Headed to the DLH this weekend... have some very specific questions

[Niltiac]

You have to fold strollers on the monorail. It one was rolled on, it was being used as a wheelchair and marked accordingly. They are very strict about folding up the strollers on both the monorail and train.

That is possible, but there were at least three, all rolled on, so I don't expect they were all being used as wheelchairs. Could be though. Maybe they would have had to fold them if it had been more crowded.

 

[Nonsuch]

So I called today and spoke to a CM. Linked all of our reservations with a request that we be near each other if possible. I also requested a king bed for our room. I mentioned that I have heard that some king rooms are smaller than others and I was told no, they are all the same size within a few feet. I will talk to someone again when we check in and ask again about a "larger" king room.

A previous post showing a "small" king bed room in the Adventure tower.
Perhaps a DLH expert can confirm, but I doubt all rooms with king beds have this layout.

 

[lalasmama]

I am still wondering what we should do on a rainy day at the hotel...

There's a lot to look at around the hotels--each tower has different things in the lobby area. Perhaps book a character meal? DtD has lots of stores to look through. Our 3yo grandson would do fine with that (lots of "Mittey Mouse" to see in World of Disney), but obviously not all 3yo kiddos would deal well with that. I'm not sure if they have closed Build A Bear or not yet (the closing has been announced, just can't remember when the actual closing is/was).

(We would swim at 65*, haha, but our youngest kid is a 13-year-old human fish, so she would hop in the pool regardless of temperature! Totally common for her to hop into the outdoor hotel pool when its in the 50s. Brrrrr!)

On our non-park days, we like to do an early-ish dinner, and then a quiet evening time and early bed time to let us attack the parks well-rested and tasty for a full day.

 

[whoever]

On the pool, we just cancelled our Sunday Cabana. The weather is plummeting and its going to rain on Sunday. Ugh... The best laid plans. We'll be there Thursday-Monday. Enjoy your stay. Are you doing Dapper Day?

 

[whoever]

Thank you! Ours is kind of hard to fold so maybe we will skip it.

I am still wondering what we should do on a rainy day at the hotel...

I'm going to try to do the DLH tour. I did the Grand's hotel tour a few trips ago and it was great.

 

[SOCALMouseMommy]

On the pool, we just cancelled our Sunday Cabana. The weather is plummeting and its going to rain on Sunday. Ugh... The best laid plans. We'll be there Thursday-Monday. Enjoy your stay. Are you doing Dapper Day?

Awww, what a bummer. Hard to believe it was 100 degrees a week ago! I'm still holding out hope that we will get a last minute change in the weather... that happens here sometimes. They were saying rain on Halloween (today) for a while and now it looks like we won't get rain, although it's cloudy and cool.

We are going for Dapper Day but in our group not everyone can enter the parks on Sunday (due to various annual pass levels) so some will go to DL and some will enjoy the Dapper Day atmosphere from the esplanade and DTD. Plus I want to check out the Dapper Day convention inside the hotel, but only if someone will entertain my little one for a while.

 

[SOCALMouseMommy]

I'm going to try to do the DLH tour. I did the Grand's hotel tour a few trips ago and it was great.

I saw that on the website and I would LOVE to do it, but it says it's for 14 years and older so I feel like they won't let us bring our little ones with us. Maybe I'll send my parents on the tour (if they even offer it on Sundays).

 

[whoever]

I saw that on the website and I would LOVE to do it, but it says it's for 14 years and older so I feel like they won't let us bring our little ones with us. Maybe I'll send my parents on the tour (if they even offer it on Sundays).

We took our 10-year old on the Grand's tour. She was the youngest person but it was just fine. It's probably just not that interesting for the smaller ones.

 

[whoever]

Awww, what a bummer. Hard to believe it was 100 degrees a week ago! I'm still holding out hope that we will get a last minute change in the weather... that happens here sometimes. They were saying rain on Halloween (today) for a while and now it looks like we won't get rain, although it's cloudy and cool.

I know, it's crazy. We debated shifting the cabana to a different day but in the end, it's pretty cloudy and cool the entire stay, so didn't make sense. Now I have a 6-hour hole to fill on the busiest (and now wettest) park day of the trip. What to do....

We are going for Dapper Day but in our group not everyone can enter the parks on Sunday (due to various annual pass levels) so some will go to DL and some will enjoy the Dapper Day atmosphere from the esplanade and DTD. Plus I want to check out the Dapper Day convention inside the hotel, but only if someone will entertain my little one for a while.

Look for us and say hi if you see us. We are bounding as Pirates, Peter Pan, and Teacups in dapper style. Youngest two girls are just dapper tsum tusms..

 

[Malcon10t]

1. I’m wondering what room/tower requests I should make. I definitely want a quiet room so my toddler can go to sleep at a decent hour. I’ve heard that DTD can be really loud with music playing late on weekends. Which towers are affected by this? Also, I’m not sure which bed arrangement is best for max space in the room. Usually we would ask for a king bed for us, but my son will be sleeping in a pack in play so I want to choose a room type that gives us the most room to set him up in this. Are king bed rooms smaller? Or would we actually have more floor space due to one less bed? If anyone has photos of rooms with one or two beds I would much appreciate it!

