Park Vue Inn vs. Disneyland Hotel

[Karbase8]

Hi,
I am planning my first time visit with myself and DS15. I had booked at Disneyland Hotel and it's very expensive for three nights and 3 day park hopper passes in August. I then discovered the Park Vue Inn and if I book with them I save 1100 dollars. Since I am traveling alone with my son, I am looking for safety, cleanliness and a close walk to the parks as we will not have a car. What are your thoughts? We probably won't go to Disneyland again in a long time, but we also plan to stay in Santa Monica 4-5 nights which will be pricey.

 

[figment_jii]

I can't speak for the Park Vue Inn specifically, but I almost always stay at the Best Western Park Place Inn, which is next door to PVI. You really can't get any closer to DLR than those two motels on Harbor Blvd (in fact, they're closer to the Esplande than DLH). So in that way, the walk is very easy. Cross Harbor Blvd and you're at the pedestrian entrance to Disneyland!

In terms of safety, Harbor Blvd is the "Real World", so you will get a range of answers about how folks feel when walking there. Sadly, a lot of those threads turn kind of ugly, so just be prepared for that to happen in this thread as well. Personally, I've never felt unduly worried about the walk from DLR to BWPPI (which is pretty much the same walk as PVI). It's like a street in any major city; be aware of your surroundings, stay in the cross-walk, etc.

 

[stitichsmom]

It has been a few years since we have stayed at the Park Vue Inn, but we were very comfortable staying there. There complimentary breakfasts were enjoyed by the whole family. Most of the people staying there if not all are there for Disney too. As far as picking between the two, if you can afford to stay at Disneyland Hotel stay there. The magic of the parks continues there. The customer service is amazing as well as the pools.

 

[squidlet]

In terms of safety, I think you would be perfectly fine. I've stayed at different hotels on Harbor Blvd. (Hojo, Candy Cane) and have felt very comfortable walking alone as a solo woman, both at night and during the day. When choosing hotels, I like to check them out on Google Maps street view to get an idea of the area. In case you've never done this, you can scroll around the image to get a 360 view of the area. Here's a link for Park Vue: https://www.google.com/maps/place/P...!2e0!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0x79974333f8a1084f!6m1!1e1

 

[Angrose]

I have stayed solo at the Tropicana (which is just the other direction from PVI on Harbor) and last November I stayed at DLH. I can honestly say that while I enjoyed staying at DLH, I preferred the walk to the Tropicana (and the price for sure!). I hated walking through DTD, but it was nice taking the monorail a few times. I felt perfectly safe walking to/from the Tropicana by myself. There were so many people out and about walking that direction too so it was never an issue. For the future, I am saving my pennies so I can one day stay at the Grand! In the meantime, I'm fine staying on Harbor.

 

[corinne76]

I've never stayed at either. I have stayed at Desert Inn and as far as safety, I never felt unsafe walking to and from DL. The majority of the people staying around the parks are going to DL anyway, and seem to have that DL vibe going on.

I do have to agree though, that DL hotels do continue the experience. We live on Oahu and have stayed at Aulani. It is a Disney bubble and a great experience.

I would love to spend time at a DL hotel, but for now, since we spend the most of our time at the parks, it's not worht the extra costs for me. Maybe then the kids are older or we have more time to spend actually at the hotel and take advantage of it.

 

[lorieintucson]

We have stayed at Disneyland Hotel and at Park Vue. The location of Park Vue is only matched by the Grand Californian, and the breakfast buffet is actually pretty good (better than most on Harbor, with a hot dishes, cereals, and fruits--not just wrapper rolls and Tang!) Of course the magic of being at DL Hotel is awesome (pools, grounds, and staying in the bubble with all the perks that come with it) and we would do it again if I got a screaming good deal or if it were a very special occasion, but I'd much rather save the $1,500K and extend the trip or have more to spend on dining and shopping, and stay in the perfectly suitable Park Vue. Warning: the bunk bed rooms are TINY!! For an adult and a child the bunk beds are a novelty, but they are seriously like a NYC hotel room.

 

[Geemo]

While staying on site is nice, it's okay to stay on Harbor.
I've stayed on-site at all 3 Disney hotels and off-site on Harbor at the Desert Inn & Suites.

The last three trips I have stayed at the DI&S. The rooms have been clean and beds comfortable.
The cost savings means I can take all four grandkids if they want to come along.
I've found booking early gets the best room rate. They seem to have the best rate of all the places on Harbor when I'm looking.

Since we're at the parks open/close, the Disney Bubble of a DLR hotel doesn't warrant the additional cost for me.
If the cost difference for the Disney Bubble isn't huge and my group is five or less than I do consider the GCH or DLH.

Safety of staying off site? Everyone has their own comfort zone.
Staying off site is fine in my opinion. If you're right at the cross walk, you aren't far into the real world.
There is a volume of people doing the same thing as you are. There's quite a crowd moving in that direction when the parks close.
At the end of the day, the walk to ParkVueInn and others right there at the crosswalk is so nice.

