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losaitkens
09-29-2005, 09:15 AM
Okay, I was all set to get the theme park view during our two night stay at GCH but an opportunity has come up for us to get a great discount on a standard room ($149 a night) vs. the $297 for theme park view (still a discount believe it or not, but not as substantial). For those of you who have stayed at GCH or are familiar with the room setup, is the extra expense really worth it? Does "theme park view" actually guarantee you a real view or could it be more like I have to stand on the far corner of our balcony and MAYBE I can see a little of GRR ;) ? Does standard room mean I have to overlook a parking lot or are courtyard rooms also considered "standard"?

After taxes, switching to the standard room would save us around $340 and I guess I just need opinions on whether or not this money could be better spent or if there are those who feel the view is totally worth it. For reference, this is our first stay at GCH but will be our 4th trip to Disneyland this year so we will take some time to enjoy the hotel ammenities as we don't have a lot of pressure to see and do it all.

Thank you for sharing your experiences.

Mousetrap
09-29-2005, 09:18 AM
Where did you get that deal???? If you want a beautiful view of grizzly river run, soarin, CA adventure and disneyland I have a specific room I always go to. If you want I can find the number. Ill be back in a flash. Ok here it is 5351 is by far the best view, you can hear the waterfall in the morning if you leave the slidder open and the trains from disneyland.

Mousetrap
09-29-2005, 09:19 AM
hey Im going the same time as you.

losaitkens
09-29-2005, 09:29 AM
hey Im going the same time as you.

Cool! Thanks for the room number tip except I guess if you are going at the same time you'll probably want that for yourself! :) The rates are through a "friends & family" voucher from a friend who is a CM.

Mousetrap
09-29-2005, 09:33 AM
No Im staying at the disneyland hotel this time, I switch it up alot. Im hoping for my AP discount. LOL Seriously request that room and you wont be dissapointed, Its the most awesome view ever and the noises are spectacular. :D

Mousetrap
09-29-2005, 09:35 AM
Oh yah 5th floor is the only way to go its right under concierge and the suites so yah its really nice, plus you have that great balcony. If they dont have that room anything within 3 rooms of that one is great.

losaitkens
09-29-2005, 09:50 AM
Oh yah 5th floor is the only way to go its right under concierge and the suites so yah its really nice, plus you have that great balcony. If they dont have that room anything within 3 rooms of that one is great.

Cool! Thanks so much for the tip. I love the Disneyland Hotel too but figured we had to experience the GCH just once. We have APs too but so far I haven't seen any AP nights for the times we are going. Keep your fingers crossed though as Nov is still a little ways away!

pisces
09-29-2005, 09:52 AM
I had seven nights over last New Years, in a theme Park GCH room.

Seven nights is a little excessive.

But two is fine. For two nights, I would say go for it!

The theme park views are a variation of, essentially these attractions:
1. Grizzley Peak
2. Hollywood Tower of Terror
3. The Sun Wheel

All of the above are requests and not guaranteed, but one of them will be assigned under the theme park view rate. There are pictures of these various theme park views, -----my room photos--- I'm not the best photographer, though. Laughing place has some views out the room. Smug mug has some interesting views out the GCH room. You might want to check out some of the best pictures of room views....to see, from photos, if you feel it's worth it.

My theme park view, was of the Sunwheel, which lights up at night. It's a definite theme park view. You can't miss the all lit up Sunwheel. I don't remember off hand what room number I had, I'll try to look at the map and see.

There is something called The Courtyard View, which, it seems they are lumping in with City Standard. But, that is just a request, or so I think, under the City Standard umbrella.

Smug mug has some good pictures of what a Courtyard view looks like. I believe it's the Brisa courtyard, the rooms on the opposite site of DD. The monorail goes right through there, with the tall forest trees that sway in the breeze. Again, this is a request, though, under City Standard-----I think. I don't know if the Courtyard lights up at night, the way the Sunwheel does.

tinksmom
09-29-2005, 10:08 AM
I love theme park view.

It's worth 50 bucks per night, which is what I would spend, over and above the cost of the beer in my overpriced mini fridge, to sit with my family, quaffing beverages and watching the world go by.

losaitkens
09-29-2005, 12:16 PM
But two is fine. For two nights, I would say go for it!




Good point- two nights does make the expense seem worth splurging for. Thanks for all the photo links- those are really helpful in getting an idea of what the rooms are like. A whole week- You must of had a great trip!
Thanks again for all the advice!

losaitkens
09-29-2005, 01:05 PM
I love theme park view.

It's worth 50 bucks per night, which is what I would spend, over and above the cost of the beer in my overpriced mini fridge, to sit with my family, quaffing beverages and watching the world go by.


Yup- I hear you. My in laws are coming on this trip so I will have more help with the kids than usual so a beer on the balcony overlooking DCA does sound appealing- though I am a BYOB kinda girl :)

ILovePoker
09-29-2005, 01:32 PM
What I don't understand is why someone would want to pay 100+ dollars just for a theme park view. I mean, is having a view of a theme park as good as being in a theme park? Or do people just stay in the theme park view room just so they can tell others later of how they had a theme park view room? If the theme park view is only a few dollars more (like it regularly is) then that would be okay to splurge a little. But when you can save 200+ dollars a night by having a regular, I don't see the common sense in it. :~D

Take the 149 deal. Spending 200+ dollars more for just a view room isn't worth it.

