are there any "secrets" to booking a discounted stay at Aulani?

[halfmonkey]

I'm wondering if there's a "secret" tip to book a stay at Aulani and enjoy a discount kind of like how you can book a Disney Cruise say directly with Disney and then transfer it to Costco and get a Costco cash card. Is there any kind of "secret" like this for Aulani?

 

[JCornell]

Not really a secret but renting points and getting DVC seems to be the most economical way to get a room there.
Current discount offer is 30% off for stays Aug 20-Dec 21 and a $150 resort credit if you book by Jun 19. Renting points still works better for us but worth it to compare.

 

[Jennyren]

Renting points worked better for us as well. In fact, we were able to upgrade to an oceanview villa and still saved more than the deal I booked directly through Disney.

 

[JCornell]

Us, too. Also, not a situation that applies to everyone, but one of our kids is over 18. If you book a normal room through Disney they tack on an added per night charge for 3 adults in the room (almost $100/nt). If you book with points, they don't do this.

 

[Elima2015]

Either renting points or being a DVC member is the cheapest way to get rooms of any kind, any view at Aulani. A group discount is also pretty decent. We had friends get married there recently and they got an awesome room rate for the wedding guests. Besides that, I think Costco Travel has probably the best cash rates. They often have the same promos that Aulani has with an extra perk or two.

 

[disneyfaninaz]

We have a Disney Visa and were able to take advantage of 25% off a 4 night stay, free character breakfast and $50 resort credit per night directly through Disney. We just returned from Aulani and I booked the deal in October of last year. Just keep looking at Mousesavers.com. They will list any deals available.

 

[nkereina]

Another vote for renting points. We rented points for a DVC studio for 6 nights back in September. Prior to securing the point rental, we had a reservation for a standard hotel room through Disney booked just in case we couldn't get the points we needed. We saved more than half the cost by renting points, AND we were able to get free parking since we were staying on a points reservation. At $37/day, the parking savings is also something that you should factor in when comparing discounts. We also saved some money by getting a few groceries that we could use for quick breakfasts, and the studio was good for that with the toaster, microwave, etc.

 

[blondietink]

Us, too. Also, not a situation that applies to everyone, but one of our kids is over 18. If you book a normal room through Disney they tack on an added per night charge for 3 adults in the room (almost $100/nt). If you book with points, they don't do this.

Wow, that's a crazy amount to have to pay extra for just one added adult. So, what does an extra adult use that would justify that much extra .... a little extra time in the shower? We are 4 adults and I can't imagine what the extra cost would be! So glad we use DVC points!

 

[NanMar]

How does the whole renting points thing work? I currently have reservations for October through Disney directly but wouldn't mind saving money. I went in October of last year also through Disney, I have booked a standard room, the cheapest one, but was upgraded at check in to ocean view.

 

[alohamom]

How does the whole renting points thing work? I currently have reservations for October through Disney directly but wouldn't mind saving money. I went in October of last year also through Disney, I have booked a standard room, the cheapest one, but was upgraded at check in to ocean view.

There was a post a little while ago here on this Aulani thread that I responded to that was sort of answers the question. The basic idea is that DVC members "rent" you points that they are not going to use.

https://www.disboards.com/threads/has-anyone-ever-rented-points-to-stay.3608712/