Tell me about The Anabella Hotel

[Magalex]

I don't see or have read very many reviews or info about the Anabella? Are there any fans out there? The hotel looks nice from the Website. How far is the walk to the parks & is it well lit at night? It will be our first visit next summer. We have one 12 yr DS. I see they have rooms with one Queen & one daybed. What is the daybed like? Our DS is an avg 12 yr old boy(not too big & not too small in height) How is customer service?

 

[KalamityJane]

I haven't stayed at the Anabella but stayed at Stovall's which is very close. The walk is beautiful at night, it is tree lined and they have Christmas lights on the tree trunks - it is magical!

It takes about 17-20 minutes if you go up, cut under the monorail and through DTD and end up at the turnstiles. Maybe 12-15 minutes (from Stovalls, so Anabella might be on the longer end of these) if you cut through GCH. We walked down Harbor and I did not like it half as much - it didn't feel as safe and was noisy.

 

[T0rrent]

I stayed once at the Anabella for Blizzcon 3 years ago I believe. It's a nice enough hotel, but honestly I felt like it wasn't really much better then the Best Western the wife and I stayed at the following year that was like a block or two further down on Ketella.

 

[MagicMomma1]

We stayed at the Annabella for 5 nights in Oct. '10.

While the customer service was decent, we felt that the room was definitely NOT as nice or spacious as depicted on the website (had the QN bed with daybed, daybed is in a separate, almost closet-like, little room which also housed the mini-fridge; daybed should sleep 12 yr old comfortably).

The bathroom was tiny with horrible fluorescent lighting, dingy tile, and paint peeling off the woodwork. Despite the fact that we got a deal thru a travel website, we really didn't feel it was worth what we paid and think the high season prices are OUTRAGEOUS for what you get.

Blizzcon was going on while we were there and one of the nights we had convention goers partying directly above us and had to call the front desk about them at 2am. Thought the hotel was a bit noisy in general (can hear neighboring showers, hairdryers, ppl travelling up to the 2nd floor).

When we got there, we did the "Bedbug Check" and didn't find anything (other than quite a bit of dust) so we felt safe but since then have read a number of bed bug reports occuring at the Annabella which freaks me out.

Frankly, I wouldn't stay there again. We've stayed at the local Days Inn & Suites the past 3 times we've been back to Anaheim and prefer it hands down over the Annabella for cleanliness, quietness, customer service, and affordability.

 

[AnaheimHotelGirl]

The Anabella is a nice property. There are two pools (including one just for adults), a great restaurant with a bar that has Happy Hour every day, and a nice tropical feel. There are several different types of rooms ranging from small to famiily size suites. It is clean and the whole resort is non-smoking,.

 

[bumbershoot]

I adore the Anabella!

We've stayed there three times, and had lovely stays each time. Well, wait, the second wasn't lovely because DS got horribly tummy-sick in the middle of the night (a bug had been going around the family reunion we had just been to, and DS was the last one hit by it) and we weren't able to go to the park the next day, definitely did not make our flight that same evening, got to stay at Anabella one more night, and then had to go recuperate at my brothers' in SoCal for over a week. While the circumstances weren't good, the staff there were as nice as can be, giving me the same good rate I'd gotten for the one night, and I think they waived one days' parking or internet fee (can't recall exactly).

I find the rooms to be quite beautiful. Hardwood floors in all the rooms we've been in, lovely bathrooms in the last two rooms (I cannot remember what the first bathroom was like...might have been bad, might have been great, don't know!). First time was in a normal room, last two times were in suites that we loved.

The pool is really pretty. They let DH take a drink to-go from the bar to bring back to me when I didn't want to pay the extra charges for room service from the bar. The staff are always there at the lobby door to open it for me. A bell guy was gracious when I didn't have cash to tip him with, and again gracious when I came back with money to tip him! (didn't grumble or express shock or surprise, respectively, which I appreciated)

We like the place a LOT!

 

[NiceOneSimba]

I've stayed at the Anabella twice, when I was in town for a convention. We stayed there because it was pretty convenient to the convention center, which was our priority.

The property is quite large, and has multiple buildings. It seems from reading reviews that some of the buildings/room configurations are better than others.

The first stay was in the building by the "adult pool," behind the lobby. It is right on Katella, but I didn't notice too much road noise. THe room I was in had the hardwood floors and a very nice bathroom.

The second trip, my group and I were in a bunch of Mission Suites, in the first building across from the lobby. I thought the rooms were pretty good sized. Our fridge was not in the little daybed room, which IS small.

