New to the boards, would love some help

[3monkeys4me]

I have been reading up on these boards for a few weeks now planning an end of June Disney trip for my family. I grew up in CA and I have been to DL many times but dh has only been twice. This will be the first trip for my kids (6, 4 and 7 months)

Anyway, we are looking to go June 18th through the 24th. We will be leaving early on the 24th. I know some of the days aren't blocked out for So. CA Aps and will be busy. It is really the only time we will be able to go so we will make the best of the crowds. Do you think we would be better off with a 6 day hopper or doing a 5 day hopper and planning an off day? Or a 5 day hopper a day at legoland?

Next question....where to stay? The last time dh and I went was in 2002 and we stayed at the GCH. This is our first trip with kids. We were planning on the PPH but now I am wondering if we would be better off at HOJOs.
Right now the pluses for
PPH- daybed in the room (my kids wont sleep well next to each other)
it is onsite
more magic mornings.

HOJOs- the water play area looks awesome!
Balconeys (do all the rooms have them?)

It is about $400 more for us to stay at the PPH but we will if it is worth it. We will likely go tot the hotel for 3-4 hours every afternoon so the older kids can swim and take a break (maybe sleep a bit!) and the baby can nap.

Any insight would be fantastic. Thanks!

 

[DLR29]

For our family, it is not worth it to stay onsite. HoJos would be the obvious choice for us because then we would save that extra $400 for other things.

However, other families prefer to stay onsite. I guess since I've only really stayed onsite once, I am ok with staying offsite every time rather than "having to stay onsite" every time because that's the way it's always been. It also might be worth it if your kids don't sleep well together. My brother and I sleep fine in a queen, so HoJos worked great.

Extra MM? Eh, it might be worth it during a super busy time like that, but if you're going for 5 days, you'll have time to do what you want even with heavy crowds, so long as you plan appropriately.

Legoland might be a good idea for one of those days that the APs are not blocked out as long as you have transportation there. I think it's about an hour away from DLR but I'm not positive. 5 days is sufficient at DLR.

One more thing, the walk to the parks from HoJo is shorter/about the same as the walk from PPH. And the HoJo rooms have balconies, and the pools are the best you are going to get offsite and on par with PPH's pool.

 

[3monkeys4me]

Thanks for the quick reply.

Which of the pools/water areas would be better for non swimmers? Both kids are in swim lessons but aren't very good swimmers yet.


Growing up we always stayed off site, except for one trip with my aunt when I was 10 and then when dh and I went in 2002 (for my birthday/first part of our honeymoon)

The day we would likely go to Legoland would be Sunday June 20th. I think that is father's day. I am thinking it may be busy at both parks. Frienday June 18th would be out first day, (our flight would arrive at 10am) so I think I would want to spend Saturday at DL. Mondaythe 21st my dad, his girlfriend and my sisters family are meeting up with us for 3 days then the kids and I are going home with them for a visit. (dh has to get back to work) Our other plan was just to skip Legoland and try to do a San Deigo trip next year when we visit CA and do a half day at DL and do something like medevil times.

 

[onelilspark]

I can't help with much, but just an FYI: our room at Hojo did not have a balcony.

 

[Kayla's Mom]

I can't help with much, but just an FYI: our room at Hojo did not have a balcony.

I was going to say the same thing - I believe almost all do have a balcony, but in all of our trips there we did get a room once that did not have one. It was in building 2.

 

[onelilspark]

I was going to say the same thing - I believe almost all do have a balcony, but in all of our trips there we did get a room once that did not have one. It was in building 2.

We were in Building 2 as well, on the 3rd floor. If I remember right, some rooms had balconies in that building while some did not. I didn't really care if we had a balcony, we wouldn't have used it.

 

[50sjayne]

Thanks for the quick reply.

Which of the pools/water areas would be better for non swimmers? Both kids are in swim lessons but aren't very good swimmers yet.


Growing up we always stayed off site, except for one trip with my aunt when I was 10 and then when dh and I went in 2002 (for my birthday/first part of our honeymoon)

The day we would likely go to Legoland would be Sunday June 20th. I think that is father's day. I am thinking it may be busy at both parks. Frienday June 18th would be out first day, (our flight would arrive at 10am) so I think I would want to spend Saturday at DL. Mondaythe 21st my dad, his girlfriend and my sisters family are meeting up with us for 3 days then the kids and I are going home with them for a visit. (dh has to get back to work) Our other plan was just to skip Legoland and try to do a San Deigo trip next year when we visit CA and do a half day at DL and do something like medevil times.

HOJOS has the pirate play area--great for kids who can't swim It's hard to describe-- you should just google HOJO Anaheim.

 

[Dizneydaz]

First off to the boards. It's a great place to spend hours!

Personally I would skip LL this year and save it for another time. Spend all your time at DLR. It will be crowded, esp. June 20, 21, and 22nd -the days when us SC AP are not blocked. LL is about 63 miles from DLR. I would figure 1-1/2 hours each way, more if you go during high traffic times. LL is open 10-6 on the 20th. I would leave DLR area about 8 a.m. to get there before opening.

We live nearby so haven't stayed in Anaheim (well once, at Embassy Suites for a night). If I was staying I would pick HOJOs. Looks cool and gets great reviews. Unlike at WDW I don't think staying onsite is as important at DLR. Have you thought about a split stay? We've done this in WDW several times and it works for us.

I would stay off site first and then finish up PPH (3 nights at each?) cost $200 more but you would end your DLR trip staying onsite.

 

[Hojoanaheim]

Thanks for the quick reply.

Which of the pools/water areas would be better for non swimmers? Both kids are in swim lessons but aren't very good swimmers yet.

Welcome to the Boards!

I think that Castaway Cove would be better for your non-swimmers. There's a toddler wading pool with beach-style entry that they'll feel confident playing around in, and the waterslides terminate in such a way that doesn't require, or really allow, swimming.

It is a little bit hard to explain, so this video might help! :]

So excited for you! I love watching kids' faces the first time they ever go to Disneyland- such a joy! You all are going to have a wonderful time!
Lorealle

 

[nana50]

I am one of the very few that didn't care for Hojo's. The main reason is we weren't there long enough to use the pool very much. When we did use it, it was so packed no one had fun. The rooms were O.K>, we had the kids suite so it was nice. I found it a little run down and outdated, but the staff is very nice. Of course they were super nice at the Sheraton Anaheim last week too. It is a matter of money and your taste. My grandkids, ages 7 & 10 LOVED PPH pool area. The have great water slides, that even non swimmers can use as it lands in shallow water. They also have a shallow pool right next to it with comfy lounge chairs for grandma to watch the pool and slide area at the same time.

 

[3monkeys4me]

Thanks everyone for all the insight.

At the moment I am leaning toward HoJos since my sister's family could also afford to stay there. They will only be there for 3 nights and PPH would be over $600 more for them. It would be nice to be at the same hotel (but not a dealbreaker) because my big kids are the same ages as hers and we only see them about once a year.

We are also leaning towards the 6 day hoppers and saving LL for another CA trip. This way we can take as many breaks as needed. I would not be surprised if we spend quite a bit of time in the pool area.

Any other advice is welcome!