Disneyland Hotel reviews are getting bad

[codycpreston]

I was considering staying at the DLH this December, especially because of my AP discount, but it seems that the Hotel has gone down in the Magic department. I have been reading TripAdvisor reviews (I always take these reviews with a grain of salt) but I cant help noticing a lot of disappointed guests. Anyone with recent stays have anything good to say?

 

[Laz]

We stayed at the DLH this past June and have no complaints! Clean, wonderful Disney theming, and great staff.

 

[Stinkerbe11]

We will be spending 4 nights there this week and I am happy to report back We are staying for free (DH has a conference for work) so it will be hard to be disappointed. I will try to judge based on what guests pay on average and let you know my thoughts

 

[Zbugz]

I stayed there in February, and other than being able to hear the DTD music in the room a bit, I had no complaints. The sheets and beds are wonderful. Mousekeeping was great.

 

[Malcon10t]

We've stayed numerous times over the past year, and we have no complaints. Rooms are clean, housekeeping staff is wonderful, front desk is great, valet and bellmen have been over the top helpful.

The complaints I read were trivial. "No shade in self park" "Our room wasn't ready at 11am." "Pool closed at 10p" "There was a 15 min wait for a bellman."

 

[BensWife]

We were there this past July and liked it. The only complaint from us (and very minimal at that) was a drawer kept opening up by itself - but it was not a big deal at all. We didn't even report it. The room was lovely and the bed was comfy. Would stay there again if the prices were lower.

 

[Canadiantinkerfairy]

Stayed there in July this year and July last year. My only complaint is that we noticed the pool was a bit dirty, as was the cabana we rented. But it was peak season, and packed all the time.
Last year it was a bit newer and a bit cleaner..
But the rooms were awesome and sheets and bed was clean.

 

[LizzyS]

It's worth noting that people are more apt to complain on sites like TripAdvisor than they are to write a good review.

It's also worth noting that some people are really miffed if not everything is perfect and goes according to plan. I plan on our next on-site stay to be at the DLH, so I hope it hasn't "gone downhill", so to speak. We spent some time at Steakhouse 55 and in the general DLH area during our last stay and I really liked what I saw. The grounds are really beautiful.

 

[sonnyjane]

It's worth noting that people are more apt to complain on sites like TripAdvisor than they are to write a good review.

It's also worth noting that some people are really miffed if not everything is perfect and goes according to plan.

Both of these are true especially at Disney. Yes, more people tend to write negative reviews than positive (if everything was great, no need to take time out of their day to say so), but also I think that people inflate their Disney expectations tenfold over anywhere else they might stay. If you're paying for an overnight room in San Fran for a business conference, you're paying the same rate as you would for a room at a Disney hotel but you're probably not concerned with having a "magical" stay. When you've saved for presumably a whole year for one family vacation, if anything goes wrong, you change your mindset and then notice allll the bad even if it's just tiny little things that would normally roll off your back.

 

[LizzyS]

I totally agree!

Expectations often get really unrealistic for Disney trips!

 

[5forMickey]

I'm going to preface this with "I can be quite a bi--h when it comes to Hotel stays. My children always joke about how many times we will change hotel rooms before I'm happy. In at least 15 times, I have never had a bad experience at the DLH. In fact, I won't stay anywhere else. If the hotel is booked, we will choose a different week or not go at all. Now, I have had some rooms/experiences that are better than others, but never a bad one, and yes, we have sometimes changed rooms before but mostly because I want EVERYTHING my way Every Hotel is going to have times when things are not 100% right, but it's how they correct it that should matter and I know Disney does that better than most! Once when we stayed at the Grand, I was upset because the "view" room I paid for was nothing but the tops of trees . I called and explained my frustrations and while they couldn't move us that night because they didn't have two connecting rooms available, they treated all 8 of us to dinner at Steakhouse 55 and moved us to beautiful view rooms the next day.

