DLH vs Hojo’s with 2 yo?

[disneycat321]

We are taking our turning 2 year old daughter to DLR this June for her first trip and 2nd birthday. We are driving from about 7 hours away and will be there 4 nights with 3 days PH tickets. We’re torn on hotel options and looking for input!

Option 1:
Hojo’s in a 2 bedroom suite

Pros:
- The dates we want (Mon-Fri) with our first parks day being DD’s birthday - Tues-Thurs are the parks days.
- Separate room for our toddler with the 7:30pm bedtime and midday nap time. (She’s a great sleeper but does not stroller nap.) Easier for us parents!

Cons:
- Not in the bubble (we’ve never stayed on property at DLR, but have all 3 trips to WDW and loved it.)

Option 2:
DLH in a standard room

Pros:
- It’s a major dream of ours to stay at the DLH. We LOVE staying on property at WDW.
- early entry, though we’d likely only utilize it 2 of the 3 days, since I don’t want our daughter’s very first DLR experience to be DCA.

Cons:
- more expensive by $413 total (but less so than usual due to the discount, which is why I’m even posting this.)
- had to shift the dates for room inventory with the discount, so park days would be Mon-Wed. Are Mondays still absurdly crowded? I used to read about that, which is why we were avoiding it.


Other related questions:
- Is the Steamboat Willie splash pad on the DVC side any good? Is it too far from the regular part of the hotel? (We’ve been to DLH for dining but don’t know the layout super well.)
- Is Goofy’s Kitchen worth trying with our 2yo? We were going to just do Minnie’s Breakfast at the Plaza Inn.
- Does the monorail transportation come in handy? What are the limitations? Would we have to fold and carry our stroller?
- Are there benefits to staying on property with a toddler that I’m maybe not even considering?

Thank you for any input! We are newbies to DLR with a toddler and to potentially staying on property at DLR, so feeling a little lost!

 

[Pluto468]

We are taking our turning 2 year old daughter to DLR this June for her first trip and 2nd birthday. We are driving from about 7 hours away and will be there 4 nights with 3 days PH tickets. We’re torn on hotel options and looking for input!

Option 1:
Hojo’s in a 2 bedroom suite

Pros:
- The dates we want (Mon-Fri) with our first parks day being DD’s birthday - Tues-Thurs are the parks days.
- Separate room for our toddler with the 7:30pm bedtime and midday nap time. (She’s a great sleeper but does not stroller nap.) Easier for us parents!

Cons:
- Not in the bubble (we’ve never stayed on property at DLR, but have all 3 trips to WDW and loved it.)

Option 2:
DLH in a standard room

Pros:
- It’s a major dream of ours to stay at the DLH. We LOVE staying on property at WDW.
- early entry, though we’d likely only utilize it 2 of the 3 days, since I don’t want our daughter’s very first DLR experience to be DCA.

Cons:
- more expensive by $413 total (but less so than usual due to the discount, which is why I’m even posting this.)
- had to shift the dates for room inventory with the discount, so park days would be Mon-Wed. Are Mondays still absurdly crowded? I used to read about that, which is why we were avoiding it.


Other related questions:
- Is the Steamboat Willie splash pad on the DVC side any good? Is it too far from the regular part of the hotel? (We’ve been to DLH for dining but don’t know the layout super well.)
- Is Goofy’s Kitchen worth trying with our 2yo? We were going to just do Minnie’s Breakfast at the Plaza Inn.
- Does the monorail transportation come in handy? What are the limitations? Would we have to fold and carry our stroller?
- Are there benefits to staying on property with a toddler that I’m maybe not even considering?

Thank you for any input! We are newbies to DLR with a toddler and to potentially staying on property at DLR, so feeling a little lost!

I would do Disneyland Hotel for sure. Our first trip with a toddler we stayed at Hojo and the walk felt SO long. It's also not as pleasant as walking through DTD. On Harbor you deal with homeless people, people trying to sell you things & hand you pamphlets and also people yelling at everyone about religion/politics with a bullhorn on some days.

The beds at DLH were so comfortable and the rooms are decent sized.

I think Goofy's or Minnie's would be good for a 2 year old. They're both great. Minnie's is a bit more low key.

We love the monorail! Very handy going to and from DLH.

We've often seen characters down by the pool and in the lobby which is a nice perk.

