Amy&Dan
DIS Legend
- Joined
- Feb 19, 2004
- Messages
- 15,958
We just got back last night from a great five night, four day trip to Disneyland. The weather could not have been more perfect and the Hojo also did not disappoint!
We checked in around 8:30 on Friday night. The front desk was crowded with others checking in but it went fast. We had reserved an NDD1 room and I had requested a second floor room in bldg. 6. My request was met and I was right on, it was the perfect location for us. Closer to the garden pool vs. the splash playground and a lovely view of the planters down below. The room was so quiet, I did notice the highway noise from outside our building, at the garden pool in particular, but when we were inside our room we never heard a noise from the highway or any other guests at all.
As far as having an NDD1, I would pay extra for these standard rooms to have that second sink that is outside the bathroom! With a teenage daughter, it was a lifesaver. The room was huge, we had one of these same type rooms six years ago and I had forgotten how big they are. I think I counted a total of seven drawers, so tons of storage. Plenty of room for all of our stuff, the huge closet was great for our suitcases, the closet area by the door was great for our clothes.
We just loved the light and bright room. Those upper window/skylights are so great in that they make the room feel even larger, they allow natural light in which is nice for those early morning wake up calls and the Keurig coffee maker was great for my kids (my husband and I hate coffee but our kids love it, go figure) and so easy and quick to do. No mess, no fuss and they even provided nice little lids for them so they could drink their coffee as we walked to the parks.
The beds, omg I had thought "heavenly beds, yeah whatever". Let me tell you, I would just sink into that thing each night and be so happy! They are not whistling Dixie with naming those beds heavenly!
The room was spotless and our maid service was excellent. The furniture is a bit dated but having all that storage space made up for that. The bathroom was also a bit dated, but it was so clean without one speck of dirt, dust or mold. They also use very nice towels and always gave us plenty of them which was nice.
The walk to the parks took us around ten minutes (to the security check) and in the mornings it was actually very pleasant. At night it also wasn't bad, I will say it felt longer than it did in the morning but it was still just fine. Our last stay there was when my kids were much younger and my then 6 year old dd struggled with that walk a bit, but now it was easy enough. I had thought I'd walk past the BWPPI and the Tropicana (my two most recent offsite choices) and feel bummed, but the Hojo is so much nicer, the 2 extra minutes of walking is not even a concern. We took a cab once to the RFC for dinner, it came to around $12, we just decided we didn't feel like walking all the way to the parks, through bag check then down DTD.
We loved the garden pool, I spent a few blissful hours there more than once which was nice given it was January. It was kept up really nice, there were always plenty of towels, the water was warm (or so my dd said) and it was great having the laundry room in bldg. 2 so close to the pool. The splash playground looked very fun, I only went out there once and that was to watch the fireworks. Perfect spot for that!
So in all, this family of onsite lovers was very happy with our stay there. I was worried since we had originally booked the GCH, but honestly, I went over to visit my brother and his wife at their room at the GCH and while the hotel lobby is gorgeous and the room is lovely (I have stayed there twice myself) I found that room to be dark and way smaller than ours. I honestly would not have traded them their room for mine. If I do stay onsite again, it will be at the Disneyland Hotel but as much as I love that, I am just not sure I see myself paying that much more over the Hojo. Frankly, I'd miss the grounds, the spacious rooms and the staff is every bit as wonderful as Disney trained cm's so I am not sure there is enough to sway me onsite. I would never stay offsite in WDW, but after this past week, I am not sure I'd ever stay onsite again in Disneyland!
We checked in around 8:30 on Friday night. The front desk was crowded with others checking in but it went fast. We had reserved an NDD1 room and I had requested a second floor room in bldg. 6. My request was met and I was right on, it was the perfect location for us. Closer to the garden pool vs. the splash playground and a lovely view of the planters down below. The room was so quiet, I did notice the highway noise from outside our building, at the garden pool in particular, but when we were inside our room we never heard a noise from the highway or any other guests at all.
As far as having an NDD1, I would pay extra for these standard rooms to have that second sink that is outside the bathroom! With a teenage daughter, it was a lifesaver. The room was huge, we had one of these same type rooms six years ago and I had forgotten how big they are. I think I counted a total of seven drawers, so tons of storage. Plenty of room for all of our stuff, the huge closet was great for our suitcases, the closet area by the door was great for our clothes.
We just loved the light and bright room. Those upper window/skylights are so great in that they make the room feel even larger, they allow natural light in which is nice for those early morning wake up calls and the Keurig coffee maker was great for my kids (my husband and I hate coffee but our kids love it, go figure) and so easy and quick to do. No mess, no fuss and they even provided nice little lids for them so they could drink their coffee as we walked to the parks.
The beds, omg I had thought "heavenly beds, yeah whatever". Let me tell you, I would just sink into that thing each night and be so happy! They are not whistling Dixie with naming those beds heavenly!
The room was spotless and our maid service was excellent. The furniture is a bit dated but having all that storage space made up for that. The bathroom was also a bit dated, but it was so clean without one speck of dirt, dust or mold. They also use very nice towels and always gave us plenty of them which was nice.
The walk to the parks took us around ten minutes (to the security check) and in the mornings it was actually very pleasant. At night it also wasn't bad, I will say it felt longer than it did in the morning but it was still just fine. Our last stay there was when my kids were much younger and my then 6 year old dd struggled with that walk a bit, but now it was easy enough. I had thought I'd walk past the BWPPI and the Tropicana (my two most recent offsite choices) and feel bummed, but the Hojo is so much nicer, the 2 extra minutes of walking is not even a concern. We took a cab once to the RFC for dinner, it came to around $12, we just decided we didn't feel like walking all the way to the parks, through bag check then down DTD.
We loved the garden pool, I spent a few blissful hours there more than once which was nice given it was January. It was kept up really nice, there were always plenty of towels, the water was warm (or so my dd said) and it was great having the laundry room in bldg. 2 so close to the pool. The splash playground looked very fun, I only went out there once and that was to watch the fireworks. Perfect spot for that!
So in all, this family of onsite lovers was very happy with our stay there. I was worried since we had originally booked the GCH, but honestly, I went over to visit my brother and his wife at their room at the GCH and while the hotel lobby is gorgeous and the room is lovely (I have stayed there twice myself) I found that room to be dark and way smaller than ours. I honestly would not have traded them their room for mine. If I do stay onsite again, it will be at the Disneyland Hotel but as much as I love that, I am just not sure I see myself paying that much more over the Hojo. Frankly, I'd miss the grounds, the spacious rooms and the staff is every bit as wonderful as Disney trained cm's so I am not sure there is enough to sway me onsite. I would never stay offsite in WDW, but after this past week, I am not sure I'd ever stay onsite again in Disneyland!
