Disneyland or Paradise Pier

[letitsnow]

Disneyland or Paradise Pier?

So it doesn't look like our waitlist for VGC will go through. We are a family of 5...2 adults 2 kids and 1 4 mo old baby. Which would you pick and why. The boys are 10 and 8.

We will mist likely stay in standard view room so we can save points for the next trip in the villas.

Thanks!

 

[bumbershoot]

I quite like PPH. Bigger rooms than DLH, from my experience, and they have the pullout (pull OVER?) couch/bed.

Unless you always want to enter and exit the park at Tomorrowland, in which case the monorail is a good choice, the walk through DTD from DLH is actually longer than the walk from PPH when you go through the Grand. That's measured to the center of the Esplanade, when coming from the sidewalk outside the PPH or the big hat at the very outer edge of the Disneyland Hotel property.

Since your boys are older, my standard "beware the DLH pool" warning doesn't apply. CA laws are different than FL, and at the CA property pools you have to be a strong swimmer, you can't wear a lifevest, and no one can wait for you at the bottom of the slide at the DLH pool. So, for instance, on our son's 5th birthday, he was drastically disappointed (er, we were more than he was, because we didn't know and had talked it up) that he couldn't go on the big slide, and had to go on the little bitty slide on the boring side of the pool.

At PPH, the big slide does NOT empty into the pool itself, so littler kids with life vests and low swimming abilities can go on it. So for that, and also to avoid a really cool looking pirate ship that you can't touch or play on, I warn those with little kids to choose PPH if swimming is important, but with the older boys that's not an issue.


This is always a good conversation, and I think there are two current threads about it, on the Disneyland forum, come join us!

 

[sierranevada]

I would actually say the DLH. Request a room with 2 queens and a day bed and they are about 50 square feet larger than a room with just 2 queens. I believe parties of 5 have priority on the 2Q/day bed rooms. I think the DLH is more "Disney" like and your two boys would probably love the pool! We have stayed in all the DLR hotels and my son prefers the DLH over the PPH. And definitely request the Dreams tower - if you get it, you will have one of the newly renovated rooms. I stayed in one last month and they are gorgeous!

That said, the PPH is a wonderful hotel - they redid it several years ago to a "beachy" them and it ties in well with the Paradise Pier area of DCA. The pool is just a rectangle shaped pool but the slide is really good.

 

[DisneyNicole]

Lets see....I'm 24 now, and I went to DisneyLand when I was 3, my first and last time to DisneyLAND. As for Disneyworld this has to be my 10th time if we plan on going again this year. I don't remeber eer hearing about a Paradise Pier though...
But I would take them to DisneyLand

 

[letitsnow]

do the rooms with 2 q and daybed cost more points? and when would I request to be in the dreams tower and that particular type of room? do i do that with member services?

 

[sierranevada]

do the rooms with 2 q and daybed cost more points?

Nope - you just put in a request and make sure that all five names are on the reservations. While it is not guaranteed that you will get the 2Q/daybed, you will have priority over parties will a lower amount of people. I have never not gotten one when I request it.

 

[TravelingJen24]

I have stayed at both hotels multiple times and I would say that with children the ages of yours, I would pick DLH. There is just something so magical about it. From the minute you pull in and see the big mickey statute to walking in the lobby. That's just me though. I will say an added bonus is that they have the best pizza on the room service menu and it is reasonably priced. Try requesting the newly refurbished rooms. They are beautiful. One caveat though, if you get an old room, the showheads are really low so I hope none of your party is very tall.

 

[letitsnow]

I have stayed at both hotels multiple times and I would say that with children the ages of yours, I would pick DLH. There is just something so magical about it. From the minute you pull in and see the big mickey statute to walking in the lobby. That's just me though. I will say an added bonus is that they have the best pizza on the room service menu and it is reasonably priced. Try requesting the newly refurbished rooms. They are beautiful. One caveat though, if you get an old room, the showheads are really low so I hope none of your party is very tall.

we're not..only the DH and DD are over 5 feet...lol

 

[Maistre Gracey]

Just my opinion, but the Paradise Pier Hotel doesn't look like a deluxe level hotel.
I've never stayed at the PPH, but I have walked over there a couple of times. It looks plain, and somewhat unkempt.

That said, the Disneyland Hotel looks great. I have never stayed at the DLH there either, but if for some reason I couldn't get the VGC/GCH, I wouldn't hesitate to stay there.

MG

 

[DebbieB]

I've stayed a couple of times at PPH. Even though the lobby is plain, I thought the rooms were nice and have spectacular views from the park view rooms. I liked crossing the street and cutting through the GCH.