 

[cruisehopeful]

the Steamboat Willie splash pad on the DVC side any good? Is it too far from the regular part of the hotel? (We’ve been to DLH for dining but don’t know the layout super well.)

The water play and pool on the DVC side aren't far away from the monorail water slides. There is an outdoor restaurant in between the pools, but the pools are very close to each other.

Goofy’s Kitchen worth trying with our 2yo?

I used to take my oldest (she's over 30 now) to Goofy's kitchen for her birthdays when she was very young. She loved it. It was truly magical for her.

Does the monorail transportation come in handy? What are the limitations? Would we have to fold and carry our stroller?

The monorail is hardly ever open when I am staying onsite. I wouldn't count on it, but it'll be helpful if it's open when you're there.

Are there benefits to staying on property with a toddler that I’m maybe not even considering?

To me, the main benefit is early entry. You can enjoy all the dining, bars, gift shop, walking around enjoying the atmosphere, without staying there.

 

[AstroBlasters]

We are taking our turning 2 year old daughter to DLR this June for her first trip and 2nd birthday. We are driving from about 7 hours away and will be there 4 nights with 3 days PH tickets. We’re torn on hotel options and looking for input!

Option 1:
Hojo’s in a 2 bedroom suite

Pros:
- The dates we want (Mon-Fri) with our first parks day being DD’s birthday - Tues-Thurs are the parks days.
- Separate room for our toddler with the 7:30pm bedtime and midday nap time. (She’s a great sleeper but does not stroller nap.) Easier for us parents!

Cons:
- Not in the bubble (we’ve never stayed on property at DLR, but have all 3 trips to WDW and loved it.)

Option 2:
DLH in a standard room

Pros:
- It’s a major dream of ours to stay at the DLH. We LOVE staying on property at WDW.
- early entry, though we’d likely only utilize it 2 of the 3 days, since I don’t want our daughter’s very first DLR experience to be DCA.

Cons:
- more expensive by $413 total (but less so than usual due to the discount, which is why I’m even posting this.)
- had to shift the dates for room inventory with the discount, so park days would be Mon-Wed. Are Mondays still absurdly crowded? I used to read about that, which is why we were avoiding it.


Other related questions:
- Is the Steamboat Willie splash pad on the DVC side any good? Is it too far from the regular part of the hotel? (We’ve been to DLH for dining but don’t know the layout super well.)
- Is Goofy’s Kitchen worth trying with our 2yo? We were going to just do Minnie’s Breakfast at the Plaza Inn.
- Does the monorail transportation come in handy? What are the limitations? Would we have to fold and carry our stroller?
- Are there benefits to staying on property with a toddler that I’m maybe not even considering?

Thank you for any input! We are newbies to DLR with a toddler and to potentially staying on property at DLR, so feeling a little lost!

I’d do DLH.

1) Yes. No.
2) It’s OK, but I’d do Minnie’s because the Plaza is historic.
3) It’s probably easier to just walk. Maybe take it back to the hotel if you happen to be in Tomorrowland.
4) Walking back to the room for an afternoon nap without having to cross major street.

 

[LKing]

We are taking our turning 2 year old daughter to DLR this June for her first trip and 2nd birthday. We are driving from about 7 hours away and will be there 4 nights with 3 days PH tickets. We’re torn on hotel options and looking for input!

Option 1:
Hojo’s in a 2 bedroom suite
The dates we want
Easier for us parents!
we’ve never stayed on property at DLR

Option 2:
DLH in a standard room

It’s a major dream of ours to stay at the DLH.
more expensive by $413 total (but less so than usual due to the discount

Personally, I would choose the dates I want, along with the easier, cheaper option. You are a Disneyland veteran but have never stayed on site. That means that you know what the off site area around Disneyland is like. Google Maps says it takes 11 min to walk from the esplanade to Hojo and 12 min to walk to DLH.

What is the price difference with the discount?

 

[disneycat321]

We've often seen characters down by the pool and in the lobby which is a nice perk.

I didn’t even think there might be random characters around! Definitely never saw that on property at WDW!

The water play and pool on the DVC side aren't far away from the monorail water slides. There is an outdoor restaurant in between the pools, but the pools are very close to each other.

This is great to know. Thanks! I figured it couldn’t be too far since the footprint of the DLH is not nearly as big as most WDW resorts.

The monorail is hardly ever open when I am staying onsite. I wouldn't count on it, but it'll be helpful if it's open when you're there.

