First timer- deciding where to stay

[goofy78]

Hi all! I am planning a first time trip to DL in August. Originally I was going to book the Hojo for location, room size (suite) and price plus pretty good reviews on here. I started doing some more research and now I wondering if I should book the Residence Inn Anaheim Maingate on Clementine but the suite is smaller and it takes longer to get to DL (I think) but price is similar. It will be me, DH and our kids. My kids are 13 13 and 18. I'm not sure if my 18yr old is definitely coming. The reason I'm now questioning the Hojo is no breakfast and we don't really need the water park as my two 13yr olds would prefer a quieter pool. If anyone has any suggestions I would love to hear them. Thank you!

 

[gsrieff]

we really enjoyed staying at HOJO..the beds were aMaaazing. we didnt use the pool either because it was November and just not quite hot enough for swimming. The only thing that kept me from booking it again is, after walking in the parks all day...walking to the hotel alllll the way down harbor felt like it never ended. My feet hated every step.

I dont have any other experience with hotels as an adult to help with...going as a child you just don't pay attention to that kind of stuff. This time around i booked the tropicana because its close to the entrance, and i can only hope their beds are comparable to hojo. Sorry i couldn't help more! Good luck!!

 

[goofy78]

Thanks for your reply. Do you mind me asking if the walk to and from the Hojo is that bad? Tropicana is 6 minutes and Hojo is 12 minutes from DL on Google maps. I keep going back to the Hojo over all the other hotels and I just want to make sure our feet will not regret it!

 

[gsrieff]

Thanks for your reply. Do you mind me asking if the walk to and from the Hojo is that bad? Tropicana is 6 minutes and Hojo is 12 minutes from DL on Google maps. I keep going back to the Hojo over all the other hotels and I just want to make sure our feet will not regret it!

maybe it was only 12 minutes...i never timed it. in the mornings it felt like it would go by quicker as we still had energy and hadn't been beaten down by the sun. im also out of shape...so this time im working my hardest to build up stamina and going for lots of long walks. also, buying better shoes! its better for me all around obviously, so win win. i just remember walking past the tropicana and thinking everytime...next time...thats where im staying.

it could have all been a personal thing, as i have never really read anything negative about the walk from hojo that i can think of.

 

[gatorlisa]

I haven't stayed there yet (trip is next month), but I'm staying at the Homewood Suites Convention Center, which is next to the Toy Story parking lot. You can walk over there and take the shuttle to the parks. It just opened late last fall, so brand new and reviews have been good. They have a family suite that has a king, set of bunk beds and sofa sleeper. Rooms there have a kitchen and they also have free breakfast in the morning. Not sure how it compares to other places price-wise, but might be worth a look for you.

 

[luulu1999]

Park Vue inn has a 2 queen bunk bed suite its right across the street and a really good breakfast, also a triple queen room and a dbl queen mini suite

 

[gsrieff]

i just looked up the distance between the two hotels and its about a half mile. so thats almost an extra 2 miles a day less walking outside of the parks. (we have a kid so we go back to the hotel mid day to rest.. making the walk, to and from, 4 times) worth it for us.

I do believe if you stayed at the hojo that you wouldn't be disappointed...we did like staying there!

 

[avalon451]

Stayed at HoJo a few years ago and really liked it, but that walk really IS a bit much at the end of the day. Comfy rooms, nice pool, nice service. You can jaywalk across Manchester, cross Harbor there at Manchester, and walk down the west side of the street away from the crowds, and go in the drive from the taxi side and cut across the shuttle lanes-- it cuts a little off from the walk down the main side of Harbor to the crosswalk at the main entrance.

Last time I stayed at Desert Inn, which is right at the crosswalk, backs on the Park Vue Inn which is also well liked here. I really liked it, mostly for its proximity. It's a basic hotel, but the beds were very comfortable (some reviews disagree on this) and I had great service. When I made the reservation, I called them directly, and asked if I could request the top floor, as far forward as possible. They not only gave me that, but they upgraded me to a parlor suite (which I totally didn't need because I was solo!) That would probably be good for your family, though; there are 2 queens and then a closing door between the bedroom and the little "parlor" which just has a queen sleeper sofa and the TV). The free breakfast is continental, nothing fancy, but then I'm more of the opinion that breakfast should be eaten in the room or standing in line at the park.

