Disney's Hotels.

[SanFranciscan]

I recently joined a message board intended for families who homeschool at Disneyland. Don't you wish Disneyland had been your classroom? They have been talking about their experiences with the Disney-owned hotels at Disneyland and apparently mostly not liking those at the Grand Californian.

To the best of my knowledge, there are still just the three Disney hotels at Disneyland. Have you stayed at any of these? What was your impression? Which did you like best if you have stayed at more than one of them?

 

[DangerMouse]

I'm not sure if your question is directed to other homeschoolers, or the entire board, but I'm a homeschooling Mom and have stayed at the Disneyland Hotel and the Grand Californian. I'll be staying with a friend at the PPH in a couple weeks.

While the proximity and theming of the resort hotels is nice, I cannot justify spending the money they charge for a place to sleep. I was especially disappointed with the GCH. The room was tiny and the best part about it was the lobby (which can be enjoyed by non-guests as well). The DLH was fun for us because we were upgraded to a DTD view room. It was nice, but even at a discounted rate, not worth it.

My preferred hotel is Howard Johnson -- at an ent. rate of $54, it's the smart choice for this homeschooling family.

 

[Krissy Marissy]

I have stayed at all three many many times and I personally love all three of them. I always stay at the GCH if there is room. I think it is an atmosphere thing to me. I like knowing I am still on disney property. That is just me.

 

[Disney_Villain]

The GC is the best. We like the PP and DL hotels (and still use them), but they do not compare to the splendor of the GC. We are hoping to buy into the GC Villas (DVC) when they are available.

I was more impressed by the GC than by ANY of the Deluxe WDW hotels or any of the Paris DL hotels (except perhaps AKL in WDW, but that's understandable as the same architect drew up both AKL and the GC). The GC is a gem, in terms of lobby and the room theming!

Staying offsite - at Disneyland or Disney World - has never been an option for us as the Disney hotel have the "magic" that non-Disney hotels do not have. What I mean by "magic" is this: The cast who work at the hotels who make our stays magical, the lovely gift shops and the ability to walk between the parks and your resort. We like having the "magic" right outside our balcony window, to look upon - and not see a McDonalds and a gas station.

 

[SanFranciscan]

Thank you. My household knows that we will be staying on property if we return to Disney World. At the Disneyland trip that we are planning, we are not so sure. We were pretty content at the Carousel Inn in 2006, even though there was construction going on there at the time, so that is a possibility again. My husband was very enchanted by the Candy Cane based on what he saw of it while we were staying at the Carousel so that is a strong possibility. We did see the lobby of the Grand California, but that is all we saw of it.

No, by the way, I am not a homeschooler. I am just on their message board because I am a big supporter of homeschooling. I am myself a product of the public school system. The education I got there was better than nothing, but I don't think that it was very good. I would have appreciated gaining more mathematics and language skills and could really have done without all of the social engineering that went on there. The homeschoolers meeting each other are learning real engineering.