Is The Disneyland hotel worth the money?

[goooof1]

The toilet paper issue comes down not to being cheap, but being green. The toilet paper is biodegradable. It helps prevent clogs and is better at the treatment plants.

 

[hootey]

Yes, it is worth it! We go to DL to relax and take life easy for five or six days at a time. We treat the DLH as the resort it is, using nearly all of the amenities offered. The pool, hot-tub, coffee/snack shop, cafes, gift shops, meet-n-greets, etc. If you are only going to be at the hotel to shower & sleep then, get a motel across Harbor blvd. If you like Resorts and want to completely immerse yourself in Disney, by all means, stay at a Disney Hotel. We love it.

 

[lucysmom]

I haven't read the whole thread yet, but h ad to reply. Oh, no, no,no.......don't be so hasty to dismiss the benefits of on-site hotels. The walking distance is a major factor with little ones. Plus, if you have pool time (and what kids don't want to swim on holiday?!!) the on-site hotels make the afternoon breaks easy. I also like to stay in the Disney bubble. I don't like to cross traffic, honking cars,bus exhaust, panhandlers, traffic lights. I would not want to have to walk or wait for a shuttle to take me to my room, especially with two tired babes.

 

[kangamama]

The toilet paper issue comes down not to being cheap, but being green. The toilet paper is biodegradable. It helps prevent clogs and is better at the treatment plants.

Isn't all tp biodegradable?

 

[hootey]

Disneyland Hotels Other things we like about the DLHs, we love the extra hour you get in the mornings in the parks. It is truly amazing how many rides you can ride in one hour. The park souvineer to the hotel delivery is worth it's wait in ice cream! Not having to carry a bag of sweatshirts/t-shirts around with you or having to rent a locker to put stuff in is almost priceless! It has been our experience with the gift shops, if you see something you really like, you better get it now. It may not be there later in the day or evening(they simply sell out of some items). Simply purchase the item, fill out a short form with the CM, and Disney will take it to your hotel for you. Pick it up the next morning at the bellhop counter in your hotel.
No shuttle bus required. We love this! Everything is within walking distance of the DL hotels. A couple years ago my inlaws wanted to enjoy DL with the grandsons. We stayed at the DLH and they stayed at their usual hotel several miles from DL. The first morning we met the inlaws for breakfast in the park. The father-in-law stained his shirt with some waffle syrup. He had to go back to his hotel to change clothes,(don't even think for a second he will be seen in public wearing a stained shirt), anyway, it took him exactly three hours. First, he had to wait in the shuttle pickup area for his shuttle, then he had the trip to his hotel, go in the hotel and change clothes, once again he had to wait for the shuttle to pick him up at the hotel, the drive back to DL, then he had to go through the turnstyles again. I timed him, it took him three hours to change his shirt He saw nothing wrong it, to him, the shuttle bus is part of the DL experience. First thing in the morning as well as late evening the shuttles are crowded, slow, and expensive. We have stayed off site and used the shuttles. For us they are not worth it. I do not miss waiting on them or riding one. We enjoy the short walk from the DLH to the parks.
We use the pool and hot-tubs everyday. DLH provide large beach towels to dry off with when exiting the pool area. The pool area is always clean, orderly, and DLH provides lifeguards. They not only keep the everyone in order, they also interact with the kids and make it a lot of fun.
Just a few more comments in favor of the DL hotels

 

[Rubygoose]

We loved the DLH! We didn't have a problem with the wifi- thought it worked well.

We've stayed offsite before, and staying at DLH really felt like we were staying IN Disneyland as opposed to ACROSS from Disneyland. When we stayed offsite, we didn't take breaks in the middle of the day, but when we stayed at DLH we made good use of EE and took a pool break in the afternoon when the parks were busy.

A couple times when DH was with the kids, I went into DTD by myself in the evening. I wouldn't do that if I was staying offsite because I wouldn't feel safe walking down Harbour blvd or taking a shuttle by myself.

I really liked that they would deliver your shopping to the hotel. I did this when I bought DDs birthday presents. They don't bring it to your room, though. You pick it up at the bell desk the next day after 7am.

We watched the fireworks from our room in the Frontier Tower. It was a great view.

I think it's "worth it" to try it once if you can afford it. I think most of the people who say it's not worth it are those who have never stayed there, and that's fine. It's your hard earned money, you decide what's important to your family.

 

[Rubygoose]

If you are in the Adventure tower and on a higher floor and have a resort view.