 

[Anal Annie]

We've only gone to DL once & we stayed at PP....it was absolutely fine for us. Had THE best ceasar salad in the little restaurant off the lobby.

Of course I have a story to tell about PP. DS got stuck (alone) in the glass front elevator in the lobby within an hour of us getting there (while we were walking around the property, waiting on the room to be ready). EVERYBODY came to help...maintenance, security, the manager, the fire department!! We had a REAL crowd. They finally had to call the Otis Elevator people to come out to get him out!! They had to go onto the roof of the elevator car to get it to move. I am not sure if it was a good thing or not that we could see him (as could everybody else in the lobby). After about 45 minutes he was getting pretty freaked out (he was just 8 yo at the time). He was stuck between the 2nd & 3rd floors so everybody in the lobby could stand & watch. ANYWAY, the staff was wonderful to us afterward - the manager upgraded our room to a park view...sent DS balloons & a stuffed Goofy. That was in 2005...to this day elevators make DS VERY nervous!!

 

[Longhairbear]

We always preferred PPH over DLH, before DVC came to GCH, and stayed many times on points. The room service is excellent. The rooftop pool is fun, and great views.
However, the waterfalls, and koi ponds are a fun diversion at DLH. Friends say the new refurb rooms at DLH are outstanding.

 

[Snurk71]

If you want to be Disney-immersed, go DLH. The grounds, rooms, etc are more heavily Disney-themed than PPH. DD9 always asks about the magical pixie dust borders in the DLH rooms - and there's lots of other Disney touches in the room (on the amoire, artwork, etc). And we've found the rooms with the 2 queens and daybed to be pretty large.

We enjoy the walk through DTD to get to DL/CA. It just feels like you never leave Disney. It can feel long at the end of a long day. But it's an exciting walk in the morning.

 

[cseca]

Just a thought, the walk to the park from DLH is a bit farther than PPH. I know it sounds strange because DLH is a bit more expensive. But if you stay at PPH you can cut across GCH and come out at their DTD entrance.

 

[bumbershoot]

Lets see....I'm 24 now, and I went to DisneyLand when I was 3, my first and last time to DisneyLAND. As for Disneyworld this has to be my 10th time if we plan on going again this year. I don't remeber eer hearing about a Paradise Pier though...
But I would take them to DisneyLand

OP is talking about Disneyland Hotel and Paradise Pier Hotel.

 

[bumbershoot]

Even though I have a preference, it's hard to go wrong with either, I'll first say that. I don't want to sound negative about DLH, but I do want to sound more positive about PPH.

There is just something so magical about it. From the minute you pull in and see the big mickey statute to walking in the lobby.

It's so different what we notice. I noticed the bright orange traffic cones keeping people in the correct lanes. Only later did I notice the statues.

At PPH I noticed the pretty "boardwalk" looking lights in the pullthrough area, smell the suntan lotion smell they pump into the lobby, DS poses with the surfing goofy statue OR the big Yule tree depending on when we're there...

Never know what you're going to like until you're there, I guess!

Just my opinion, but the Paradise Pier Hotel doesn't look like a deluxe level hotel.
I've never stayed at the PPH, but I have walked over there a couple of times. It looks plain, and somewhat unkempt.

That said, the Disneyland Hotel looks great. I have never stayed at the DLH there either, but if for some reason I couldn't get the VGC/GCH, I wouldn't hesitate to stay there.

MG

Opposite feelings! And we've stayed in both.

DLH beds, the old ones, kept hurting my legs! The footboard is surprisingly high, I'm short, and I kept sliding off the bed at the foot end (on purpose, I wasn't falling, but I couldn't reach the floor with my feet without sliding down a bit) and slamming the backs of my legs on that footboard hiding under the comforter!

However, the waterfalls, and koi ponds are a fun diversion at DLH.

Which can totally be enjoyed as a non-guest.

The remote control jungle cruise boats are a BIG fun thing! Bring some extra cash so the kids can pilot their rc boats.

We enjoy the walk through DTD to get to DL/CA. It just feels like you never leave Disney. It can feel long at the end of a long day. But it's an exciting walk in the morning.

And see, to someone like me, walking through DTD is like I suddenly took a side trip to the mall. And I HATE the mall. Sure, this mall has music in it, and that's nice, but mainly it's just the mall. And...I hate the mall.

So staying at the Grand or PPH, when coming from Disneyland I'm ecstatic to turn off 1/3 of the way through into the Grand's "tunnel" entrance, rather than having to walk the rest of the way through to get to DLH. And of course if I'm coming from DCA, unless we've stayed there SO late that the gate to the Grand is closed (it happened once!), I don't have to deal with the mall at all.



Hey, OP, how about a split stay?!? That way you'll find out about both in one shot.