I learned from this trip! (naps and close proximity)

[Thundergod]

Originally I have booked the park vue and changed my mind when they went away from having some of the ammenities they had. They weren't big changes but I went back to the hotel I had stayed at the last two years.

Well this year we went to the parks early when the crowds weren't as bad. Then at 11 or noon we left and ate dinner and went back to the hotel for naps then back to the parks about 6pm.

Oh how handy it would have been to be within walking distance for those naps and not having to ride the tram then taking our own vehicle the other mile back to our room.

My eyes have been opened to the benefits of the afternoon naps and staying close to the park.

Plus after 4 I-hop has kids eat free with the purchase of an adult meal. I love me some I-hop

 

[DisneytheKid]

Cool. I was a little thrown off by your post until my DW who is from the midwest explained that dinner is the equivalent of lunch and supper means dinner . Made a little bit more sense then.

 

[DarthMole]

Cool. I was a little thrown off by your post until my DW who is from the midwest explained that dinner is the equivalent of lunch and supper means dinner . Made a little bit more sense then.

Yup. When I was 19 I went back to Iowa to do some field service work and at 11am the supervisor came by to notify me he'd be taking off and would be back after dinner. I shrugged, went back to work but kept wondering why such a long absence. It hit me about an hour later when he was back and asked if me and my coworker had supper plans. I was also taken back to my childhood in Michigan when the sign in the elevator said "Pop machine on the 3rd floor".

Oh, and the walkable hotel is a must for my family. My brother recommended the Hilton and I said NO WAY.

 

[julieheyer]

We just booked Del Sol b/c it's so close. We're not nappers anymore, but walking to/from is so worth it! Hope it's really as close as the map seems!

 

[Stitch35]

We just booked Del Sol b/c it's so close. We're not nappers anymore, but walking to/from is so worth it! Hope it's really as close as the map seems!

It's about a 2 minute walk from the crosswalk. Love the Del Sol!

 

[Hoku]

Totally agree! We went back to the hotel for naps for our daughter when she was 2 (skipped them at 4) and I can't imagine not being close for that. A close hotel is essential - also giving yourself enough days to make up for lost time napping. As a side, I've never heard of "dinner" for lunch either and I'm almost 40! Now I'm totally curious to know the history of these words. Maybe I'll google it...

 

[DisneytheKid]

Yup. When I was 19 I went back to Iowa to do some field service work and at 11am the supervisor came by to notify me he'd be taking off and would be back after dinner. I shrugged, went back to work but kept wondering why such a long absence. It hit me about an hour later when he was back and asked if me and my coworker had supper plans. I was also taken back to my childhood in Michigan when the sign in the elevator said "Pop machine on the 3rd floor".

Oh, and the walkable hotel is a must for my family. My brother recommended the Hilton and I said NO WAY.

gotta love the little differences

 

[Davids-Coco]

This is why we always stay at VGC... well that and that we are DVC. I couldn't imagine not being close enough to nap with two little ones.

 

[smiles33]

It's one of Hydroguy's rules, so we didn't have to learn the hard way last year. ALWAYS stay in walkable distance so you don't waste time parking/exiting the lot. HoJo is not as close as the others but there's a great map somewhere showing the exact number of feet from the closest room/farthest room of the on-site hotels compared to some of the Harbor Ave motels. I loved seeing that as it made me realize the on-site hotels aren't THAT much closer.

 

[elliefusmom]

We just booked Del Sol b/c it's so close. We're not nappers anymore, but walking to/from is so worth it! Hope it's really as close as the map seems!

We don't think we are nappers anymore either but spent 4 of the 6 days napping before we went to the pool. Early mornings,hot weather, and late nights did us in. I can't imagine having to wait for a shuttle....but I'm sure someday we'll look into the ART.

 

[MommyLove]

My eyes have been opened to the benefits of the afternoon naps and staying close to the park.

Amen! It's a must for us too.

 

[TillyMarigold]

We stayed at Park Vue Inn last weekend for precisely that reason, and I'd never recommend something that was significantly farther away, even for cheaper. Not the nicest hotel I've ever stayed in, but clean and comfortable enough, and being so close was a lifesaver.

 

[Halloweenqueen]

We used to stay at Hojo on the retro rate, but switched to Park Vue or Desert Inn after they stopped that promotion. I was suprised how much my family liked the shorter walk over the perks of the Hojo.

We are not nappers anymore, but I do like an afternoon break to pick up jackets or lightsticks, etc.

Distance is the most important item on our hotel checklist now.

 

[RSi]

I was also taken back to my childhood in Michigan when the sign in the elevator said "Pop machine on the 3rd floor".

My DW is from Michigan and I'm from Hawaii. For years she would say "pop" and I would say "soda", and for a short while, she would say "supper" for "dinner" (and don't get me started on "flip-flops" for "slippahs", snow cone" for "shave ice", etc.) But after being married for nearly 30 years, she only regresses when we're back in Michigan (and somehow, starts speaking with her original Michigan accent!)

Over the many years visiting DLR, we have almost always stayed at either the DLH or GC so we can cool off and rest at the hotel in the early afternoon, then return to the parks in the evening. We do the same while visiting WDW.

We did stay at a good-neighbor hotel once or twice, but found the benefits and convenience were worth the higher price of staying at a Disney hotel.

 

[Mazel]

We ended up booking Best Western for the reason of being able to walk back to the hotel. Please tell me I made a good choice.

 

[lana772]

Over the many years visiting DLR, we have almost always stayed at either the DLH or GC so we can cool off and rest at the hotel in the early afternoon, then return to the parks in the evening. We do the same while visiting WDW.

We did stay at a good-neighbor hotel once or twice, but found the benefits and convenience were worth the higher price of staying at a Disney hotel.

This is the same conclusion we have come to. After some bad experiences at off site hotels, we will only stay at GCH or PPH. (I prefer PPH to DLH). A few years ago after at particularly bad day staying at HI, I understood the people (some of my extended family) that say they hate DL. If that had been my only experience with it I would never have wanted to go back.
The closer the hotel, the better!

 

[Hoku]

and don't get me started on "flip-flops" for "slippahs", snow cone" for "shave ice", etc

I'm not just from a different region but, evidentally, a different era. I still feel awkward saying "slippahs", but I never got used to saying "flip-flops", I always knew them as "thongs" until my20's.

I teach my daughter "shave ice" and "snow-cone", but we think "snow cone" is just more fun. I still fight with DH, who wants to call it "shaved ice".

 

[chrissiecutie]

Totally agree! We went back to the hotel for naps for our daughter when she was 2 (skipped them at 4) and I can't imagine not being close for that. A close hotel is essential - also giving yourself enough days to make up for lost time napping. As a side, I've never heard of "dinner" for lunch either and I'm almost 40! Now I'm totally curious to know the history of these words. Maybe I'll google it...

It's a Canadian thing too! My Great Grandparents who lived in Alberta would always call lunch - dinner. As a child, it was super confusing!

 

[nunzia]

I'm not just from a different region but, evidentally, a different era. I still feel awkward saying "slippahs", but I never got used to saying "flip-flops", I always knew them as "thongs" until my20's.

I teach my daughter "shave ice" and "snow-cone", but we think "snow cone" is just more fun. I still fight with DH, who wants to call it "shaved ice".

I am quite old and yes..flip flops are thongs but the looks I get saying that now...so I explain they used to be flip flops and not odd underware..but occasionally I still slip up and call them thongs.