Hyatt Place or Days Inn?

[madelyn]

We are usually Disney World visitors who always stay onsite although I have been to Disneyland a handful of times for day trips before marriage/kids and about 9 years ago we took our boys who were 8 and 5 at the time to Disneyland and we stayed at a Residence Inn and accessed the parks by shuttle. We now have 3 kids who will be 17 (boy), 13 (boy) and 8 (girl) at the time of the trip. We are squeezing in a visit to Disneyland when we are in the area for my nephew's wedding this summer. We will be joined by my adult sister at Disneyland. The first night all 6 of us will be spending the night but my oldest son and I will probably fly home early and not be there for the second night. I don't want to spend too much but prefer to be able to walk to the parks and want to be able to cancel for a full refund since our plans aren't firm. I made a reservation for two 2 queen bed rooms at the Days Inn on 1111 South Harbor for around $400 for the 2 nights total under the AARP rate. It seems to get mixed reviews due to age, quality of beds and breakfast and customer service but we aren't that picky as long as it is clean and safe. I then found the Hyatt Place Anaheim and under a Government Contractor's rate, I was able to reserve a room with a set of bunks in a area separated by French doors, a king bed and a sofa sleeper. The price was only about $25 more due total to their daily parking fee. Hyatt Place seems to be the clear winner since it sounds like it is a 10 min vs 15 min walk for Days Inn. It is much newer, breakfast is better and overall the reviews are better. But, we could be kinda crowded that first night with only 1 bathroom for the 6 of us and since I don't think anyone will want to share the sofa bed, we might have to share the king bed w/ my 8 year old if we aren't able to get a rollaway or no one is willing to sleep on the floor. It is all one larger, separated room instead of 2 hotel rooms, so less privacy for my sister who will have to sleep in one of the bunk beds in the alcove w/ one of my kids or on the sofa sleeper. She would get her own bed at Days Inn but would be sharing the room w/ at least one of my kids. Any advice for anyone who has stayed in either property?

 

[jeaneg]

We're at the Hyatt Place now. We're very happy with it. It's very clean and has a great breakfast. It takes us about 15 minutes to walk to the park, but we normally walk across the street to the Toy Story lot and catch the bus.

 

[madelyn]

We're at the Hyatt Place now. We're very happy with it. It's very clean and has a great breakfast. It takes us about 15 minutes to walk to the park, but we normally walk across the street to the Toy Story lot and catch the bus.

Jean, good to know you guys are happy with the Hyatt Place. So will the hotel let you park before you check in or check in early? We will drive over on Sunday after spending the night at a hotel near my nephew's wedding venue site. Not sure what time check-in is and it sounded like some people who stayed at the Days Inn where I also made a reservation at, complained that they were not allowed to check in early and parking at the hotel was free but there weren't enough spaces. So I imagine us paying to park at the parks, then driving to the hotel after the parks close and there is no parking at the hotel! But since the Hyatt Place charges for parking, I really don't want to pay to park at the parks AND the hotel. I guess another option is to spend Saturday night at the Hyatt Place so we are in a better position to get an early start in the parks on Sunday. But when I was thinking we would stay at the Days Inn, I was wanting to limit my time there as much as possible!

 

[brandoncozart]

we just got back from our trip and used the Hyatt Place as our base for Disneyland. the hotel is great, the staff are very friendly and accommodating, the free breakfast is awesome, and getting to the parks is super easy.

we're regular WDW visitors as well, and this was our first visit to Disneyland. the distance from the Hyatt Place to the parks feels a lot closer than having to walk to the bus depot and then to the depths of your resort to get back to your room at WDW (the rooms we've stayed in at WDW always seem to be the farthest from any of the resort bus stops!). one thing we really liked about the walk from the Hyatt Place to the parks is that you pass a CVS, so you can make a quick stop to get bottled water or anything else you might need for the day before heading in.

 

[madelyn]

we just got back from our trip and used the Hyatt Place as our base for Disneyland. the hotel is great, the staff are very friendly and accommodating, the free breakfast is awesome, and getting to the parks is super easy.

we're regular WDW visitors as well, and this was our first visit to Disneyland. the distance from the Hyatt Place to the parks feels a lot closer than having to walk to the bus depot and then to the depths of your resort to get back to your room at WDW (the rooms we've stayed in at WDW always seem to be the farthest from any of the resort bus stops!). one thing we really liked about the walk from the Hyatt Place to the parks is that you pass a CVS, so you can make a quick stop to get bottled water or anything else you might need for the day before heading in.

