How do you all book the Disneyland hotels?

[melbatoast]

Looking to stay at GC over Christmas, just wondering if I should be looking at Orbitz or something for a deal. I have AAA, but do you have to call to get a discount? Any discount would help, the prices are super high that time of year!

 

[melodymaker]

The only good discount I have found is through the Costco Travel website (and it's not great). You basically get one free character dining for each member of your party and a Disney gift card. Compared to offers from Disney World, staying on-site at Disneyland is very expensive. We usually get two rooms at Disney World because our kids are teens now, but are squeezing into one at Disneyland because I can't see spending over $800 a night on a hotel. We love staying on property, though, and would love to hear others advice on how to cut some of the cost!

 

[melbatoast]

Thanks for the Costco suggestion, didn't think of that one! We usually cram 5 ppl into a room too, but we have teenagers now also and it's getting a bit cramped! We really love the GC at Christmas time and if we go to Disneyland it's the only place I would like to stay! Other times of the year we would try something less expensive.

 

[Fantaluminishes]

I only stay on-site at WDW. For me, the DLR hotels just don't have the same value as the Disney World hotels. I've stayed at DLH and PPH in the past, but it was just after DCA opened, and way before the prices skyrocketed. I'll do a deluxe resort at WDW without blinking. But for DLR, I have to shop around for something nice. I live in the Bay Area, so I only plan Disneyland trips a few weeks ahead of time.

However, if you are intent on staying at GCH, I'd look to combine promo offers and discounts on sites like Travelocity. Last year, I got the 30% discount and $100 off at Animal Kingdom Lodge and Wilderness Lodge. That's about the best I've seen for Disney hotels. If you can catch a similar deal at DLR, you will be in good shape.

 

[5forMickey]

AAA usually has a pretty good discount, but depending on what days you are looking for they may not be available during the holidays. If you call the Hotel they should be able to give you that rate and they also offer senior rates and "armed forces" rates. I usually price out with the Walt Disney Travel and Get Away Today also.

For our trip 12/28-1/3 I wasn't able to find any discounts, but it was cheaper to just go through the hotel. Still hoping that they come out with some good rates in the fall.

Good luck!

 

[Baxhappyplace]

Orbitz has discount codes for 15-20% off usually however I think it is too early to book with them now for December. You can also check getawaytoday.com. Too bad Cheaptickets.com won't allow their promo code to work on the Disneyland hotels anymore. We went for Christmas last year and got 25% off our reservations through them.

 

[Boston Tea Party]

I was just researching to book DL hotels. I created a spreadsheet with the following options:

Disneyland website

Travelocity

Expedia

Orbitz

ARES Travel

Get Away Today

Costco

AAA


At this time, between all of these, Orbitz had the best rate using a 15% off code.

Costco was the next best, considering the gift card/character meal.

AAA was third, with all the rest behind.

 

[Boston Tea Party]

Also an AP may be a possibility, depending on your trip details, and that may save you more.

That is too much math for me.

 

[redwing]

I think Orbitz has the best deals! I booked with them for our upcoming July trip when they had the 20% off deal--it helped quite a bit! They have these deals quite frequently. I just missed out on the 25% code.

 

[BriannaRuth]

I booked with Orbitz with a 20% off code. Booking with Orbitz also earns you discounts (real dollars, not percentages) off future vacations. In addition to the 20% off, I earned $100 towards my next purchase at Orbitz.

Only bad thing about Orbitz is you have to pay up front. But they have free cancellation. I booked my room, paid up front, but still look out for better deals as the time gets closer since I can always cancel. I booked about 2 months ago for a mid-August trip and haven't found a better deal yet.

 

[melbatoast]

Thanks everybody! Just booked with Orbitz 15% off code and I will keep checking for something better, but it's better than nothing! We are going Dec. 23-26th. We are going to spend 2 days before that in LA.

 

[pwillunlv]

The only good discount I have found is through the Costco Travel website (and it's not great). You basically get one free character dining for each member of your party and a Disney gift card. Compared to offers from Disney World, staying on-site at Disneyland is very expensive. We usually get two rooms at Disney World because our kids are teens now, but are squeezing into one at Disneyland because I can't see spending over $800 a night on a hotel. We love staying on property, though, and would love to hear others advice on how to cut some of the cost!

The Costco deal is great when discounted rates (e.g. 15-20%) are open to the public. We have done it twice during such times and have no complaints. The premium character meal can be a value over $100 depending on how many are in your party and you usually get a $20 gift card as well. Right now, there is no discount but you get a $100 gift card. The main issue is that you have to put a substantial amount of the money up front and generally can't cancel your reservations, you can only move them to another date in the future.

 

[SMD]

AAA usually has a pretty good discount, but depending on what days you are looking for they may not be available during the holidays. If you call the Hotel they should be able to give you that rate and they also offer senior rates and "armed forces" rates. I usually price out with the Walt Disney Travel and Get Away Today also.

For our trip 12/28-1/3 I wasn't able to find any discounts, but it was cheaper to just go through the hotel. Still hoping that they come out with some good rates in the fall.

Good luck!

They discontinued senior rates at the beginning of last year.

 

[5forMickey]

They discontinued senior rates at the beginning of last year.

Them dirty rats!