Hilton Garden Inn? / DL on a budget

[teril]

Thinking about a last minute trip for my daughters 7th birthday. We're real disney freaks but money is tight and I have a couple of questions.

I've been thinking about staying off site to save money and read all the reviews on the Hojo, candy cane etc. Wondered if anybody has heard any reviews on the Hilton Garden Inn? We prefer a clean, quiet hotel with a pool and jacuzzi.....brkfst is not a must for us and I hear the one pool at the Hojo is down ....I'd rather have clean and quiet... 3-4 star treatment. Would the Hilton be right for us?

Is the Hilton Garden within walking distance or would you have to shuttle?

Any other last minute birthday ideas would be appreciated! Thanks

Teri

 

[Goofydiane]

Originally posted by teril

Is the Hilton Garden within walking distance or would you have to shuttle?

Teri

The Hilton Garden in would be about a mile walk from the parks. They offer a shuttle that they share with the Hampton and Embassy Suites last time I was there.

There is also a Hilton Anaheim closer to the parks. I would go to the web site Hilton Hotels and search for rates. Hampton, Embassy Suites, Doubletree are all part of Hilton, so you can search all the properties. I've gotten rates as low as $75.00 from their website.

Enjoy your trip!
Diane

 

[my3kids]

You could use Priceline for the DL area room. With a 3* bid, you know you'll get someplace nice. Look at biddingfortravel.com to see the lists of hotels in the DL area that have come up, along with the winning bids. Usually about $35 for a 3* like the Hyatt Regency.

 

[Peter Pan Fan]

As stated by GoofyDiane, the Hilton is in the same parking lot as the Hampton Inn and Embassy Suites. We have stayed at the Embassy Suites and are going again over Memorial Day. Yes you have to take a shuttle to the park but we found it extremely efficient (We used to be on-site devotee's because we hated shuttles - I find I can get back to the Embassy Suites quicker than I could walk to PP) The shuttle took 7 minutes each way - and that was the longest. usually it was under 5 minutes depending on how many green lights you hit. The perk is that it only goes between the hilton, embassy suites & the hamtpon so there are no long stops at various hotels - all three are close together in the same parking lot.

Also, there is a buca di beppo (fun family style italian restaurant) in the parking lot - they would probably do something fun for your daugher's b-day if you weren't going to dine at the park.

You might want to try the Embassy Suites if you can't get a good rate at the Hilton - nice large rooms. Big breakfast and snacks/wine at night. The lobby is really pretty, there was even a wedding there last time we visited. We got a AAA rate of $103/night over Memorial Day weekend.

Good luck!

 

[daannzzz]

The Howard Johnson has two pools. One is down for remodel. The quiet pool in the back section is still open and has nice pine trees on one side so there is shade if needed.

 

[silence]

We stayed at the HGI our last 3 visits to the park. I liked the fact it had a microwave and refridgerator, and it was one of the newer hotels when we first started going. We continued to go back since we were not familiar with other hotels in the area.

This year we are staying at Hawthorn Suites in Orange since they offer larger rooms and a hot breakfast. There is no breakfast at HGI.

As for the shuttle, the HGI is the last of the 3 hotels, so if you are going to take it during peak times, be prepared to STAND on the bus, which can be super difficult if you have little ones. We got stuck several times on the way to the park standing.

Over all, it was a nice place to stay.