I just realized, with this 149 deal, you could visit California Adventure for half the price of having a view of California Adventure. Doesn't make sense to me. :|

Pirate33
09-29-2005, 02:26 PM
Definitely not worth it. I had a Sun Wheel room once, looking over Mulhulland Madness. It was nice but not worth a lot of extra money. A view into Disneyland might be different for me. Save the money for a nice dinner at Napa Rose -- that is worth it!

Also, the courtyard rooms are nice. Quiet, the courtyard is pretty and you get the see the monorail.

Rhiannon8404
09-29-2005, 02:42 PM
Hey! We are going to be there around the same time as well. Nov. 12-16 for us. But we are staying at the PPH. $149 sounds like an awesome deal. Personally, that's what I'd do and spend the rest on dinner at Napa Rose and/or Vineyard Room.

For us, I've found we spend very little time looking out the window of our room.

Mousetrap
09-29-2005, 03:12 PM
Rhiannon8404 I feel you on the
I've found we spend very little time looking out the window of our room . If your there for like 6 days then yah its awesome but sometimes Id rather spend the money on a big figure or some art or some great dinner. Thats why Im staying at Disneyland hotel the 12-17 in november. Well have to party all together disney style! :D

mousemama
09-29-2005, 05:47 PM
Hey! We're going to be there Nov 13-18! Those MP buttons are starting to sound pretty good! We'll be at PP splurging on a Concierge room. Can't wait to see you all there! :fez:

Rhiannon8404
09-29-2005, 06:47 PM
Wow! Lots of us are going to be there the same week! How fun!

Maus
09-29-2005, 07:34 PM
Here are my photos of my theme park view:

Yahoo! Photos - Grand Californian Room 5412 (http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/mauskateer/album?.dir=/6f46&.src=ph)

In other words, not every theme park view is worth the extra dollars. For the great rate of $149 I'd stick with the standard room.

pisces
09-29-2005, 08:00 PM
What I don't understand is why someone would want to pay 100+ dollars just for a theme park view. I mean, is having a view of a theme park as good as being in a theme park? Or do people just stay in the theme park view room just so they can tell others later of how they had a theme park view room? If the theme park view is only a few dollars more (like it regularly is) then that would be okay to splurge a little. But when you can save 200+ dollars a night by having a regular, I don't see the common sense in it. :~D

Take the 149 deal. Spending 200+ dollars more for just a view room isn't worth it.

I just realized, with this 149 deal, you could visit California Adventure for half the price of having a view of California Adventure. Doesn't make sense to me. :|

It was worth it for me, for about the first 4 days. After 7 days, it gets to be a bit much.

I'm not feeling well, and I knew I'd be spending lots of time in the room. It rained the whole week I was there. And, I hadn't treated myself to a single Disneyland visit in 25 years. I felt justified.....at the time.

I'm the kind of person who likes to sit perched and watch the world go by, and when the fancy strikes me, maybe meander out to the park. I was a single traveller and didn't have a lot of people to socialize with.....so spending time gazing out the window made up for that.

Mark Goldhaber
09-29-2005, 08:10 PM
Ok here it is 5351 is by far the best view, you can hear the waterfall in the morning if you leave the slidder open and the trains from disneyland.
pssst.... 5353. It's the next room over, and the last one on the floor. I agree that the view is excellent. On our last trip, due to my son being sick, we spent tremendous amounts of time in the room. So for us, it was a saving grace. Depending on how you vacation, your mileage may vary.

losaitkens
09-29-2005, 08:24 PM
Lots of good points here by everyone. Thanks for the photo link Maus, you're right, not all theme park "views" are created equal. Those 5th floor rooms DO sound nice though and if I could be guaranteed a one of those views it Might be worth it. But Pirate33 has a good point, a nice dinner out with my husband while the kids are with grandma & grandpa would be heavenly and much more feasible if we get the cheaper room.

Wow there are a lot of us going that week-how exciting! On our last trip I met a family from the boards but we didn't figure it out till we were both posting trip reports. I am going to sleep on us this feedback and try to make my decision tomorrow. Thank you to everyone who has posted so far. My husband thinks I am crazy going here for advice but I told him this site is the reason he had such a great trip last time! :-)

Crazy4DL
09-29-2005, 08:31 PM
! On our last trip I met a family from the boards but we didn't figure it out till we were both posting trip reports.

US!!! :D


Have a wonderful trip which ever room you go with losaitkens!

~~Ruthie

potcfan
09-29-2005, 09:17 PM
You could always go with the standard view and ask for an upgrade at check-in, you may get lucky. I paid for a standard view last December and was upgraded to a DTD 5th floor room - it doesn't hurt to ask. :D .

Rhiannon8404
09-29-2005, 09:24 PM
You could always go with the standard view and ask for an upgrade at check-in, you may get lucky. I paid for a standard view last December and was upgraded to a DTD 5th floor room - it doesn't hurt to ask. :D .

This is what we do. We always just book the basic room. Somtimes we ask for an upgrade, but we've been upgraded several times at both DLH and PPH without even asking. We leave early early in the morning and generally get there around 10am. We do early check in. Every time we've done early check in we've gotton an upgrade to a "view" room.

melmel
09-29-2005, 09:27 PM
I actually prefer the "standard" view, which looks over Downtown Disney. We had a room directly over the middle entrance to World of Disney, and we had a near-perfect view of the fireworks. Definitely recommend standard if you can get 4th on 5th floor on the DIsneyland end of World of Disney! It's cheapest in this area too!