Embassy Suites Anaheim South Review W/Pics

[PinkBudgie]

Embassy Suites Anaheim South is on Harbor Blvd, about a mile from DLR. We spent a week there for our 20th Anniversary trip. We chose it because we wanted a nice and roomy place but didn't want to pay the DLR hotel prices. I thought I would post a review because before we went I couldn't really find out much about it.

We used the AAA discount to get the room for $151 a night. There is a parking fee of $6 a day but we didn't pay that because we booked before it went into effect.

Here is our king sized bed.

And the other side of the bedroom.

I liked having the king sized bed, but it was shorter than ours at home. Not really a problem for us because we are not tall people. The bed was not as comfortable as I like because at home we have a memory foam pad on our bed. I like a very soft bed. DH thought it was fine.

Here is the living room. As you can see, each suite (all the rooms are suites) has two tvs. This came in handy when I woke up at 4am with one of my really bad headaches. I was able to go out and watch tv without disturbing DH. The sofa also has a hideaway bed if you need it.

Each room also has a litle "kitchen". More of a bar, really. It has a sink, a small refrigerator, and a microwave under the counter. This area can also be used for getting ready in the morning if someone is in the shower since it also has a sink and a mirror.

The view from our room was not the best. We looked out over an empty lot that used to be some sort of golf driving range. I can think of a lot of things that would be great to put in that spot. A Starbucks and small grocery store for starters. When DH saw the picture he thought something was wrong with the camera because it had a stripe at the top. I told him that was the sky and he didn't believe me until I showed him out the window. The ground is so flat. Where we live you see hills everywhere you look.

DLR is off to the far right of the pic. We could see some of the fireworks if you pressed your face against the glass. Wish we had a room on the other side of the hotel that faced that way!

I don't have a bathroom pic, but it was nice. The shower curtain rod was curved so that the curtain didn't get sucked into the shower like sometimes happens when the rod is straight.

I will have to finish my review later and I will post more pics of the lobby. It was very cool!

 

[mommy2allyandaveri]

It is a nice hotel, I just wish it were a little closer.

 

[PinkBudgie]

Yes, it is a little too far to walk if you are walking all day in the parks. On Saturday we had a blockout day, so we walked to Garden Walk and looked around, and from there walked over to DTD since we couldn't go in the park. After looking around there we returned to Garden Walk and ate at the Cheesecake Factory. We had never been. It was very good and the inside was very ornate. We then walked back. It was probably about 3 miles total. Fine for a day we weren't walking in the parks.

Driving was very easy! Turn right on Harbor, right on Chapman, right on West. West turns into Disneyland Dr. First thing in the moring, the Pinocchio entrance was open. So just turn left on Magic Way and go in to park. We prefer this to the parking garage. To leave, turn left on Magic way, right on Disneyland Dr. Left on Orangewood, right on Harbor, then right into the hotel. It only took a few minutes. When we left at 8:30pm one night, we took the tram to the lot, then drove to a gas station, then to our hotel and we were in our room by 9pm. Coming or going even on busy days we never had to wait for more than one tram.

Back to the hotel.

They have a Disneyland Ticket desk. We had APs so we didn't need it.

The lobby looks like a jungle, with paths, a waterfall, and creek. Tables are scattered through out the area.

The view from outside our room on the 12th floor.

Glass elevators let you look out while you ride.

They also have a lion that roars.

And real turtles and fish.

Breakfast is amazing and is another main reason we stayed there. Every morning they offer a free breakfast. You can have an omlett made to order or choose scrambled eggs, potatoes, sausage, pancakes, french toast, donughts, muffins, toast, cereal, yogurt, fruit, coffee, tea, juice, to name some of the items.

DH always took a cup of coffee to go when we went to DLR. Breakfast starts at 6:30am. In the evening they have a manger's reception. Adults can get one free drink and anyone get all the soda and snacks they want. (pop corn and a nut and cracker mix). Next to the soda they had a fruit syrup so you can mix your own Shirley Temple. We only did this on Sat night since we were blocked out. Otherwise, we were at DLR.

Anyway, we loved it and would stay again. I'd say the only draw back is not being close enough to walk easily. There is an ART bus that comes there. We saw people waiting for it. But we prefer to drive ourselves. It would be a great choice for a family of 5 because you get two rooms and can have a total of three beds- two queens and a hideaway. We liked the breakfast because it was fast and had protein to keep us going through the morning. Because it was free you didn't have to wait to pay and wait to be served. You can grab your food and go if you want.

Anyway, if you don't mind staying a mile from DLR, then I reccomend Embassy Suites Anaheim South.

