Paradise Pier or Anaheim Hilton?

[Bete]

I just booked our air flight for May 29 thru June 9 to visit California this year. Anyway, I'm also thinking about getting a Disney annual pass and going back next year, especially if they do a big celebration with the 50th anniversary coming up. If I get the annual pass I may be able to swing the cheaper Disney resort but the other two are out of reach for us. It's been twenty plus years since I've seen Disneyland and obviously, I have never seen California Adventure.

Paradise Pier will probably be close to the same price (hoping to get an AP rate) as an AAA deal that I can get with the Hilton resort. So, my dilemna is which should I go for on this trip.

I haven't heard that much good about Paradise Pier but it is Disney property. I've stayed on Disney Orlando property too many times to mention. I have heard good things about this Hilton resort; so, I'm perplexed which might be better.

If you were me which place would you pick? I really would love it if someone out there has stayed in both places and could give an opinion. There are no kids involved on this trip just two adults.

 

[funnygarcia]

I haven't stayed at Paradise Pier- But we did stay at the Hilton on a Priceline bid March 2003.

Keep in mind that the Hilton is a bit farther away - walkable if you are in the mood but we always rode on the ART busses after being at the park all day due to tired feet .

We found that the Hilton was geared more for business travlers - though as a couple you might like that more .
We also did not like the beds- they swayed and felt generally wobbly. Mattress was very poor quality.

We loved the hot tubs - there are 4 of them on the rooftop. Perfect temp and very nice to relax in in the evenings.
Lots of room/personal space and no need to get too close and personal to that scary looking hairy guy who insists on sitting with you and talking on and on and on and on...LOL

You may qualify for Super Sunday AP rates at Paradise Pier for very low price you could split your trip between both hotels. I've done that in the past and it really wasn't much of a hassle.

Borrowed form Mousesavers.com
Disneyland Annual Passport holders can get rooms at the Disneyland Resort hotels for as low as $79 at Paradise Pier, $129 at Disneyland Hotel or $159 at Grand Californian on weekdays (Sun-Thur) or $119 at Paradise Pier, $159 at Disneyland Hotel or $199 at Grand Californian on weekends (Fri & Sat). If you will be staying on both weekend and weekday nights, you may want to make two reservations in order to get the lower rates on the weekdays. You must show proof of valid Annual Passport upon check-in. There are blackout dates and prices are subject to change without notice. Ask for rate plan APN for stays through 5/31/04.

They may extend rates into early June... just call back and ask!

 

[daannzzz]

I have only stayed at Paradise Pier once before this current remodel. The rooms are all redone now. I found the Paradise Pier to be a bit bland but it was nice. It is just that the grounds are pretty nonexixtant. The best part is booking a theme park view. It is better than any view at WDW as the Hotel is right at the edge of the street and just across the street is the park. We had an awesome view from the 13th floor and the park wasn't even open yet!!!
I have not stayed at the Hilton though it looks fine. It is too far for me though and I doubt I will ever stay there. I prefer to be in one of the hotels or motels that is an easy walk to the parks. The Paradise Pier is fairly convenient to DCA and about a 10-15 minute walk to Disneyland. The Hilton would probably be 15-20 minute walk to the parks.

 

[Bete]

We are people who take on the parks from sunrise to sunset and I want a good bed to sleep in. If Hilton beds are less then desirable then shame on them. I think we may split our stay there. The Sun thru Thursday deal is what we will go for at Disney.

Other input will still be appreciated; so, keep it coming in.

Thanks

 

[Blackunicorn]

Well, we're the type of freaks who can't go to Disney and not stay on property at least part of the stay. We're also cheap. So our vote would be PPH. We thought the rooms before the re-model were at least comparable to a nice hotel, I seem to recall that the beds were comfortable. (We've stayed in some pretty awful rooms, so we remember when the beds are bad!) The theme park view really blew us away, especially at night! I have some really crummy pictures of windows from my many attempts to capture the view on film.

 

[Minybear]

Hi everyone. I just booked the PP for our December trip. We have never stayed at the PP. We have stayed at the DLH and the GC and some of the nearby hotels. Can you tell me the good and the bad on the PP. Is there a tran from the parks to the hotel? We also were consideing booking the Hilton and we decided since the PP is on property to book the PP. I need all the advise we can get regarding the PP.

 

[scanmom]

We stayed at PPH about 3 weeks ago, and had a redone room. The room was nice and had plenty of space. We had a lower theme park view, which was worthless. If you cannot get upper theme park, save your money and get the cheapest view available. The hotel was nice enough, but still had ALOT of construction going on. The people there were nice, but we had some problems at check in that were not dealt with in a very accomodating manner. The pool is just a pool, but you can use the DLH pools, including the neverland pool, which we did. We got the AP rate of $59.00 for Sunday, and $79.00 m-th the week of our stay. We checked out Friday morning, but I know that the rate would have been MUCH higher for the fr/sat nites. The PPH is a pretty long walk to DL. There is a private entrance to CA, and it isn't too long a walk, but since CA opens later and closes earlier than DL, it is only useful for a mid day break. I would not stay at PPH for any more $$ than we paid. There is no early entry at DLR, so the benefits of staying on site are really not that great. I think I would stay at GCH if I got a great rate and could manage the $$, but not PPH. The PPH is not even close to being as nice or "magical " as any of the resorts in WDW in Florida! Some of the hotels on Harbor are just as nice, cheaper and CLOSER!!! If I were you, I would check into some of these places. Wherever you stay, have a great trip! DLR is a spectacular place, and I am sure you will love CA (do NOT miss Soaring Over California!!)

