HELP!! First time staying offsite

[Disneyfanatic29]

I just booked the BWPPI for 09/27-10/01/12 this is the first time my family will be staying offsite. We normally stay at the disneyland hotel but my mom used her rewards points to get the room. It will be me, DH, DS3, DS1 and my mom. I am wondering if anyone has stayed here before that could offer any reviews about the hotel we will be staying in the 2 queen mini-suite. Also it comes with a continental breakfast and I was curious if anyone has had it and what type of food it offers. I guess I am just a bit nervous trying somewhere new. Any advice is greatly appreciated. TIA

 

[aliceindisneyland]

Breakfast is next door at Captain Kidd's upstairs. Coffee, juice, milk, cereal, donuts, Danish, apples, bananas. No hot dishes but I can't recall if they offer oatmeal packets or DIY toast as we don't usually choose those items.
I always request a room close to the lobby at BWPPI; if you get stuck in the back you add about 90 secs to your walk and may as well have stayed at the Ramada

 

[Butterfly123]

We stayed there last summer, and will stay there again this summer. We had a 2Q plus sofabed minisuite. We are a family of 5 and it worked perfectly for us. It was clean, and had fairly comfortable beds, and free wifi They have recently added some hot items to their breakfast...sausage links and some egg type thing (read about it but haven't eaten their hot things yet). The pool is small, but we don't use the pool, so that wasn't important to us. The walk is amazing.

We had considered the Park Vue this summer, just to try it out, but we decided to go back to BWPPI...our experience there was very positive.

 

[Echo queen]

I will be staying at this hotel as well next month. Are any stores near by that you could purchase water, beer, and snacks.

 

[sechelt]

We used to stay at the hotels along Harbor before becoming DVC owners and this was one of our faves. If ever we couldn't get into VGC on points, we'd stay here. You can't beat the location for walking to DL and returning for an afternoon break. There's an IHOP, Denny's, McD's, Mimi's, and Millie's along that strip, all a very short walk. The store we would go to is, I think, north of BWPPI in one of the other hotels. You'll be able to see it from the sidewalk. It had pretty much everything we wanted/needed. Can't remember about alcohol but it probably had that too. It seems most of the Ca. grocery stores do.

 

[Butterfly123]

There is a 7-11 that is walking distance on Harbor, and there is a Target and Vons a short drive away.

 

[chrissiecutie]

We used to stay at the hotels along Harbor before becoming DVC owners and this was one of our faves. If ever we couldn't get into VGC on points, we'd stay here. You can't beat the location for walking to DL and returning for an afternoon break. There's an IHOP, Denny's, McD's, Mimi's, and Millie's along that strip, all a very short walk. The store we would go to is, I think, north of BWPPI in one of the other hotels. You'll be able to see it from the sidewalk. It had pretty much everything we wanted/needed. Can't remember about alcohol but it probably had that too. It seems most of the Ca. grocery stores do.

Yes, in Cali grocery stores you can buy hard liquor as well as beer & wine. I think in 7-11's too, although your selection might be severely limited.

 

[Disneyfanatic29]

Thank you everyone for the help and advice.. I appreciate it. So about how far is the walk from hotel to Disneyland entrance also is it a good idea to request a room facing Disneyland in the hopes of seeing the fireworks from the room??

 

[Butterfly123]

The walk is less than 5 minutes. I don't think it is possible to see the fireworks from any of the rooms due to the way they are facing, but I could be wrong.

 

[SomeDude78]

Thank you everyone for the help and advice.. I appreciate it. So about how far is the walk from hotel to Disneyland entrance also is it a good idea to request a room facing Disneyland in the hopes of seeing the fireworks from the room??

The walk is super short, you cross the street, walk past the bus area, and you're at the esplanade between the DLR and DCA park gates, ~5 minutes per the PP. Never stayed here so I don't know if you can see fireworks from the rooms, but you can see them easily from the esplanade. Before they start you'll see a bunch of people sitting in the esplanade facing DLR waiting for them to begin.

 

[sechelt]

We used to sit on the grass along Harbor to watch the fireworks. It's quite lovely in the evenings, except winter, and the atmosphere is very special. Everyone around you will be there for the same reason.