I have really liked this hotel both times I've stayed. The grounds are lovely, the rooms have been clean, the beds are comfy, the service has been good.

The walk is a bit long for my liking, but if you go through the Grand Californian, it's not bad. I've even walked back the looooong way so I could get a Slurpee at the 7-11 on my way back from the parks, and felt completely safe.

I think most people just prefer to be closer to the parks, which is why you don't hear a ton about it. But I'd stay there again.

 

[AnabellaAnaheim]

Thanks so much everyone, for your kind words about our hotel.

I'm happy to answer any questions anyone has. I obviously work for Anabella (social media), but I'm also a lifelong Disney fan.

For me one of the coolest things about being here is walking out front to see California Screamin' and the Fun Wheel.

 

[Magalex]

Thanks so much everyone, for your kind words about our hotel.

I'm happy to answer any questions anyone has. I obviously work for Anabella (social media), but I'm also a lifelong Disney fan.

For me one of the coolest things about being here is walking out front to see California Screamin' and the Fun Wheel.

What is the most common reserved room for families of 2 adults & one child(pre-teen)? Is there a room location that I should request? We will be first-timers to SoCal.

 

[NiceOneSimba]

What is the most common reserved room for families of 2 adults & one child(pre-teen)? Is there a room location that I should request? We will be first-timers to SoCal.

There are a couple of different suites that have a separate tiny bedroom with a twin bed in it. Some have queens in the main room; some have kings. I know that when my daughter is older I would totally consider those rooms. There's something to be said for being able to shut the door and have some space of your own! ;-)

I've stayed in the Mission Suites. Those have a king bed, a sofa that pulls out in the main room, and the "daybed" (it's a twin) in the little bedroom. I thought the location was fine.

 

[AnabellaAnaheim]

You might want to look into getting a Casita Suite. It's two rooms. The larger room has a queen sized bed and then there's a small second room with a daybed. There's also a second television which is great with a pre-teen.

Please let me know if there's anything else I can help with.

 

[keahgirl8]

I actually just got back from there! I really liked it! I never did the walk, but I used the ART shuttle. There is a stop just outside the Annabella. The room was nice and clean. They could probably use a refurb, but it was fine. The way the buildings are situated, you feel more off the beaten path, so you aren't away from the magic as much as some other Good Neighbor hotels. My favorite part was the staff. They were FANTASTIC. Very polite, friendly and helpful. There was nearly always someone there to hold the door open for me and greet me, coming and going. I am planning on staying there during the D23 Expo next year.

 

[AnabellaAnaheim]

Thanks Keah! I'm so glad you had a great visit with us. Anabella is a D23 partner so when you call in to make your reservation be sure to ask for the D23 member discount (20% off).

 

[Magalex]

Just showed the official hotel website to my DH. He thinks it looks like a very nice place to stay besides staying at the DL hotels. Plus with the bonus of ART stop at front. We can walk to the parks or take the bus. How is the ART from the Anabella? Will we have to wait long in between buses if we miss one? We are use to the WDW bus transportation.

 

[DSNY4ever]

We have stayed here once a few years ago and had a good experience and we are about to stay again November- so hopefully it is still good! We booked the Casita Suite, and found a good AAA rate on their website, I think it was about $93 per night. I am hoping we can fit DS's pack n play in the room with the daybed since he is too little to actually use the daybed.

The walk through the Grand and downtown disney is about 15 minutes and not bad (IMO). The property is nice, but keep in mind if this is your first visit to Anaheim that this is really a motel rather than a hotel (as are pretty much all properties in walking distance).

AnabellaAnaheim can I ask if you guys have cribs available? Is there a fee? Do you know if one will fit in the daybed room of the Casita Suite?

 

[Ingrid0382]

I'm not a fan.

We stayed there during the Leap Year celebration. When we arrived, our room was way, way in the back in a really run down section of the motel. We weren't planning on spending a ton of time in our room, so it wasn't a huge deal. But I think because it was so far away from the desk people were just acting like lunatics. Plus, every time someone turned a faucet on near our room it was like someone opened out door and started screeching.

Our 16 month old was woken up all night by people coming and going. We got a massive scratch on our vehicle and even after we called to report a specific room that had pot smoke billowing out of it, it continued. We were apologized to and told that if we stayed another night with Anabella, we would receive a low rate with free parking and an upgraded room. We were exhausted at that point and didn't feel like driving back so tired, so we took the overnight manager up on her offer.