 

[pinkblush]

Thank you so much for your review and for the pics! We are staying at the Embassy in August, so your information was super helpful!

 

[debdreamsofdis]

We love staying at Embassy Suites! There is plenty of room for our family of 6. The made to order omelets are awesome. Last time we stayed at Anaheim South, it was kind of a madhouse at breakfast in the morning. Once or twice we couldn't find a table, so we just took the food up to our room. We also would always grab an extra piece of fruit, some bread and pb&j and jelly and make our own sandwiches to eat for lunch later in the day-worked for us.

My lids LOVE the koi pond in the lobby. I don't know if they do it at this location, but sometimes you can get fish food to feed the fish. My kids would end up naming the fish and making sure they fed them everyday while we stayed there.

I'm sad to hear about a parking fee there now. We always drive and liked the fact that we didn't have to pay for parking at the hotel. How are they enforcing it? When we stayed there, it was just an open parking lot and we had to share spaces with the guests at the Hilton Garden Inn and Hampton. Do they have the lot blocked off so only paying guests can use it now?

 

[PinkBudgie]

They give everyone a parking pass to hang on your mirror or on the dash board while you are parked there. I assume all the hotels have these. You could park anywhere around there you wanted. In fact, we never had trouble finding a parking spot, but some of them were very narrow and we even brought our little Honda Civic since it was just the two of us. It was odd, some rows where had narrow spaces, and others didn't so you just have to look. Off to the side of the hotel there were lots of empty spaces. I was under the impression that the parking fee is something the city of Garden Grove just passed in March.

They had signs that said don't feed the fish they are on a special diet. But I don't know if you could ask to feed them their food or not. It didn't occur to me.

Pinkblush- you're welcome. I just wanted to put something together because I couldn't find much about it on here when we went.

 

[Gisele]

Thank you for sharing your pictures and experiences. That is too bad, that now there is a parking fee. I agree too, that the empty lot should be revitalized. A nice park, would be another good choice. It can be Disney themed, or not.
The hotel and it's grounds, look very nice and inviting.
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[caligirl stuck in va]

Thanks for the review! I love when people share their hotel experiences. As a rule, I love Embassy Suites, and this one looks very nice. I doubt I can get my family to agree to stay there, though, as the walk is a little far, there are too many of us to get in and out of cars every day, and we are very spoiled with walking across the street. But someday, I sure would like to try it!

 

[heartbeeps]

thanks PinkBudgie for the review! It hellps and may be a possibility for that 40th!

 

[LuLusApple]

Thanks for the review and pics! and the tips about parking at DL. I copied them incase I need them in the future I might add this hotel to my list, for when I take all my kiddos, thanks

 

[cruise cruise cruise]

Thanks for the pictures and review. Breakfast looks good. Is there a pool?

 

[PinkBudgie]

Yes, they have a pool and an exercise room and a business center. We didn't use those. The pool looked nice, not exotic like the lobby or anything. Just a regular pool. Oh, I forgot another down side. To hook up to wireless internet in you room costs $10 per 24 hours. At least that is what we were told when we called ahead of time. I never checked again while there. So we didn't use it. Actually we were really too tired to anyway except for Sat. I just think in this day and age it should be included.

A few further notes about driving to DLR. As you go up Disneyland drive, you follow the signs for the theme park. When you get to Magic Way check the arrow on the sign to see which way it is pointing. If it points left to Magic Way, you can use the easy Pinocchio enterance. If it is straight ahead, you have to go straight to Ball (I think) and make a U turn to go in through the parking garage. We only had to do that once when we arrived in the afternoon. There is sign on the left telling you to make a U turn for theme parks, but it is small and easy to miss.

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

Thank you for your review, PinkBudgie. I added it to the megasticky thread at the top under the Hotel section. Hopefully people will add their reviews & pictures. I have some pics of the pool, etc., that I can add here.

Wow, I didn't know that they now have a parking fee. That must be very recent since I've been there a few times and have never had to pay before. But that parking area can get quite crowded. It'd be nice if they could waive that fee for the hotel guests, or give some type of discount. Seems that visitors are nickle & dimed out here when they visit with all the fees there are.

The lion seems like a pretty recent addition, too. I've never seen it in the times I've visited. What a nice feature to that whole jungle scene.

Loved the pics and your comments.

 

[PinkBudgie]

I believe the parking was just added in March because when she said parking was $6, I pointed to our reservation paper that said parking $0. I knew to make sure to bring this because I remember someone posting here about Garden Grove charging a parking fee now. She said since we reserved before March, they would comp us the fee.