As for distance to the turnstiles, it's probably closer than DLH and about the same as GCH. Try Google Map it to get a better idea.

 

[redrider]

I just booked the BWPPI for 09/27-10/01/12 this is the first time my family will be staying offsite. We normally stay at the disneyland hotel but my mom used her rewards points to get the room. It will be me, DH, DS3, DS1 and my mom. I am wondering if anyone has stayed here before that could offer any reviews about the hotel we will be staying in the 2 queen mini-suite. Also it comes with a continental breakfast and I was curious if anyone has had it and what type of food it offers. I guess I am just a bit nervous trying somewhere new. Any advice is greatly appreciated. TIA

I just got home yesterday, we stayed at BWPPI, like another poster said the rooms are comfortable have a microwave & refrigerator, as well as a sofa.. They have improved the breakfast - sausages, egg patty, toast, muffins, Danish, fruit and cereal. This is our 4th time staying there, the location is the biggest selling point. They have a little gift shop in the lobby that never seems to be open, however, next door is a mini mart that is only across the drive way.

 

[NiceOneSimba]

We stayed there, too, and I will be staying there again for the Tinkerbell half marathon. It couldn't be closer! We were all the way at the end of the hotel, and I swear it still took 5 minutes to get to the gates if we didn't have to wait for the light to turn at the crosswalk.

The breakfast was adequate, but I'm excited they've added some heartier items. We never actually sat and ate there (but there was lots of seating), but I was able to bring pastries and cereal back to the room for everyone with no problem.

I thought the beds were comfortable. The mini-suite was plenty big for us. There was plenty of room for DD's Pack and Play, and the microwave and fridge were great. My husband got a couple of beers at the minimart next door. He said it was spendy, but we figured that would be the case.

 

[DisneytheKid]

There is a 7-11 that is walking distance on Harbor

Great for picking up a cocktail for the hotel room

 

[Ride Junkie]

BWPPI is the closest hotel to the crosswalk, so it's a GREAT location. We try to stay there whenever we can. It's my favorite of all the off-property locations in the area. Plus, it's a very short walk to Tony Roma's, which I miss since ours closed a few years ago.

 

[Brancaneve]

Bbwpi stands for what exactly?

 

[sechelt]

Do you mean bwppi? It's Best Western Park Place Inn.

 

[Echo queen]

We stayed there, too, and I will be staying there again for the Tinkerbell half marathon. It couldn't be closer! We were all the way at the end of the hotel, and I swear it still took 5 minutes to get to the gates if we didn't have to wait for the light to turn at the crosswalk.

The breakfast was adequate, but I'm excited they've added some heartier items. We never actually sat and ate there (but there was lots of seating), but I was able to bring pastries and cereal back to the room for everyone with no problem.

I thought the beds were comfortable. The mini-suite was plenty big for us. There was plenty of room for DD's Pack and Play, and the microwave and fridge were great. My husband got a couple of beers at the minimart next door. He said it was spendy, but we figured that would be the case.

Thanks for so many details

 

[S. S. Columbia]

... Any advice is greatly appreciated.

FWIW

At the BWPPI, I've heard that there's a preference for rooms that are located on the north side of the hotel.

Here are two quotes about the rooms at the BWPPI:

"Not sure what is in the standard rooms, but we have done a mini-suite at BWPPI three times over the last few years. They have a mini-fridge and a microwave, and of course the three queen beds (one is a roll-out). We always ask for a room on the opposite side of the hotel from the Captain Kidd's restaurant."

- HydroGuy (March 6, 2008)

“Yes, it does have an elevator. It’s slow but it works! We have stayed there a few times, and we always ask for the 3rd (upper floor), north side of the building. Much of the parking for the hotel faces in to the rooms on the bottom floor so you get headlights and car noises you won’t get as much on other floors. The north side of the building is the side away from Cpt. Kidds restaurant. I understand that they sometimes get early morning deliveries and you can hear the delivery trucks.
We stay at BWPPI because of their “mini-suites” rooms which have 2 queen beds and a fold-out couch. Last time we went we had room 369 (I think). It was about 8 – 10 room back from the front of the hotel which worked great. This is our favorite place to stay when we go to DLR.”

- VacationDad (November 21, 2008)

HTH