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stinkerbell
08-26-2002, 10:25 AM
I've been looking at hotel prices for our trip in October (19th-22nd). I want to stay somewhere clean, affordable, and really, really close, because I don't want to mess with shuttles and I'll have a four year old with really short legs with me.

I've seen the Fairfield for $53 on Travelocity and the Holiday Inn and Suites for $59 on Expedia. I have used Priceline, but only to get a hotel room in downtown Portland. I'm nervous to use it, because in order to get your bid accepted, it seems you have to expand your search area to other locations, besides the area closest to Disneyland. I wouldn't complain about a shuttle ride, if I was able to get the Marriott for $40 a night! ;) So any help with Priceline would be wonderful. I already read the biddingfortravel.com board, but would love to get a MousePadder's take on it.

I don't personally know anyone who has stayed at the Fairfield or that particular Holiday Inn. The rates sound great, but with no personal recommendations, I'm a little nervous.

Does anyone have any favorites? I know the Candy Cane is a favorite (but costs a bit more) and I've stayed at the Park Place before and liked it. I'm trying to stay at a variety of places....don't know why. I could get the Park Place Inn for $67/night and I'll do that if all else fails......

And I've still got my fingers crossed on DLH........;) Can you tell I'm pretty undecided at this point?

julgraham
08-26-2002, 10:39 AM
Priceline accepted a bid from us for $35 for the Disneyland area and we got to stay at the anaheim Marriott. It was a great hotel with a convenient shuttle, two pools, and kids ate free at the breakfast buffet.
We also like to stay at the Desert Inn and Suites. Not the cheapeast, but the suite is great with kids and you walk across the street, right into disneyland. there is also a Dennys and IHOP right next door.

stinkerbell
08-26-2002, 10:46 AM
I'm actually calling Desert Inn in just a few minutes. It's gotten some good reviews. But I got it mixed up with Desert PALM Inn when looking on Expedia/Travelocity. Their names and addresses get mixed up a lot. Don't want to be at the Desert Palm. One site has the Desert Inn and Suites at an address of 1600ish, another has the Desert Palm Inn and Suites with an address of 639ish. And some sites have differing pics of the front of each hotel. I don't even know if there ARE two different hotels, I'm just going on reviews and addresses on different sites. It's very confusing. I think I'll just call them directly. Expedia calls the one across from Disneyland Desert PALM Inn and Suites and has a great rate, but I'm nervous that it won't be the right hotel. I've caught lots of mistakes on that site......

Do you mind sharing your Priceline strategies on this thread? I got turned down for $35 and $40. Am I bidding too early? I'd love to get the Marriott, but am scared to do 2.5 stars and above, because I REALLY don't want to get stuck at the Hawthorn, as I've stayed there before and it wasn't a good experience......

disguy
08-26-2002, 11:00 AM
I'm staying at Desert Inn also. You can't beat the price or location. If you have a Entertainment card you get an even better discount. I got 1room suite with jacuzzi for 79

MammaSilva
08-26-2002, 11:01 AM
Stinkerbell, I've stayed at the Fairfield at least 10 times and had 100 percent good experiences there, but knowing you have those little legs to think about, it doesn't seem far to an adult, figure worse case you are on the back side of the hotel furtherst from the elevators....it's a good "city block" from the gates of Disneyland/DCA to the crosswalk, another city block to the DRIVEWAY of the fairfield, just past McDonalds and the satelite police center, then another city block down the driveway, into the lobby down the 'balcony/hall' to your room, we stayed at the Tropicana this last trip. It was clean, service was excellent, pool was ok, we never got to actually use it for assorted reasons, there is a little minimart Highway robbery priced store right there and it's about 100 feet down from the crossing to the entrance to the resort, it has a 'free breakfast' but that is just coffee/OJ, and a nice varity of muffins, I noticed it had milk and cold cereal available for sale but didn't check on the price since we brought our own cereal and bought milk at the You stick'm up store.

