Disney World Vets heading to Cali for the first time this year. Need Advice!!!!!

[Mrs. Toaster]

We got the snow and the ice here in Alpharetta and had to spend yesterday at home. Today, the thermometer is reading 14 degrees! I heard that Florida had a cold snap as well.

I have stayed at several of the WDW hotels and I have also stayed at the DL hotel. There is definitely a difference. While I actually really like the DL hotel, it is definitely not the same kind of immersion experience you get at the WDW hotels. I think the Grand Californian would be the one to most closely replicate that experience, but it is a bit pricey for me. For some reason, we have been willing to pay those prices to stay at Wilderness or Animal Kingdom Lodge, but not at the GCA.

DL in itself is not the same total Disney resort experience that WDW is. However, that doesn't mean that you won't enjoy yourself there. Don't go in trying to compare WDW to DL too much, but just enjoy DL for what it is. We love it for being Walt's original park. There is really a sense of nostalgia in DL.

We have never tried to HOJO before, but have read some great things about it, so we will be trying it out this Fall. Next year, we will hopefully be heading back to WDW. Would love to try the Poly, if we can afford it!

 

[aspalek]

i'll put in a plug for another area of hotels that is farther away from DL than the ones mentioned. About a mile and a half south on Harbor Blvd, there's a group of hotels including a Residence Inn, a Hyatt, and Embassy Suites. We like this area and find it much nicer than the hotels across from the disneyland entrance. We have stayed at the Residence Inn which is great because of the free hot breakfast, but also really like the Hyatt, because it has its own dedicated bus service. Every 1/2 hr. -- 5 minute ride to the entrance.
The other hotels have a trolley service which they share (Anaheim Resort Transit) which is okay, but was somewhat unreliable when we stayed at the Residence Inn. Also a cab from either of these places is about $7 to the entrance. The area also has a few good restaurants in walking distance including Red Robin and a fish place i've forgotten the name of...
For onsite hotels, i'd recommend the Disneyland hotel. Really nice pool and layout, and you can walk through the Downtown Disney area to board the monorail which takes you into DL ( you get your pass stamped before you board).

I have not been in August, but when we went in June 2009, it was crowded and there were no fireworks during the week...still had fun of course.

Anne in northern Cal

 

[Silly Little Pixie]

Have to agree with Trey. We have done all those time slots over the last 20 years but mostly have done August since 97. Crowd profiles have changed over the last 2 years, moreso in 2009. I would stick with August.
We love the heat(but it is hotter at home during August), so we tolerate it well. It will be busy but if you stay when the SoCal passes are blocked you have a better chance of having a better crowd senario. Besides that, eveything is up and running.

I agree with August. Crowd profiles have changed, in part I think due to the popularity of the SoCalSelect APs, but also because of changing school year patterns in So Cal. In my area all the districts have switched to an "early start" calendar, where school starts around August 10 and gets out June 1st. I do believe LA Unified is still on the regular traditional, post-Labor Day start and going though mid-late June. But this early start has made June a very popular time for families on that schedule to go to Disneyland. What better way to end the school year?

Lets talk about June. June is a great time to go BUT YOU NEED TO AVOID THE LAST WEEK THE SO CAL AP'S CAN GO. I'm going to try to go the 23rd. Both levels of cheaper aP's are blocked out starting that day so I am hoping for a nice week. I went this week last year and had a wonderful time

Again, if June is a must- be sure you go after the lower APs are blacked out. It's crazy crowded otherwise! But with World of Color, and Fantasmic back, this summer is a great time to come to Disneyland!!

 

[KCmike]

Congratulations on making the decision to head west. At first site when we approached the day before at DL gates as we walked to Downtown Disney was how small everything looked. Then the next day we walked in to Walt's home. Amazing. Breathtaking. Get past the little amusement park feel at first and enjoy. Nostalgia at its best. You must visit DL hotel to see all the old time pictures. We made our fist visit three years ago and have never returned to WDW.

If you can visit San Diego or Yosemite National Park as well. These are my family's favorites. It is an easy drive to San Diego. Yosemite is around a 5+ hr drive but soooo worth it. I agree with Newport beach as the best of the closest beaches to DL. We have stayed outside and inside and prefer inside just for the simple fact of not seeing McDonalds and traffic when we come and go back to the hotel. Obviously cheaper outside though. Be careful not go to cheap outside though and my wife's sister chose one of the super budget good neighbors and didn't feel comfortable there. Disney did the right thing and moved her to the DL hotel. I would say anything on Harbor Blvd. is ok. If you haven't been to Hollywood before I would say don't go. It is dirty and not worth it.

There is so much to do in California. After we did all the major things in California (San Diego, Monterey, San Fran, Yosemite N. P., and others) in was breathtaking to ride Soarin' again.

Keep the questions coming.

 

[DisneySuiteFreak]

Check out this thread for photos of various hotels in and around the DLR area. There are many photos of DL hotel, PP hotel and GC hotel, along with many of the surrounding area hotels and motels. I have photos of Hojos and Fairfield Inn in this thread both of which are good places to stay at, imo. They are also linked in my signature.
If you are used to being immersed in the magic, you probably won't like staying offsite very much. You can occasionally get Paradise Pier hotel on Expedia for around $129-$149 a night. Many here get it at that price because they have APs, but I have seen it and almost booked it at Expedia for that price several times in 2009. Unlike WDW, there are no monorails that run directly to the DLR hotels, so the walk to PP and DL hotels can be farther than the walk to Hojos.

 

[DisneySuiteFreak]

Oh yeah, I would go in late June to avoid the AP crowds too. Have fun!

 

[onelilspark]

I'm a WDW Vet planning my first trip for March! The links that were posted earlier have been a huge help! I decided to stay at the Hojo. The whole on-site v off-site thing is a bit weird to me, I really want to stay on-site, but I just can't justify the prices (at WDW, I'm a big fan of the moderates.) I was looking at the Fairfield, but it was sold out, the Hojo is right next door. It looks like anything that's on that same block on Harbor is pretty easily within walking distance. If you go on Google Maps and use street view, you can get a pretty decent idea.

 

[Diznut84]

Any resort/hotel recommendations? seems that we are now down to that;

GC does feel a lot like WL. If you can afford it, it will give you the closest feel to a WDW vacation. However, please consider making a complete break from this paradigm. Visit SoCal, not just DL. If you buy into that change, then you can simply stay at a nice, clean place very CHEAP.

How cheap? How about staying at a nice Crowne Plaza for less than $45 plus taxes? Go to the BiddingforTravel dot com web site, and select California, Disneyland and Orange County. You'll see many people who have gotten this deal.

To use Priceline, though, you have to understand that they are non-refundable and non-transferrable. It is also helpful to learn about the free rebid process. To me, this is the most economical way to travel.

If you don't have the stomach for that process, simply book through Priceline or Expedia through their normal booking procedures (i.e. not bidding).

Good luck! Off to Disneyland in five hours!