Hotel Help: Courtyard vs. DLH

[MrsSLF]

Hi everyone!

I'm in the process of finalizing (or at least trying to) accommodations for our trip to California this August. When I first started down this journey of planning a trip, I was for sure in the camp of "not necessary to stay on-site at DLR", being regulars at WDW. I have vacillated several times and was venturing into the "stay on-site" camp. On the one hand, the magic of staying at a Disney property is great for my family and we would never think twice about it for WDW (and I get they're completely different beasts/experiences). On the other, the DLH costs more per night for our dates (August 9-13) than what we pay per night to stay at the Polynesian or GF.

With all of that said, I've narrowed it down to the following options:

DLH-standard or premium view room

Courtyard Theme Park Entrance-theme park view

The difference in cost is about $900-1300 difference, depending on the room selected for DLH. The one thing that is really drawing me to DLH is the pool area. We're planning on a full pool day when we're there and it seems more like our style.

So, what say you: what would you do, if you have experience with either property?

TIA for your help!

 

[wench]

I will only stay on property myself, so I vote for DLH!

 

[Tapdancenanna]

We've stayed at both. It was December when we were at the Disneyland Hotel and we didn't use the pool. We did use the the pool and the "water park" area at Courtyard and my 10 yr old grand daughter really enjoyed it. It has a couple of fun slides.

We enjoyed the large rooms at Courtyard. Bunk beds and huge bathroom with tub and separate shower were a plus. Customer service is great. That said DLH had the Disney magic that we loved. We had concierge there which is spendy but made it mire special.

 

[MrsSLF]

I will only stay on property myself, so I vote for DLH!

And you think definitely worth the nearly $1000 difference? I have no issue spending the extra money but my sensible side is having trouble making that compute...

We've stayed at both. It was December when we were at the Disneyland Hotel and we didn't use the pool. We did use the the pool and the "water park" area at Courtyard and my 10 yr old grand daughter really enjoyed it. It has a couple of fun slides.

We enjoyed the large rooms at Courtyard. Bunk beds and huge bathroom with tub and separate shower were a plus. Customer service is great. That said DLH had the Disney magic that we loved. We had concierge there which is spendy but made it mire special.

See, the pool at the Courtyard seems really nice but the layout (and the size of the actual pool) seems odd/small. We're planning on a full pool day when we first arrive and I don't know if it just makes sense to stick with my secondary plan of staying at the DLH because of the pool area...ugh, this is so hard!

Also, does anyone know how likely it is for there to be discounts on the rooms for DLH this summer? We just happen to be staying a Sunday-Thursday (coincidentally) and I've noticed that's when the discounts seem to happen for the Disney properties at DLR.

 

[sherilaine]

The number of nights would factor into that $900 difference - if you are staying a week and would have 5 day PHs then you'd see more benefit from staying onsite. Especially if you are interested in the pools and are going during a time when the weather would be reliable.

We have not stayed at the Courtyard but we have the HOJO and walking by that pool area is LOUD and I also noticed that unlike the HOJO, the actual pool area is not separate from the kids play area - where they have the water slides (which do look fun by the way especially if you have younger kids).

 

[crystal1313]

We are staying at the DLH in June with one dedicated pool day as well. We really love that there is pool service and my kids can't wait to try out the slides (they were closed when we went last year).

That being said, this upcoming trip is a big splurge for us. We stayed one night at the DLH last year using Amex points and wow, we forgot how amazing staying on property was. We hadn't stayed on property in years and just staying one night, we all wanted to go back. Disney sure knows how to make their guests feel special.

Being WDW regulars, will you come back to the DLR? If it is a special once in a lifetime trip, I would lean towards the DLH....or you could use that extra money and go all out with food and maybe even book the Walk In Walt's Footsteps tour if you stay at the Courtyard. Sorry, I am not being much help! We always agonize about where to stay because of course, we always want to stay on property, but it is hard to justify the cost.

 

[MrsSLF]

The number of nights would factor into that $900 difference - if you are staying a week and would have 5 day PHs then you'd see more benefit from staying onsite. Especially if you are interested in the pools and are going during a time when the weather would be reliable.