I would love to stay at the price, comfort and quality of the other hotels that are on the ART shuttle system, like the Residence Inn you're considering. But when you come out of Disneyland at night, and see the incredible hordes of people waiting and waiting for the crammed shuttles to their hotels, or maybe think about walking that half or 3/4 mile back to your hotel... you just want to lie down and cry. So I really like the idea of booking across the street. A few steps and you're there. BWPPI, Carousel, Park Vue, Desert Inn...

 

[theluckyrabbit]

We really like the RI Maingate. Have recommended it many times to friends who've enjoyed it, too. The staff is great. They'll even do your grocery shopping and put the things away in your suite. For older kids, the walk isn't far. There is an ART shuttle, and if you miss that one, there is an ART stop at the Motel 6 next door. You will also be close to GardenWalk (Cheesecake Factory, CPK, Bubba Gump's, etc.).

 

[MandNCC]

We just got back from the Camelot, it was clean, slightly larger room than I expected and such a close walk. We never made it up to the pool because it was a little chilly on our non park day and my son is too young to tolerate the cold. No breakfast but McDonald's and panera are right next door.

 

[azdisneylover]

"You can jaywalk across Manchester"

Just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should. Please, do NOT jaywalk. It can be dangerous and it is illegal. Walk to a crosswalk and cross, or, stay at a closer hotel/motel.

 

[bdub]

Hi all! I am planning a first time trip to DL in August. Originally I was going to book the Hojo for location, room size (suite) and price plus pretty good reviews on here. I started doing some more research and now I wondering if I should book the Residence Inn Anaheim Maingate on Clementine but the suite is smaller and it takes longer to get to DL (I think) but price is similar. It will be me, DH and our kids. My kids are 13 13 and 18. I'm not sure if my 18yr old is definitely coming. The reason I'm now questioning the Hojo is no breakfast and we don't really need the water park as my two 13yr olds would prefer a quieter pool. If anyone has any suggestions I would love to hear them. Thank you!

We stayed at the residence inn our first trip Dec 2012/Jan 2013 and quite enjoyed ourselves. I took my then 14 and 18 year old sons, and we loved the floor plan and having the full sized kitchen at our disposal. We also took advantage of the buffet - this was a must for us since they had such huge appetites at the time. The younger one still does, heh. We also used the ART shuttle which didn't seem to cause us any issues. We also watched the fireworks from just outside our room the first night we stayed there. It wasn't the best view, but it was exciting to see since the we typically only see them during independence day celebrations.

I actually wanted to stay there during our upcoming June trip but the price was too high to justify so we're giving the new Homewood Suites a shot instead (it's cheaper by $70 a night ). It's pretty similar but I prefer the setup at the Residence Inn - the buildings feel more homey.

Anyway, I hope that info helps.

 

[auntiegem]

"You can jaywalk across Manchester"

Just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should. Please, do NOT jaywalk. It can be dangerous and it is illegal. Walk to a crosswalk and cross, or, stay at a closer hotel/motel.

Manchester next door to the Hojo is a smaller side street that is not tremendously busy. We've dared to walk across it to Mimi's and managed to live to tell the tale.

 

[JessL]

We stayed at HoJos in 2012 and loved it. Beds were incredibly comfortable, rooms were clean. It actually worked well for us not having breakfast because there was a shop downstairs and we bought cereal, milk and fruit and made our breakfast in our room. It was a great timesaver because we could have one person under the shower, one getting dressed, one eating breakfast etc. We also ate at Mimis next door a couple of times which was great for a proper home-style meal. We're staying at PVI this time just because of the proximity. As much as I loved HoJos, every extra step at the end of the day counts!

 

[smartlabelprint]

I'm at a different Homewood suites and now this is my go to hotel. It's brand new in CA. You can catch the shuttle at the toy story lot I understand. Or ride back. So maybe you could walk one way.

 

[corinne76]

Park Vue inn has a 2 queen bunk bed suite its right across the street and a really good breakfast, also a triple queen room and a dbl queen mini suite

we stayed here last week (though my kids are younger and we opted for the queen/bunk room).
The free breakfast was pretty good ... it was nice to have some meat and waffles.
And after walking around all day, it was nice to be able to cross the street and have "home" be right there. The beds were comfy and the room was nice. The last trip, we stayed at Desert Inn. both were nice but we'll likely stay at PVI again for the benefits of the hot breakfast (which I'd need to feed the kids anyway) and free parking

 

[bdub]

Oh yeah, that is another upside of RI - free parking. We drove down last time from Oregon so the free parking was a great bonus.