LOTS of questions regarding transportation, hotel rooms, etc.

[Jupiter&Wolfe]

Get ready for a heckuva lot of questions! Sorry I'm such a newb, but one can remedy that by asking questions, right?


HOTEL ROOM: We're booked for DLH from September 9th - 13th. It was already a big splurge to stay there so we didn't bother with anything other than a Standard View. Is there one of the three towers that is generally the "Standard View" tower or are there different views for every tower? I understand the Dreams tower will be in the renovation process at that point. Is there a chance of me getting a standard view in that tower, and if so should I call and request NOT to be placed in Dreams? Would the renovations impact my stay at all? I booked DLH for the immersion and now I'm wondering if I should call and request a Park or a Pool view....are standard views always bad views? What should I expect???

SHUTTLE: We booked our whole package online directly through the DLR site. It came with the option of choosing transportation from the airport to DLR, and we decided to go with a Shuttle Van. After reading through these boards, I noticed people kept talking about a Disney Express bus. Is this the same thing as what I booked, or is it different? We're arriving at SNA airport.

PHOTOPASS: We'll be at DLR for 4 days. However, we're also going for the D23 convention. So we figure that we'll spend the morning at the Parks some days and evenings at the parks on others. Either way, we'll never be at the parks all day. We'll always be going to the convention for at least a little while. Do you think it will be worth it to purchase the PhotoCD? Will we have enough photopass pictures for that? At WDW, if you preorder the CD before your trip or before you enter your photos, you get a discount price. Is that the same for Disneyland, and if so can I cancel my order after if I realize I don't have enough photos?

TICKETS: Just to double check, we got the 5 for 3 Park hoppers. That means we can enter and leave the parks as often as we want each day, correct?

DINING: At WDW, if you book an early breakfast at the Castle, you can get into MK before opening and walk down an empty Main Street USA. Would this work the same way if I were to book an early breakfast at Minnie and Friends at the Plaza? Would I get into Disneyland before opening and get to take some neat pics? We've been going back and forth between GK & Minnie and Friends for days now and we just can't decide! So maybe this will help me lean one way or the other...


Well, that's all I've got for now. Sorry for the overload, but TIA for the help!

 

[Pomlover2586]

Can't answer Hotel/Shuttle questions for you.......don't know much about either

As far as Photopass CD goes, if you do take pics with the Photopass CMs while your in the park then I say the CD is worth it- just make sure to use it! Also you can take the photos and then look them over and decide not to purchase the CD and just order a select few prints or none at all- no purchase necessary

Early Entry....nope sorry You cannot get into the park before opening by having breakfast at Minnie and Friends early.....

Tickets- Yes you can enter and exit either park as many times per day as you'd like with the park hopper pass

 

[got2travel]

Actually, depending on the park opening time, you can get in early if you book Minnie and Friends. I don't know what the earliest seating time is for an 8am opening, but for 9 or 10am park openings, you can get a Minnie and Friends seating 1 hour prior to opening.

When I do stay at the DLH I always book a standard view room. Sometimes I've gotten a pool view and sometimes they keep me in a standard view. Regardless, I've never had a room that I haven't liked. From my understanding there is not a lot of structural renovations going on, just updating the rooms, so I wouldn't be worried about requesting Dreams.

The shuttle van option is not the same as the Disneyland Express. You would need to select the 'motor coach' option to get transportation on the Express. With the Disneyland Express, it's a large bus that stops at several area hotels. It would probably take longer to get to the hotel becuase you would wait for more people to get on the bus before leaving, then I don't know where it stops first. Your selection of shuttle van is just that, a van, so maybe 12 people max which means less stops, if any.

 

[Jupiter&Wolfe]

Thanks for the help, guys! If anyone has anything to throw in, be my guest. But the advice I've gotten so far is great. I guess I would have to wait to see about park hours in September to know about Minnie and Friends...

And it sounds like I may have made a good choice going with the van? I'm not too picky about it, really. Just wasn't sure what I'd be looking for.

Thanks all!

 

[goofswife]

We used the Disneyland Express during our trip in mid-June. The trip from SNA to GCH was quite an experience. We stepped onto our white bus and waited approximately 25 minutes for the bus to depart (The bus leaves only at 15 and 45 minutes past the hour.). The GCH was the last stop on the route. The bus driver talked incessantly about his personal life. Our route was not the normal route because the bus driver told us so. We drove through residential areas on our trip to the hotel, and I really don't know if that was the best or fastest way to get to the hotel. I would not want to start my vacation to DLR that way again. Our return trip to SNA was much better and faster; however, we were told that usually riders from GCH to SNA have to change buses at DLH. On our trip, the riders to LAX were the ones who had to change buses at DLH. We will definitely find another way to get to DLR on our next trip. I wish we had used the Shuttle Van as you're doing.

 

[Sherry E]

I think you should do both Goofy's Kitchen and Minnie & Friends!! You could go GK for dinner and M&F for breakfast if need be. Goofy's opens at 7:00 a.m., but the way, so you can do breakfast before the park opens. There are probably pros and cons to both places, but being the 17-year diehard Goofy's Kitchen fan that I am, I would not be doing my job if I didn't encourage you to eat there too! I really think you will like it, and it is said to be the one that is most comparable to Chef Mickey's. There are a few people who don't like it here and there (which is the case with all the character meals), but you will notice that most people enjoy it a lot! So you will get a ton of food options at the Goofy's buffet, along with some characters, and you will get a ton of characters at Minnie & Friends, with fewer food options. Do both! Besides, you will be staying at the DLH, and Goofy's is RIGHT THERE - how could you not eat there??

As for PhotoPass, you don't need to pre-order the CD for DLR. That only makes sense if you are going to WDW, where it actually saves you money. The CD is cheaper for DLR, so after you get back from your DLR trip, you go online and set up the PP account and edit/share your pictures. It only costs $59.95 plus $7.00 shipping (for U.S. residents) to order, and that includes thousands of photos (if you have that many)! You could buy it in the parks but you won't be able to edit the CD with fun borders and things.

If you can swing it, ask for the view room at DLH. If you don't do it, you will still have a wonderful time and you will enjoy the whole 'Disney immersion' by being there on the property.