Bill Catherall
08-26-2002, 11:04 AM
stinkerbell - Maybe we can combine forces in finding the best rates. You know we'll be there at the same time, and I'm looking for the best rate at the closest hotel too. :D

I'll make a few phone calls tonight and I'll report back what I find. It's okay if we make phone calls to the same places as each other because sometimes a different clerk will give you a different rate. I think it just depends on how well they know how to work the computers. My wife used to work front desk at a Comfort Inn and she knows the "hotel lingo" so she'll know how to ask.

So when you find a good rate be sure to give me the name of the clerk so I can use it when I make a reservation. I'll do the same. :)

Edit: I should add that I'll have my wife and three kids with me. But one of the kids is a baby and will sleep in either our portable crib or a hotel crib. The other 2 kids do fine sharing a queen size bed. So we're looking for a double-queen room.

stinkerbell
08-26-2002, 11:08 AM
Thanks guys! Does anyone know anything about the Desert Palm/Desert Inn confusion? I just re-checked. There are two separate addresses, but both look similar in pictures........The Desert Palm attempts to say it's across from the Main Gate, but I know from experience that the one I've seen is the Desert Inn. This is so exasperating! I just don't want to make reservations at the wrong one.

Thanks for the feedback on the Fairfield. The Trop is also on my shortlist.....:)

Bill, you are not my ally, you are my competition, buddy. :mad: Just kidding! ;) I'll let you know what I find out! :)
~ Claire

Bill Catherall
08-26-2002, 11:09 AM
The Desert Inn that has the 1600 address is the one across from the main gate. (It's also right next door to the Park Place Inn.)

disguy
08-26-2002, 11:11 AM
Desert Palm is not across from the main gate. It's close to the old enterence from years ago. I belive it's across from the convetion center. Desert Inn is almost next door from Carousel Inn which was less then a 5min walk from the turnstiles. Just a note every time I've called Desert Palm I've had nothing but rude service.

Lacrosse Boy
08-26-2002, 11:12 AM
Ok people. . . you should put all of your reviews into the Reviews Section of the site (right under the MousePlanet logo)!

stinkerbell
08-26-2002, 11:13 AM
Originally posted by Lacrosse Boy
Ok people. . . you should put all of your reviews into the Reviews Section of the site (right under the MousePlanet logo)!
I have, but good idea! :) I was trying to find something newer than last fall......

hefferdude
08-26-2002, 11:31 AM
We've gotten adjacent rooms at Hojo's for our group.
It's an 11 minute walk to the DCA/DL center. Shuttle
service is just fine for litlle ones with short legs.
We'll be there in about 2 weeks with some first time
guests. ( woohoo!!!:D ) and then back again on 8/20;) .

Got $59/nite per room rate. Always clean and quiet.
Still on Harbor but semi-secluded now due to the new
I5 overpass approach. We prefer it just a touch off the
main path.

PS - Tried IHOP last trip and walked out. Way too crowded, and prices surprisingly too high. Backtracked to Millie's in front of Fairfield ( also a pretty good low $ choice ). Had a relaxing meal in far less crazy surroundings:cool:

Check Reviews section.

cyberRoo
08-26-2002, 11:34 AM
Just to add my 2 cents, we used to stay at the Fairfield in 4 or 5 times a year (before we lived here!) up until this year. We were always happy with it, and when we ended up in other hotels due to prices/availability, we still went back to the Fairfield Inn.

We had a few minor mishaps, but nothing that made us consider not staying there.

I realize this isn't the most current information, but we did stay there probably 20 times over 4 or 5 years, so it was consistently good over that time frame.

-A

stinkerbell
08-26-2002, 11:59 AM
Thanks all! Guess what, I made a quick decision and got a King Room at Desert Inn for $44/night ($50.50 with tax). Free continental breakfast, hair dryers, microwave, fridge and spa tub. All without any sort of discounts.