Weird! Do you know why it’s closed so often? I’m not sure we’d use it a ton, but it would be pretty nice to take back to the hotel for naps if we ended up around Tomorrowland.

Personally, I would choose the dates I want, along with the easier, cheaper option. You are a Disneyland veteran but have never stayed on site. That means that you know what the off site area around Disneyland is like. Google Maps says it takes 11 min to walk from the esplanade to Hojo and 12 min to walk to DLH.

What is the price difference with the discount?

You’re right - we do know the area around DLR. We're also former OC locals. That Harbor area doesn’t bother us. (We did once walk to the Toy Story parking lot late at night and would not repeat that…) However, we also loved the bubble at WDW so much that I think we’d love to recreate that experience on this coast without having to pay so much for flights or such a long trip. The price difference works out to about $100 a night - not insignificant, so we’re deciding if it’s worth the cost to us.

 

[LKing]

Weird! Do you know why it’s closed so often? I’m not sure we’d use it a ton, but it would be pretty nice to take back to the hotel for naps if we ended up around Tomorrowland.

One reason is that it doesn't have AC. If it is too hot out, they don't run it.

 

[maleficent55]

Since staying at the DLH is a dream, that makes me say do it! You can stay off site another time, but this sounds like a special Birthday trip so maybe go for it!

Yes there are wandering characters at the DLH, and overall it’s just so magical

So so many food options for breakfast and snacks at Tangaroa Terrace and The Coffee House.
And I love trader Sam’s and it would be right there

Goofy’s is over priced and the food is subpar
I’d pick Minnie and Friends at Plaza Inn. More enchanting.
Book it for a later vs an earlier breakfast since the morning time is such a good time for short waits on rides.

The monorail slides are super fun. And the actual monorail is great, just don’t count on it all the time and definitely don’t use it for early entry.

Have fun!

 

[LAS2AMS]

Harbor you deal with homeless people, people trying to sell you things & hand you pamphlets and also people yelling at everyone about religion/politics with a bullhorn on some days.

None of this is common. The religious/ politics can and do hangout in DTD as well.

This reminds me of many years ago, when my parents refused to let me go off to college because “people get drunk and jump off dorm room balconies and die.” Like it’s an everyday event.

 

[LAS2AMS]

GCH is the only hotel designed from the ground up by Disney, and therefore is the only hotel that replicates that WDW feel. Both PP and DLH were designed and built by other parties and later acquired by Disney. Of course, both have since been reimagined but neither has the WDW vibe.

 

[PiratesOfTheSea]

We are taking our turning 2 year old daughter to DLR this June for her first trip and 2nd birthday. We are driving from about 7 hours away and will be there 4 nights with 3 days PH tickets. We’re torn on hotel options and looking for input!

Option 1:
Hojo’s in a 2 bedroom suite

Pros:
- The dates we want (Mon-Fri) with our first parks day being DD’s birthday - Tues-Thurs are the parks days.
- Separate room for our toddler with the 7:30pm bedtime and midday nap time. (She’s a great sleeper but does not stroller nap.) Easier for us parents!

Cons:
- Not in the bubble (we’ve never stayed on property at DLR, but have all 3 trips to WDW and loved it.)

Option 2:
DLH in a standard room

Pros:
- It’s a major dream of ours to stay at the DLH. We LOVE staying on property at WDW.
- early entry, though we’d likely only utilize it 2 of the 3 days, since I don’t want our daughter’s very first DLR experience to be DCA.

Cons:
- more expensive by $413 total (but less so than usual due to the discount, which is why I’m even posting this.)
- had to shift the dates for room inventory with the discount, so park days would be Mon-Wed. Are Mondays still absurdly crowded? I used to read about that, which is why we were avoiding it.


Other related questions:
- Is the Steamboat Willie splash pad on the DVC side any good? Is it too far from the regular part of the hotel? (We’ve been to DLH for dining but don’t know the layout super well.)
- Is Goofy’s Kitchen worth trying with our 2yo? We were going to just do Minnie’s Breakfast at the Plaza Inn.
- Does the monorail transportation come in handy? What are the limitations? Would we have to fold and carry our stroller?
- Are there benefits to staying on property with a toddler that I’m maybe not even considering?

Thank you for any input! We are newbies to DLR with a toddler and to potentially staying on property at DLR, so feeling a little lost!