We have not stayed at the Courtyard but we have the HOJO and walking by that pool area is LOUD and I also noticed that unlike the HOJO, the actual pool area is not separate from the kids play area - where they have the water slides (which do look fun by the way especially if you have younger kids).

It's a four night stay with 3 days at the parks (I've already purchased our tickets--with PH and MP) in August. I almost never schedule downtime when we're at WDW for some reason but am trying, at the request of my dh, to plan downtime so he's happy.

I honestly think I'm leaning towards the DLH with the possibility of a yet to be offered discount coming (based on what I've seen of previous years) to make it a bit less but content with spending that extra amount regardless.

I'm just trying to be practical and I can't. This is my dh and daughter's first trip to DLR so that's playing into our plans, too (I went when I was younger and we lived in SoCal). This is so hard...

 

[MrsSLF]

We are staying at the DLH in June with one dedicated pool day as well. We really love that there is pool service and my kids can't wait to try out the slides (they were closed when we went last year).

That being said, this upcoming trip is a big splurge for us. We stayed one night at the DLH last year using Amex points and wow, we forgot how amazing staying on property was. We hadn't stayed on property in years and just staying one night, we all wanted to go back. Disney sure knows how to make their guests feel special.

Being WDW regulars, will you come back to the DLR? If it is a special once in a lifetime trip, I would lean towards the DLH....or you could use that extra money and go all out with food and maybe even book the Walk In Walt's Footsteps tour if you stay at the Courtyard. Sorry, I am not being much help! We always agonize about where to stay because of course, we always want to stay on property, but it is hard to justify the cost.

Yeah, I don't know if this will be our only trip versus simply a first for my dh and dd. Because it's our first trip, though, I want to splurge and stay at DLH. I considered the GC but it didn't seem like the pool area would be as exciting as DLH's for my daughter.

And your input has definitely helped because I like hearing how others make their decisions for trips. That one night having such an impact on your family makes me want to simply bite the bullet and reserve DLH for our stay.

 

[crystal1313]

Yeah, I don't know if this will be our only trip versus simply a first for my dh and dd. Because it's our first trip, though, I want to splurge and stay at DLH. I considered the GC but it didn't seem like the pool area would be as exciting as DLH's for my daughter.

And your input has definitely helped because I like hearing how others make their decisions for trips. That one night having such an impact on your family makes me want to simply bite the bullet and reserve DLH for our stay.

Yeah, I was surprised that even my kids were so impressed with the DLH. They were 11 and 9 last year. They noticed the difference of staying on property! Ususally, they don't really pay attention to things like that. We used to stay on property when they were little and they hadn't been back since they were 5 and 3. They loved it and are super stoked for the June trip!

We considered the GCH as well, but decided the DLH for the same reason: The pool! Heck, even I want to go on the slides! Even more so now since they were closed last year when we went. =) Whatever you decide, I am sure you will have an amazing trip!

 

[mcrowder1978]

My daughter and I did the DLH last year in August and it was so worth it. The bag check lines across from the hotel at Downtown Disney were never more than a 5 minute wait, the Monorail was there for us in the morning and the evening (closed from 11a-6p during the summer due to heat) and that was also amazing. Like you mentioned, the pool area at the DLH. We had a dedicated pool day and loved it. It was so relaxing. There were other days where we would go to the park for a couple hours in the morning, then right back to the pool. Also, when walking back during the day we would stop at Napoli's to each get a pizza or Wetzel's Pretzel's or a churro (ok, usually more than one churro for me each time) to bring back to the room. Add onto all of that the extra magic hours and it is something that other sites around can't compare with even if they are cheaper. Another nice touch was the nightly turn down service where they got the beds ready and left us chocolates. It was a wonderful thing to come back to at the end of the evening when we were exhausted from the park.

Also, being right there we didn't bother with a rental car for the entire week. We flew into Orange County and took a Lyft for about $30 bucks (XL because of the bags). The only reason I got a rental mid trip was because we wanted to go to Universal and the beach. This will save you the $25 bucks a night if you aren't driving down from where you live.

I already booked our room at the DLH for this August as well (8/7-8/14), this time in a Club Level Room with the Downtown Disney view because we loved the Adventure Tower. It is more expensive than the Good Neighbor Hotels...of course, but for us it is worth the additional cost. Between the pool area, the history, not having to wait in line at bag check for more than a few minutes, and so much more the Disneyland Hotel is where we will be staying when we go out there. I could go on and on about how much I love this place.

