Choosing the Right DLR Area Hotel for You

[Staceycs]

The real distance you should care about is how far you have to walk from your hotel room to the DLR gates.

Couldn’t agree more!

We are Desert Inn and Suites devotees but learnt early on that if we booked a Deluxe Room, we’d be walking a great deal further as they are right at the back of the property. We might as well have paid less to stay at Del Sol on some trips.

I know to some people the extra walk isn’t a big deal as really, what’s a few more minutes when you’ve been walking all day? But with toddlers or packages, it’s really more of a mental thing after a long day. For us, we just love knowing that we really are mere steps away.

I’ve often remarked that HOJO is just too far of a walk for us (and have been met with some stiff opposition of course ), but if you get a room at the back of the property, it really does add lots of time. Of course it’s all relative and what we consider a long walk is probably not a big deal to some.

 

[HydroGuy]

Couldn’t agree more!

We are Desert Inn and Suites devotees but learnt early on that if we booked a Deluxe Room, we’d be walking a great deal further as they are right at the back of the property. We might as well have paid less to stay at Del Sol on some trips.

I know to some people the extra walk isn’t a big deal as really, what’s a few more minutes when you’ve been walking all day? But with toddlers or packages, it’s really more of a mental thing after a long day. For us, we just love knowing that we really are mere steps away.

I’ve often remarked that HOJO is just too far of a walk for us (and have been met with some stiff opposition of course ), but if you get a room at the back of the property, it really does add lots of time. Of course it’s all relative and what we consider a long walk is probably not a big deal to some.

We did Hojo's once. My kids were 7-11 at the time. It was not so bad in the morning when you had energy and were excited. At night on the way back the distance was 2 or 3 times as far as the morning.

I looked with longing at all the hotels we walked past at night and vowed to never do that again.

 

[smartlabelprint]

Thanks for the map link it's awesome! We are dedicated BWPPI and Tropicana Inn patrons and love the short walk. This year we're doing both a WDW and DLR trip so cost is a little more important. We spend zero time at the hotel other than to sleep so this time I've booked at the Anaheim Discovery Inn because I got a really good rate but I'm concerned about the walk from Katella. I know Uber is a good option after a long day but how much longer is the walk really? We've been spoiled for the last 15+ years with that 5 minute walk from S Harbor...

Anaheim desert inn & suites has good deals if you book really far out. They are pretty basic but clean.

 

[smartlabelprint]

Couldn’t agree more!

We are Desert Inn and Suites devotees but learnt early on that if we booked a Deluxe Room, we’d be walking a great deal further as they are right at the back of the property. We might as well have paid less to stay at Del Sol on some trips.

I know to some people the extra walk isn’t a big deal as really, what’s a few more minutes when you’ve been walking all day? But with toddlers or packages, it’s really more of a mental thing after a long day. For us, we just love knowing that we really are mere steps away.

I’ve often remarked that HOJO is just too far of a walk for us (and have been met with some stiff opposition of course ), but if you get a room at the back of the property, it really does add lots of time. Of course it’s all relative and what we consider a long walk is probably not a big deal to some.

Do you think the deluxe rooms are dis are quieter?

 

[22Tink]

Anaheim desert inn & suites has good deals if you book really far out. They are pretty basic but clean.

I actually cancelled my Discovery Inn reservation and booked at Desert Inn yesterday!! Not as cheap as the Discovery, but a way shorter walk!!

 

[Staceycs]

Do you think the deluxe rooms are dis are quieter?

Hmmmm...yes probably a little quieter, but I don’t think we’ve noticed noise staying closer to the front either. If anything, they felt a bit darker as there is a small courtyard area and our rooms there felt like they were backed into the corner and it was a bit dreary (if that makes sense?)

 

[Staceycs]

I looked with longing at all the hotels we walked past at night and vowed to never do that again.

 

[Winnowill]

We're at the Grand Legacy next time - got a tremendous rate on it and we're pretty pleased - this is the closest we've ever stayed. We were at the Quality Inn on Katella last time - don't believe anything that tells you it's "walkable" - it's nearly 30 minutes to the gates. We've also stayed at Red Lion, and, while we liked it, it's still quite a hike.