You can see them from Premium View in Frontier tower too. We were upgraded from Standard to premium pool+ park view in Frontier and watched the fireworks while the kids were asleep. Worked out well because we got to watch the fireworks and the kids were rested enough to get up at 6am to get to EE at 7am.

 

[alvernon90]

The father-in-law stained his shirt with some waffle syrup. He had to go back to his hotel to change clothes,(don't even think for a second he will be seen in public wearing a stained shirt), anyway, it took him exactly three hours. First, he had to wait in the shuttle pickup area for his shuttle, then he had the trip to his hotel, go in the hotel and change clothes, once again he had to wait for the shuttle to pick him up at the hotel, the drive back to DL, then he had to go through the turnstyles again. I timed him, it took him three hours to change his shirt He saw nothing wrong it, to him, the shuttle bus is part of the DL experience.

Ah, I've seen this before. In reality the trip only takes about 1 hour and 15 minutes. The rest of the time was taken up by a stop for a few beers.

 

[alvernon90]

Like someone above said, I can afford it, but would rather spend my money on other things.

I would also rather spend my money on other things, but I keep going back to the Disneyland Hotel. I confess that a large part of it is my daughter's love of the place, and much of the fun of going to DLR is spoiling her. But I also really enjoy it, the walk to the parks is pleasant, and the rooms since the refurbishment are excellent. But we prefer to take a hotel break every day, which means daily trips to the pool/slides and often daily trips to Trader Sam's for poke and tiki drinks. The mid-day break makes it much easier to deal with getting up ultra early each day for early entry.

I wish the hotels at DLR had more reasonable rates like the WDW hotels, but I must think it's worth it because I keep paying.

 

[hootey]

Quote:
Originally Posted by hootey View Post
The father-in-law stained his shirt with some waffle syrup. He had to go back to his hotel to change clothes,(don't even think for a second he will be seen in public wearing a stained shirt), anyway, it took him exactly three hours. First, he had to wait in the shuttle pickup area for his shuttle, then he had the trip to his hotel, go in the hotel and change clothes, once again he had to wait for the shuttle to pick him up at the hotel, the drive back to DL, then he had to go through the turnstyles again. I timed him, it took him three hours to change his shirt He saw nothing wrong it, to him, the shuttle bus is part of the DL experience.

Ah, I've seen this before. In reality the trip only takes about 1 hour and 15 minutes. The rest of the time was taken up by a stop for a few beers

.
Ah, well no, maybe on your shuttle bus but, not his. I have stayed at the FILs motel & ridden the shuttle bus, it takes an hour each way. It has to stop at a lot of motels between his motel and the DL park going each way. It takes over hour in the morning and late evening. While staying at the FILs motel, I walked to the park and from the park to the motel to prove to him that walking was faster than riding the shuttle. As for the beer drinking, beer is available several places in DCA and downtown Disney.

 

[alvernon90]

.
Ah, well no, maybe on your shuttle bus but, not his. I have stayed at the FILs motel & ridden the shuttle bus, it takes an hour each way. It has to stop at a lot of motels between his motel and the DL park going each way. It takes over hour in the morning and late evening. While staying at the FILs motel, I walked to the park and from the park to the motel to prove to him that walking was faster than riding the shuttle. As for the beer drinking, beer is available several places in DCA and downtown Disney.

It was just a joke, that joke being that your FIL claimed it was a long trip but it was really just a medium trip with a stopoff at a quiet little bar. In truth I have no doubt it took that long because the driving and parking situation around DLR is insane.

 

[Cheshirecatty]

Ah, I've seen this before. In reality the trip only takes about 1 hour and 15 minutes. The rest of the time was taken up by a stop for a few beers.

This totally made me crack up-----Hilarious!!!!

 

[Fantaluminishes]

For me, just because I can afford to do or buy something, does not mean that I should. I believe that the Disney hotels are expensive to the point of insult, so I have never stayed in any of them. I do not know what I am missing, so it does not bother me. We have always had a wonderful stay at HoJo.

I agree. I live in the SF area, and can fly or drive to Disneyland. I stay on-site at deluxe resorts when I go to WDW. And I've stayed at DLH and PPH back when their rates were somewhat reasonable. But at today's rates, I won't even consider any of DLR's hotels. There are some great hotels on Costa Mesa, Irvine and Santa Ana that I'd rather stay at, and just drive to the parks.