There are very few king rooms and they do tend to be smaller.

2. Originally we planned on swimming most of Sunday, but the forecast looks like rain and cold weather (65 degrees). Are the pools heated or should we just plan on skipping the pool?

Pools are heated.

3. What are some fun things to do around the hotel if we can’t hang at the pool? Do they have any special activities or are there areas where fun things are happening like wandering characters?

There are characters in the hotel lobby at times. They have a list of things happening at the hotel you can participate in. Some nights they have movies, some mornings they have washcloth folding classes, they have tours of the hotels, etc...

4. Are there fridges in the rooms? If so, do they stay decently cold? I would like to bring some milk, yogurt, fruit and cheese so we can have breakfast and snacks in the room.

The fridges have always worked great for us, but are on the smaller size.

5. Parking... We arrive Sunday morning and check out Tuesday morning but will go to the parks on Tuesday. Will we be paying for two days or three?

2

6. Where is the closest Starbucks in relation to the DLH? Is it the one in DTD? Does anyone know if you can use the Starbucks app to pre-order at this location?

The Downtown Disney West Starbucks is closest to the hotel. You can mobile order.

7. Can we buy park tickets at the front desk of the hotel when we check in? If so, can we walk right up to the turn styles with those or do we have to go to the ticket booth first?

Yes and Yes

8. If we take the monorail into the park, it drops you off at Tomorrowland right? How do you handle strollers on the monorail?


Thank you in advance, I know it’s a lot of questions! I like to be prepared, especially when traveling with a large group.

Strollers need to be folded. How large is your party?

 

[Niltiac]

There are very few king rooms and they do tend to be smaller.

Based on these photos the king rooms are still larger than the room with two queens that we got before. Our room didn't have enough space for the couch so it had a small chair instead, and there was no room to walk on either side of the beds (they were against the wall and window). So even if the rooms with two queens are generally larger than king rooms, I still wouldn't suggest requesting one without explaining the reason or they might stick you in one with no floor space.

 

[SOCALMouseMommy]

We took our 10-year old on the Grand's tour. She was the youngest person but it was just fine. It's probably just not that interesting for the smaller ones.

This is good to know... we might try it if they offer it on Sundays.

 

[SOCALMouseMommy]

I seriously can't thank you all enough for the tips on the room sizes. I am going over to the hotel early Sunday morning and I will be sure to explain exactly what we are looking for and why so we don't end up with a tint room. I am not sure why the CMs I spoke to on the phone were so insistent that all the rooms were the same size when clearly they are not!

 

[SOCALMouseMommy]

Strollers need to be folded. How large is your party?

We are a party of 8. Not huge but still...

 

[SOCALMouseMommy]

I know, it's crazy. We debated shifting the cabana to a different day but in the end, it's pretty cloudy and cool the entire stay, so didn't make sense. Now I have a 6-hour hole to fill on the busiest (and now wettest) park day of the trip. What to do....


Look for us and say hi if you see us. We are bounding as Pirates, Peter Pan, and Teacups in dapper style. Youngest two girls are just dapper tsum tusms..

That sounds so amazing! I will look for you for sure. I have the cutest three-piece suit for my toddler and I know my niece will look amazing. My outfit got pretty messed up because I was pregnant and planning on something particular and now I'm not pregnant anymore so that outfit won't work. I'm going to dig through my closet and see what I can find.

 

[lurpee]

Yes, the monorail drops you in Tomorrowland, right above the Nemo subs. I think you can roll a stroller on but I'm not certain.

The pool are heated, but not sure how it will feel to get out of them in cold/rainy. The pool bathhouses do have enough room to change there if you don't want to drip back to your room.

PHXscuba

I assume that you have to wait for the Rope Drop for this (Monorail to Tomorrowland) to be operational?

 

[Skyegirl1999]

I assume that you have to wait for the Rope Drop for this (Monorail to Tomorrowland) to be operational?

Yes, and it often takes a bit to get that first monorail moving, and it's a long wait if you don't get on the first one. It is definitely not an efficient way to enter the parks first thing.

 

[lurpee]

Yes, and it often takes a bit to get that first monorail moving, and it's a long wait if you don't get on the first one. It is definitely not an efficient way to enter the parks first thing.

Okay, so that will be more for coming back in after naps!

 

[mfleeting]

I assume that you have to wait for the Rope Drop for this (Monorail to Tomorrowland) to be operational?

Guest services at DLH told us the monorail did not open for early entry only after rope drop. But last week on both Tues and Thursday the monorail was open for early entry. Tuesday we saw 2 arrive to DL before we got through our entry line (we got in around 720) and on Thursday we used it for early entry.

 

[mom2rtk]

Guest services at DLH told us the monorail did not open for early entry only after rope drop. But last week on both Tues and Thursday the monorail was open for early entry. Tuesday we saw 2 arrive to DL before we got through our entry line (we got in around 720) and on Thursday we used it for early entry.

Still wouldn't use it for rope drop of any sort. It frequently gets delayed and can cost you valuable early time in the park.