Noise reduction in your hotel!

avalon451

Errrr... what?
Joined
Mar 1, 2008
Messages
4,248
I was just thinking about this: while DLR is the happiest place on earth, the hotels surrounding it may also be the noisiest place on earth. What do you get with people arriving at all hours, from all over the world, with super hyperactive and excited small children in tow? Well... you don't get a lot of sleep.

I'm a light sleeper at the best of times, but put me in a strange hotel with little kids running around overhead (why do kids' heels sound ten times harder than usual when they are in the room above you? :) ) and roller suitcases bumping along the walkways outside, and forget it.

I have found a few things that help me and my kids a lot, and I'm wondering if anybody else can contribute some ideas.

--White noise machines. Discovered 'em when my kids were babies, and I was amazed how much easier it was for them to drop off with a quiet background noise. I used them occasionally, too. You can download a free app on your phone, too.

-- Foam ear plugs. Good gravy, why didn't I discover these years ago? I started using them on our trip to England 2 years ago, and they helped me so much that I started using them all the time. Now I don't wake up when my hubby gets up at the ungodly hour that he has to for work, and I find I'm much more rested, because I'm not partially waking at every sound all night long. I have found that in hotels, I sleep much more soundly and comfortably when the unfamiliar noises start, and the rattling air conditioner kicks in. They are available at any drug store, in plastic jars. They do take a little getting used to, but once you've accustomed yourself they're quite comfortable. (I suppose I wouldn't use them if I was still listening for toddlers waking in the night, but my youngest is now 13, and they just barge in and shake me when they need me :) )

--and, I always call the hotel as far ahead as I can, and sweetly request the top floor, so I don't have those tiny little heels (apparently wearing concrete slippers) pounding overhead! They can't guarantee your request, of course, but I've been able to get top floor more often than not.

-- nightlight. Even though the kids don't need it to keep away the monsters any more, it's nice to be able to navigate your way to the bathroom in the middle of the night without tripping the unfamiliar furniture. It's not exactly a noise reduction aid, but a comfort aid.

Any other suggestions out there?
 
We always request a room without a connecting door. It's amazing how much noise, even whispers, filter through a connecting door, especially if the door is loose fitting. We've heard everything from basic "don't wake the kids up" whispering to 900 line phone calls to screaming babies' parents saying, "Oh, just let the baby cry!" (At 3am???) A solid wall instead of a door really helps reduce the noise from the neighbors.
 
We always request a room without a connecting door. It's amazing how much noise, even whispers, filter through a connecting door, especially if the door is loose fitting. We've heard everything from basic "don't wake the kids up" whispering to 900 line phone calls to screaming babies' parents saying, "Oh, just let the baby cry!" (At 3am???) A solid wall instead of a door really helps reduce the noise from the neighbors.

Oh man on our honeymoon at Coronado I gave up on a connecting room after the second night and insisted we be moved because of a screaming baby. It was one thing in the afternoon but I swear that poor thing screamed all night! Connecting doors certainly do let a ton of noise through!
 
We always stay off-site and have rarely been bothered by noise.
Frankly it's just not an issue.

FWIW, I used to work where they used white noise machines. The technology is deeply flawed and for the most part the general consensus was that they just added to the ambient noise.
 

My recommendation is when the neighbor's baby wakes you in the wee hours of the morning, take it as a sign from the gods that you should request a new room the next morning. That which is irritating one night is even more irritating the next night.........

I need to look into some wireless ear buds. Music can help me get back to sleep, but I can't sacrifice everyone else's sleep to turn it on. Nor do I think it's probably wise to sleep in wired ear buds.
 
We use white noise machines pretty much everywhere. We're a house full of light sleepers, and they make such a difference! If we forget them, our phones have to play that part. I also usually try to bring ear plugs for me, because (maybe because I have 5 kids) I'm the worst one in the bunch for noises keeping me awake.
 
We use white noise machines pretty much everywhere. We're a house full of light sleepers, and they make such a difference! If we forget them, our phones have to play that part. I also usually try to bring ear plugs for me, because (maybe because I have 5 kids) I'm the worst one in the bunch for noises keeping me awake.


I'm going to try this on our next trip!
 
We stay at the Red Lion when we're not staying on site and it's been pretty darn quiet, in our experience. I think it has something to do with being a bit farther away from the parks than a lot of the preferred off site hotels, however.
 
I have a "white noise" app on my phone that I like when noises are bothering me.

On this trip, we had a room at the DLH Adventureland tower that faced Downtown Disney. We were on the second floor and didn't have problems with noise upstairs or from adjacent rooms, but the live music from Downtown Disney was clearly audible, and the fireworks were crazy loud. When they started up the first night we were there, I was shocked both kids slept through it (and on the third night when they started as we were just getting back from the park, my 11-year-old also couldn't believe she slept through both the fireworks and all the noise from the music). The last time we were there we had a room facing the pool and didn't hear music or fireworks at all. I'd guess that's true for any of the surrounding hotels: request a room on the side of the hotel away from all the noise unless you're planning to be in the park during the fireworks each night.
 
That's the reason why there is a 10pm curfew on the live music in DtD. Many times the dancers have wanted the bands to play longer, but they are strict about ending at 10pm for the sake of the hotel guests.
 
My recommendation is when the neighbor's baby wakes you in the wee hours of the morning, take it as a sign from the gods that you should request a new room the next morning. That which is irritating one night is even more irritating the next night.........

I need to look into some wireless ear buds. Music can help me get back to sleep, but I can't sacrifice everyone else's sleep to turn it on. Nor do I think it's probably wise to sleep in wired ear buds.


I bought AcousticSheep SleepPhones Classic Sleep Headphones for my daughter last year at Christmas - she LOVES them! (I bought them on Amazon) They have wired and wireless versions.


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Techniques I've adapted when travelling....
  • choose rooms away from roads and vehicle traffic
  • choose rooms away from elevator and ice machine
  • unplug or turn down the in room fridge
  • place pillows on the left and right side of your head to cover your ears
  • go to bed around midnight when the halls are quiet
 
We always stay off site and honestly, the only time I've really heard noise from other guests is first thing in the morning - kids so excited.....they can't wait to get to Disneyland.....they run up and down the hallways.....ahhhhhhhh!!!!! lol but really, it's a good wake up call because we don't sleep in when we're at Disney ;-)
 
We always stay off site and honestly, the only time I've really heard noise from other guests is first thing in the morning - kids so excited.....they can't wait to get to Disneyland.....they run up and down the hallways.....ahhhhhhhh!!!!! lol but really, it's a good wake up call because we don't sleep in when we're at Disney ;-)

Can't blame the kids, I have to restrain myself from doing the same thing!
 
LOL to everyone requesting a quiet room away from the elevators. I say this because as a family with 3 small children, we always get put in the room right next to the elevators. It's like they know. Anyway, more to the point, noise cancelling headphones can be awesome if you can fall asleep with them. Also, if there's a gap under the door, you may consider shoving a towel under the gap. It can help block the noise from outside.
 












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