Need help deciding PP or GC

[tinkcc99]

We have stayed at GC before and loved it. This trip we are taking a 4 year old with us and I can't decide which hotel. The PP has Lilo & Stitch(which he loves!), is cheaper and would give us a new hotel experience.... but I am afraid we might not love it as much as we did GC. Any input would be appreciated!

 

[funatdisney]

I vote that you should try it. I, myself, love GCH, but I think you should try PPH at least once. Since your little one loves Lilo and Stitch, that will make it easier for you and your 4 year old to go to the buffet dinner. I am all for making life easier with a 4 year old.

 

[disney-super-mom]

Well of course the beautiful theming/decor and in-the-middle-of-the-magic location of the GCH can't be beat, period. I mean, really, it doesn't get any better than that.

Having said that, the rooms at the PPH are larger (and the boardwalk/surfing theme in the rooms and hotel is cute and light and bright), the themepark views from the upper floors are extremely nice, and the large pool slide is the only one that younger children who are non-swimmers are allowed to use because it's empties riders into a shallow catch trough and not into the pool, so no swimming skills are necessary. (Life guards at the DLH and the GCH will make younger children take a little swim test before letting them use the large pool slides at either of those hotels. It's not a big deal, but the children must be able to show the lifeguard that they can swim well enough to get from the middle of the pool to the side of the pool on their own.)

Regardless of where you stay, I hope you all have a wonderful, magical time together!

 

[pixiewings71]

We've stayed in both and while we loved the GCH it's a splurge for us, PPH is much more affordable, the rooms are huge and it's a nice place. I'd do it with the kids, I think they'd really enjoy it there.

 

[Amy&Dan]

I think you would really enjoy PP, I know we do. I agree with others, the large rooms are so nice and that slide is great for kids of all ages. You also have a great view of the fireworks from that pool deck, and they pipe the music in (at least they have in the past when we have stayed there).

I would for sure do the theme park view upgrade. We did that our last trip there and omg, I will never not do that again!

Its a very nice hotel and the fact you will save money and get a new experience, just ices the cake.

I love the GCH but for my family the smaller rooms don't work. To me the big factors for GCH are the location (although when we stayed there we were down the longest hallway on the planet) and the balcony.

 

[ChristiJ]

We've stayed at all three within a year, most recently GCH. Every member of my family, including me, actually wished we were at PPH when we were at GCH. Sure the lobby is nice and the entrance to CA, but overall I found our experience so much better at PPH. They made such a big deal at check in over my daughter, calling her princess, telling her the other princesses were looking for her, getting her balloons and pins - all kinds of stuff - which set a fabulous tone to our trip. We thought the service could not be beat. The hotel was quiet and relaxed, the rooms were very comfortable.

While PPH appears to be a bit longer of a walk at the end of the day than GCH, depending on where your room is at GCH, I think the walk to your room can actually be longer at GCH than to a room at PPH.

I was extremely disappointed with the GCH (the customer service during our stay was awful), but that's just my opinion. It has got to typically be better for so many people to enjoy it so much. However at check out the bellhop asked how our stay was and I told him that we were pretty let down, and his response was "I hear that a lot".

 

[ter-moo]

With a 4-year-old, I'd do the PPH. It's bright, cheery and the cast-members there are SO friendly and helpful! The Lilo and Stitch restaurant looks really fun, too.

If you cross the street and enter the parks through the GCH, it's really close, too!

 

[blue donkey]

I would have voted for GCH for its convenience but after reading your reviews, I may just have to agree with you all.

I never knew that that GCH & DLH pool slides had a swim test before you had a child ride ride them (No kiddies here).

IMHO, I'd say if you're child can't swim, then definitely PPH.

Have , wherever you stay!

On a side-note, disney-super-mom, I bet readers would appreciate knowing that on the DIS reviews of the hotels on disneyland page.

 

[blackjackdelta]

We've stayed at all three within a year, most recently GCH. Every member of my family, including me, actually wished we were at PPH when we were at GCH. Sure the lobby is nice and the entrance to CA, but overall I found our experience so much better at PPH. They made such a big deal at check in over my daughter, calling her princess, telling her the other princesses were looking for her, getting her balloons and pins - all kinds of stuff - which set a fabulous tone to our trip. We thought the service could not be beat. The hotel was quiet and relaxed, the rooms were very comfortable.

While PPH appears to be a bit longer of a walk at the end of the day than GCH, depending on where your room is at GCH, I think the walk to your room can actually be longer at GCH than to a room at PPH.

I was extremely disappointed with the GCH (the customer service during our stay was awful), but that's just my opinion. It has got to typically be better for so many people to enjoy it so much. However at check out the bellhop asked how our stay was and I told him that we were pretty let down, and his response was "I hear that a lot".