 

[scanmom]

forgot to answer that ...no there is no tram/shuttle to the parks from ANY of the DLR hotels You can catch the monorail at DTD, but that is still quite a walk from PPH, and takes you to Tommorowland, which is O.k. for return visits, but for my 1st time I would definatly go to the front gate and walk down Main Street!

 

[Bete]

I got an AP rate of $89/night Sun-Thurs and $129/night for Fri/Sat for PP for my time in May/June. I talked with the cast member for a very long time before I decided. Anyway, all the remodel construction at PP supposedly will stop by May 24. They are putting in a special slide in the pool that will be complete by May 1 to make it more exciting and fun. We are getting a room with two queen beds and a daybed; so, I have to believe this room will be a nice size. I'm happy.

Pricing for the Hilton was $99/night. If I can stay on Disney property for almost the same grand total price, then I can't see doing it any other way. I feel I can walk to the other Disney resorts to catch their ambience for dinner, etc.

Being next door to Downtown Disney seems cool to me, too. You don't have to pay parking by using their transportation, either. Could someone tell how bad of a walk it is to the monorail? 5/10/15 or longer in minutes? I know everyone walks at different speeds but let's say at a snail's pace how long would it be?

 

[ltldeb]

It's about 10 minutes to Downtown Disney from Paradise Pier at a snail's pace.

DH and I stayed at PP in 2001. We had a view of California Adventure. We saw the fireworks from our room at night. It was incredible!

 

[c&m]

Please decide to stay at the Paradise Pier!!! We were just at the Anaheim Hilton in March for 5 nights. It was a terrible place. Sure, the atrium is grand, befitting of a conference hotel. The pool and jacuzzi area is also quite OK, given that it's a huge conference hotel. However, that's where it all ends.

The bathroom is teeny tiny. If you open the bathroom door, it comes within an inch of the toilet. If you want to fit in more than one person in there, you'll be squeezed up against the toilet (yuck factor). We had to wash our small children in there, so you can imagine how tough that it was each night. Also, the bathroom was full of old water stains--brownish stains all over floor and ceramic tiles. The wallpaper and carpet was decrepit and stained. It was all quite Motel 6ish. If you want more detail, let the posts about the hotel in www.tripadvisor.com fill you in. I didn't want to believe it when I read those posts. I thought these people were being overly picky. How wrong I was. I even called the hotel ahead of time to have them reassure me that their hotel was going to give me a better experience. They did their reassuring and I didn't change my reservations to the Marriott across the street.

Oh, I did complain about the dirty bathroom. They just smiled apologetically to me and said all their bathrooms were the same. Nothing was done. I now realize that big convention hotel means apathetic service. They had me hooked in; and now they didn't need to do any more for me.

Regardless, we still had a good time at DL. But no more Anaheim Hilton for us!!! Go with Paradise Pier. We also liked the Anaheim Marriott across the street from the Hilton, where we stayed during another trip in 2001.

 

[funnygarcia]

For anyone else interested..
I agree- Choose the Marriot if you need to be in the convention ctr area.
Marriot has more friendly staff (they gave us banana bread as we walked into lobby each day and everyone greeted us with a smile), clean room and bathroom, WONDERFULLY Comfortable beds with down pillows and cozy comforters .. The mattress was a plush top- comparable to my own bed at home in comfort- which says a lot about a hotel bed!!
I saw staff cleaning the outdoor pool each late night and somone cleaning all the outdoor furniture each morning.
Everything was well cared for and looked nearly new.

Quiet rooms. Almost too quiet for this city loving girl!

They also have a pizza hut that is open late in evening - good for that late dinner after the parks.

 

[Minybear]

I just priced Anaheim Marriott and the Paradise Pier and they are basicly the same price. Which in your opinion closer to DL?

 

[c&m]

Paradise Pier is by far closer. The Anaheim Marriott is a leisurely 15-min walk into DL. Maybe 10 min, if you have long legs and a fast walk.

We've stayed at both hotels, and they're both very nice.

 

[danacath]

Wow, now I'm having second thoughts about my lodging choice for this fall. DH and I were all set to make ressies at the Hilton, Anaheim after reading the glowing review of it on mousesavers.com, and seeing lots of nice photos, etc. (We'll be attending a convention, so we need to stay somewhere close to the convention center.) After reading this thread, I guess I'll take a second look at the Marriott. Can anyone fill me in on the Marriott's pool/hot tub area? Are there any rooms with a "park view"?