I think if people are not happy then it probably has more to do with expectations than the hotel itself. Let's face it, you are paying a good amount to stay at this hotel and may think because of that price you are going to be lavished in gold which is not the case. The rooms are VERY nice, but remember that at least half the price you are paying for is the location and surroundings which are beautiful! I would think complaints would be more towards not getting the room type or early check in, late check out etc. than about the hotel and honestly, I think they tell you upfront that check in isn't until 3 pm and you should never choose a lower level room type, expect an upgrade, and then be upset when you don't get the 10th floor dtd facing adventure tower.

If the DLH is getting a bad review then I can't imagine any of the other motels/hotels surrounding it would get any better unless the complaint is geared towards the cost, which is very high. If you keep your expectations in line than I think you will be more than happy, but don't go expecting to be in the Mickey Penthouse unless that is the room you paid for.

As for the rooms, I have always found them to be clean, comfortable and well taken care of. I'm not sure your going to find better accommodations within the walking vicinity. I also don't think a 10 minute wait for a bellman is bad especially when you consider the amount of people coming and going. Like I said, if you go in expecting things that are unrealistic then of course you are going to be disappointed.

Hope your vacation is wonderful no matter what decision you make.

 

[jbland]

We stayed there in April. We loved the pool and it was so nice to relax at the pool on our first day of travel. The room was clean and the bed was comfy. I loved staying on the property for many reasons!

I think the only reason I would not stay there again was the distance to the park. Its quite the walk.

Good luck,
Jenn

 

[Malcon10t]

I think the only reason I would not stay there again was the distance to the park. Its quite the walk.

It is about the same distance as Fairfield, maybe less. It is a 7-8 min walk (not speed walking) from the Sorcerer's Hat to bag check. (It is .25 mi, so if you walk a 20 min mile, it is 5 mins, I do a 25 mi mile, so 7-8 mins.) I don't consider it a major walk.

 

[ClosetDisneyJunkie]

Let me preface this by saying that i've only stayed there twice and once was some time ago. And I loved my experience there.

That said, I'm not entirely surprised by some of the negative reviews. DLH is incredibly expensive. To me, a Disneyphile who places a high premium on both convenience to the parks and the joy of staying "onsite", it's worth it. But for those who are not completely drinking the Disney kool-aid, or who have stayed at Deluxe level resorts at WDW at the same price point (or less)(or, frankly, anyone who has ever been to Vegas), I honestly can see how it might be a little underwhelming for the amount you pay. Between the price point and the general expectation that Disney will make every waking and sleeping moment of your trip "magical", expectations may be a little unreasonable.

The renovation made a huge difference, and my experience with the service at DLH has been exemplary in all respects. I think for most of "us" it's worth the price, but I can see how it may not for everyone. Just my $.02.

Edit: all of that said, I do agree with the previous poster that said that people are farrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr more likely to use Trip Advisor to post a negative review than a positive one. Smart to take a lot of those reviews with a grain of salt.

 

[Malcon10t]

The renovation made a huge difference, and my experience with the service at DLH has been exemplary in all respects. I think for most of "us" it's worth the price, but I can see how it may not for everyone. Just my $.02.

I enjoy the DLH. But I also enjoy the Hilton and Residence Inn. It depends what we are doing which hotel we pick.

Would the hotel alone be worth $400 a night? No. Heck, we have stayed in the Waldorf Astoria in NY for less, they even have a dress code for the lobby! It is everything involved. Many people just want a place to lay their head, and when they upgrade from $89 a night at Dessert Inn to $400 at DLH, their expectations often end up not meeting reality. You aren't paying just for a room, like you are at Desert Inn. You are also paying for having on-site restaurants, having EMH available, the pool, having bell and valet staff, room charging privs, being able to send packages to the hotel, and various other resort amenities.

 

[mikedoyleblogger]

Both of these are true especially at Disney. Yes, more people tend to write negative reviews than positive (if everything was great, no need to take time out of their day to say so), but also I think that people inflate their Disney expectations tenfold over anywhere else they might stay. If you're paying for an overnight room in San Fran for a business conference, you're paying the same rate as you would for a room at a Disney hotel but you're probably not concerned with having a "magical" stay. When you've saved for presumably a whole year for one family vacation, if anything goes wrong, you change your mindset and then notice allll the bad even if it's just tiny little things that would normally roll off your back.