Really hope the CS does not suck or the manager and I will have a long talk. I have no problem bringing inequities forward at the time we are there, but in a very polite way.

Jack

 

[sandgrace]

I've stayed at all 3, and I liked the GC because of the location. PP is a long walk, and with tired feet that makes a big difference for me.

 

[Amy&Dan]

I'll also add that regardless of which one you stay at, check out the grounds of the Disneyland Hotel. They have lovely fountains and Koi Ponds as well as these little remote control jungle cruise boats that a four year old would love.

To me, both PPH and DLH offer the fun, Disney touches that kids love. GCH is lovely and obviously Disneyland's premier onsite hotel. But to me, the PPH and DLH offer some things, namely Disney theming that GCH doesn't. My kids really missed that. In fact, we almost felt like we weren't at Disneyland when stayed there, but bear in mind when we did, we had logged in around 8 onsite stays split between DLH and PPH.

Staying at PPH, you would also have the dining options of the DLH very close by.

PPH also has a small arcade that has some little chairs and a tv that shows Disney cartoons. When my dd was younger she loved that.

 

[tinkcc99]

All your insights are great. I appreciate them all.
So now those of you who have stayed at Disneyland hotel and/or PPH which one would you pick and why? It sounds like the slide at PPH pool if more oriented for smaller children. For DLH it sounds like the grounds are bigger and there is more on the grounds to do. Room wise is one superior than the other. Distance wise to the park is there a huge difference between the two?

 

[Amy&Dan]

Well, I am very partial to the DLH. However, its going under a refurb starting later this month and I am not sure what that will entail. I believe they are doing one tower at a time, and knowing Disney, they'll do a very good job of keeping construction as hidden as possilbe.

Room wise, they both are very nice and about equal. Some rooms (very few) at the DLH are a bit smaller than others, whereas at PPH I belive they are all the same size. But even my smallest room at the DLH was bigger than my room at the GCH. And both the DLH and PPH have a light, bright feel to them, not the dark, woodsy theme of the GCH rooms and lobbies.

For sure the DLH has the grounds that PPH doesn't. DLH's pool is more appealing to younger kids (slide not included). It has the pirate ship in the middle (which is for decoration only) and then a huge hot tub. It also has a small slide for non swimmers, where the parent can catch the toddler at the end. For sure PPH has an awesome slide and even a non swimmer can use it. But one thing to bear in mind is that slide is very long and its a long climb up. Some smaller kids may be too scared to ride down the slide, even though they are allowed to. The rest of the PPH pool is a just a basic, square pool. The DLH pool area has more eye appeal for young kids.

I don't think you can make a bad choice between the two. I tend to lean more towards DLH but of course it will be more expensive than PPH. DLH has more dining options. Distance wise to the parks, I'd rate them about even. From both you are looking at around a ten minute walk up DTD and you can use the monorail to cut that down. I like to end my days in the Tomorrowand area of DL then monorail back to the hotel. In the mornings, I have never found the monorail to make sense, I hate the way it doesn't open until the park does meaning you can't leave the station until DL is officially open and the lines are generally very long. For us, its always been quicker to walk to the park in the morning. Going back in after a pool break, we often do monorail back adn the line is generally not long.

As far as room decor, PPH is a beach theme wtih some very cute Disney touches. DLH is more Disney themed. All PPH rooms have a sofa that folds down to a twin sized bed, some DLH rooms have daybeds, it not and you need a third bed, they will provide a free rollaway. As of right now, the DLH rooms have a sliding door that opens to allow in fresh air, that feature will be removed once the rooms are refurbbed. PPH rooms don't have windows that open. Every single PPH room I have had, had the bathroom being an all in one set up. About half the DLH rooms I have had, did have the bathroom split, with the sink separate from the toilet and shower. A few had a set up where the sink was in with the tub, but the toilet was in a separate little water closet area that was private.

PPH has only one building, DLH has three. PPH in my opinion doesn't have enough elevators, I have spent some time waiting anxiously for an elevator when staying at that hotel nothing awful, just something I noticed. In the mornings in particular.

Good luck with your choice!

 

[disney-super-mom]

Amy gave you some great descriptions, and you can't go wrong with either hotel. We've stayed at both and enjoyed both enormously.

We've never had to wait long for an elevator at the PPH, but purhaps that's because we were coming and going to the parks at non-peak times. I have heard of other people complain about that though from time to time.

