Benefits of staying on Disney Property?

[Misskitty3]

DH and I are already thinking of our next trip to DL....and we just got back less than a week ago (no surprise, right?)

We have stayed at the DLH and PPH and are thinking of trying the Candy Cane Inn since everyone likes it so much.

I am trying to think of what we would be "giving up" if we stayed at the CCI. Would just be the potential for extra EE days? Is there any other benefits beside ambiance that I am missing?

BTW, is CCI located by Carousel Inn and IHOP? Just wondering if it is within walking distance or do you need to rely on the shuttle service.

Thanks!!

 

[50thisyeartoo!]

I For One Like The Shops Inside The Hotels; And The Decor. You Don't Get That At Any Of The Off Site Hotels. It's Just The 'feeling' You Get When You're There. I Think It's Worth The Extra $$.

 

[wishonstars]

I've never stayed at Candy Cane Inn, but I've heard and read good things about it. Personally, I've never stayed on site at Disneyland (but I have at Disneyworld). On-site isn't usually in our Disneyland budget, and the hotels in California are so close that I don't see that much of a benefit (as opposed to Disneyworld... I can't imagine how people stay off site there... lol!).

So, in my opinion I think you are missing this...

Disney Atmosphere
Other Disney perks, like EE
Easy and quick access if you stay at the Hotel right by CA (which one is that again? lol!)

But gaining...

Hopefully some money saved in cost
A little better access to "non Disney" things and prices (ie. we usually pick up dinner, etc. at Subway or somewhere a little cheaper than on site restaurants)


If we could afford it, I would probably stay on site myself every time. In fact I'm almost afraid to try it because then I think staying off site would be a let down... lol!

 

[birdmom]

okay what is EE

 

[ScrapperKimmyD]

okay what is EE

Early Entry

 

[mundaremom]

I thoroughly enjoy staying at the PP because of that wonderful service that when you buy something in the park you can have the item delivered to the hotel the following morning and you don't have to carry those bags around the park all day! As well as Early Entry!

 

[fidoprincess]

The Disney Hotels are "full service" hotels so you will have things like the having the bellman to take your luggage and be able to order room service. You get the paper and free internet too. We stayed at CCI and it has it's big advantages mainly price and also the shuttle. DLH and PP are a far walk. When the monorail is running, we love the DLH because it is a fast in and out on the monorail bypassing the front gates and also you do get to bypass the monorail line in DL staying at the hotel. Now that it is down and we are going to have to walk it, that CCI shuttle is looking really good-lol. The only other real advantage of the DLH is the pool. My kids love the pool and the CCI is tiny in comparison but you do get breakfast there. Anyone can use the DLH's grounds, the remote boats, the arcade, the shopping but it is true that we just love the atmosphere and doing the extras like feeding the koi.

You can do what we did and try it for one night and then switch over to one of the Disney Hotels. It gave us a good feel for what staying there an extended time would be like and for us the smaller rooms and the tiny pool were the deal breaker and we were glad to move over to the DLH. Plus checking in early at the DLH give you a bit of room to negotiate if you don't like your room-lol.

 

[Misskitty3]

The Disney Hotels are "full service" hotels so you will have things like the having the bellman to take your luggage and be able to order room service. You get the paper and free internet too. We stayed at CCI and it has it's big advantages mainly price and also the shuttle. DLH and PP are a far walk. When the monorail is running, we love the DLH because it is a fast in and out on the monorail bypassing the front gates and also you do get to bypass the monorail line in DL staying at the hotel. Now that it is down and we are going to have to walk it, that CCI shuttle is looking really good-lol. The only other real advantage of the DLH is the pool. My kids love the pool and the CCI is tiny in comparison but you do get breakfast there. Anyone can use the DLH's grounds, the remote boats, the arcade, the shopping but it is true that we just love the atmosphere and doing the extras like feeding the koi.

You can do what we did and try it for one night and then switch over to one of the Disney Hotels. It gave us a good feel for what staying there an extended time would be like and for us the smaller rooms and the tiny pool were the deal breaker and we were glad to move over to the DLH. Plus checking in early at the DLH give you a bit of room to negotiate if you don't like your room-lol.

Do you have to take a shuttle from CCI to DLR or can you walk?

 

[fidoprincess]

No you don't HAVE to take the shuttle and it is an easy walk without even crossing the street! It took us about 5-10 minutes at the most with a 6 year old straggler. I would say the walk was comparable to PP walk or HoJo walk without having to cross any streets.

The shuttle is such a nice option coming back at night though when you are tired. Actually, we don't do all that great with shuttles since we always seem to be ready at the wrong time so either missed it by 5 minutes or would have had to wait longer than walking-lol. We did pop back and forth in a hurry on the shuttle in the pm I think and get the timing right. Coming back at night was a bit crowded but we all got seats together and it was fine. It comes every half hour so it is pretty frequent and should be fine for most people to get their timing down.