The parking in the front of the building was crowded but there was always room on the side and behind the building.

The lion was neat. He moved sometimes and he roared maybe every half hour or hour.

 

[teacherlisa1978]

Great review! This is my preferred place to stay. We figure someday when we have strollers to deal with we may want to stay in walking distance but for now this is our favorite place. For comparison we've stayed at Tropicana, Crowne Plaza, Hyatt, and I did DL hotel as a kid.

The 2 room suites really make it for us. DH can take an afternoon nap while I read or come and go from the pool and jacuzzi. The only inconvenience for us was that the breakfast didn't get started early enough when we were there in December for us to partake before heading to Magic Morning. But that was only the one day. We also liked that we could enjoy the evening reception and then head back to the parks in the evening.

We rode ART since we've never rented a car. It was always 20 minutes or less to wait for it at the hotel.

We are returning this December for 2 nights of our 4 night trip. (and I am hoping Sherry's theory about the 2nd half of December holds true since we went the first part of the month last year and loved it but we'll be there the 18th to the 22nd this year.). The only reason we aren't staying all 4 nights is because I got the best end of the year teacher gift ever this year-2 nights at the Anaheim Marriott Suites for our trip!

 

[disney4metoo]

We love Embassy Suites South on Harbor! We have stayed here many times and have never been disappointed. This was our hotel of choice before we starting staying at GCH. This is a great hotel! We love the great breakfast and the extra room! I must mention the free wine/beer, cocktails, juice slushes and snacks ( pretzels, popcorn, etc.) served in the evening! I love those slushes! I am in line with all the kids for those slushes!

If we are not at the Grand, this hotel would definitely be one of the hotels we would choose to stay!

Lawrence is the manager. Lawrence is awesome and will do his best for you!

 

[Tyr23]

Great review! We were just there 6/23-6/28 and had a good stay. The only downfall was that we arrived too early to check-in (1:30) so we headed to DLR after storing our bags. When we got back at 11:30 that night, the person checking us in had us wait at the front desk for about 15 minutes while he "checked on something."

Turns out that our requested room (high floor/Disney view) had been flooded so we ended up in a 3rd floor room instead. He did offer to walk us to another property at no charge but we were exhausted and took the room. I had specifically wanted a higher floor because we knew from previous experience (this was our third stay) that the lobby gets noisy and you really hear it from the lower floors.

Love the breakfast and the manager's reception! ART is also very easy to use.

 

[disney4metoo]

Great review! We were just there 6/23-6/28 and had a good stay. The only downfall was that we arrived too early to check-in (1:30) so we headed to DLR after storing our bags. When we got back at 11:30 that night, the person checking us in had us wait at the front desk for about 15 minutes while he "checked on something."

Turns out that our requested room (high floor/Disney view) had been flooded so we ended up in a 3rd floor room instead. He did offer to walk us to another property at no charge but we were exhausted and took the room. I had specifically wanted a higher floor because we knew from previous experience (this was our third stay) that the lobby gets noisy and you really hear it from the lower floors.

Love the breakfast and the manager's reception! ART is also very easy to use.

It's funny how everyone is different. I am very sensitive to noise and cannot sleep well if I hear voices, cars, loud air-conditioners, etc. However, we have been on the fourth floor and above and never had a problem with noise from the lobby. We have stayed at least 25+ times. We have also had family members staying in different rooms (some on the second floor) in the hotel and no one had complained of noise. We typically stay on the 6-8 floor.

That was really nice that they were going to comp you a room at another property at no charge!

I agree ART is easy to use! On another note, we also like the hamburgers and club sandwiches at the Serengeti Grill!

We usually stay at the Grand Californian Hotel and we love the convenience, and being on-site, but Embassy Suites ( South) for the large suites, cleanliness, made to order breakfast, free Manager's Reception, and overall hotel is a close second!

 

[WannaBeAPrincess]

Embassy Suites is always our hotel of choice too. The full breakfast is absolutely awesome and would cost our family of 6 at least $60 at any restaurant.

We love that the ART comes directly to the front door of the hotel too and drops us off at the front of the park. Couldn't be easier.

Glad you had a great trip!

 

[PinkBudgie]

About noise- in the morning when I was in the living room (12th floor) I could hear when the waterfall turned on. In the bedroom we could hear the DL fireworks. At night while sleeping we always bring a small sound machine that plays rain. This way, you don't notice all those weird hotel noises, whatever they may be. Our room was right next to the emergency stairs so we did not have people walking past our room and only had one room next to us. I loved that spot and felt good knowing the stairs were next door.