I just want to add that, despite the fact that the slide at the PPH looks big, it is a gentle ride, so the littlier riders won't get scared by going too fast or anything like that. My youngest has been going down the PPH slide since he was three, and even at that age, he loved it so much that he would do it over and over and over again all afternoon. Also, there's a children's shallow play pool next to the slide, so you can sit at a nice table or lounger right there by the play pool and watch the four year old go down the slide and then hop in and splash around in the play pool and then go back down the slide again without ever losing sight of him/her. My hubby and I loved this. We could just sit back and relax, maybe have a cocktail, all the while being able to easily keep an eye on our kids. The pool area is themed to a boardwalk/beach scene, and they pipe in Beach Boys music.

The DLH pool is of course wonderfully themed to Peter Pan, and hey, if the four year old can at least dog paddle well enough to get from the middle of the pool to the side of the pool, then there won't be any problems with him/her going down the big slide there. And the grounds around the DLH are quite attractive. I love the waterfalls and paths. Very pretty......and romantic I think.

And as Amy said, the walking distance between the two hotels evens out to be about the same, with the DLH being a little closer to the DTD monorail station, but the PPH being a little closer to the private entrance into California Adventure.

Here's a little tip if you stay at the PPH: Unless you are riding on the monorail or you are doing something on the west side of DTD (ESPN, Rainforest Cafe, etc) then you will always cut through the GCH. That means if you want to get to the front gate of Disneyland, you will cut through the GCH. If you want to go to California Adventure, you will want to cut through the GCH and use their private entrance.

 

[Sherry E]

By the way, just to give you an extra selling point as to why to pick the PPH (or the DLH) over the GCH in this case, you will find these waiting for you in the bathroom of either the PPH or the DLH (GCH has very non-Mickeyfied H20 Spa bath products in their rooms):

Now I don't know what child (or big adult kid) wouldn't instantly get a huge smile on their face at the sight of those sitting on the sink! And they are in hot demand, too. We had a whole thread about the Mickey ears shampoo bottles a while back and many folks wanted a set. I and one other DIS-er sent some of our 'stash' out to a few DIS-ers hungry for Mickey Ears bottles, but there were many left without.

The PPH, as has already been stated in this thread, is an ocean/sun/beach/surf/nautical-themed hotel, with many touches fitting into that motif. Practically everywhere you look - the carpets in the hallways, the armoire, the coasters in the bathroom - you see the ever-present sun image. There are also surfboard room number signs, a Surfer Goofy statue in the lobby, a seashell soap dish in the bathroom, a Lifeguard Mickey lamp in the rooms, and artwork featuring Paradise Pier in DCA. The coloring of the comforters is pretty pastel. As Amy&Dan said, PPH basically consists of just one building and does not have the lush grounds that the DLH has or the upscale elegance of the GCH, but the more I think about it, I think you get quite a bit of theming at the PPH for the price. And if you take what we all know as the "short cut" from the PPH, across the street and through the GCH lobby to DTD, the walk will not seem nearly as long and circuitous as it would if you were to follow the signs from the PPH to DL or DCA.

The DLH is a lovely hotel, full of Disney touches both whimsical and slightly tropical, from the various topiaries, Disney character statuettes and the vintage memorabilia wall display in the lobby to the waterfalls, koi fish pond, mini-remote controlled Jungle Cruise boats, Peter Pan/Pirate-themed pool area, etc. Sometimes there are even characters hanging out in the lobby near the check-in area (maybe on their way to or from Goofy's Kitchen, perhaps?). It is just a lot of fun to be there.

But I have stayed in all 3 hotels, as other DIS-ers on this thread have as well, and I really, truly, like them all for different reasons. I think PPH tends to get a bad rap because it is smaller in area than the DLH or GCH and therefore, cannot expand enough. But it is also the most economical out of the 3 hotels, so I am willing to make that trade! But I also really love the GCH (especially at Christmastime) and the DLH. It is a tough choice, but I think you can't go wrong with any of them, and the wonderful thing is that because everything in DLR is so close together, if you choose to stay at one of the DLR hotels, you can easily walk to the other ones and look around! In fact, that is what we have done the last couple of trips when we stayed at PPH - we sat for long periods of time in the spacious, lovely, dimly lit GCH lobby, rested and relaxed in their comfy chairs, people watching, and we strolled around the DLH grounds on our way to or from our traditional Goofy's Kitchen breakfast. So you can still get a taste of all 3 hotels and enjoy much of what they have to offer even if you don't stay in any particular one.

 

[MommiePrincess]

Since many of you have stayed at the DGC recently...they still have the small slide for non-swimmers/toddlers right?

FYI, we have stayed the past few years at DGC theme park view and love it. My last stay at DLH was about 7 years ago. We almost booked there this time with our 3 1/2 year old and 7 month old, but DH loves the atmosphere at DGC. I will try to convince DH that we need a spring and fall trip next year and maybe stay at both DLH and DGC. PP sounds great, but the walk worries me.

