of time.
Technically, the longest you can book a room or campsite for is 30 continuous days. However, one woman has continued to extend her camping “vacation” and lived at Walt Disney World Resort full-time. A Reddit user shared the story of this woman.
According to the commenter, the woman has lived at the Fort Wilderness Campground on Disney World Property for nearly 20 years. She even went as far as to try and sue the Walt Disney Company when they wanted to kick her out during the Covid pandemic. Another commenter followed up this wild story with an update that the woman has been evicted from Fort Wilderness Resort and is also no longer a Disney travel agent.
Disney World has issued a new warning about a permanent closure coming to one of its resorts, effective May 1.
For Guests who visit the Walt Disney World Resort, there’s no shortage of options when it comes to interactive attractions, thrilling rides with the latest in cutting-edge ride technology, Broadway-style stage shows, and dining venues that feature menus for every taste and many diets, with gluten-free options, nut-free options, vegan and vegetarian options and more.
Disney World is, by far, The Walt Disney Company’s largest theme Park Resort, encompassing more than 43 square miles, though not all of Disney World’s property is developed at this time. The Resort includes four unique and distinct theme parks–Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and Disney’s Animal Kingdom, as well as two whimsically-themed water parks–Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon.
When it comes to dining at Disney World, the Resort offers more than 200 different places to grab a bite, and Guests have three options when it comes to exactly how they want to grab those bites. They can choose table-service dining, during which they are seated and enjoy the comfort and convenience of a server during the meal, or they can choose quick-service dining, which allows Guests to order meals via the My Disney Experience mobile app and pick up their orders at the restaurant to enjoy in a self-seating atmosphere.
Guests also have the option of stopping at a kiosk or pick-up location inside the parks, such as Fife and Drum Tavern at the American Adventure pavilion on the World Showcase at EPCOT. These locations offer walk-up windows and limited offerings, but they’re perfect for Guests who don’t want to miss a beat as they explore the four theme parks.
But there’s perhaps no greater variation in offerings than across Disney World’s Resort Hotels. There are more than two dozen of them, each one complete with specific theming and associated decor and elements, dining options, shops, and other offerings that make for an exciting experience that can serve as a vacation getaway, even without ever visiting a theme park.
From the very first Disney Resort Hotels built in the early 1970s, like Disney’s Contemporary Resort and Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort, to the newest ones, like Disney’s Gran Destino Tower and Disney’s Riviera Resort, Disney World’s menu of Resort Hotels is vast, meaning there’s literally something for every Guest. Disney World offers different levels of hotels, and Guests can choose a Value Resort, Deluxe Resort, Moderate Resort, or Villa.
The list of Disney World Resort Hotels from which to choose is extensive and includes Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, the Art of Animation Resort, Disney’s Pop Century Resort, Disney’s Beach Club Resort, Fort Wilderness and Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, Disney’s Yacht Club, Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge, Coronado Springs, Saratoga Springs, Disney’s Port Orleans Resorts, and more.
Disney World even has a Resort Hotel option on property that caters exclusively to members of the U. S. Armed Forces. Shades of Green originally opened at the Disney World Resort in December 1973 as the Golf Resort. The hotel boasted 151 rooms and was unique in that it was built of wood and volcanic rock and constructed to have the appearance of a country club. It was once owned and operated by Disney World, but today it is operated by the United States Department of Defense.
The Resort is nestled between two PGA championship golf courses in a wooded setting, complete with lush gardens and spectacular vistas. There are more than 600 oversized guestrooms and guest suites inside the resort, many with private patios and balconies from which Guests can watch the sunrise every morning. The Resort books up quickly, and as such, reservations are accepted up to one year in advance of Guests’ planned visits.
One of the most popular experiences enjoyed by Guests of Shades of Green is strolling along a paved walkway from Shades of Green to Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort. The beautiful half-mile walkway offers Guests scenic views as they make their way to the Polynesian, and it only takes 10 to 15 minutes to walk between the two Resort Hotels. The experience is so popular among Guests that Shades of Green issued a statement online on Tuesday, warning Guests that construction related to the World Drive Expansion Project at the Disney World Resort will lead to the permanent closure of the walkway:
“Starting Monday, May 1, 2023, the World Drive Expansion Project will begin between Shades of Green and the Grand Floridian Resort,” the hotel shared in a statement. “We know that it’s a lovely stroll on the walkway from our hotel to the Polynesian Village Resort, [but] unfortunately, it will no longer be accessible.”
But Shades of Green offered Guests a reprieve, stating that transportation offerings to and from the Resort Hotel will be increased to help Guests quickly arrive at their destinations around the Walt Disney World Resort:
“But don’t worry, we’ve got your back! We’re adding extra buses to the Transportation and Ticket Center route, so you can still easily get to your destination. And the best part? It’s totally free! If you prefer to use your own vehicle, you can still do so, but please note that you will be responsible for the parking fee at the theme parks. Alternatively, you could use a ride-sharing service like Uber, Lyft, or the Minnie Van™ service by Lyft – all available within the Walt Disney World Resort.”
The Resort is one of the Armed Forces Recreation Center Resorts (AFRC) and is available exclusively to members of the U. S. Armed Forces, their families, and other authorized Guests, and eligibility requirements are strict:
Veterans who are Purple Heart recipients, veterans who are former POWs, all veterans with VA-documented service-connected disability ratings, and individuals assessed, approved, and designated as the Primary Family Caregivers of eligible veterans under the VA Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers are eligible Shades of Green Resort users when identified as follows:
Veterans must present a Veteran Health Identification Card (VHIC) indicating at least one of the three acceptable eligibility statuses (PURPLE HEART, FORMER POW, or SERVICE CONNECTED); or HEC form H623A indicating placement in VA health care priority group 8E paired with an acceptable credential like a REAL ID-compliant State driver’s license or a U.S. passport.
To learn more about Shades of Green, click on the video below, or visit the official Shades of Green website by clicking here.
The official Disney Parks Twitter account just dropped the big news: new sales of the Walt Disney World Annual Pass and fans are already thrilled at the prospect of being able to purchase an Annual Pass once again.
Not only do we know when Annual Passes sales will resume (April 20), but we also know the updated prices:
Disney: "As we look to provide a great experience for our Passholders, the quantity of passes will be limited and passes, or a pass type, may become unavailable for purchase at any time."
At the highest tier, the Disney Incredi-Pass will cost $1,399.
The Disney Sorcerer Pass (Florida Resident and Disney Vacation Club Member only) will cost $969, the Pirate Pass (Florida Resident only) will cost $749, and the Pixie Pass (Florida Resident only) will cost $399.
M,ost Disney fans will know that these new Annual Pass sales are returning for the first time in forever, making this more exciting than usual!
Not only that, but Annual Passholders are now able to access certain Disney PhotoPass benefits, and beginning on April 18, Annual Passholders will be able to visit the Parks after 2 p.m. without a Park reservation (except for the weekends at Magic Kingdom). That being said, blockout dates will still apply.