How I did it: I called and said I saw the $44 rate for an off-season king room. I checked availability with her (price is contingent on availability--more rooms available at this point, the cheaper it is) and got a quote of $50.50/night, including all taxes and fees. Told her I would call back. Reconfirmed some other rates at other hotels (most were double, incl. Park Place Inn and Trop.), then called back to Desert Inn and talked to someone new. She was not going to give me that $44 rate so easily, but since I had a quote, she gave it to me, even though I don't have any discounts or anything.

Arrrrgh! I didn't get anyone's names though, for you, Bill. But I did get you a quote. There is a 750 sq foot Parlor Family Suite, off-season rate $89, 2 rooms, 1.5 baths, living area in one room and plenty of room for a crib in another, 2 TV's, 4 queen beds total, all amenities, including spa tub. I didn't get the tax and fees quote, but it's available! Seeing as how I paid $129 for a much smaller (half this size) suite, this seems like an excellent deal. The number is 1-800-433-5270. Good luck! :)

disneyscott
08-26-2002, 01:32 PM
I work for Hilton so I get a employee rate of 39.00 evey time I stay at the Embassy Suite. But for the rest of you there rates are between $79.00-$139 a night. When you figure in the FREE parking, FREE shuttle to disney, FREE evening drinking (all you want soda, beer, wine, and hard drinks, it is well werth it.

Now here are my hotel secerets(shhh just between us)

1. Find out if they have a internet site.( rate are always cheaper if you do it your self

2. Find out the hotel cancel time and use that to your advantage

3. Call on that day, and if the rate has gone down cancel your other reservation

3. Three letter AAA even if you dont have a car this card is great
4. Never ask for AAA rate first, let them quote a rate and then ask for AAA

Remember hotels always have low rates, the question is if you can get the rates out of us, use 800 number first(they dont know of hotel's drama) then call the hotel and compare the two numbers. Then you know if you got the best deal out there

stinkerbell
08-26-2002, 02:38 PM
Thanks, disneyscott. I, too, recommend calling the hotel, instead of just booking online. If I just booked online through Expedia or Travelocity or Turbotrip, etc., I would have paid $79 for a $44 room. Same with the hotel websites. I found that many hotel sites that I could book online--the prices were higher than when I called for the same room. I called on all the nicer major hotels in the Disneyland area and compared them to Expedia, etc. prices and the hotel reservation desk was always cheaper. I even lied about dates (two weeks from now, one week from now, etc.) to see if the last minute Expedia deals were deals, and they weren't. Most of the hotels had rooms and always their rates were cheaper. BUT, I learned a lot on the travel sites about where I would like to stay in the future and where to stay away from.......

I got two more personal recommendations on the Desert Inn today, so I'm feeling really confident about our choice. :) And I'm waaaaay excited about the price and room amenities and of course, the location.

hefferdude
08-26-2002, 02:50 PM
Thanks, disneyscott. I, too, recommend calling the hotel, instead of just booking online.

Caveat Emptor.

I have made the mistake of waiting till the last minute (week)
to book during busy seasons and have been aced out particularly
of my list of preferential hotels not to mention strictly non-smoking
rooms.

The suggestion to book something early and then play the odds
with a reservation in your hand is the best bet by far.;)

Just be careful of the cancellation clauses.

HBTiggerFan
08-26-2002, 03:23 PM
I used priceline to stay in san diego. My first time using it. I bid $35/night for a 2.5 star, and ended up with Courtyard by Marriott. :D There are no cancellations, and they bill you immediality. They will tell you to bid more as your bid is really low, but go for it anyways :) You have better luck with cheaper rates closer to your date, so my suggestion is to book something, then bid while you can still cancel your origional ressie.

LubDatMouse
08-26-2002, 05:18 PM
Another great source for Disney rates is "Get Away Today" packages (800-523-6116)
Right now they are offering some sweet deals I couldn't beat with my Disney Club card or AAA
They have a wide range of rooms, rates, and locations - its worth the extra call before you arrange anything.