We have stayed onsite (GCH/DLH) and offsite (Courtyard right next to HoJo) with a toddler.

Option 1 is not worth it unless you are saving significant money. The walk down Harbor to HoJo is not much longer than the walk to DLH, but it feels much longer especially on the way back. We loved everything about the Courtyard but the location was by far the biggest con.

Option 2 I'd request a high floor room in the Fantasy Tower as you can get a great view of the fireworks from the room. The splash pad is perfect for toddlers and easy to get to from any tower since DLH has such a small footprint. I'd skip Goofy's kitchen for either Storytellers at GCH or Minnie's at Plaza Inn, as both those are far less loud and overstimulating for toddlers. Speaking from experience, if your toddler hasn't been up close with live characters before, they might take time to warm up to them.

Monday will be busy, but it won't be that much worse than Tuesday-Thursday. At DLH it's not the homeless, street vendors, and preachers that you have to worry about. They will not bother you if you leave them alone. The ones that you will have to watch out for are and will always be the "Pass/Keyholes."

Side note if you haven't bought your tickets yet, PH is kind of overkill when you are going with a toddler. You are going to be spending most of your time at DL because DCA doesn't really have much for toddlers anymore, it's barely a half-day park with a 2YO.

 

[disneycat321]

One reason is that it doesn't have AC. If it is too hot out, they don't run it.

Interesting! Good to know. Since we’re earlier in June, we’re hoping for the standard June Gloom weather we used to love so much when we lived down there.

Since staying at the DLH is a dream, that makes me say do it! You can stay off site another time, but this sounds like a special Birthday trip so maybe go for it!

Yes there are wandering characters at the DLH, and overall it’s just so magical

So so many food options for breakfast and snacks at Tangaroa Terrace and The Coffee House.
And I love trader Sam’s and it would be right there

Goofy’s is over priced and the food is subpar
I’d pick Minnie and Friends at Plaza Inn. More enchanting.
Book it for a later vs an earlier breakfast since the morning time is such a good time for short waits on rides.

The monorail slides are super fun. And the actual monorail is great, just don’t count on it all the time and definitely don’t use it for early entry.

Have fun!

Thank you! That’s what we were planning for Minnie and Friends. We struggle having table service breakfasts because of missing low crowd times, but in this case it seems worth it!

GCH is the only hotel designed from the ground up by Disney, and therefore is the only hotel that replicates that WDW feel. Both PP and DLH were designed and built by other parties and later acquired by Disney. Of course, both have since been reimagined but neither has the WDW vibe.

We actually have walked around DLH enough over the years to know that we really love the vibe there, though yes, it is different than WDW. GCH is just so wildly expensive, I don’t see that happening any time soon. I am also a big fan of real national parks lodges, so the theming is actually not my favorite. It feels “off” for me at Disney. It’s the same reason I wouldn’t stay at WL at WDW. That said, I know it’s a beautiful hotel, and I’m guessing we’ll probably eventually stay there, but most likely renting DVC points.

We have stayed onsite (GCH/DLH) and offsite (Courtyard right next to HoJo) with a toddler.

Option 1 is not worth it unless you are saving significant money. The walk down Harbor to HoJo is not much longer than the walk to DLH, but it feels much longer especially on the way back. We loved everything about the Courtyard but the location was by far the biggest con.

Option 2 I'd request a high floor room in the Fantasy Tower as you can get a great view of the fireworks from the room. The splash pad is perfect for toddlers and easy to get to from any tower since DLH has such a small footprint. I'd skip Goofy's kitchen for either Storytellers at GCH or Minnie's at Plaza Inn, as both those are far less loud and overstimulating for toddlers. Speaking from experience, if your toddler hasn't been up close with live characters before, they might take time to warm up to them.

Monday will be busy, but it won't be that much worse than Tuesday-Thursday. At DLH it's not the homeless, street vendors, and preachers that you have to worry about. They will not bother you if you leave them alone. The ones that you will have to watch out for are and will always be the "Pass/Keyholes."

Side note if you haven't bought your tickets yet, PH is kind of overkill when you are going with a toddler. You are going to be spending most of your time at DL because DCA doesn't really have much for toddlers anymore, it's barely a half-day park with a 2YO.