The benefits to staying "on-site" at DLR don't come close to the benefits to staying at WDW. And yes, the rates at WDW are much better. I priced a trip to DLR for next month's 24-hour event. I can fly from Oakland to SNA & stay at the GCH for the same price as flying to Orlando & staying in a Savanna View room at AKL for the same number of nights. If this was more than a long weekend trip, I'd go to WDW. Fortunately, I live fairly close enough to DLR where I can take a weekend trip. I'll just be staying at a reasonable hotel.

 

[allsaintsatx]

Yes, it is worth it! We go to DL to relax and take life easy for five or six days at a time. We treat the DLH as the resort it is, using nearly all of the amenities offered. The pool, hot-tub, coffee/snack shop, cafes, gift shops, meet-n-greets, etc. If you are only going to be at the hotel to shower & sleep then, get a motel across Harbor blvd. If you like Resorts and want to completely immerse yourself in Disney, by all means, stay at a Disney Hotel. We love it.

This, and yes!

 

[aijj]

For me, just because I can afford to do or buy something, does not mean that I should.
I believe that the Disney hotels are expensive to the point of insult, so I have never stayed in any of them.

Yes, exactly this!!!

We are going on our first family trip in a month. I looked into staying onsite at the DLH and the price, even with any Orbitz discounts, seemed rather obscene to me. Especially considering my kids are only 3 and 4 and neither of them are Disney-aholics (yet!). On Mousesavers I was able to book HoJos for a fraction of the price. The HoJos is apparently equivalent walking distance to the onsite hotels, it next to Mimi's, near McD, and it has that amazing water slide area. At least for our first family trip, we figured, it's not going to make any difference to the kids.

I have actually stayed at GCH and DLH several years back (GCH when it first opened) as a college student when i went with my parents. So I do know what it is like, and while it's nice, the price makes my head spin. Even with orbitz discounts and whatnot, for several day stay it adds up. I guess i've stayed in really nice suites in Las Vegas and Maui for less, so it's hard to swallow paying that much.

I guess it all depends on what you feel is worth it. As PP said, we mainly plan to use hotel for sleeping and showering, and for use of the pool/slides in the afternoons. So, the HoJo fits the bill for that. I'd rather spend my money on other things in the parks. We will be doing lunch at Ariel's Grotto one day which I'm sure my kids will appreciate much more than being in a fancier hotel. Maybe when my kids are a bit older they will want to stay on-site, and the EMH will make it worth it so we may consider that...but for now, we'll spend the money elsewhere.

 

[hootey]

For us, staying at the DLH is a must! We have stayed offsite and rode the shuttles. We have stayed offsite across Harbor Blvd and walked it. We have also kept track of every cent spent(the wife can tell you to the cent what every DL trip has cost) The stays at the DLH cost about the same or a little less than the other motels we have stayed at. For the way we vacation at DL, the DLH is now our one and only choice. As posted earlier, we use all the amenities the DLH has to offer. That is everything from the coffee shops to the water slides to the business center(we have never went to DL with out one of our offices calling needing something) We have stayed at nicer hotels around the world but, we compare all of them to the DLH. We are not DL commandoes, we go to DL to relax and enjoy everything we can. The DLH is our "Go To" resort for family relaxing. The DLH is a Resort Hotel, we utilize it as one!

 

[rentayenta]

Or should I save it and stay somewhere else? I have two under two and a seven year old. Is parking that much of a hassle?

Yes, in my opinion it's worth every penny. The DLH is more than just a place to sleep, its a resort with a great pool, fun rooms, and nice amenities. I like taking it all in and staying on site. Harbor Blvd and the surrounding hotels do nothing for me. That's not to say there aren't some nice properties but if I can afford to stay at the DLH or GCH then I will. We have done trips staying with friends and family and those are fun too but there is something to be said for staying in the bubble. We use the amenities that the DLH offers. Where I lay my head is as important to me as how I spend my day. We like midday breaks. Love the pool. Trader Sam's is a must and while you can visit Trader Sam's staying elsewhere, it isn't the same. Disneyland is intimate and staying on property preserves that feeling for us.

Good luck with whatever you choose OP.

 

[Gisele]

For those that swear by staying on site only, does that mean if your budget changed and you could not afford to stay on site at the time, would you then wait to visit DLR until you can?
Might be a long wait. Might be never.......

 

[whoever]

For those that swear by staying on site only, does that mean if your budget changed and you could not afford to stay on site at the time, would you then wait to visit DLR until you can?
Might be a long wait. Might be never.......

Yes. We stay at the Grand or we don't go.

 

[wannagoback]

I love the DLH and would love to stay there again. But now that we have three kids, we much prefer the extra space of the kids suites at HOJO. The water play area there would be great for all of your kids too