HoJo or Paradise Pier concierge??? Please help me decide

[aussiedaisy]

We were going to stay at HoJo on our November trip (stayed at DLH last year). But now we have talked our Dad into coming with us and as he has never visited any Disney parks before I kind of want to stay somewhere which will give him the 'total experience'. Paradise Pier is the cheapest but I am unsure whether it is worth it still.....particularly concierge as I thought that might be nice so we could have breakfast etc before going to the parks. What do you all think? Any reviews of PP would be greatly appreciated!!!

Also, we are purchasing APs and I am unsure how to check if there are any AP rates for the PP hotel during our stay....where abouts do I look for that or would I need to call disney directly to find out?

 

[Haunted Man-Shane]

I stayed at PP back in 2003. While the room was nothing too special (it was certainly nice, just not plush or upscale), the park view of DCA was beautiful, especially at night. And it was nice being able to walk to all the Disney offerings, though if you have anyone in your party with a low level of stamina, that might not be viable. I would assume it's probably fairly similar to a HoJo, so if it's a significant amount of money more, you may just want to stick with what you've booked. As far as discounts go, I'm fairly sure you would have to already have your AP's purchased before you can receive a discount. If you're renewing them, you would probably be okay. And you would probably be best off calling Disney to see what kinds of offers they have available.

 

[teatime]

well if you have the money and you want " the total experience" which I have never gotten, stay at the PP, if you do not have all that money and can stay at the hojo do that one. believe me, the hojo has so many food restaurants around it that you can have a nice cheap breakfast and a good one at that. but if your all into the " experience" and the prices and the expensive concierge then you know that answer there is nice motels down and closer to the park then the hojo also. fairfield for one and it has rave reviews.

 

[bumbershoot]

You can call and ask for the AP rate. You might need ot know the "name" of any special AP promotio to get more than just the typical 10% off, though.

Right now you'd just be quoted the percentage off...the current special (AP8) only goes through April 30. November specials, if there will be any, won't be announced until July or August.

 

[dismsn]

We stayed at the Paradise Pier a few weeks ago for $199/nt (military rate). The room was small and there were five of us (two adults and three teenagers). I almost forgot to tell you that there is a $13/nt resort fee on top of the room cost. The first night we were there, two of our four glasses were dirty but housekeeping quickly brought clean ones (I did wonder what else was dirty that we didn't notice). Also, there were five of us but only four towels. Housekeeping always quickly brought three sets of towels (when we asked for one) but they never left the extra clean towels when cleaning our room--they took ALL the towels and only left us four each day. It was annoying but quickly remedied each day.

It IS nice to be close to the parks but in reality, the hotel is not close enough that you want to have to go back to the room to fetch something you might have forgotten (even a jacket if it gets chilly at night). We did go back every afternoon and rest so the location was nice for that but it wasn't just a hop, skip and a jump and you're in the parks.

We were greeted with mickey head rice crispy treats upon check-in and nightly turndown service and Disney chocolate coins on our beds which was a nice touch (I think it was because one of the people in our party was visiting for the first time). We wouldn't have received that at a non-Disney property.

Also, the slide at the pool was nice but it was only open certain hours during the day (it was not open late at night) and my kids never wanted to go down the slide (part of the reason we splurged and stayed there).

We have visited Disneyland three times and have always stayed at Paradise Pier (it now costs more than I think it is worth). We were going to stay at the Holiday Inn Express (in a suite) on Katella but decided since we'd have three teenagers, we'd feel better if they were walking back/forth to Paradise Pier instead of to Katella. After seeing the area, I think the Holiday Inn Express would have been fine but would have been a little bit longer of a walk.

BTW, there are not many breakfast options at the Paradise Pier. They sell breakfast items in their bar area. We paid over $30 for five bagels and five servings of cream cheese, five bottles of orange juice and one container of fruit. That afternoon we went to Target and bought a bag of bagels, a tub of cream cheese and a jug of orange juice and kept it in our hotel room fridge. Total cost? Under $10 and we got two mornings' worth of breakfasts for all five of us out of the one trip to Target.

I think I'll give the Holiday Inn Express a whirl the next time we are there but if you want a good Disney experience, and a fairly close hotel, AND if you can get a good rate, you might want to give the Paradise Pier hotel a try.