 

[22Tink]

We're at the Grand Legacy next time - got a tremendous rate on it and we're pretty pleased - this is the closest we've ever stayed. We were at the Quality Inn on Katella last time - don't believe anything that tells you it's "walkable" - it's nearly 30 minutes to the gates. We've also stayed at Red Lion, and, while we liked it, it's still quite a hike.

I've heard great things about the Grand Legacy, it looks awesome! Enjoy!

 

[avalon451]

I stayed at DI&S on a solo trip almost 3 years ago, and was all enthusiastic about it and trumpeting it all over the DISboards. I'd gotten a good rate, I think 110? a night, and asked for an upgrade (cause it's always good to call in person and ask for a free upgrade, sometimes you'll be surprised) and they DID-- must not have been that booked, in early March, because they put me in a parlor suite near the front. I had a window at the back of the room where I could see the crosswalk, just steps away. Then DH and I stayed in Sept. 2016, and I booked similarly way far out and expected to get a good room as requested-- got stuck waaayyyy back about 3 rooms from the back of the property. Room was dark, air conditioner was noisy and hard to control (either frozen or sweaty) water pressure was DISMAL and they forgot to clean the room one of the days. Plus, the breakfast is pretty dismal, too, though that's not a deal-breaker for me. You can get really good rates and the walk is short, even if you are at the back of the property, but I think I'll try Park Vue or BWPPI next time.
Loved HoJo when we stayed in building 1, but that was back in the days of the retro rate, which we'll never see again. And I agree with the PP that while the walk wasn't too bad in the morning, going back at night seemed 3x as far.
Hydroguy, your sticky tips thread still has the best info, even though so much has changed. I still direct friends who are first timers to it, like the first-timer that I was back in 2008. Thanks for all your research and work to keep it up!

 

[22Tink]

I stayed at DI&S on a solo trip almost 3 years ago, and was all enthusiastic about it and trumpeting it all over the DISboards. I'd gotten a good rate, I think 110? a night, and asked for an upgrade (cause it's always good to call in person and ask for a free upgrade, sometimes you'll be surprised) and they DID-- must not have been that booked, in early March, because they put me in a parlor suite near the front. I had a window at the back of the room where I could see the crosswalk, just steps away. Then DH and I stayed in Sept. 2016, and I booked similarly way far out and expected to get a good room as requested-- got stuck waaayyyy back about 3 rooms from the back of the property. Room was dark, air conditioner was noisy and hard to control (either frozen or sweaty) water pressure was DISMAL and they forgot to clean the room one of the days. Plus, the breakfast is pretty dismal, too, though that's not a deal-breaker for me. You can get really good rates and the walk is short, even if you are at the back of the property, but I think I'll try Park Vue or BWPPI next time.
Loved HoJo when we stayed in building 1, but that was back in the days of the retro rate, which we'll never see again. And I agree with the PP that while the walk wasn't too bad in the morning, going back at night seemed 3x as far.
Hydroguy, your sticky tips thread still has the best info, even though so much has changed. I still direct friends who are first timers to it, like the first-timer that I was back in 2008. Thanks for all your research and work to keep it up!

I've never stayed at the Park Vue, but the BWPPI is great, definitely give it a try! It's nothing special but such a short walk!! We usually stay there and that's where I'd be staying this year if budget wasn't an issue. I'm hoping the DI&S will be ok for this trip. I'm not super picky as long as it's clean so I'm sure it will be fine as we only sleep there anyway. It was the cheapest, closest option!

 

[DreamtheImpossible]

I booked the Del Sol inn specifically for how close it was to the parks. There's 6 of us going, so the child's suite seemed to fit our needs. I've never stayed here before, so I hope it's decent!

 

[ishbit92]

Has anyone stayed at the Kings Inn (formerly the Super 8) on West Katella? We got a pretty good rate there for my family in early July. We are planning to walk from there to and from the parks, so hoping it isn't more than 15 minutes to get to the parks. Thanks for any info you have!