It is entirely possible to go in with reasonable expectations and still have a rotten time at an on-property Disney hotel. The kinds of complaints I regularly read about PP, DLH, and GCH may seem trivial to some. But broken ACs, broken refrigerators, broken tvs, dingy finishes, mousekeeping skipping your room, and wildlife crawling out from under your bed--all of which (except for the broken tv), we experienced last month at GCH, is more than enough to dampen a Disney vacation--especially considering the price of on-property rooms.

As I see it, your hotel, unless it's a total dive, should at the very least be as well-maintained as your home. My AC works. My fridge runs. My TV changes channels. My furniture doesn't have its finish worn and cracked off at the edges. And no roaches have ever crawled out from under my bed. Blowing off people who complain about on-property hotels at DLR doesn't meant that these things don't happen, even at DLH. (And if you read the reviews, especially at GCH.) It just gives people false expectations. The quality of DLR's on-property hotels simply does not match the room rates. That's the bottom line.

 

[dsny1mom]

This year alone we have stayed at DLH in March, July and again in Aug/Sept. 18 nights in total so far in 2015 and each stay was excellent. Have a another couple of nights booked at the end of this week and into next week. If I see any down hill trend I will report back. BTW I have a very sizeable frame of reference with DLH. Haven't missed staying there for at least one full week (more often closer to 3 weeks per year) since 1986. So I can compare todays DLH experience to stays over the past 28 years.

dsny1mom

 

[Malcon10t]

It is entirely possible to go in with reasonable expectations and still have a rotten time at an on-property Disney hotel. The kinds of complaints I regularly read about PP, DLH, and GCH may seem trivial to some. But broken ACs, broken refrigerators, broken tvs, dingy finishes, mousekeeping skipping your room, and wildlife crawling out from under your bed--all of which (except for the broken tv), we experienced last month at GCH, is more than enough to dampen a Disney vacation--especially considering the price of on-property rooms.

WOW, you had one horrible experience. What did they say when you complained??

Last Christmas, we checked into the DLH on Dec 21 in the afternoon. No one warned us the boiler had blown up. The heater was out as was the hot water. They had it repaired by the morning of the 23rd. We were in a 2 bedroom suite. I went to the front desk and explained that I understood things happen, however, wearing sweats to bed was not my idea of paying $500 a night and not having a hot shower. They agreed and comped me 4 nights. (We were there for 10 nights.) They also sent up cookies and milk every other night during our stay.

One thing I always look at is when there is an issue, how do they handle...

ETA - I do have issues, which are trivial to others, regarding both GCH and PPH. GCH, biggest issues are 1. Rooms are too small and 2. The place is a maze. PPH - Elevators are a major issue.

 

[CAFarmerGirl]

We were there this past July and liked it. The only complaint from us (and very minimal at that) was a drawer kept opening up by itself - but it was not a big deal at all. We didn't even report it. The room was lovely and the bed was comfy. Would stay there again if the prices were lower.

Heh...I think we had that room!

We had a nice stay...even got comped a meal because my hubby was being his usual helpful self (short story, he helped a woman who about cut her finger off trying to get into a toy package!). Nice they recognized my husband for something that comes so naturally for him.

Unfortunately, my kids are now expecting Disney service and niceness at every hotel! So, to keep them humble, we occasionally throw in cheap hotels.

 

[Sherry E]

We were there this past July and liked it. The only complaint from us (and very minimal at that) was a drawer kept opening up by itself - but it was not a big deal at all. We didn't even report it. The room was lovely and the bed was comfy. Would stay there again if the prices were lower.

I had a room at the PPH many years ago, with a drawer that kept opening by itself! No matter what I did to close it, it slowly opened on its own -- which meant that, inevitably, someone banged into it.