You aren't kidding about WDW being much more spread out. I love how close Disneyland and DCA are to one another. It is similar to the Universal Parks in FL. I imagine it would be easy to make quick stops back at the room during the day if you are staying at the Grand Californian which won't happen at WDW (unless maybe you stay at the monorail loop hotels and are going to the Magic Kingdom or Epcot to the Epcot resorts). Our last visit was to AKL and there's no going back to the room during the day unless it is to/from Animal Kingdom. So you guys did the full walk to the park from the Hyatt Place? And was it more like 10 minutes or more like 15? I'm thinking it might be 15 since we will have an 8 year old along. But at least the heat won't be as bad as WDW and there is the option to walk over from the Toy Story lot. How far is the walk from the Toy Story lot to the hotel?

 

[brandoncozart]

the Toy Story lot is literally across the street from the Hyatt Place. the entrance is maybe a 2 minute walk. there's also public transportation with stops really close to the Hyatt. you can buy all-you-can-ride 1-day passes for $5/person ($2 for your 8 year old).

the walk really was only about 10-15 minutes depending on the stoplights, and that was at a pretty leisurely pace. close enough that my wife went back for some rest and pool time which, as you said, seemed impossible at WDW.

 

[madelyn]

the Toy Story lot is literally across the street from the Hyatt Place. the entrance is maybe a 2 minute walk. there's also public transportation with stops really close to the Hyatt. you can buy all-you-can-ride 1-day passes for $5/person ($2 for your 8 year old).

the walk really was only about 10-15 minutes depending on the stoplights, and that was at a pretty leisurely pace. close enough that my wife went back for some rest and pool time which, as you said, seemed impossible at WDW.

So happy to hear that. I think my daughter can handle a two minute walk no matter how tired she is. So the parking shuttles to/from the Toy Story lot are pretty frequent? We will likely be able to walk the full 10 to 15 minutes, at least going TO the park. At the end of the park day, not so sure. And while going back to the room at WDW isn't impossible, if relying on WDW transport, it could take a good 2 hours just to get to and from your resort with wait times! This is definitely a plus over the Days Inn which I think was a bit further walk. They have their own free shuttle transportation but it isn't very frequent and doesn't hold many people.

 

[jeaneg]

We parked the car at the Hyatt Place at 7:30 a.m. and headed to the parks. I'm not sure we saved time by taking the bus to/from the Toy Story lot, but it was nice to sit! There was a long line for a bus when we left right after the fireworks, but otherwise we were able to get right on a bus. Different members of my family walked a total of 5 times. Very doable, but didn't want to push the 5 and 10 year old too much.

My whole family agrees we'll stay here again unless we get a great deal on one of the Disney hotels. We're paying $129 plus tax and parking for 2 queen beds and a queen pull-out sofa.

 

[madelyn]

We parked the car at the Hyatt Place at 7:30 a.m. and headed to the parks. I'm not sure we saved time by taking the bus to/from the Toy Story lot, but it was nice to sit! There was a long line for a bus when we left right after the fireworks, but otherwise we were able to get right on a bus. Different members of my family walked a total of 5 times. Very doable, but didn't want to push the 5 and 10 year old too much.

My whole family agrees we'll stay here again unless we get a great deal on one of the Disney hotels. We're paying $129 plus tax and parking for 2 queen beds and a queen pull-out sofa.

We're familiar with the Hyatt Place room layout since we stayed at one about 3 years ago in another location. At that location or maybe at that time, I don't recall any hot items at the breakfast but I do remember everything being fresh and the decor was very nice. As a family of 5 who can't fit in a standard room, I'm glad that this larger occupancy option exists. Much more affordable than getting 2 rooms. I think I was skipping over this Hyatt Place since the regular/non-discounted rate was coming up over $200 a night and I didn't realize there was a bunk bed option. My 3 kids prefer not to share beds. Looks like I will cancel that Days Inn reservation. I can't see any advantage to staying there other than the extra bathroom. Thanks for everyone's input.

 

[jeaneg]

There were pancakes or French toast every morning, and I also saw sausages and scrambled eggs. Breakfast wasn't crowded early, but it was a zoo when we went down later on our non-Disney days.