Annabella (vs. Paradise Pier)?

[micheluvscorgis]

A stay at Annabella puts us safely within our budget. Paradise Pier is definitely outside of our budget...but still conceivable.

We are used to WDW, but DL is brand new to us. We gather staying on-site isn't quite the big deal at DL as it is at WDW. So we are relying on your feedback!

Things to consider: we are traveling for five nights in mid-October with two little boys, ages five and six. We are not planning on renting a car, and trekking back and forth from the park before/after a long day on foot with two tired boys seems taxing. We sold our strollers!

So is staying at Annabella going to be a worthwhile experience, or are we better off splurging or the "full Disney experience?". We are all about a good bargain (saving almost $1000 staying off-site), but we recognize the overall cost of these decisions.

I really appreciate your help! We have to make our decision quickly.

 

[StyledSugar]

I've never stayed at the Annabella but have stayed at PPH so I can give you my opinion on that if it helps.

I have stayed off-site everytime I've gone until our last trip where we spent a couple of nights at PPH. Like you, we are budget travellers and never thought anything of staying off-site until we stayed at PPH. We LOVED it!! The experience is fantastic. Not to sound too cheesy but you really do continue the Disney magic by staying on-site.

The walk is quite quick through the Grand Californian and then you hop the monorail to the park. It was great!

We actually booked into the Del Sol for our Christmas vacation and just switched to PPH today for the 8 nights. Yes, it's about $1,400 more than the Del Sol but we bit the bullet and booked. We know we won't regret it because it's a fantastic hotel!

Whatever you decide, enjoy your trip!!

 

[BlueBayou]

The Annabella is not one of the hotels we have stayed at (all three on site properties and 6 on harbor).

We really liked our stay at Paradise Pier last October. If we were ranking DL hotels it would be GCH, PPH, DLH. Our experience at the DLH was just meh.

I would recommend PPH. But it is not like WDW. We stayed at POFQ there and those hotels are so much more immersive (exception - GCH).

The price difference seems significant to me (when you add on resort and parking fees it is even more). I would probably go for the less expensive. (But I just booked a free hotel using reward points that is further away than I would like, does not have breakfast and charges for parking - so I might not be the best resource. I am it a cheep mood right now)

 

[Eeee-va]

I've never stayed at the Annabella but reviews seem to be kind of mixed. I think I'd personally probably take one of the nice hotels on Harbor over the Annabella, though Best Western Stovalls is pretty popular (I believe it's across the street from the Annabella, so about the same walk).

The walk to the Annabella is SIMILAR to the walk to the PPH, only longer. It's a nicer walk than to most of the hotels on Harbor...but again, longer.

 

[MickeyFan18]

We have stayed at the Annabella a few times. It is a pretty nice place, but also pretty quiet. We had a minor issue with rates as we were quoted one and charged another so make sure you really read the papers before you sign them. We stayed there when we were visiting the convention center and that was a convenient walk, but the walk to the park was a bit longer. Take the back route passing PPH and shoot through GCH and its not too bad. To me, I'd rather save the money on the room and buy more souvenirs.

 

[bumbershoot]

I love both! I believe we have stayed at each the same number of times, and have had good experiences. OK, my very first time at PPH wasn't, but that was b/c I was a newbie, and I didn't know the proper shortcut. Kept following the *signs*, which told us to go out the side and alllll the way through the mall (AKA Downtown Disney...ps, I hate malls, even outdoor ones, especially with a husband and a then-3-year-old-son with major cases of the "I wants"). Exhausting!

PPH: go out the *front*. Turn left, go to the crosswalk. Cross. Go through front door of the Grand, turn left for Disneyland (follow hallway, turn right and go along path outside, enter DTD more than halfway through, turn right to get to esplanade), or go straight through the lobby and follow the signs for DCA. Enjoy ambiance of lobby when you have the time. As an onsite guest you get the benefit of the Grand's entrance to DCA, in case you didn't know that. It puts you out right around Grizzly.

I love the cast members there, the store is nice, it's just bright and cheery and pretty. The pool is basic, but I find that kids just want WATER. Their slide is not attached to the pool, it ends in a shallow bit of water, and so it can be not as scary for kids or their parents for the kids to use the slide.