We got 5 days at the Park Place Inn - two queen size beds and a fold away couch (I know .. rooms aren't all that wonderful - but you can't beat the location) and two 5 day Adult Hopper Tickets for $500

Sonya in Boise
08-26-2002, 10:09 PM
I have heard some people having good luck talking to Theresa at the Desert Inn and Suites. You may also try gettting the price, then asking for the "Adventure card" discount. You can get the card for free from the Anaheim Visitors center.

Sonya

stinkerbell
08-26-2002, 10:46 PM
I'm happy with $44 a night, and being across the street and not having to worry about shuttles. They are such a hassle, esp. that last one out at night. I found when I stayed at the Park Place Inn, I was more relaxed and on "my" schedule. I guess that's why I'm not opting for Priceline. None of the hotels that usually take bids are near the "Main Gate" and all have shuttles, etc. They are all great hotels (except Hawthorn, which I'm scared I'd get), and I'd love to pay $35-$40 a night, but I'd rather pay a teeny tiny bit more and know exactly what I'm getting. There will be other times I'll use Priceline, definitely. I got a great DoubleTree room for $40 in downtown Portland to surprise the hubby for our anniversary in a few weeks. When I called the hotel or tried to book online, their cheapest room was $119 with a discount.

Glad I shopped around......:) Thanks for all the replies. I want to know how Bill did though!

Bill Catherall
08-27-2002, 07:59 AM
I called Park Place and Desert Inn. I looked up Fairfield on the internet. Park Place was the most expensive of the three. I was quoted $99 for a room with 2 double beds, or $109 for a room with 2 queens.

Desert Inn gave me a quote of $79 for a Plan A room (2 queen beds and a sofa bed).

Fairfield's website gave me $59 for a room with 1 king and a sofa bed. But Fairfield does not include a complimentary breakfast...but I've never been a fan of those free breakfasts anyway. That's also plenty of room for us. We won't be spending all that much time in the room. Just need somewhere to crash and clean up.

I'm still not sure which one to go with. How far down the street is the Fairfield Inn from the Desert Inn? How's the breakfast at the Desert Inn (they do give a complimentary breakfast don't they)?

Flynn
08-27-2002, 08:11 AM
On the Desert Palm:

I've always loved staying there, and I'm sure people have seen my posts to that effect here. Basicly, we stay there for the 6x6 spa tub and the cheap rates ($79/night for late may). It's a short walk to get into the park from the hotel, but since you can use the parking lot shuttles, it isn't too bad.

I'm not sure what the relationship is between the Desert Inn and the Desert Palm, aside from the fact that they often get confused. I do know, however, that the Desert Palm bought out the hotel next door and is going to tear it down and expand into the space.

stinkerbell
08-27-2002, 12:49 PM
Bill, according to mammasilva's above post, it's just a city block or so away. I will post an aerial photo I found on another website of the area above Harbor. It has many of the hotels marked on it.....

Okay, here she is: www.beachcalifornia.com/dlmp.html (http://www.beachcalifornia.com/dlmp.html) Hope this helps. It helped me A LOT.

I have to give credit to roberts1398. Diane, I saw this linked by you at laughingplace, and it was a life saver, thanks! :)

Bill Catherall
08-27-2002, 01:23 PM
Thanks! That picture IS very helpful. I did see mammasilva's post about it being a city block away, but a "city block" is all relative. By my reckoning, the Castle Inn is a city block away and it's almost double the distance. I've stayed there before and won't ever again (too far).

I think now the deciding factor will be the complimentary breakfast. If the one at Desert Inn is decent then I'll probably go for that. I'll end up spending more on breakfast everyday than the difference in price between the rooms (although I do want to have breakfast at least once at Goofy's...maybe we'll just bring our own breakfast for the other days.)

Decisions, decisions. ;)