Grand Californian Super Thread

[lana772]

The machines use tokens.

...and there is a token machine in the laundry room that takes dollars.

Lana

 

[hitodis2016]

Hi all, this is my first post but have to admit that I read the boards regularly and got some great info and tips from all of you! I just returned from a stay at the GCH and used the main laundry facilities twice. Very clean and well maintained. The token machine takes bills, and the cost is $1 per token. The washers are 2 tokens per load and the cycle takes about 40 minutes, and the dryers are also 2 tokens per load and the cycle takes about 45 minutes. There is also a detergent/dryer sheet dispenser and I think they are 1 token per product. Hope this helps!

 

[Lucille1963]

On the "Sketchy" issue....
We've used the laundry room in the DVC wing and didn't think it was "sketchy" at all. Unfortunately, we did stumble upon something on our trip this past January that was.

Shortly after checking in to our DVC Villa (4 or 5pm?), I took my 5 yo son up to the balcony to get a look at PP. Walking by the room with the ice machines, he asked what they were so I opened the door (no key card). Lying on the floor was a used prophylactic. We hurried out. I alerted a CM at the Guest Services desk (who looked pretty horrified) and I have no doubt it was promptly removed.
It was, however, a good reminder that the building is open to anyone, and those areas are open to anyone, and they don't seem to have surveillance.

As a kid, I remember my cousins and sister fighting over who got to go fill the ice bucket. After this, it probably won't be the same with my kid.

Everything else on our 8 night stay was beyond wonderful. This was such an odd occurrence that I don't think I've told anyone about it until now. The use of the word "sketchy" just jogged the memory.

 

[LoveKermit]

Thank you for the help on the laundry and on the PP...... eewwwwwww......

 

[Lynzer Torte]

We just reserved our room for May 9-14 but all they had available was Standard View. I'm really bummed because we really want Premium Theme Park View like we've had twice in the past. The CM told us to call back to see if there are any cancellations so we can upgrade.

Has anyone successfully done this? I'm thinking I'd rather stay @ DLH Upper Pool View for the same price.

 

[kailuagirl]

Im pretty sure the laundry room on the 2nd for., the main one has a hidden surveliance system. Maybe 2 years ago, can't remember if it was our last visit or the year before, I went to do our Laundry, it was late, parks were closed and the security guard was in there on top of the washers in a ceiling vent. I assumed it was something to do with security?? I didn't mind though, late at night when it's just me in there, its kinda nice to know someone is watching out for you.

The room has always been clean and a joy to have available. Love that we can pack less stuff and have more room to bring home Disney treasures . And I love that it was a locked key card access door.

 

[dec2009mama]

If I am looking for a room on a high floor not facing DTD which one should I book out of my three options below?

Standard View Room
Woods/Garden/Courtyard View
Deluxe Partial View

Never stayed at DGC before and its a toss up between DGC or DLH (upper level resort view)

 

[Nonsuch]

If I am looking for a room on a high floor not facing DTD which one should I book out of my three options below?

Standard View Room
Woods/Garden/Courtyard View
Deluxe Partial View

Standard or Woods/Garden/Courtyard will not look at DTD.
Deluxe Partial is so ambiguous, it could look anywhere.

 

[DoughR]

If I am looking for a room on a high floor not facing DTD which one should I book out of my three options below?

Standard View Room
Woods/Garden/Courtyard View
Deluxe Partial View

Never stayed at DGC before and its a toss up between DGC or DLH (upper level resort view)

Deluxe Partial is in the areas facing DTD where you can't see directly below because of the shops built underneath floor 3 of the north wing. If you want a 5th floor view you'll have to request one from a standard or courtyard view and hope that you get it. I think gardens/woods refers to rooms facing the park but with the trees in the way so you can't request a higher floor since that's basically a premium park view.