Anabella is down the street from PPH. It is an immensely pleasant walk past the PPH (ignoring the MASSIVE intersection at Katella...sometimes I think it takes an hour to cross, it is truly huge). If you look at the satellite or hybrid view of that walk (beyond the sidewalk) on googlemaps, you will see that the walk is curvy, and that it's because you're walking in half of a gigantic "hidden" Mickey. The walk from Anabella to PPH is probably 5 minutes at a brisk pace in the morning, and longer in the evening. You might want to borrow the stroller back for at least the 5 year old. (or maybe consider renting one for the park, just in case, to conserve energy for later on.) (DS didn't use a stroller at home except for my jogger when I was jogging, but we used a for-disney-only Volo through being 5 at Disneyland...brought it to WDW when he was 6, he never touched it)

I've always had the "good" rooms at Anabella. Resist being put at the BACK of the property; that's where the complaints seem to come in. Stay towards the front. Hardwood floors (carpet in a hotel has never been the same to me since I first stayed there, just seems dirty), lovely room, etc etc. The staff has always been lovely to me. The breakfast food could be better, but we were having an extremely bad couple of days when I tried it (NO fault of theirs), so it might have been me.

The walk is quite quick through the Grand Californian and then you hop the monorail to the park. It was great!

FWIW, unless you are starting your day in Tomorrowland or beyond, that's probably more of a walk than just walking to the gates from the Grand exit into DTD. And when we tried it during our first stay, the monorail was ALWAYS down. Which made us late for everything. And more than a little cranky.

The price difference seems significant to me (when you add on resort and parking fees it is even more).

PPH doesn't charge resort fees anymore; they only charge for parking. Anabella charges for parking, too, and I do not *think* they have a resort fee. Since the OP won't have a car, the parking fees won't be a problem.

 

[Stinkerbell1973]

This has been immensely helpful to read! Thank you so much!
We too have our first DL trip booked (WDW fanatics in this house) in mid October as well and we are currently booked at the Fairfield. Just yesterday, I called DL to see if they offered AAA discounts on the rooms. Sure enough, they do! The discount for PPH put us within 250 of what we were paying at the Fairfield. I've read many great reviews about FFI,, but I am going to call today and switch us over to PPH. In all our trips to WDW, we've not once stayed off property. My family is such a sucker for the full immersion.
And thanks for the tips about getting through the GC to get to the parks. And we can use that special entry to DCA? Sweet!

 

[StyledSugar]

FWIW, unless you are starting your day in Tomorrowland or beyond, that's probably more of a walk than just walking to the gates from the Grand exit into DTD. And when we tried it during our first stay, the monorail was ALWAYS down. Which made us late for everything. And more than a little cranky.

.

We never had any issues at all. We did stay the last couple of nights of our trip so avoiding the lines at the gate and getting right into the park was what we wanted so the monorail was perfect for us. We also found it very handy for a quick jaunt back to the hotel for an afternoon and then back again at night. When we go back at Christmas we will be doing the first morning through the front gates just to take it all in but the rest of our trip we will no doubt be jumping on the monorail.

 

[AnabellaAnaheim]

If you choose to stay at Anabella, please let me know and I'll make sure we take great of you.

We are a little further away from Disneyland than Paradise Pier, but we've got some great amenties (including a restaurant that has Happy Hour every day and two pools). If you don't feel like walking the 10 minutes to Disneyland, the ART shuttle is also available for a small fee.

Have a great vacation!

 

[Disneyanajc]

If you choose to stay at Anabella, please let me know and I'll make sure we take great of you.

We are a little further away from Disneyland than Paradise Pier, but we've got some great amenties (including a restaurant that has Happy Hour every day and two pools). If you don't feel like walking the 10 minutes to Disneyland, the ART shuttle is also available for a small fee.

Have a great vacation!

I do hope the staff at the restaurant is better....I swore I would never "eat"
there again...slow slow slow slow service, indifferent waiter and staff. Had to ask for everything...water, napkins, and when our food would be ready. Over an hour from the time we ordered to when we told our waiter and the manager we were no longer going to wait, after being told "just a few more minutes"....we left. Our family members that were staying there have never gone back.