 

[kuusimo]

In answer to your question as to where CCI is located---it is on the same side of the street as Disneyland, not on the other side of Harbor Blvd like IHOP. Here is a map
http://www.geocities.com/ashpsyche/DisneylandLinkMap.html

Also- you still get early entry if you purchase a 3 day or more park hopper and it is on your ticket. Early Entry for the DL hotels is everyday vs. just one day on the ticket.

 

[Alex2kMommy]

Here are a couple more perks of staying onsite:

1. When the monorail is busy, I understand that onsite guests are able to board first.

2. If you stay at any onsite hotel, you can use the GCH entrance to CA. We did this a couple days from the DLH, and it's a much shorter walk, and fewer people waiting at the entrance. Sweet!

3. Free parking! (Though we had a rental car for the duration of our stay, we used it only once, so I was glad we hadn't paid for parking as well as a car we didn't use!)

4. I don't know that this is really a perk, but I just loved walking through DTD in the mornings and evenings! In the morning it's kinda quiet and the flowers and fountains are so pretty. At night it comes alive, and the sights, smells and music are such a wonderful way to end a good day.

 

[toolprincess]

We've stayed at the CCI twice- March and last week of this year. We really loved it. The shuttle runs every half hour to Disneyland (i.e. 12pm and 12:30pm) and back on the quarter hours (12:15 and 12:45). It's convenient and we just time out leaving the park for when the shuttle will be there. The pool is small, but so is the property! They have a wonderful hot tub, and a kiddie pool in addition to the big pool. Good breakfast with the best hot chocolate I've ever had, bagels, fruit, cereal, coffee, danish, etc. We always grab some apples and bananas and throw them in our stroller bag for mid-morning snacks at the park. The rooms are decorated nicely - with wood shutters, down comforters on the bed, etc. When we book through Disneyland website, it's like $100 per night. There is an ABC Store and a 7-11 right next door. I'd say walking would be comparable to PP or DLH (without the monorail running). GCH would be much closer, especially with the entrance into CA. We've toyed with the idea of splurging and staying at the GCH. But when we look at the difference in the package prices for a 3 day stay ($600!) I just can't do it - I'd rather have more money to spend in the park!!!!!!!!!!

Henderson Family in NM

March 2006 & just earlier this week! Got home yesterday!

 

[abby]

We have stayed at the DLH twice and last time stayed at HOJO's. Well, off site was fine, walk was about the same (and since the monorial was down that wouldn't have helped) food was cheaper off site, and the place was fine.

that said, both my dd6 and I missed staying at the DLH, We missed the walk through downtown disney, we missed the disney magic we missed the wonderful grounds, and well, it just wasn't quite the same.

However, for savings, we paid for the trip (1200 for airfaire, hotel, and tickets, vs. 600 more for DLH) I would stay off site again if it allows us to go more often.

(I'm not much help, am I )

Moral of my story, if you can afford it, DLH is great, if it is the difference between not going and going, off site is great also.

 

[disney-super-mom]

I'm not sure if we'll ever stay off-site again. It's just not the same AT ALL.

We LOVE the Disney hotels that we've stayed at so far (haven't stayed at the GCH yet) for all the same reasons that others have said, but the one huge perk for us at the Disney hotels to win us over from now on - the pools with WATER SLIDES!

Every afternoon and evening during our last trip to DL (in October) our kids spent hours at the PPH pool deck, swimming and sliding. You just can't find that anywhere else but at the Disney hotels. It really made our trip special, gave DH and I time to relax a little and get off our feet, and yet our kids could continue to have a BLAST even though we weren't in the parks.

 

[funhouse8]

We stayed at the DisneyGCH & the most wonderful perk was The morning power walk with a CM in the park before it opens. It was so great to walk around the park in the morning watching the Cast Members arrive for a wonderful day. Other thing that we were able to do was get into DCA an 1/2 hour before everyone else and ride Soaring in the front row before the park even opened. WooHoo, You can't beat that!

 

[jemilah]

I stayed at the DLH for the first time last May and I never want to stay any where else. We even walked through the GC and I think DLH is more Disney , so it is my favorite. I wish the DLH sold their comforters in one of the shops , it has many rides on it in a subtle pattern , all the Disney touches are so beautiful!

 

[Alex2kMommy]

That's funny you mention the comforter. I thought they were pretty homely when I saw them, but DS6 said one day that he LOVED the comforter. I was puzzled until he told me it had "pictures" of the rides on it, and he thought that was pretty neat!

 

[brandonbr]

Just my thoughts, last month was the first time I stayed on property and it is different. If you never have done it before you should. I stayed at PP which was a short walk and I never thought it was too far, even with a 2 year old nephew. We stayed for 6 days 5 nights and not having to go off property once was really, really fun. Next time I go I will check prices at PP and if it's not too much different ($20-$30 a night) I'd stay on property in a heart beat.