 

[cohoman]

Last week was our 3rd time staying at the GCH, and here are a few comments:

1. We have a family of 5 and reserved a standard room, but the hotel could not guarantee us beds for 5 people. They best they could guarantee was two queen beds and the floor with "mats" and pillows. Luckily, when we checked in we got a room with 2 beds and a daybed for my 9 year-old son which worked out good, but it was a shame they couldn't reserve is this room ahead of time for our piece of mind.
2. On our last day we wanted to use the pool but checkout time from our room was 11 am, so we couldn't shower before changing our clothes and leaving the hotel for the airport. Luckily, there is a shower in the restrooms adjacent to the pools on the South end (there's also outside showers there too).
3. The WiFi was working more reasonably for us in our hotel room and in the lobby (compared to our last visit where the hotel had so many overlapping WiFi Routers the connection was unusable). WiFi was free, which was nice.
4. There is a small video game arcade room near the Guest Services Desk in the Hotel. A nice distraction for young kids.
5. There's a good workout room available at the hotel, with several treadmills and universal weight machines.
6. There is an Alamo Car Rental office on-site in Downtown Disney (just behind Earl of Sandwich) where you can rent a car for a day at a rate of $37. Very convenient if you want to take a day and drive to Huntington Beach or Newport Beach. The cars are parked in the self-parking lot across from GCH.
7. The Whitewater Cafe is located at the hotel and offers good meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner (hamburgers are great!). They also have a small assortment of grocery items.
8. For hotel guests, you can use your "Magic Morning Hour" to get into the hotel 1-hour early. If you use this option (which I recommend), don't use the private entrance to DCA from the hotel. The lines are too crowded. It's better to actually walk to the main gate of DCA and go through the Magic Hours entrance (far East side). Much faster.
9. If you need a cab ride to the airport, get a flat-rate voucher from Guest Services (or any bellhop). A ride from the hotel to SNA airport is $35 (cash only).

 

[mmmears]

Just returned from a few nights at the GCH... My thoughts...

-- Lobby was just as lovely as I remembered

-- The pool area was nice and relaxing

-- We upgraded (paid for it) to a CL room at the last minute

-- CL food was great. CM who checked us in was just not nice and very un-Disney (wish I could remember her name...). But the others up there were helpful.

-- The lounge that first night was a disaster. Too many people. Babies crying, kids running around. Parents not parenting. Thought we had made a HUGE mistake upgrading. It was fine every day after that (but it was just horrible that first night). And we've been staying CL at WDW and DL off and on for the last 15 years (with our DD)... I've never seen such a mess.

-- We had thought about trying out the DLH but every time we had to go back to our room we were SOOOOOO glad we stayed at the GCH. The location just can't be beat.

-- We used the GCH entrance to DCA and still got to RSR at the beginning.

-- The toiletries were the same as before but in the new, smaller but more squeezable bottles they started using at WDW last summer. We asked for an extra shampoo (long hair) and were given lots of extras.

-- Mousekeeping and turndown service were great.

 

[ahsquared]

Just returned from a few nights at the GCH... My thoughts...

-- Lobby was just as lovely as I remembered

-- The pool area was nice and relaxing

-- We upgraded (paid for it) to a CL room at the last minute

-- CL food was great. CM who checked us in was just not nice and very un-Disney (wish I could remember her name...). But the others up there were helpful.

-- The lounge that first night was a disaster. Too many people. Babies crying, kids running around. Parents not parenting. Thought we had made a HUGE mistake upgrading. It was fine every day after that (but it was just horrible that first night). And we've been staying CL at WDW and DL off and on for the last 15 years (with our DD)... I've never seen such a mess.

-- We had thought about trying out the DLH but every time we had to go back to our room we were SOOOOOO glad we stayed at the GCH. The location just can't be beat.

-- We used the GCH entrance to DCA and still got to RSR at the beginning.

-- The toiletries were the same as before but in the new, smaller but more squeezable bottles they started using at WDW last summer. We asked for an extra shampoo (long hair) and were given lots of extras.

-- Mousekeeping and turndown service were great.

Did they have a rope drop in the park from the gc entrance or did they wait to let people in until after the park opened?

 

[uncw89]

Just returned from a few nights at the GCH... My thoughts...

-- Lobby was just as lovely as I remembered

-- The pool area was nice and relaxing

-- We upgraded (paid for it) to a CL room at the last minute

-- CL food was great. CM who checked us in was just not nice and very un-Disney (wish I could remember her name...). But the others up there were helpful.

-- The lounge that first night was a disaster. Too many people. Babies crying, kids running around. Parents not parenting. Thought we had made a HUGE mistake upgrading. It was fine every day after that (but it was just horrible that first night). And we've been staying CL at WDW and DL off and on for the last 15 years (with our DD)... I've never seen such a mess.