The next day we met a family who had been offered the same rate upon booking. So it wasn't even a consolation rate, just trying to keep people in the motel after the Leap Year thing was over but we were told it was "special" to keep us happy. We had to keep everything in our car the next day until our "upgraded" room was ready (which wasn't until 5pm when we got the call and we were in the parks at that point) and when we came back to settle in, it was incredibly loud to the point where we couldn't get our baby to sleep.

We aren't picky when it comes to rooms or hotels, we just like to save money and can settle with pretty much anything. But the guests at the pool were literally screaming. Not laughing and yelling, screaming, and there were obscenities flying.

I called the desk and the operator was apologetic before I'd even really said anything and told me that she couldn't control the guests and their behavior, but she knew if was horrible. I told the manager that if this was the norm, then we couldn't stay there and we would like to leave without being charged.

We headed to Hojo and crashed. When I emailed the Anabella about our experience, I received a curt and irritated response telling me he (it was signed by a man) had no idea what I was talking about and that I would need to provide more information, after I had written in great detail about how disappointed we were with our stay. I didn't even bother writing back.

Again, we really try to focus on the best rate during our visit so that we have more money to come back next time, but even when the Anabella offered the lowest rate for whatever our needs were, we've passed.

Best Western Stovalls is right next door. They're cheaper and offer breakfast. They even knocked off our parking fee (which was lower than the Anabella's) when they realized we had been booked in a room close to the ice machine and the staff was incredibly friendly. Stovalls isn't my first choice for hotels, but for the sake of booking within the same distance I would pick it over Anabella, hands down.

The only good thing about the Anabella was the bar near the pool. It was relaxing after a day at the parks.

 

[Astylla]

Add me to the "Not a fan" club at The Annabella. As my husband stated earlier in this thread , the "suite" we got was basically one big room and a tiny small closet size room to the left that had a daybed in it. The bathroom was decent in size but the headboard wasn't even a real headboard to the bed - it was attached to the wall and not all that well either !

Also had hardwood floors , while they look nice , not a fan of them in my hotel room personally. The bed was okay but squeaked a whole lot also.

I felt we got ripped off honestly. I much preferred the Best Westerns in the area over this at about 1/3 the price.

 

[AnabellaAnaheim]

Just showed the official hotel website to my DH. He thinks it looks like a very nice place to stay besides staying at the DL hotels. Plus with the bonus of ART stop at front. We can walk to the parks or take the bus. How is the ART from the Anabella? Will we have to wait long in between buses if we miss one? We are use to the WDW bus transportation.

The busses run every 20 minutes and there's an ART ticket machine near the lobby.

We have stayed here once a few years ago and had a good experience and we are about to stay again November- so hopefully it is still good! We booked the Casita Suite, and found a good AAA rate on their website, I think it was about $93 per night. I am hoping we can fit DS's pack n play in the room with the daybed since he is too little to actually use the daybed.

The walk through the Grand and downtown disney is about 15 minutes and not bad (IMO). The property is nice, but keep in mind if this is your first visit to Anaheim that this is really a motel rather than a hotel (as are pretty much all properties in walking distance).

AnabellaAnaheim can I ask if you guys have cribs available? Is there a fee? Do you know if one will fit in the daybed room of the Casita Suite?

There is $10 fee to rent a crib. The second room in the Casita Suite is small, but a crib should fit with no problem. When you check in, make sure you let the front desk know you'll be having a crib in the second room as some of the Casita Suites vary in size.

For those of you that didn't feel your experience at Anabella was wonderful, I do hope you'll give us another try. Please feel to contact me through a private message and I will make sure you are taken care of. I actually started working at this hotel because I was a happy guest and love the ambiance here.

 

[Ride Junkie]

We stayed there back in 2005. Unfortunately we had to be moved twice.

The first room we were in had no heat. It was January, so it was freezing. They moved us to a room that was directly under either a utility room or vending machines, because there was a lot of noise & banging overhead. Then they moved us to a 3rd room, which was finally quiet and had heat.

I'm not sure if they've renovated since then, but all 3 rooms we were in were different in size, configuration, and decor. Maybe they were in different stages of being upgraded.

Since we have a small child who takes a nap during the day, we like to be closer to the parks, so we usually stay at one of the Best Westerns instead.

 

[AnabellaAnaheim]

2005 was seven years ago so I think you'd be pleased with the changes that have been made. Please feel free to stop by anytime.