Hotel and Monorail Access for DLH guests?

[ThreeMountains]

This will be my third trip to DLR, but the two previous times were just for a single day each and I was staying off property.

This time, I’ll be staying at Disneyland Hotel for a few nights, so I’m curious about access to the three hotels, along with monorail access.

- If staying at a DL hotel, do you have access to all three DL hotels to check them out? Do you only have access to your hotel’s pool? Restaurants? Etc.?

- Where are the monorail stops and when does it make sense to use it versus just walking? Do you wait long for it to show up? Does it run the entire time the parks are open? How early does it start?

As a WDW veteran, being in DL and seeing a monorail is almost funny since the entire place is so small and everything is walking distance. That said, I’m a huge monorail fan and looking forward to finally riding the DLR version! Whether it makes sense to use it or not, I’ll be on it. But if I can make use of it to save time and footsteps on occasion, even better. Any advice is appreciated.

 

[Becca1007]

This will be my third trip to DLR, but the two previous times were just for a single day each and I was staying off property.

This time, I’ll be staying at Disneyland Hotel for a few nights, so I’m curious about access to the three hotels, along with monorail access.

- If staying at a DL hotel, do you have access to all three DL hotels to check them out? Do you only have access to your hotel’s pool? Restaurants? Etc.?

- Where are the monorail stops and when does it make sense to use it versus just walking? Do you wait long for it to show up? Does it run the entire time the parks are open? How early does it start?

As a WDW veteran, being in DL and seeing a monorail is almost funny since the entire place is so small and everything is walking distance. That said, I’m a huge monorail fan and looking forward to finally riding the DLR version! Whether it makes sense to use it or not, I’ll be on it. But if I can make use of it to save time and footsteps on occasion, even better. Any advice is appreciated.

The monorail at DL is more of a ride then a transportation option. You don't want to take the monorail into the park in the morning if you are planning to rope drop as it doesn't run the first train until the park is open. We use the monorail to return to the hotel in the afternoon (if we are close by it, but otherwise it doesn't save you that many steps). It often closes in the afternoon if it is too hot and it closes before the nighttime shows/fireworks.

You can walk to the other hotels but CANNOT use the pools (unless the pool at your hotel is closed for maintenance or refurbishment). Paradise Pier does not currently have any restaurants, and has very little theming, so no point in visiting. The Grand is great to visit, the food options are good and the lobby is beautiful. The DLH is fun but I am not sure I would pay a premium to stay there until they return to having EMH (early entry), I will save my cash up and stay at the Grand.