Anaheim Hotel or Park Vue or Back to Drawing Board?

[keishashadow]

Not finding much in way of good prices for late august 2018, not unexpected with SW opening

Have only booked onsite disney properties in past, they are way out of my budget this trip. Offsite, here we come but it’s been a bit of a struggle finding ‘the right’ property

Was going to book Majestic Garden but the shuttle is bit of deal breaker for others in my party.

They like Park Vue, it’s approx $1,250 for our 5 days, does have free breakfast. Can’t beat location but price seems high to me. Del sol & desert inn have been veto’d.

Anaheim Hotel is $400 less (would buy breakfasts & then some). It has quite the slick website! As a plus it looks very retro & huge pool. Reviews elsewhere are above average, here it seems to be another story all together I’m reading a 10 minute walk to parks

Could get the Hilton at convention center $500 less than Park Vue but way walk too much for me, not sure of uber availability/costs in that area.

Any suggestions most welcome for party of 2 women & one 8 y.o.

Needs, at the risk of wanting it all:

Retro style but clean

not high rise/chain type (HoJo, HI Express & Fairfield Inn have been veto’d),

safe area,

walkable (free shuttle as fallback),

nice sized pool

 

[DizMe]

How many in your party and how many rooms? I much prefer Park Vue over Anaheim Hotel. I just don't like that hotel. It's old and the recent refurbs didn't help it much. It has great lobby and common spaces but the rooms are shabby and include things like cracked tiles & broken fixtures, at least the 3 I saw on my last trip (took that many times to get a decent enough one to stay in, and that one still wasn't great). I've stayed there 3 times and only go if the price is really, really low. Last visit made me decide not to try again. I think if you have a smaller party, there are nicer rooms closer to the lobby, but it's just a pretty iffy booking as to what you'll end up with.

I do like Park Vue. Clean, decent motel in a great location. Didn't like the breakfast but I rarely do with motels.

Candy Cane Inn is VERY nice but does have smaller standard rooms from what I hear. They also have premium rooms with breakfast to order delivered to your room if you want and late checkout, and when I checked on it for next week the premium rooms were a little less than a Best Western Park Place Inn regular room (which also has an awesome location and free breakfast). CCI has a really nice looking pool area and you can walk to the parks but they also have their own shuttle every 1/2 hour. I went directly through their website for booking.

*Just saw your party details so you might find a closer room at Anaheim Hotel would work for you. They have balconies. I had one of those once and it was nice in that it had a cool retro entry passage, very large room with balcony, and a mw. Cons: sink flies were pretty thick, terrible fluctuation in water temp in the shower, and general shabbiness.

 

[dieumeye]

Late August is D23, so that could be why hotels are more costly. If you're set on having a lot of specific hotel requirements (which I totally get!) and cost is an issue, have you considered moving your trip a little earlier or later to get out of the D23 crowd?

 

[ChrissyLou]

We have stayed at Candy Cane before and were happy with it and it does offer a dedicated shuttle which can come in handy, although we always walked (even with young ones in a stroller). We are big fans of BW Stovall's, on the Katella side. It has been around a long time, but has been remodeled, you can look up their retro pictures when they were a space aged hotel (they might even be on display in their lobby). It is safe, clean, affordable, has a beautiful pool area with view of California Adventure park, complimentary breakfast with many choices, although the walk is a bit further. You are on one end of the Disney employee parking lot next to Paradise Pier so you walk that (long) block around Paradise Pier to the Downtown Disney entrance. It is a leisurely 15 minutes, but sometimes that feels like a lot, but is along Disney property so very clean, well lit and safe. We have never encountered a line at security at this end (unlike Harbor). Further you can hop on the monorail right there at that end of Downtown Disney if you are going into Disneyland (it does not stop in California Adventure) which allows you to bypass the main entrance at Disneyland, so you can potentially avoid the long security lines at Harbor and then a line at the park entrance, all big time savers. We loved this! You can head back to hotel for mid-day break or in the evening that same way, or you can cut through the Grand from either California Adventure (near Grizzly River Rapids) or by Sephora in DTD. There is also the ART shuttle stop right in front of the hotel so if you wanted to you could easily hop on the shuttle or call Uber or Lyft and get a ride to Downtown Disney entrance - nice to have those affordable options if you decide you need them. Honestly we have had great experiences here! Early morning check-in's (hours before actual check in), luggage storage after check out, they will hold your Von's groceries for you if you aren't there for delivery, very friendly employees and it is nice to be close to the Disney hotels for dining options there or there is a Coco's next door (we've never eaten there, but like the fact it is there). The rooms aren't anything special, they are a little "dark" toned, but the rooms have always been clean and the fridge is nice to have. Stovall's is consistently well ranked by travelers on various travel review boards (with the odd terrible review thrown in there as every hotel will have). We love it and I think it fits what you are looking for. Good luck wherever you stay!

