Just got back from my trip, and thought I'd check in. As I said, I decided on the Desert Inn and Suites and I was extremely happy with that choice. After shopping around, I booked directly through the hotel because they were able to give me a great deal. I ended up staying there with a friend so not entirely solo, but I would have been happy to stay there on my own too. Here are my thoughts, and for the record, yes, I would recommend staying there and would stay there again.
**Pros**
*Location, Location, Location. There was literally only one hotel closer to the crosswalk! Being so close to DLR made such a huge difference, especially at night when we were exhausted. It also made me feel safe at night (although that whole area is pretty safe anyway). One day I even went back to the room for a couple hours to nap which was so easy to do!
*There is heaps in the surrounding area. The same can be said for most hotels in that area but it's still a big pro. Denny's and Cold Stone are both next door (one on each side), plenty of other places to eat were nearby too. CVS, Walgreens and 7-11 were all less than 10 minutes walk away (I got a great USA SIM card from the 7-11 on our first day so I didn't have to pay global roaming fees on my Australian phone plan). The CVS was really good - I picked up a few bits and pieces there.
*The staff were very friendly and helpful. When we had questions or issues, they were happy to assist. When I needed to print something out, they had a computer and printer in the lobby that I was able to use - no questions asked. The room was always cleaned and replenished when we got home every day.
*The rooms are large and very clean. The decor is a little dated, but that didn't bother me since I wasn't in there a lot. I would rather a dated but clean room than a modern one that isn't well maintained.
*The beds are nice and firm and I slept beautifully the whole time I was there.
*There was a fridge AND a microwave in the room. I didn't actually use the microwave but it is something I imagine would come in handy for a lot of people.
*The free continental breakfast was really handy. It was simple (pastries, toast, bagels, cereal, juice, coffee) but easy enough to grab on your way out for the day and enough to keep you going until that first theme-park treat.
*There was an indoor pool, and whilst I didn't use it, I did often see kids in there - especially one afternoon/evening when it was just pouring down with rain the whole time. Being indoors meant the kids could still swim.
*Price. I can't remember exactly what we paid (and I'm too lazy to look it up), but I remember that it was pretty much the cheapest in that range of hotel (Places like Motel 6 were cheaper but further away and looked a little dingier/less well maintained etc). I was also impressed by the fact that when we checked in and told them we didn't have a car, they removed the parking fee from our bill which saved us a little more. We didn't even have to ask!
**Cons**
*We were allocated a room at the back of the hotel even though I asked to be at the front. We were on a high level though so it was very quiet, but that walk to the back of the hotel each night felt soon long to my sore feet lol. The isn't really a con of the hotel, just a suggestion on room location lol.
*They have this weird thing with storing your bags. We got there early in the morning so of course our room wasn't ready (and even when we asked they said they couldn't do early check in but that's ok, we knew the check in time when we booked). So we asked if they would store our bags (not an unreasonable request). Having travelled from overseas, we both had a large suitcase and a carry on size bag. They were happy to store our large suitcases in a storage room, but not our carry-ons. For those, we had to pay to store them in a locker. Now the locker was only $1.50 so it's not like it was a huge expense, but it was a bit of an inconvenience because the locker didn't work properly and we had to go to two places to retrieve our bags. I can understand them having the lockers for random people wanting to store bags, but considering we were paying customers i found it ridiculous that they would only store some of our bags. Not really a big deal but just a strange policy I'v never experienced at any other hotel.
*The room keys are the old-school magnetic strip ones that you have to stick in a slot (not the ones where you just tap it) and they are EXTREMELY sensitive to magnets. I had to go back to the front desk 3 separate times to get my key fixed because it kept de-magnetising in my bag, even though I made an effort to keep it separate from credit cards and anything magnetic.
Overall, for the great price we paid, it was an excellent hotel. Next time I go I'm hoping to save and splurge on the Grand Californian but if I can't afford that, I'll most likely stay at the Desert Inn and Suites Again.