You might want to check the rates of a few other places on Harbor. Here's a map to let you know what's there.
http://www.accommodationsneardisney.com/Disneyland/Default.asp

Good luck planning

Geemo

 

[Disneyluvr2]

I have the same opinion as the others. I've stayed at several of the hotels on Harbor (sometimes solo, sometimes with girl friends) and have always felt safe. If you're going to spend most of your time in the park, I'd say save the $1100.00 and stay across the street! $1100.00 will buy a lot of churros! LOL!

 

[Susie63]

I have stayed at both. Unless I win the lottery I will never stay on site again. I loved the park view at the Grand Californian though......
I stayed at the PVI for almost 2 weeks over 2 trips last year and we loved it. The breakfast is great and a real budget saver. Staff is lovely and very helpful.

 

[tarheelalum]

We stayed at the Park Vue last year and loved it. Free hot breakfast and free parking. I'm a law enforcement officer so I make it a point to always be aware of my surroundings and at no point was I ever concerned with our safety at the Park Vue Inn. I highly recommend it without hesitation. You can't beat the location and value it offers.

 

[viaggiamo]

We have stayed at both, and also GCH and candy cane. If you are on a budget the PVI is great, it's closer than the DLH and honestly you are not in the room much anyway. The only reason we choose to stay on site sometimes is for the early entry hour each morning. We are Aussies and pay a lot to visit so choose to make sure we get all the rides we can in that hour. Have a great trip.

 

[Karbase8]

Thank you so much everyone! I am Philly so I am used to the big city. But helps to know the blvd hotels are safe! I can't justify paying so much for DLH so I am going to go with Park Vue! I like having the breakfast that is definitely a plus and we are not huge breakfast eater so it's just enough to start the day!

 

[Indiana Scott]

We've stayed at many of the hotels on Harbor. PVI is our favorite for how well they keep the place up (very clean and the rooms were recently renovated) and the wonderful free breakfast.
I'd like to try a Disney hotel but the price difference (including breakfast) is nearly $200 a day and it's just not worth it to me.

 

[beachdreamr1229]

I'm the first to say I love the DLH and other Disney properties. I've never stayed anywhere else, but I have walked up and down Harbor at night. It's really not that bad if you're used to city living. Safer than Hollywood, in my opinion, not that that would mean much if you've never been. Anyway, as much as I love the resort hotels, the bottom line is, unless you're splitting the cost with someone or have a lot of money saved up, stay on Harbor.

 

[Indiana Scott]

I had to leave PVI at 1:00 AM one morning (DLR closed at 8 or 9) and find some meds for a sinus headache my DW had. I was surprised how bright and busy the area was and how perfectly safe it felt.

 

[Canuck16]

We have never stayed on site as we cannot justify the extra cost for DL on site hotels.

We have stayed at the Anaheim Marriott and Sheraton Park which are both by the Convention Centre. The walk from these hotels is about 20 minutes or so up Harbour Blvd to the Espanade and we have never felt uncomfortable walking to and from the parks and we always do rope drop and stay late for the night time shows.

Have fun and enjoy your first trip to DL

 

[BoomerThePirate]

go big or go home i always say. if you arent going to come back for a long time then why not pslurge on something as amazing as the DLH. You get early entry everyday of your stay and you stay inside the "disney bubble" which is really important to some of us. yes it is expensive but maybe try a different time. june-august is peak season with the highest crowd indexes...not the most ideal time to go anyway.

 

[kirstie101]

Thank you so much everyone! I am Philly so I am used to the big city. But helps to know the blvd hotels are safe! I can't justify paying so much for DLH so I am going to go with Park Vue! I like having the breakfast that is definitely a plus and we are not huge breakfast eater so it's just enough to start the day!

You'll love the walk from PVI! We've never stayed there but have stayed on both sides of it at Desert Inn and Suites and also Best Western Park Place Inn. The walk cannot be beat. All you do is walk a few yards to the crosswalk, cross the street and you're there! We go a few times a year and almost always stay offsite even with DH isn't with us. Staying onsite is a nice treat but for us its usually not worth the price difference.

 

[whitneyebz]

I can't compare the two, but we stayed at Park Vue two weeks ago. It was SO nice! We loved it! The bunk bed room was small, but it fit us comfortable (two adults, 3 kids). The kids loved it. It was clean and nicely updated and the breakfast was good (with a nice view of disneyland!). I think my jaw dropped when I saw how close we were and how short the walk was. I felt perfectly safe crossing the (not very long) crosswalk. So within 5 minutes you're in the bubble anyway I just can't justify the cost of a disney hotel at disneyland, unless we made a lot more money. But then we'd be going to disneyland more than once every 2-3 years.