-- We had thought about trying out the DLH but every time we had to go back to our room we were SOOOOOO glad we stayed at the GCH. The location just can't be beat.

-- We used the GCH entrance to DCA and still got to RSR at the beginning.

-- The toiletries were the same as before but in the new, smaller but more squeezable bottles they started using at WDW layst summer. We asked for an extra shampoo (long hair) and were given lots of extras.

-- Mousekeeping and turndown service were great.

Did you upgrade when you got there or before you arrived? If you don't mind me asking,how much was it to upgrade? Thanks!!!

 

[RalphMouth]

Just returned from a few nights at the GCH... My thoughts...

-- Lobby was just as lovely as I remembered

-- The pool area was nice and relaxing

-- We upgraded (paid for it) to a CL room at the last minute

-- CL food was great. CM who checked us in was just not nice and very un-Disney (wish I could remember her name...). But the others up there were helpful.

-- The lounge that first night was a disaster. Too many people. Babies crying, kids running around. Parents not parenting. Thought we had made a HUGE mistake upgrading. It was fine every day after that (but it was just horrible that first night). And we've been staying CL at WDW and DL off and on for the last 15 years (with our DD)... I've never seen such a mess.

-- We had thought about trying out the DLH but every time we had to go back to our room we were SOOOOOO glad we stayed at the GCH. The location just can't be beat.

-- We used the GCH entrance to DCA and still got to RSR at the beginning.

-- The toiletries were the same as before but in the new, smaller but more squeezable bottles they started using at WDW last summer. We asked for an extra shampoo (long hair) and were given lots of extras.

-- Mousekeeping and turndown service were great.

sure sounds like you didn't regret not trying the DLH....
I still have my GCH reservation and am 70% sure I'm keeping it but am
still thinking my 4 yr old DD will like the DLH better but the GCH location has been the #1 reason I haven't changed-
what kind of view did you end up having ? can you have a standard view room but pay extra for concierge service ?

 

[mmmears]

Did they have a rope drop in the park from the gc entrance or did they wait to let people in until after the park opened?

They let us in a bit early so that we got to the Carsland rope drop at about the same time as the front people from the main gates. It was just easier and more convenient for us to use the hotel entrance, since it's shady and there were benches to sit on.

Did you upgrade when you got there or before you arrived? If you don't mind me asking,how much was it to upgrade? Thanks!!!

We upgraded on checkin. I asked if anything was available (and said that I would pay for it -- can't stand it when people ask for free upgrades). I was told yes and that it was $150 plus tax. Pricey, but it was really convenient.

sure sounds like you didn't regret not trying the DLH....
I still have my GCH reservation and am 70% sure I'm keeping it but am
still thinking my 4 yr old DD will like the DLH better but the GCH location has been the #1 reason I haven't changed-
what kind of view did you end up having ? can you have a standard view room but pay extra for concierge service ?

We really didn't regret it, but someday we may try it out. This was a really short trip for us. Every time we walked back and forth we were happy with our choice. My DD grew up going to the GCH so she actually prefers it anyway. Plus I really like the pool area there. I booked a courtyard/woods view room and I kept that view but was up on the 6th floor with concierge. I believe they said that there were standard views available. Neither was available online when I checked (just park view CL).

 

[uncw89]

Was that per night? How many nights were you there? We are currently booked in a std for here nights. Thanks!!!

 

[mmmears]

Was that per night? How many nights were you there? We are currently booked in a std for here nights. Thanks!!!

It was per night. We were only there for 3 nights so I went for it.

 

[WestCoastMama]

On another thread it said some of the pools were closed. Anyone experience this recently? We're headed there this Saturday.

 

[mmmears]

On another thread it said some of the pools were closed. Anyone experience this recently? We're headed there this Saturday.

The smaller pool (the one that they built when they added on the DVC) was closed, as was the tiny kiddie pool in the middle.

The big pool in the front and the one with the slide were open this past week.

 

[WestCoastMama]

The smaller pool (the one that they built when they added on the DVC) was closed, as was the tiny kiddie pool in the middle.

The big pool in the front and the one with the slide were open this past week.

Thank you for the info!