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princessjv
01-13-2006, 05:38 PM
I need some help with planning a vacation for a friend and I haven't been to DL for 10 years! When at WDW, we always stay on property, because we like the feeling of never leaving the mouse. Would you say that is the same at DL?

If so, which hotel is your favorite and why?
If not, which hotel outside (but close) of DL is the best?

TIA!

ILovePoker
01-13-2006, 05:41 PM
Definitely different at Disneyland. The resort is much smaller than Disney World so staying on property isn't a neccesity. There are some great hotels like the Residence Inn and Homewood Suites in Garden Grove that have excellent suites for way less than staying on property. Disneyland resort hotels are much more expensive than many of the Disney World Resort hotels.

Micki0624
01-13-2006, 06:27 PM
Here are some of the hotels I have stayed at and are fine.

Tropicana Inn and Suites
Castle Inn and Suites
Ramada Maingate
Best Western Park Place Inn and Suites

anniedg
01-13-2006, 06:27 PM
For us it depends on the budget. I totally agree it's not as important to stay onsite at DL (wouldn't do it any other way at WDW), but if it's in the budget I still think that's the best. We love DLH, haven't gotten to try GCH ... yet. As mentioned it's a lot more expensive to stay on property at DL, no Value Resorts here.
Offsite we've stayed at HoJo and were very impressed, plus we got an amazing rate using the Entertainment Book. Their customer service is great and we were able to request specific adjoining rooms and got just what we wanted with a nice view of the parks. The walk was no trouble at all, 5-10 minutes depending on our energy level :)

kisroo
01-13-2006, 07:04 PM
Depends on who is going. I'm assuming that since you said you and a friend, it's an adult only trip.

My first choice for adults would be the Grand Californian Hotel. It rocks! It's very gorgeous and subtle in it's Disneyfied atmosphere, but you still feel like you're in DL. :)

For offsite~Candy Cane Inn would be my first choice with the Howard Johnson coming in a close second.

Have a fantastic time!

~kisroo:)

stan4d_steph
01-13-2006, 07:30 PM
Don't forget to check out the MousePlanet Review Database! Click the "User Reviews" link at the top of the page under the MousePlanet logo. :)

princess fiona
01-13-2006, 08:14 PM
We stayed at the Grand Californian the week before Christmas. Yes, it is pricey, but we really enjoyed the convenience of the special entrance to CA from our hotel and the convenience of DD. I remember on the last Monorail run of the night, seeing all the people walking across and up and down the boulevard outside the resort. I thought to myself that I didn't have one more step in me and I couldn't imagine having to walk another 20-30 minutes to an offsite hotel. I think DGC was worth every penney.

Rascalsfungirl
01-13-2006, 09:02 PM
My boyfriend and I have stayed at the Candy Cane Inn and it was nice- it is only about a 5 minute walk. We have also stayed at Best Western Park Place Inn and Mini Suites- we were literally right across the street. It was great!

Wendi
01-13-2006, 09:06 PM
Disney's Grand Californian... definitely! I'd stay there for every trip if I could afford to!

Howard Johnson's is a great offsite hotel. I've only stayed a few places recently: Hojo's, Hyatt Regency and Staybridge Suites. Of the three, Hyatt was the worst (just guest service wise - the hotel/room is fine, but the staff was inadequate). Hojo's and Staybridge are both extremely nice, great hotels, great staff... I actually liked Staybridge better for a bunch of reasons, but it is not within walking distance, so Hojo's wins on the distance factor for me.

Miss DW
01-13-2006, 09:47 PM
If it's in your budget, any of the on-site hotels are great. DLH and PP have definitely improved with their updates.

asharpcook
01-14-2006, 01:26 AM
We have stayed at the Coast Anaheim Hotel, (very nice and affordable! the room was wonderful and the staff great. My biggest complaint was the lack of room service after 11:30 pm. We ended up ordering chinese food! The maid had fun making little animals out of the handtowels and arranging DS's stuffed animals on his bed!)
We stayed at the Homewood Suites. Shuttle runs every 30 minutes. Staff was hit or miss...some were better than others- read 'rude and not very knowledgeable.) And our room was about as far from the elevator and front of the hotel as it could possibly have been. Housekeeping was SLOW in making up the room- it wasn't done until after 3 pm most days which really messed up our afternoon nap plans.) and we have stayed at the Triopicana across the street. Good size room with micorwave and small fridge, continental breakfast (not so great), and no closets at all. I would stay there again- after all, I only need a place to sleep and shower! There is also a nice pool and hot tub.
Happy hotel shopping!
AS:rolleyes:

Phantom2006
01-14-2006, 01:36 AM
LOL i am fine with Motel 6...lol But if i were to stay at a Nice hotel next to disneyland i would go for PP or DLH (last time i stayed there was when i was 4, all i remember was the really small 5'' balconys.

princessjv
01-15-2006, 01:14 PM
So, it sounds like staying at one of the DL hotels is nice, but not a must. If I was to suggest an off property hotel, which is the closest and nicest. My friends will be traveling with 1 child (6).

donaldquackers
01-15-2006, 01:59 PM
Best Western Park Place is nice as it is across the street. The continential breakfast is OK. The candy cane is down the street. Great room and best free breakfast I have ever seen. A private shuttle to the park is good although when we stayed there we usually walked. Castle Inn has very large rooms, but no breakfast or shuttle. I thought all 3 were good places, and each was about the same price. Our little ones were excited about the castle as we told they we had called Mickey Mouse and he said we could stay at his castle. We had three 3 year olds with us so we could get away with stuff like that.

CarlieB
01-15-2006, 02:42 PM
Gotta agree with Kisroo - Grand Californian all the way for on-site. Off-site I'd go for the HoJo:)

PirateSmile
01-15-2006, 06:45 PM
My two favorite hotels that I've stayed at are the Candy Cane and the Anabella. The Anabella is pretty far, and I think you have to pay for the shuttle. So I'd definitley choose the Candy Cane Inn :)

Wendi
01-15-2006, 06:49 PM
So, it sounds like staying at one of the DL hotels is nice, but not a must. If I was to suggest an off property hotel, which is the closest and nicest. My friends will be traveling with 1 child (6).

With a 6 year old I'd probably opt for an on-property hotel if it's within budget. If not, I'd choose a hotel with a really good pool area - Hojo's has a "quiet" pool and then a family pool area with water play area for the kids that she might enjoy.

ILovePoker
01-15-2006, 07:28 PM
Depends if you want just a room or if you want extra. Usually all the really beautiful hotels are in Garden Grove. The Residence Inn in Garden Grove is very nice, we'll be staying there shortly. The Homewood Suites also has excellent rooms with kitchens and bedrooms and living rooms, all for less than the price of a stay on property. But if you just want a clean room, I would suggest the Howard Johnson or Carousel Inn then.:)

losaitkens
01-16-2006, 06:46 AM
When at WDW, we always stay on property, because we like the feeling of never leaving the mouse. Would you say that is the same at DL?



If you like the feeling of never leaving the mouse, you may want to opt for one of the resort hotels. While many of the hotels on Harbor Blvd are actually closer, the walk back through DTD just feels different to me than the walk to Harbor and onto the streets of Anaheim. I just feel like I haven't left the park and I like passing all the shops and even the music they have playing throughout DTD. On our last evening walk back to the DLH, there were musicians playing just outside of the House of Blues and my 6 year old, who was tired and cranky just perked right up and started dancing. Plus, after we put the kids to bed, I was able to sneak out, get a coffee at Compass Books and stroll through DTD all by myself. Not that you couldn't do all this if you stayed on Harbor but It always seems that when staying off property, I never have the energy to head back out and back through that crosswalk to the park at night.

The other thing I like about the DLR hotels is that Disney service. While it is not a guarantee anymore, it is still very likely to happen. On our last trip, I was actually kinda bummed bc we were supposed to stay at the GCH for the first time and our dates changed making the GCH unavailable to us. We ended up at the DLH again and I think fate just knows what its doing because from the moment we pulled in till the time we left, we had that disney magic. From the valet, Dale, who refused to let me self park when I arrived with two kids by myself and actually comped me valet parking, to Robert at the front desk, who took my many phone calls after we had pre registered asking if they had a room ready yet so I could nap my 1 year old and instead of being annoyed, actually helped me and upgraded me to a room with a pool view no charge, to Julio, our waiter at Goofy's Kitchen, who made sure every character made it to our table for my daughter's 1st birthday breakfast. Keep in mind all these wonderful moments happened over Veteran's day weekend when the park was just INSANE. These kind of things can make your trip and it certainly made ours. So the point of my rant I guess, is that we really like staying on property and the DLH, especially.

That said, I would probably not stay on property if I could not get a good rate. We have stayed at the Fairfield Inn several times and like it very much (higher floors have park views) and also at Hojos which was nice too. Both of these hotels are near. next to a McDonalds (with normal prices even) and a Mimi's which are wonderful non park alternatives. The walk to these two is a bit farther than a few others on Harbor so if being super close is important, check the reviews for Best Western Park Place, Park Vue Inn, Desert Inn & Suites and the Tropicana Inn & Suites. Haven't stayed at these but have heard they are all very reasonable though low on frills and amenities.