This is maybe a silly question - how do you request a specific room location? And is that possibility even true for standard view? I figured we’d be getting a nice view of a parking lot…

Really good to know about the NOISE at Goofy’s - I can see that being a lot. And yes, we are definitely not sure how she’ll do with the characters! It’ll be a fun discovery, haha! I love Storytellers, but have never done the character meal there. We’re planning Minnie’s for sure, and debating adding a second one. But I feel like with her age just one might be our best bet for now. We can always try to meet characters other ways if she really loves them (which honestly, I am not counting on!)

I used to be a local AP, so I actually really get that sentiment and know exactly what you mean. I assume you’re referring to the type of people who narrate the entire stretching floor sequence on HM and buy out every piece of new merch the second it’s released? We were never those kind of people as APs, but I know of them for sure. I’m glad to hear Monday won’t be as much worse as we’d feared.

I hear you on the PH and we did think about it, but there are a few key things in there we really love, like Little Mermaid and the main room at Animation Academy (our long time afternoon break spot), and DD really loves Cars, we’ve recently discovered - so we really do want to go to DCA. But we don’t want to be trapped with a day entirely at DCA, but would rather dip in and out at will depending on what DD connects with. If we discover it was a waste, we can always drop it next time!



Thanks everyone!

 

[longtimedisneylurker]

Side note if you haven't bought your tickets yet, PH is kind of overkill when you are going with a toddler. You are going to be spending most of your time at DL because DCA doesn't really have much for toddlers anymore, it's barely a half-day park with a 2YO.

Actually for me this would be the reason to get PH. There is not enough to do in DCA for a full day for a toddler or for me for that matter so having the PH is great for the ability to spend some time each/any day in DCA but the bulk of our time in Disneyland.

 

[bakofarmgirl]

i like DH for the pool, our little one loves the splash pad, we always do goofys kitchen too and he loves the characters! for a standard room we use the slumber pod so they have a dark black out space to sleep over the pack and play

 

[disneycat321]

i like DH for the pool, our little one loves the splash pad, we always do goofys kitchen too and he loves the characters! for a standard room we use the slumber pod so they have a dark black out space to sleep over the pack and play

Did you find that he took to the slumber pod relatively easily? I’ve been considering it, but feel like she’ll definitely need some practice….

Also, I feel like she’s going to outgrow the pack n play soon, but the slumber pod fits over toddler sized things, right? I don’t want to buy it and have this be the last trip she can even use it.

 

[disneycat321]

Actually for me this would be the reason to get PH. There is not enough to do in DCA for a full day for a toddler or for me for that matter so having the PH is great for the ability to spend some time each/any day in DCA but the bulk of our time in Disneyland.

Yep, that was our thinking! We also would have had DCA as the last park day, and wanted to leave it open for us to go before that in case there’s something at DCA she just really loves that we’ll want to repeat, which is entirely possible! We’ve definitely learned we can never predict her preferences!

 

[MonocularVision]

DLH walking distance to DL: 0.46 miles
Hojo’s walking distance to DL: 0.50 miles

DLH would be great and worth it but proximity is not a reason to choose it.

 

[LKing]

I think there will be plenty to do in DCA. In addition to Little Mermaid and CarsLand, you can do Disney Junior, Redwood Creek Challenge, Better Together Parade, Inside Out Emotional Whirlwind, performances at Hollywood Studio stage, etc. Park Hoppers will give you the chance to go back and forth if you miss something one day.

By the way, the Baby Care Center in DCA is next to Ghirardelli's.

 

[disneycat321]

DLH walking distance to DL: 0.46 miles
Hojo’s walking distance to DL: 0.50 miles

DLH would be great and worth it but proximity is not a reason to choose it.

Oh, we definitely know that. I’ve stayed at BWPPI, Tropicana, and Camelot and I know all those are much closer than DLH. It’s more of a bubble thing than a proximity thing, I think. Super different from staying at most deluxes at WDW where the proximity is a large part of the benefit.

 

[bakofarmgirl]

Did you find that he took to the slumber pod relatively easily? I’ve been considering it, but feel like she’ll definitely need some practice….

Also, I feel like she’s going to outgrow the pack n play soon, but the slumber pod fits over toddler sized things, right? I don’t want to buy it and have this be the last trip she can even use it.

yes he loves it dark so he likes it a lot and we do the fan with it, theres a toddler blow up bed you can now get and im considering it but havent got yet as he is just turning 2 next month but hes very tall so i think that might be in our future