 

[ChristiJ]

Really hope the CS does not suck or the manager and I will have a long talk. I have no problem bringing inequities forward at the time we are there, but in a very polite way.

Jack

In our six days there, we never had an ice machine or soda machine that worked on the entire floor. After calling three days in a row to get them fixed (and in the mean time walking those long halls to go to another floor to get some), my husband was none to happy to have them suggest that they could send some ice up to us via room service, for a fee. No turn down half the nights we were there (a bummer for the kid who's SO excited about a few little chocolates on her pillow). It was a lot of little things like that - one thing would have been no big deal, but lots of little things add up. I have pretty low expectations, but it just didn't live up to the hype (or the $$$) for us.

My six year old just got in to pin trading this year, so PPH is so much more fun for her, and the cast members have always been AWESOME at not only trading with her, but telling her story and giving her extra pins. The staff at the PCH Grill have been fabulous every time we've been there, especially with the kids. I think for us, with our daughter in tow, PPH is just more fun for her, and given the price difference, who am I to argue?

 

[disney-super-mom]

Since many of you have stayed at the DGC recently...they still have the small slide for non-swimmers/toddlers right?

FYI, we have stayed the past few years at DGC theme park view and love it. My last stay at DLH was about 7 years ago. We almost booked there this time with our 3 1/2 year old and 7 month old, but DH loves the atmosphere at DGC. I will try to convince DH that we need a spring and fall trip next year and maybe stay at both DLH and DGC. PP sounds great, but the walk worries me.

Yes, both the GCH and the DLH have the small slides for non-swimmers.

And just so you know, the walk to/from the PPH isn't really any longer than the walk to/from the DLH. The DLH is a little closer to the DTD monorail station; the PPH is a little closer to the private entrance to California Adventure; they are both about the same distance to the front gates of either park.

 

[Amy&Dan]

Since many of you have stayed at the DGC recently...they still have the small slide for non-swimmers/toddlers right?

FYI, we have stayed the past few years at DGC theme park view and love it. My last stay at DLH was about 7 years ago. We almost booked there this time with our 3 1/2 year old and 7 month old, but DH loves the atmosphere at DGC. I will try to convince DH that we need a spring and fall trip next year and maybe stay at both DLH and DGC. PP sounds great, but the walk worries me.

I agree with Disney-super-mom! Don't let that walk worry you at all. The shortcut through GCH helps but even without that, its not bad. I know we stayed at DLH (same basic distance) with my mom who was getting over chemo and my nieces who were three years old. We all walked the walk, up DTD and back again for a midday break every day for five days. My nieces didn't have strollers and they did fine. I guess I am now used to WDW and its vast size but I just think all of the Disneyland Resort, including the three hotels is so compact and easy to navigate, I can't imagine ruling out PPH or DLH solely on location. And for what its worth, our room at GCH was about as far a walk to the parks as you can get at that hotel, so not all the rooms there are just a hop, skip and a jump either.

Give the PPH and DLH a try, you'll probably be surprised at how close they are to the parks.

 

[Sherry E]

The PPH walk is really not bad at all. As I described in my previous post, everything is close enough together where you can just walk from one hotel to another, from the hotels to DTD and back, from the hotels to the gates of both parks, etc. It is not at all like the layout of WDW, where everything is spread out. The main thing that seems to intimidate people about the PPH is that it is on the opposite side of the street from where the general hub of activity is. It seems like it is on its own little island. But it is really just across the street and over from the GCH. That is why it's so easy to take the short cut and walk across the street from the PPH to the GCH and back again. Plus, many folks eat at the Lilo and Stitch breakfast, so if it were that far away, they would never have any business! I think when you first stay at the PPH and don't quite know the lay of the land yet, and if you don't know the short cut through the GCH and you follow the signs on the PPH property for how to get to the gates of the parks, it can seem daunting. That seems to be a much longer walk (thought still doable). But once you discover the short cut, you realize it is not nearly as bad as it seemed at first. And the walk is quite pleasant and enjoyable, as you get to stroll through the GCH and enjoy the lovely lobby and then move on through DTD to the front gates.

My friend - who was very opposed to the walk to and from PPH back in 2007 - finally realized it wasn't bad when we began taking the short cut in October last year. So last December I apologized to her for staying at a hotel that she didn't want to stay in (because she thought it was so far). She said, "It's not bad. I like the Paradise Pier." (Actually she called it the Pioneer Pier, but I knew what she meant!!) So I felt much better about it, like I wasn't torturing her as I first thought I was!! If it got her stamp of approval, orthopedic problems and all, then I knew it was okay!!