Are Discount Cards worthwhile on Maui?
 

My husband and I are returning to Maui in mid-March for our 6th Anniversary. I am trying to decide if purchasing a discount card (like the AOA Gold card or something called the Aloha Pack are worthwhile). Or should we just stop by Tom Barefoots when we get to Maui?<BR>I have read some past messages, but some of the postings were almost 2 years old.<BR>Has anyone had any recent dealings with either of these cards - AOA GOLD looks like a great deal if I could get the 50% off Trilogy tickets, but I'm thinking that's a slim chance with only 4 tix available per month. Thanks.

I bought the Gold Card and got my money's worth without getting any of those "limited" ticket deals. Check with them and see but I think they offer a smaller flat discount on those excursions all the time (like 20%) There are also many restaurant buy one get one free's included.

We used the AOA card for our trip last year and were able to save over $300 for our party of 4. Are you planning to do lots of other activities too? I wouldn't get the card if you're just hoping to get the 50% off Trilogy tickets as these half price tickets go very fast. We were able to get several half price tickets but these were for activities that had large quantities of ticket inventory. Also check the vendor's website to compare any online or direct booking discounts they may have before booking thru an agency like Tom's Barefoot - most of the time, we found that we could get the same or better discount by booking direct and we would not have had to pay a cancellation penalty as long as we gave 24 hours notice. Hope this helps.

Hi I was wondering where you can get the cards you were talking about. Thanks

Diane,<BR><BR>Go to www.maui.org for information and a list of participating vendors for the AOA Gold card. Most are for activities on Maui but there are some for other islands too. There is a list of currently available half price tickets at www.maui.org/ot<BR><BR>Hope this helps.

Diane, <BR><BR>I found most of the discount info by doing a "google" search on the internet...there are a lot of "wholesalers" but still have not found out how legit they are...most do not mention fees, except the Aloha Pack and the Gold Card, a few mention time share sales. I did call AOA and they said we could wait to buy a Gold Card when we got to Maui (since we are leaving very soon)...but getting the "Good" 1/2 price tix is close to impossible - I was told that for the Trilogy Trips people stood in line at 4 AM on 3/1 to get those when they opened at 8 AM. Sorry, but my vacation time is worth more than that. I will post any additional info as I get it. Will probably just wait until we get there and see what offers are in the airport and vacation guides.