Q about Westin v "on property" hotel

[flipflop]

Hi - I've been waiting on DVC to come through (it did not) for our upcoming trip 11/9-11/13. Being from the east coast, I did not realize the crowds that come with Veteran's day and didn't book a back up on-site reservation. All Disney hotels have been sold out for weeks - though I keep looking and so I booked a park view at the westin. Any recent experience at the Westin? It is just me and one of my daughters (17). I have stayed at GCH before and the convenience to the park is certainly a perk. I have used the search tool and understand it is a walk/uber/ART to get to the park but it sounds like it is generally safe and the property is nice. I appreciate any additional input. This is only my second trip to disneyland and the first one our whole family stayed in DVC at GCH.

 

[sophy1996]

We really like the Westin. It’s only 5-7 minutes’ farther walk than the Paradise Pier hotel. You should be able to exit out the PP entrance to DCA (they didn’t ask where we were staying when we left the park that way).

 

[DizMe]

Hi - I've been waiting on DVC to come through (it did not) for our upcoming trip 11/9-11/13. Being from the east coast, I did not realize the crowds that come with Veteran's day and didn't book a back up on-site reservation. All Disney hotels have been sold out for weeks - though I keep looking and so I booked a park view at the westin. Any recent experience at the Westin? It is just me and one of my daughters (17). I have stayed at GCH before and the convenience to the park is certainly a perk. I have used the search tool and understand it is a walk/uber/ART to get to the park but it sounds like it is generally safe and the property is nice. I appreciate any additional input. This is only my second trip to disneyland and the first one our whole family stayed in DVC at GCH.

I've heard all positive things about the Westin. You can find videos online from vloggers. I think it's a good back-up and they seem to have really good rates.

I was looking to add an extra night onto my trip in Dec and everything left on site was super expensive, and even the Good Neighbor hotels on Harbor were up there in price. The new Westin was $313 (that was for a passholder discount)/$345 for the regular 2Q room with no view. It was SIGNIFICANTLY less than the Harbor motels.

However, I just closed my eyes and took the plunge and booked DLH premium club for one night. One very, very expensive night that I can't really justify in any way

 

[Curiousporpoise]

We haven’t tried it yet, we usually stay at GCH or DH, but friends of ours have gone many times and said the rooms are super nice and new. They said it was a $7 Uber to the parks and half the price of the on-site hotels. Apparently the walk is not much father than the Disneyland hotel. We definitely want to try it when our kids are out of car seats and can Uber without any issues.

 

[gelatoni fan]

In my opinion, the Westin rooms are the best of any hotel in the area while the Grand Californian could take second or third place depending on if you prefer the style of the Grand Californian or the JW Marriott. But a DVC villa at the Grand Californian will be larger than a standard room at the Westin.

The food and gym are better at the Westin. The pool is better at the Grand Californian. The walk from the Westin to the entrance in the morning is a little long but returning to the hotel from California Adventure is quick.

It doesn't look like you have the Grand Californian as an option so I wouldn't worry about it.

 

[DontSpamMe]

The Westin is the nicest hotel we've stayed at in the Disneyland area including the Disneyland Hotel and Grand Californian. Entering the park from Katella is my preferred way to enter. It is a longer walk to the gate (about 20 to 30 minutes), but it's an entertaining walk. You walk up Disneyland drive to enter the parks through the downtown Disney entrance by the Disneyland hotel. You will not be able to enter through the GCH without a room key for one of the Disney resort hotels.

It is a safe walk, up Disneyland drive, as I have never had a problem coming or going. The worst part of the walk is crossing Katella only because it's such a busy intersection.

The security entrance between Disneyland Hotel and Downtown Disney is the best. The security personnel here seem to be the friendliest of all the other security checkpoints and the lines are typically short.

On your way back to the hotel, you can cut through the GCH or leave through the new entrance at DCA by the corn dog castle which will really cut down on the distance and time.

The hotel is immaculate with a great restaurant inside the hotel. There is a separate coffee shop in the same complex as the hotel as well as a Flemings.

 

[chopstick]

We stayed at the Westin for the weekend of Oct 1-3 for Oogie Boogie --- the rooms are beautiful and the food was so good! We got in room dining one morning and it was so good we tried to order again the next morning, but they never answered the phones so we ended up going downstairs and they had a buffet that was delicious. The coffee shop was also a pleasant surprise.

The fire alarm went off one night at 11 PM - we had JUST turned the lights off to go to bed. The alarms were flashing and the speaker was telling us to evacuate. We walked down the 7 flights of stairs, around the building, and got out front to find the lobby functioning completely normal (there was actually what looked like a wedding going on). The front desk guy was a little rude when the crowd of people showed up asking about the evacuation -- someone must have pulled a false alarm - he replied "you should have just ignored it!". Umm... what? I don't count that against the hotel because that can happen anywhere, but it was just so weird.

It was me and my 10 year old - we found it a little too far for our liking and likely will not to stay there again unless its for something like D23 since its right next to the convention center. Walking back from Oogie Boogie was also not my favorite - while I never felt unsafe, that road from Grand Cal to the Westin was pretty deserted and dark, not busy and crowded like when we stay on Harbor, so I wasn't a huge fan of being on that side of the resort.

 

[dizneedoll]

I stayed there earlier this month and loved it! The rooms are spacious and the beds are sooo comfortable. The walk was not bad and I did cut through the GCH. Loads of people were going through the gate, so I just followed them on in and exited the same way through the lobby in the evening with no trouble. Contrary to what a pp said, I felt totally comfortable and safe walking along Disneyland Dr at night and thought it was well lit and a very pretty walk, unlike Harbor which I won't even do anymore. Im a woman and was traveling solo and had no qualms walking after dark. You are technically still on Disney property until you cross the main street at Katella but The Westin is right across Katella so its very easy. I booked again for December.

 

[boscoj]

We normally stay at VGC but made a last minute trip earlier this month and ended up staying at the Westin. We loved it! Like all the pp said it’s a gorgeous hotel with very modern rooms and the walk is very safe! From now on if we can’t stay on property this will be our go to hotel.....

 

[pyratgrrl]

I have a stay booked at the Westin from November 12th through the 16th. This will be my first time staying there. Reading all of these reviews makes me feel like I made the right choice of places to stay. In the past I have usually stayed at one of the hotels on Harbor and have also been fortunate enough to stay at the Disneyland Hotel a time or two, but could not justify the cost this time. Thank you everyone for posting your experience at the Westin!

 

[flipflop]

Thank you all for your helpful reviews. I feel much better about not being able to secure an onsite reservation. 2 weeks to go!

 

[DonnerB]

It is lovely. I’ve stayed both there and at the JW Marriott and would say I prefer the Westin for location and availability of self-parking. I would rather walk in through Downtown Disney than Harbor. FWIW, I walked back alone late on July 4th (exited through the Grand Cal) and didn’t feel unsafe whatsoever.

I have the Westin booked again for January while friends stay at GCH. No DVC rooms available and the cash stay is basically two nights at the Westin for the price of one at the Grand once taxes and parking are figured in.

 

[kdub15]

I generally stay at the Westin and I love it. It's very modern and has nice rooms. It's a short quick walk into DTD through security to head to the parks, so that's a plus.

Also, if you are going to Disneyland after opening, you can easily get into the park with the monorail (located on the left side shortly after the security checkpoint) if you don't mind waiting, otherwise it's a short walk to the esplanade.