 

[MrsSLF]

Yeah, I was surprised that even my kids were so impressed with the DLH. They were 11 and 9 last year. They noticed the difference of staying on property! Ususally, they don't really pay attention to things like that. We used to stay on property when they were little and they hadn't been back since they were 5 and 3. They loved it and are super stoked for the June trip!

We considered the GCH as well, but decided the DLH for the same reason: The pool! Heck, even I want to go on the slides! Even more so now since they were closed last year when we went. =) Whatever you decide, I am sure you will have an amazing trip!

I definitely planned on riding the slides, lol! Yeah, I think my decision is going to be DLH for the pool area alone.

 

[mcrowder1978]

Yeah, I don't know if this will be our only trip versus simply a first for my dh and dd. Because it's our first trip, though, I want to splurge and stay at DLH. I considered the GC but it didn't seem like the pool area would be as exciting as DLH's for my daughter.

And your input has definitely helped because I like hearing how others make their decisions for trips. That one night having such an impact on your family makes me want to simply bite the bullet and reserve DLH for our stay.

Also,Our trip last year was our first real vacation together (my daughter is 15). It was her first trip to DL and my first since the 90's which was why I decided to splurge on the DLH. I knew pretty quick that I needed to start budgeting for this year because we definitely would be back and we would be staying there.

 

[wench]

And you think definitely worth the nearly $1000 difference? I have no issue spending the extra money but my sensible side is having trouble making that compute...




See, the pool at the Courtyard seems really nice but the layout (and the size of the actual pool) seems odd/small. We're planning on a full pool day when we first arrive and I don't know if it just makes sense to stick with my secondary plan of staying at the DLH because of the pool area...ugh, this is so hard!

Also, does anyone know how likely it is for there to be discounts on the rooms for DLH this summer? We just happen to be staying a Sunday-Thursday (coincidentally) and I've noticed that's when the discounts seem to happen for the Disney properties at DLR.

For me the $1000.00 would be worth it. But, in my case, I would never even price the offsite property, so I wouldn’t realize the difference. I just price the on-site hotels to see their price & then decide if I can afford to do that or not. For me the EMH & being able to send purchases back to the hotel are invaluable. But, I know those things don’t matter as much to many people.

 

[MrsSLF]

My daughter and I did the DLH last year in August and it was so worth it. The bag check lines across from the hotel at Downtown Disney were never more than a 5 minute wait, the Monorail was there for us in the morning and the evening (closed from 11a-6p during the summer due to heat) and that was also amazing. Like you mentioned, the pool area at the DLH. We had a dedicated pool day and loved it. It was so relaxing. There were other days where we would go to the park for a couple hours in the morning, then right back to the pool. Also, when walking back during the day we would stop at Napoli's to each get a pizza or Wetzel's Pretzel's or a churro (ok, usually more than one churro for me each time) to bring back to the room. Add onto all of that the extra magic hours and it is something that other sites around can't compare with even if they are cheaper. Another nice touch was the nightly turn down service where they got the beds ready and left us chocolates. It was a wonderful thing to come back to at the end of the evening when we were exhausted from the park.

Also, being right there we didn't bother with a rental car for the entire week. We flew into Orange County and took a Lyft for about $30 bucks (XL because of the bags). The only reason I got a rental mid trip was because we wanted to go to Universal and the beach. This will save you the $25 bucks a night if you aren't driving down from where you live.

I already booked our room at the DLH for this August as well (8/7-8/14), this time in a Club Level Room with the Downtown Disney view because we loved the Adventure Tower. It is more expensive than the Good Neighbor Hotels...of course, but for us it is worth the additional cost. Between the pool area, the history, not having to wait in line at bag check for more than a few minutes, and so much more the Disneyland Hotel is where we will be staying when we go out there. I could go on and on about how much I love this place.

These are all great reasons and it looks like our trips will overlap, too! We are going to have a rental car because our stop at DLR is part of a longer trip to SoCal (we're splitting it between Santa Monica/LA, DLR, and San Diego) but there's a charge to park our car at the Courtyard, too, so it's a wash. It's just been so long since I last visited DLR that everything is very new for me (like 20 years) that I feel at a complete loss.

