Annabella vs HOJO?

[Arielismyfave]

Hi! I am currently booked at the Annabella but considering a change to HOJO (which was my first choice but originally out of our budget; but back in the running with the code that was shared earlier). Has anyone stayed at either or both, who could share pros/cons?

We want to be close to DL due to having a LO as well as to maximize time. (Of course) We would walk to the parks and DTD.

I saw HOJO has free wifi and free parking. We will have a rental car. What other fees might there be besides what is showing on the HOJO website?

Right now Annabella is $2 cheaper but I don't think it has free parking like HOJO...

Thanks for reading and for any perspective!

 

[sherilaine]

Hojo charge 15% city tax and a 2% AITD fee, no charge for wifi or parking and I found the wifi to be great and never had to look to find a parking space.

We have only ever stayed in the Kids Suites, so I can not comment on any of the other room categories but we've found the service great and the rooms to be very clean!

The walk is not a big deal - our kids were only 8 and 9 our very first stay there and never complained about the walk to the parks.

 

[KBinCO]

We just got back from our second trip to DL and stayed at the Anabella- the first time we stayed at the HoJo, 3 years ago.

I wanted to stay in the HoJo again this time. It had its downfalls, but because of the proximity and the fun water area, I was hoping to stay there again. However, since we were staying a shorter amount of time and weren't sure if it would be warm enough for water play, I didn't want to pay more JUST for that, and we decided to stay at the Anabella to save money. I booked the Anabella via a TravelZoo deal and had the option of an L-shaped room with 2 kings, or the mission suite with the daybed in a separate room. Since my kids sleep terribly when put together, we went with the suite. At the Hojo, we would have just had a standard room with double or queen beds, so it was nice for us to have a king (we had a king, our 7 year old had a queen fold out, and our 5 year old had the daybed in the separate room). Included in the deal was free parking, free wifi, and free hot breakfast for 2. Breakfast was good and of course nice to have it included (we just had to buy 2 kids' breakfasts), but even if it wasn't included, it was just nice to have a restaurant on site unlike the HoJo. Four nights for all of that cost me $600 at the Anabella and would have been closer to $800 at the HoJo without the nice suite or breakfast.

So cost was the main motivation for us, but we wound up really liking the Anabella. The grounds were nice and the pool area was great for the very short amount of time we had to spend in there.

The walk is further than the HoJo but it's more pedestrian friendly. Just cross the street and you're basically on Disneyland Drive with pretty walkways instead of walking down the side of a main street. You walk through the Grand Californian and DTD. Or, take a shuttle if it's too far, it's probably 5 mins further than the HoJo.

My main complaint about our room when we stayed in the HoJo was that we had windows up high with no coverings... so my kids were up with the sun. I like hotel rooms that we can keep dark. Since the parks didn't open until 10 last week, it was nice to have everyone sleep until after 8. At the HoJo we were forced awake at 6.

Overall, I liked both, would stay at either again, but liked having the option of a suite for the same price or lower.

 

[KBinCO]

FYI Anabella is on Groupon right now.

 

[dotfurio]

I've stayed at both. At the Hojo many times, and at the Annabella once.

Annabella apparently has remodeled rooms, but we did not get one. Our room was VERY worn and the AC spewed giant chunks of gunk onto the floor and our bed. We stayed in a room that had a separate room for a daybed and a loveseat that folded out into a bed, thinking it'd be great to let each girl have their own bed. When the loveseat was folded out you couldn't walk across the room. Service was EXTREMELY slow - we called maintenance for the AC and housekeeping for extra supplies and they both took more than one phone call and at least an hour to arrive. We never even got the clean bedding we were promised to replace the sheets/cover with gunk on them. The walk to DL was farther than Hojo. I know people who love the place, but I would never ever stay there again.

We've stayed at the Hojo quite a bit. I love the splash park area for the kids. The staff has always been very friendly and helpful. The walk to DL is much shorter. There's a shop on site that sells a few snacks and drinks, though a little pricey. A Panera and McDonalds are nearby for quick meals.

 

[Angrose]

I have also stayed at both in the past year. I stayed solo at Annabella last Nov and with DS7 at HoJo last June. I agree that AB is a longer walk. Yes, it's a nicer walk, but a killer at the end of the day. I also didn't like my room much. I'm not sure what it was, but it definitely didn't feel cozy. Hojo is great for kids so that's the main reason we are staying there again in May. My son absolutely LOVED the water play area last time. We spent at least a few hours there each day. He's not the easiest kid to travel with so finding a place that makes him so happy means happier parents and overall a better vacation! Plus, the free parking and wifi are great. There were no other charges except for the usual room tax. Good luck with your decision!

 

[bumbershoot]

I adore Anabella. And now that I know they are on groupon right now, I think I have our July stay worked out!

Haven't set foot on HoJo property since '09 or so.



As for the walk, we once stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn near Buca di Beppo, and walked every morning and night except for one evening. You think Anabella is long, try that one! (and the length of Anabella's walk is partially due to walking through half of a gigantic "hidden" Mickey!)

 

[Arielismyfave]

Thanks everyone, I really appreciate it. I think I'll switch to HOJO. The $80 savings in parking alone perked DH interest

Where is the closest place to the HOJO to exchange our vouchers for tickets?

 

[sherilaine]

Thanks everyone, I really appreciate it. I think I'll switch to HOJO. The $80 savings in parking alone perked DH interest

Where is the closest place to the HOJO to exchange our vouchers for tickets?

You will have to do that at the ticket booth in the Esplanade. That is only though if they are truly vouchers and not e-Tickets. If you bought directly from Disney or some other agents where it's an e-ticket with a bar code that can be scanned, then you can take those right to the gate. We bought our tickets from Flight Centre and the voucher had our names and a booking number on it, no bar code, so we had to go to the ticket booth. Went very smoothly though.