Have fun planning your trip!

ghoofie
01-16-2006, 11:08 AM
Here's a little scenario for another reason to stay at the Candy Cane.
We went with friends. We stayed at Candy Cane..they chose to stay at ramada across the street because it was $20/day cheaper.

So we agree to meet at the park around 9:00 am. We all say we'll have cont. breakfast at our motels prior to that. So...9:00 am...my wife/I have already had breakfast and are at DL at designated meeting place. No friends. Cell call. They are at Denny's having breakfast. OK...wife/I will go on rides...see ya later. Later we meet. The cont. breakfast at the ramada wasn't much, so they decide to eat breakfast out. There's three of them..3 adults... meal + coffee + hot coco....over $20. Gee.... who's cost of stay was cheaper...and we always have a fine, included breakfast at the cane..
PLUS...yeah they were a tiny bit closer to the park...but we got there much earlier without having a long wait at Denny's. We went on rides much earlier then they did...

Stay at the 'Cane.

MrsPooh
01-16-2006, 01:29 PM
I have never stayed onsite.

Offsite, the HoJo is really nice. We stayed there on our honeymoon and they sent a bottle of wine up to our room. Of course, that was in '91, don't know if they do that anymore. Warning, if you are walking, after a day at the park, that walk takes FOREVER.

I know I am alone, but we always stay at Hawthorn Suites in Orange. Great shuttle, it is cheaper because it isn't right next to DL, and breakfast buffet is free. We love sitting in the courtyard, next to the fountain, having breakfast. ETA: The breakfast buffet is eggs, sausage or bacon, potatoes, sometimes pancakes, with sweet rolls, cereal, fruit, the works.

disneyhound
01-16-2006, 01:34 PM
We have stayed at the Tropicanna, Carousel, BWPPI, Park Vue and Ramada Main Gate. They are all similar in room and continental breakfast. For us, a hotel is simply a place to crash! We don't look for "special" once we leave the park. It's all about budget, and how close to DL. As someone posted, the distance (walking) from some of the hotels on Harbor is less than the distance from the on-site hotels to the front gates. I would stay at the BWPPI or Park Vue, the walk home the third and forth day is soooo looong...

I Heart Disneyland!
01-16-2006, 01:36 PM
We like Homewood Suites, which is 3 miles from DL and you can take a hotel bus for like $2.00 a day. Sometimes, we just park at DL to avoid the late night bus and how full it becomes.

We like Homewood Suites because they have huge rooms that have a bedroom and living room. The living room has a sleeper sofa, and there's a kitchen with a full sized fridge, 2 stove burners (which we never use, but they are there), a microwave and it's stocked with dishes, silverware and glassware. I made reservations for April and it's only $119.00 per night and apparently they recently did some upgrades, so, hopefully it will be nicer too. Oh, and free breakfast in the a.m.

MrsPooh
01-16-2006, 01:58 PM
We like Homewood Suites, which is 3 miles from DL and you can take a hotel bus for like $2.00 a day. Sometimes, we just park at DL to avoid the late night bus and how full it becomes.

We like Homewood Suites because they have huge rooms that have a bedroom and living room. The living room has a sleeper sofa, and there's a kitchen with a full sized fridge, 2 stove burners (which we never use, but they are there), a microwave and it's stocked with dishes, silverware and glassware. I made reservations for April and it's only $119.00 per night and apparently they recently did some upgrades, so, hopefully it will be nicer too. Oh, and free breakfast in the a.m.

Janine, that sounds like Hawthorn too. We have fridge, microwave, sleeper couch, dishes, toaster, even wine glasses. We always stock the fridge with lunch stuff, so when we take our afternoon break, we eat lunch in the room. That way we actually only pay for dinner in the park.

Gilliegrl
01-16-2006, 03:42 PM
WE've stayed at the PP twice now both time concierge level. Im planning a trip now for April and will stay there again. PP is in my budget and I like the feeling of never leaving the mouse. As someone said that Disney touch is special. But it really all depends on your budget and choices. I have a 6 and 3 year old and prefer to stay on property. Some will tell you that the walk is too far from PP but its really not that bad. The kids get autographed photos of Minnie and Mickey and balloons and a little gift set, usually coloring book and stickers. First night rice krispy treats shaped liked Mickeys head come delivered. Also if you want different characters photos you can ask and they will be delivered to your room, autographed of course. The good thing about Anaheim is that there are so many nice properties off site available too so good luck in your choice.