 

[Rubygoose]

We have stayed at the Annabella a few times. It is a pretty nice place, but also pretty quiet. We had a minor issue with rates as we were quoted one and charged another so make sure you really read the papers before you sign them. We stayed there when we were visiting the convention center and that was a convenient walk, but the walk to the park was a bit longer. Take the back route passing PPH and shoot through GCH and its not too bad. To me, I'd rather save the money on the room and buy more souvenirs.

We had reservations for Annabella last year for our trip in September. A travel agent suggested them because they are "across the street from Disneyland." however, i didn't find out until later how far away they actually are from the entrance. We booked the hotel in May and was quoted a specific rate and got email confirmation. Then, two weeks before our trip, I got an email from them with "revised" rates for our 6 night stay, and each night was $2 more, which doesn't sound like much, but that adds up to an extra $12 plus tax on top of that. So, I called and was on hold for a long time, and they said they would honor the rate I was quoted originally. Well, 2 days later I get another email with my revised rates, and they were still going to charge me an extra $12. So I called again and this time a very rude woman told me that the $2 is a fee that has now been factored into the rate. Apparently it used to be added on afterwards and I "would have to pay it anyway, one way or another." And then she hung up on me! I was so outraged by the way I was treated that I found a much cheaper motel on Harbour and cancelled the reservation 10 days before our trip. Saved me $600 (at least, with all the hidden fees! And I also didn't want to pay $10 a day for wifi!) and gave me a lot more piece of mind.

 

[bumbershoot]

We had reservations for Annabella last year for our trip in September. A travel agent suggested them because they are "across the street from Disneyland."

I really hate that so many hotels say that. I mean sure, they are across a street (from DCA, not 'land, of course), but unless you're willing to climb a fence and get arrested, you're not getting in that way. But they really all say that stuff, and it makes me so annoyed.



That extra fee thing is annoying, too. But I guess they all say that sort of stuff, that rates or fees can vary until you're there. My DLH confirmation includes "subject to change" in the fees area, too.

 

[DSNY4ever]

Where do you usually stay in WDW? If you usually stay Deluxe, you probably will want something like PPH. Are you planning on spending time at the hotel or is it just for sleeping?

Keep in mind that nothing around Disneyland is quite as nice as the WDW properties (not even as nice as the values IMO). Because in WDW you are in a bubble even at the value resorts. The Anabella *is* a motel and it *is* in a city with diners, gas stations, people commuting to work, and real life existing around it.

With that being said I think the Anabella is usually a pretty good choice for off property. And I don't mind the walk (it is only a few minutes farther than the PPH). $1000 is a huge savings in my book and as long you understand what you are getting I think you would be very happy there. Imagine what you could do with $1000!

 

[damo]

We love the PPH. We love the big rooms, the short walk through the GCH, walking through Downtown Disney. It is all just lovely.

 

[AnabellaAnaheim]

I do hope the staff at the restaurant is better....I swore I would never "eat"
there again...slow slow slow slow service, indifferent waiter and staff. Had to ask for everything...water, napkins, and when our food would be ready. Over an hour from the time we ordered to when we told our waiter and the manager we were no longer going to wait, after being told "just a few more minutes"....we left. Our family members that were staying there have never gone back.

Most of the diners at our restaurant have a great experience. I'd love to help change your opinion.

 

[teach1abc]

We stayed at the Anabella several years ago when my son was 3. We were in the room that had a small room with a daybed attached which was nice so my son could take a nap without being in the main room. We felt that the walk was a LONG walk to Disney! Luckily we figured that out here on the boards. We ended up buying our park hoppers at AAA because it came with a free parking pass so we drove to the Disneyland parking structure and took the tram to the gates.

When we were there in March, the hotels onsite were really expensive so we decided to stay on Harbor at the Park Vue Inn. The location was great because it is right across the street from where you enter in to the Disney property. We have read mixed reviews about that property on here but we decided to give it a try. We stayed in a suite on the second floor that had a full kitchenette. We felt it worked out well for us and didn't have any complaints.

 

[micheluvscorgis]

YAY! We just booked our stay at the PPH!!! We got a pretty decent package through Southwest, so we decided to just go for the air/hotel package now and pay for the park tickets separately once our trip gets a little closer (looking into AAA and Entertainment book as possible discount options), so we are are reallllly looking forward to our Fall Break now! Thank you so much for all of your help!