Trip help!

[katepass72]

Good morning! I'm finally getting around to planning my 50th bday trip in June (I've procrastinated long enough . I'm a WDW vet but semi-clueless on DL. Thinking of flying in late-ish on a Wednesday to John Wayne airport, spending the night nearby, then heading over Thursday for 4-5 days. 1) Any tips on a decent hotel near the airport for that night? 2) Would love to do a split stay - thinking of going all-out for 2 nights (maybe CL at the DL hotel; you're only 50 once, right?!) and then transferring to a good neighbor or lower cost hotel. I'm assuming I can get tickets for a longer length than my stay but maybe I'm assuming wrong . Anyone ever do a split stay? I'm 1000% open to any suggestions!

 

[SFMommy]

I wouldn’t stay near the airport on your arrival night. At that time of night you can get to the Disneyland area in 15-20 minutes in a taxi.

 

[katepass72]

I wouldn’t stay near the airport on your arrival night. At that time of night you can get to the Disneyland area in 15-20 minutes in a taxi.

Good to know!! So maybe a closer non-DL hotel? I knew the drive was fairly short (we're renting a car) - flight will be getting in around 8-ish but I could totally handle a 20 minute drive.

 

[Wilcojoe]

Are you planning on doing anything besides Disney? If not or very little, I wouldn’t bother with a rental car. The parking rates alone may end up costing more than the car.

 

[katepass72]

Are you planning on doing anything besides Disney? If not or very little, I wouldn’t bother with a rental car. The parking rates alone may end up costing more than the car.

Yep, planning on a couple of days of local-ish sightseeing - hoping to do parks early AM/later PM and wandering around in the afternoon.

 

[lvdis]

If you are going to do a split stay, I would be more inclined to end at an onsite hotel. It seems like it might be somewhat of a letdown to move from the DL hotel to a lower hotel.

You could go straight to the lower cost hotel from the airport, stay there for the first few nights and move up to the DL hotel. Just a thought! Have fun!

 

[katepass72]

If you are going to do a split stay, I would be more inclined to end at an onsite hotel. It seems like it might be somewhat of a letdown to move from the DL hotel to a lower hotel.

You could go straight to the lower cost hotel from the airport, stay there for the first few nights and move up to the DL hotel. Just a thought! Have fun!

Good call - thanks!!

 

[DLgal]

I agree, just drive straight to Anaheim. Its not even 20 minutes from the airport at that time of day.

I'd also agree with starting at the off property hotels and then moving to on property.

However, I would advise against your plan of mornings and evenings in the parks and spending midday exploring local attractions. This is BAD idea, simply due to traffic patterns surrounding Anaheim. Traffic is worst between 2pm and 7pm. It will take you so long to just get from place to place that you won't actually have time to do anything.

Plan your Disneyland days separately from your days doing other things. Figure out what "other things" you actually want to do, and maybe stay in a hotel more centrally located to those things before moving to DLR.

If you book a room on property, just do it as a "room only reservation" and buy your theme park tickets separately. This way you can get whatever length of tickets that you want.

And I would 100% recommend CL at the DLH. The lounge up there is among the best I've ever been to at Disney hotels.

 

[katepass72]

I agree, just drive straight to Anaheim. Its not even 20 minutes from the airport at that time of day.

I'd also agree with starting at the off property hotels and then moving to on property.

However, I would advise against your plan of mornings and evenings in the parks and spending midday exploring local attractions. This is BAD idea, simply due to traffic patterns surrounding Anaheim. Traffic is worst between 2pm and 7pm. It will take you so long to just get from place to place that you won't actually have time to do anything.

Plan your Disneyland days separately from your days doing other things. Figure out what "other things" you actually want to do, and maybe stay in a hotel more centrally located to those things before moving to DLR.

If you book a room on property, just do it as a "room only reservation" and buy your theme park tickets separately. This way you can get whatever length of tickets that you want.

And I would 100% recommend CL at the DLH. The lounge up there is among the best I've ever been to at Disney hotels.

Thank you so much - I hadn't factored in the area traffic.

 

[ktlm]

DLH club level is usually between $200 and $300 more a night than a premium view room. I would rather save the CL money and go for another night or two at DLH. We haven't done DLH club- we done club at WDW before and it is great--- but I would pick more nights at the resort over club any time. Being a WDW vet- if you are used to staying on property, you will like the bubble.
What other things are you wanting to do? That will help us give you a better idea of time, location etc.

 

[katepass72]

DLH club level is usually between $200 and $300 more a night than a premium view room. I would rather save the CL money and go for another night or two at DLH. We haven't done DLH club- we done club at WDW before and it is great--- but I would pick more nights at the resort over club any time. Being a WDW vet- if you are used to staying on property, you will like the bubble.
What other things are you wanting to do? That will help us give you a better idea of time, location etc.

Looking to mainly stay within Orange County - probably a beach trip, check out downtown Anaheim, etc. Not headed to LA for this trip.

 

[sheilafri]

Thank you so much - I hadn't factored in the area traffic.

Traffic in LA can be horrific. One of the few places DH doesn’t fuss about changing hotels to be closer to your destination.

 

[Jason2015]

Lots of good hotels near SNA and in the Disney area. My family has actually stayed near SNA for entire trips since the hotel cost is usually lower and its a hop, skip, and jump to the Micky and Friends Parking structure. Both major chains have lots of hotels to choose from in both areas.

 

[DisTXMom]

I echo some of the above- would save $$$ not booking club for more nights at DLH. There is so much good food for eating and drinking your way around