Disney Hotels vs off-site from a WDW veteran

[KSDisneyDad]

We've been to WDW about a dozen times over the past 10 years. We're heading to Southern California for the eastbound repo in August and thought we'd spend a couple of days at DL.

Generally we stay on-site at WDW at a Moderate resort. When looking at the three DL resorts, they are priced like an expensive Deluxe resort.

I know this has been asked numerous times, but I couldn't get the search engine to work this morning.

At DL, do you get the same magical experience with staying on-site at a Disney hotel as you do at WDW? In other words, is it worth the extra amount to stay at the DL hotel or Paradise Pier?

Thanks!

 

[honeymom]

We've stayed at DLH and GCH. We got the magic feeling from GCH, but we could only afford to stay there because of having enough Disney reward dollars. DLH just didn't do it for us.

Our next trip will definitely be off-site.

 

[ter-moo]

I would say that the magic is DIFFERENT at DL. I always stay onsite at WDW. Wouldn't want it any other way. However at DL, it's set up so different. There just isn't all the land, and the parks are plopped right in the middle of a city. So, you don't get that same themeing or magic all around you. We've only stayed onsite at DL twice--once I got a good deal with DL Hotel for a trip with my then 13-year-old son, and the other was an anniversary trip for just DH and me at the GC. The GC was definitely a highlight experience because it's such a beautiful hotel. I was a bit disappointed in the DLH, because I didn't feel like we were treated all that well. Could've been an isolated experience, but I was so looking forward to the whole Disney experience and frankly, I didn't get one. All in all, I'd say offsite is the way to go.

If you're a moderate fan, I'd say check out the Candy Cane Inn:

www.candycaneinn.net

The nice thing about it is it's reasonably priced, within walking distance, has a free breakfast, but also has its own dedicated shuttle. Many of the non-Disney hotels on Harbor Blvd. are actually a CLOSER walk than the DLH or the PP.

A bit nicer hotel with grounds and some themeing is the Sheraton Anaheim:

http://www.starwoodhotels.com/sheraton/property/overview/index.html?propertyID=995

It's not really walking distance, but it has a shuttle and more of the amenities you'd get at a Disney property.

There are tons of threads here and at other sites like mouseplanet that review the hotels within walking distance. Most of them are smallish motels--nothing special, just a place to sleep within an easy distance of the parks. Just let us know if you have any questions!

 

[deej696]

Living in central Florida, I too am a WDW vet. We stay on site at least once a month, and just returned from our first trip to DL staying at the DLH. For me, when I go to Disney I dont want to see the outside world. As mentioned above, that is a little tougher at DL, but if you stay on site, you come awfully close. We stayed 5 nights, and never once left Disney property, and were it not for the hills on California Screamin, we probably not have noticed the outside world. This may not be as important for you as it is for me, but if it is, then I would definitely stay on site.

 

[KSDisneyDad]

Thanks for the responses everyone. As this trip is just before a 15 night Panama Canal cruise, and we will be doing excursions at most ports, I think we'll stay off-site at DL to save a little extra for the cruise.

I'm looking forward to DL. My expectations aren't as high as WDW, so I hope I'm pleasantly surprised.

 

[DevilDuckie]

Count me as a second vote for the Candy Cane. Aside from wanting to trip unsupervised brats on heelies in the breakfast room we had a wonderful stay there. The shuttle was excellent and we will absolutely stay there again.

 

[disney-super-mom]

I very much enjoy staying on-property, but there's a few places off-property that are very pleasant and can make you feel happy to be there.

I can't comment on the Candy Cane Inn or the Sheraton Anaheim, but they both get great reviews, and I've been close a couple of times to book with them myself.

I would also consider the Howard Johnson Anaheim, which I've stayed at several times. I really enjoy the Howard Johnson because they have great pools, large comfortable rooms, superior customer service, and their premium rooms have nice views of Disneyland. Also, if you happen to buy an Entertainment book for your area, you can get an Entertainment Book discount there: $74 plus tax for a premium room, $59 plus tax for a standard room. To check to see if they are offering an Entertainment rate for your dates, go to their website and put in the code "sd50" in the promo code box. If there's no Entertainment rate available, keep checking back because an Entertainment rate can become available at any time.

All the rooms there have fridges and coffee makers, and currently they are adding microwaves to all their premium rooms.

Oh, and I should mention that it's about a 7 minute walk from the HOJO to the front gates of Disneyland or California Adventure.

Anyway, I hope you have a wonderful cruise, and seriously, take the time to relax and really enjoy Disneyland!

 

[bigrich]

Do you need to purchase an entertainment book? I put the code in and it gave much better rate so I made reservation but will I have problems if I dont have a coupon?

Thanks

 

[missyelliott]

We just got back on Thursday night from staying at the Sheraton Anaheim. It was wonderful and when I go back I will be booking there again. Very nice place. The breakfast buffet was awesome!! The rooms were very nice. I think staying off grounds too you don't have as many kids there either. I only saw a few at breakfast in the hotel. The free shuttle goes every 1/2 hour. It is very close too if say you missed the last shuttle you can just grab a cab very reasonably. It seemed only like 5 mins away by bus and cab from hotel to park. Honestly I stayed in WDW POR Riverside and it was much further from the actual parks then this one was.

 

[MommyWithDreams]

Do you need to purchase an entertainment book? I put the code in and it gave much better rate so I made reservation but will I have problems if I dont have a coupon?

Thanks

It's not actually a coupon it's a card. When you purchase the book it comes with a card and that's all you need to show the front desk when you check-in. HTH.