My husband & I are staying at the King's Inn in less than a month. We have stayed at the Anaheim Islander Inn & Suites before, which is in a similar location. We are anticipating the walk to be just about 15 minutes which can be rough at night, but is doable. I prepaid and got a 25% off room rate which equaled out to about $65 a night. Can't beat that! I will do a TR when we return and a Trip Advisor review.

 

[tlcdoula]

I booked the Del Sol inn specifically for how close it was to the parks. There's 6 of us going, so the child's suite seemed to fit our needs. I've never stayed here before, so I hope it's decent!

We have stayed at the Del sol a few Times and are going back at the end of the month. I’ve never had an issue rooms are clean the rate is usually less and if is so close.

I am trying to decide if We should try the Grand legacy in August or stick with Del sol because it is closer and I read the Grand legacy doesn’t have safes in their rooms.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

... We've also stayed at Red Lion, and, while we liked it, it's still quite a hike.

But isn't the Red Lion close to the TS lot? It seems counterintuitive to go the opposite direction from the parks, but you could walk to the TS lot to take the free shuttles to the parks. And at the end of the day it could shorten your walk back to the hotel.

 

[Winnowill]

But isn't the Red Lion close to the TS lot? It seems counterintuitive to go the opposite direction from the parks, but you could walk to the TS lot to take the free shuttles to the parks. And at the end of the day it could shorten your walk back to the hotel.

It is, but the walk from the bus dropoff at the TS lot to the hotel is still a SOLID ten minutes - there's that whole driveway to get down. Plus, if the lines for the buses are long, that doesn't really help you that much. If the buses dropped off closer to the entrance of the TS lot, it would help, but, of course, they don't.

 

[tnzzz]

Has anyone stayed at the Kings Inn (formerly the Super 8) on West Katella? We got a pretty good rate there for my family in early July. We are planning to walk from there to and from the parks, so hoping it isn't more than 15 minutes to get to the parks. Thanks for any info you have!

We stayed there in September last year and I would say 15 minutes is fairly accurate. Not bad in the morning but pretty rough on the way back at night. But that was pushing two kids in a double stroller. Not bad for a couple nights but we did 4 and that was too much. If I were kid free for a couple nights I would be fine with the walk, but definitely wouldn’t try and walk any further out.

 

[smartlabelprint]

It is, but the walk from the bus dropoff at the TS lot to the hotel is still a SOLID ten minutes - there's that whole driveway to get down. Plus, if the lines for the buses are long, that doesn't really help you that much. If the buses dropped off closer to the entrance of the TS lot, it would help, but, of course, they don't.

We stay at the HomeWood suites. Last trip was november 16 I think. The walk isn’t that bad from the ts lot. We’re staying here for a week again in March.

 

[katyringo]

We just did the Hojo and the walk was easy , especially if you cut through the pig parking lot of the hotel next to it lol..

We originally had been booked at a holiday in that claimed it was walking distance and my research luckily made me realize other wise , but by the time it did hojo was the only place I could get. We really liked hojo though and the water playground so now I have to decide if it’s worth getting just a tad closer and giving up a place we know we liked.

 

[EvangelineG]

Great guide! We fall into the 2nd category definitely. Love the ease of being able to walk back and forth with no shuttle or uber involved.

We've only been to DL once before 10 years ago. We stayed at the Hojo with those amazing entertainment book rates. We had two energetic 7yo in tow, the water park was fantastic, we got a theme park view and our stay was great.

However, this time around with just the SO and I, Hojo was not in the running. The water park has no value to us, rates are much higher, and I remember how very long that walk back at the end of the day felt! Nuh uh.

We were happily booked in at the BWPPI, until we noticed a much better rate at the Tropicana. The king room at the Tropicana looks smaller, and the parking is more expensive, but even so it is around a $400 savings for our stay. I'm not sure if there is anything at the BWPPI that would justify the extra expense? (Not terribly interested in the breakfast.) So we will probably try the Tropicana.