Thank you for your perspective, it's very helpful!

Another thing that I think plays in DLH's favor is the fact that I can get Dole Whips at the hotel! We love doing that at the Polynesian that it feels like it will remind us of "home".

 

[sherilaine]

As a family of 4 we always stayed offsite just due to being able to get a much bigger room with two bathrooms for about half the price. Since we usually stay a minimum of 7 nights, tight quarters grows tiring I find. This trip is a mother/daughter only trip so we are actually going to do 4 nights off site and 4 nights at the DLH just to see what all the fuss is about. It sounds to me like you've made up your mind.

 

[MrsSLF]

Well, I think this has been really helpful and I'm back to being in the DLH camp. I will probably go ahead and bite the bullet on a reservation this afternoon.

Anyone have any insight about the likelihood of a summer discount for the DLR hotels?

 

[MrsSLF]

As a family of 4 we always stayed offsite just due to being able to get a much bigger room with two bathrooms for about half the price. Since we usually stay a minimum of 7 nights, tight quarters grows tiring I find. This trip is a mother/daughter only trip so we are actually going to do 4 nights off site and 4 nights at the DLH just to see what all the fuss is about. It sounds to me like you've made up your mind.

Yeah, since it's a shorter trip and we've never stayed at DLR hotel (with my dh and dd never having been to California before), DLH makes the most sense to us (that, and we only stay on-site at WDW).

 

[mcrowder1978]

These are all great reasons and it looks like our trips will overlap, too! We are going to have a rental car because our stop at DLR is part of a longer trip to SoCal (we're splitting it between Santa Monica/LA, DLR, and San Diego) but there's a charge to park our car at the Courtyard, too, so it's a wash. It's just been so long since I last visited DLR that everything is very new for me (like 20 years) that I feel at a complete loss.

Thank you for your perspective, it's very helpful!

Another thing that I think plays in DLH's favor is the fact that I can get Dole Whips at the hotel! We love doing that at the Polynesian that it feels like it will remind us of "home".

That is so cool that our trips will overlap a little. Hopefully our families will get a chance to meet up while we are there.

I know how you feel about it being so long. The last time I was there was '97 when DCA was still a parking lot so I wanted to go all out. And definitely...the Dole Whips in the pool area (which they can bring right to your chair) is a fantastic bonus...I can't believe I forgot about that lol. We did our first WDW trip a few weeks ago and stayed at the Poly in part because of the Pineapple Lanai lol.

 

[MrsSLF]

That is so cool that our trips will overlap a little. Hopefully our families will get a chance to meet up while we are there.

I know how you feel about it being so long. The last time I was there was '97 when DCA was still a parking lot so I wanted to go all out. And definitely...the Dole Whips in the pool area (which they can bring right to your chair) is a fantastic bonus...I can't believe I forgot about that lol. We did our first WDW trip a few weeks ago and stayed at the Poly in part because of the Pineapple Lanai lol.

We love the Poly and my daughter loves the volcano pool so much but the DLH pool area looks even better! And you really can't beat daily Dole Whips! Lol! It's even better that they will bring them to you at your chair, too!

 

[azdisneylover]

Hi everyone!

I'm in the process of finalizing (or at least trying to) accommodations for our trip to California this August. When I first started down this journey of planning a trip, I was for sure in the camp of "not necessary to stay on-site at DLR", being regulars at WDW. I have vacillated several times and was venturing into the "stay on-site" camp. On the one hand, the magic of staying at a Disney property is great for my family and we would never think twice about it for WDW (and I get they're completely different beasts/experiences). On the other, the DLH costs more per night for our dates (August 9-13) than what we pay per night to stay at the Polynesian or GF.

With all of that said, I've narrowed it down to the following options:

DLH-standard or premium view room

Courtyard Theme Park Entrance-theme park view

The difference in cost is about $900-1300 difference, depending on the room selected for DLH. The one thing that is really drawing me to DLH is the pool area. We're planning on a full pool day when we're there and it seems more like our style.

So, what say you: what would you do, if you have experience with either property?

TIA for your help!

I love the Magic Morning/Early Entry every day by staying onsite. The walk thru DTD is nice, plus, it gives you a reason to walk thru the stores you want to on your way back to your room.