 

[disney-super-mom]

It's not actually a coupon it's a card. When you purchase the book it comes with a card and that's all you need to show the front desk when you check-in. HTH.

What she said.

 

[HydroGuy]

Here is an excerpt from "A DLR Guide for WDW Vets" www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1162599 that discusses this:

20. Disney Immersion

I think I understand what Disney visitors mean by immersion. They enjoy being within Disney themed areas during their entire visit. This includes hotel, transportation, shopping and dining, as well as the parks. This experience sort of blocks out the outside world and gives a more enjoyable Disney experience.

Immersion in this sense is more possible at WDW because of its large size which allows the outside world to be more thoroughly blocked out. The 20 Disney hotels also help. The setting at DLR is different. The parks, resort hotels, and DTD are in the middle of Anaheim, California. When you enter the DL park you will find the outside world fairly well blocked out. In fact I can never remember noticing the outside world when inside DL. DCA, for better or worse, was not designed this way. Perhaps the reason is that it would seem odd to design Disney’s California Adventure and locate it in California, and then try to block out all of the surrounding real California. So DCA does not seem as isolated as DL. In addition, the DLR hotels look out on the city of Anaheim (in addition to DLR) and are not as isolated as at WDW.

The bottom line is that it is just not possible to have the same level of immersion at DLR as at WDW. By staying at a DLR hotel and taking the monorail or walking to the parks through DTD you will come closest.

However, there are some upsides to the DLR geography that may balance this out. The issue of transportation and hotel locations at DLR have already been discussed and will not be detailed again here. But note this - when one stays at a DLR hotel or certain Good Neighbor hotels, you can see the parks right out your window and easily hear (and see) the fireworks at night. In fact, if you are trying to sleep they may wake you up. You are right there, across the street from the parks. Although you are not immersed in Disney as at WDW, you nevertheless feel very close to the parks because you are. When you walk out your hotel room you may clearly see the Matterhorn or Space Mountain at DL, or the Tower of Terror or California Screamin’ at DCA. As also mentioned previously, DLR usually has longer park hours than at WDW. If you use the close hotel locations and longer park hours to your advantage, you may sense a different kind of immersion where you are in the parks for most of your waking hours and not waiting for or sitting on buses, boats, etc.

In summary, DLR does not offer quite the same immersive experience as WDW. But the fact that you can spend up to 50% more of your daily hours actually in the parks and have a room literally across the street from the parks can be immersive in a different sense.

 

[tmatthews]

We stayed at the Hyatt. There were some advantages like the kids suite which made life easier. We usually stay at a value in WDW but didn't find the same magic off site. I would stay as close as you can.

 

[sgtdisney]

I think it all comes down to budget, but if all other things were considered, I would definately stay on property in either location. Where else can you get to see Goofy in your hotel lobby, little Disney touches everywhere else, for example Mickey hands holding the light fixtures in the bathroom at the DLH. Granted, you are not as totally immersed, as you may be in Florida, when it is miles away to get outside of the property. But this is really simply because you are on a few 100 acres at the Disneyland Resort, as opposed to a resort composed of 10s of thousands of acres.

We went to Disneyland in 2006, after going every year to WDW, and stayed at the DLH. I really enjoyed it. The staff was nice, and it was nice, for me anyway, to just be on property, with it's themed shopping venues, and restaurants, and very themed pool. Also, it was nice to actually be able to walk through Downtown Disney from the hotel and be at the park in a matter of moments. In fact my kids still comment on how nice it was to be able to walk only a few minutes to and from the park and not the 20+ minute bus ride (or more) you sometimes would have in Florida. Imagine having two theme parks across a promenade from each other on one end of downtown disney and your hotel on the other. I just thought that was really fun and a nice change of pace.

It was also kind of a 'homecoming' for me, because I had stayed at the DLH in the late 60s and 70s as a small kid, and had many memories from there. The resort has changed, A LOT, from the way I remembered it as a child, or even on my last visit there in 1990. I was impressed. It is a lot more Disney feeling now even if it is smack dab in the center of a large city. (Although I still kind of missed the Marina, or at least how I remembed the Marina to be, in the late 70s and 80s.)

 

[kikiq]

I'm looking forward to DL. My expectations aren't as high as WDW, so I hope I'm pleasantly surprised.

Be sure to read HydroGuy's sticky for WDW vets. I'm a DL/CA AP holder, love the parks and go several times a month BUT I also love WDW. Come enjoy the parks with the only expectation that its DISNEY...therefore full of magic.

 

[KSDisneyDad]

Thanks again for the tips. For budget reasons, I think we'll stay "offsite" even though we'll still be across the street.

I do plan to spend time thoroughly researching DL before our trip to make the most of our visit. I have just started and wanted to book our hotel in advance as the trip is during the summer months (something I normally try to avoid when we visit WDW).

 

[jhryb]

Thanks again for the tips. For budget reasons, I think we'll stay "offsite" even though we'll still be across the street.

I do plan to spend time thoroughly researching DL before our trip to make the most of our visit. I have just started and wanted to book our hotel in advance as the trip is during the summer months (something I normally try to avoid when we visit WDW).

My family will be on the same cruise that you will be on. We are staying at the HOJO for 3 nights before the cruise. If you take a look at the thread for our cruise, you will see that there are lots of us staying at the HOJO. Have you been to the cruise website thepiratezone.info? The pre-cruise planning section of the website contains details on how to get a great disount at the HOJO if you are on one of the Disney Cruises leaving LA.

 

[KSDisneyDad]

Wow, a website just for that particular cruise! It looks like I've got a lot of researching and planning to do during the next eight months.