 

[Malcon10t]

Another vote fr the Candy Cane. It is my favorite non-Disney location.

 

[keishashadow]

Late August is D23, so that could be why hotels are more costly. If you're set on having a lot of specific hotel requirements (which I totally get!) and cost is an issue, have you considered moving your trip a little earlier or later to get out of the D23 crowd?

We jumped on lower cost spirit flights that councided with GD birthday. Dates are firm

Thank you all for the detailed and thoughtful responses!!!

My party is now also looking at del sol purely based upon location, free breakfast and price I have tried but do not see it’s allure

 

[squirrel]

What is the price like for Desert Inn & Suites? https://www.anaheimdesertinn.com/ We stayed there before and had a family suite. Nice location but it does have an indoor pool, which for some might be a deal breaker. I rarely ever swim in pools so it doesn't bother me.

 

[keishashadow]

What is the price like for Desert Inn & Suites? https://www.anaheimdesertinn.com/ We stayed there before and had a family suite. Nice location but it does have an indoor pool, which for some might be a deal breaker. I rarely ever swim in pools so it doesn't bother me.

It was $89 a night, a deal. I do see some Hotwire deals, may just roll the dice.

 

[Cal-Pie]

It was $89 a night, a deal. I do see some Hotwire deals, may just roll the dice.

Be VERY careful if you decide to roll the dice. Hotwire has some super sketchy hotels in the area and many are far from the resort.

 

[AprilJ26]

We just checked out of Park Vue today after a 3 night stay. We paid $720 for 3 nights and I’d do it again in a heartbeat. The walk to the parks was seriously awesome. Much closer than even the on-site hotels. Our room was clean, well equipped, and quiet at night. The staff were all so friendly and constantly asked if we needed anything. The morning breakfast was very good. Every evening they had lemonade and fresh chocolate chip cookies in the lobby which was a nice touch. I can’t speak for the other hotels in the area, but I’m a big fan of Park Vue Inn!

 

[katyringo]

Don’t have expirence with park vue but do with Anaheim hotel. We won’t stay there again. They say all their rooms are renovated but they are not. The outside of the hotel and lobby is nice and the pizza press attached is good, but our room wasn’t good. Huge pool. It is a close walk.

What are the hojo prices? You can use code: LKMS from mousesavers to save a bit at the hojo.

 

[shooting4life]

I like the Anaheim hotel, price/value ratio is really good. I’m not a picky person though. It checks off all the boxes that matter to me

Clean
Close to Disneyland
Comfortable bed.

I’m awake in the hotel room maybe 2 hours a day. Not really worried if I get a room and it has a cracked tile. Always had enough hot water.

 

[squirrel]

It was $89 a night, a deal. I do see some Hotwire deals, may just roll the dice.

They offer breakfast. I don't think you will find a better deal that close to the entrance. They do charge a parking fee, which we didn't pay as we fly in.

It's between IHOP and Denny's.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

Another vote for the CCI -- we always have good stays there.
Another no vote for the Anaheim Hotel -- not worth it for us just to be by Pizza Press. We'd rather have a nicer stay elsewhere and walk to Pizza Press.
A thought for you on the Majestic Garden: this hotel used to be the Sheraton Anaheim -- the rooms are pretty large, if a bit in need of an update (some rooms are being updated -- don't know how far the progress has gotten by this time). This hotel is walking distance (about 10 minutes) to the M&F tram. So you won't be dependent on the private shuttle and you won't have to use the Harbor side bag check all the time. We've walked to M&F and to DTD many times from this location -- if there are no mobility issues in your group, it is a pretty easy walk both ways.

 

[keishashadow]

Another vote for the CCI -- we always have good stays there.
Another no vote for the Anaheim Hotel -- not worth it for us just to be by Pizza Press. We'd rather have a nicer stay elsewhere and walk to Pizza Press.
A thought for you on the Majestic Garden: this hotel used to be the Sheraton Anaheim -- the rooms are pretty large, if a bit in need of an update (some rooms are being updated -- don't know how far the progress has gotten by this time). This hotel is walking distance (about 10 minutes) to the M&F tram. So you won't be dependent on the private shuttle and you won't have to use the Harbor side bag check all the time. We've walked to M&F and to DTD many times from this location -- if there are no mobility issues in your group, it is a pretty easy walk both ways.

AH reviews seem to be a solid pass here

I thought majestic garden looked like a Sheraton I had booked ages ago, then cancelled when onsite dropped. I’m confused where their shuttle does drop off...harbor or other side of esplanade near garage

 

[Astylla]

AH reviews seem to be a solid pass here

I thought majestic garden looked like a Sheraton I had booked ages ago, then cancelled when onsite dropped. I’m confused where their shuttle does drop off...harbor or other side of esplanade near garage

The Anaheim majestic used the be a Sheraton years ago so that is probably why you remember that. The shuttle drops odd at the esplanade closest to the sidewalk entrance.

 

[keishashadow]

The Anaheim majestic used the be a Sheraton years ago so that is probably why you remember that. The shuttle drops odd at the esplanade closest to the sidewalk entrance.

Insert clueless DL guest with less than 10 visits under her belt...

Does that mean on harbor side?

 

[theluckyrabbit]

Insert clueless DL guest with less than 10 visits under her belt...

Does that mean on harbor side?

Yes, the MG shuttle drops off on the Harbor side. Actually, I don't know of any shuttles that don't drop off on the Harbor side.

 

[keishashadow]

Yes, the MG shuttle drops off on the Harbor side. Actually, I don't know of any shuttles that don't drop off on the Harbor side.

Great to know, thank you!

 

[keishashadow]

Wound up booking Great Wolf/Garden Grove area, which i’m Told is 3 miles away from DL. Hotel does have a complimentary shuttle that can be prebooked including to DL

Original booking thru Sam’s club, hotel rejected the reservation as a pricing mistake, will take 5 - 7 days to refund my paid in full reservations. Seems a bit shady IMO

Rebooked using hotwire hot rate, easy to discern the bind deal was Great Wolf. A few dollars less than Sams when the dust settled

All in, and this is coming in the Tuesday prior to Labor Day & departing sunday of...

$795 plus resort fee to paid at hotel = $919.60 for 3 people

Thru GW the best rate i could find was over $1,000 more for lowest price room

Booked Great Wolf in Sandusky thru hotwire a few weeks ago, verbage the same on the reservation (unclear if waterpark was included or not). Did receive it no questions asked at checkin. Since this location doesn’t sell day passes either to non-resort guests, hoping for the best.

Just posting in case anyone might be interested the amenities listed were:

Resort, Free Internet, Smoke-free Rooms, Restaurant(s), Fitness Center, Internet Access, Spa Services,
Children’s Activities