WDW vs Disneyland HELP!

[PrincessAbby'sMom]

I went to WDW for the 1st time, as an adult, w/my family just this past April. We are now considering taking a trip to Disneyland in California in 2-3 years (we hope), but looking at the price of the hotels to stay on Disney property seems to be alot more expensive than at WDW in Florida???? Am I right? Do all of the Disneyland Hotels take you by Tram to the parks or only some? Which hotel would you recommend & why? We stayed at All Star Movies when we were down in WDW - it was only $110 a night at peak season & we went off season. The Disneyland hotels appear to be no cheaper than over $200 a night - right??
Any advise, tips or info you can give I would appreciate. It would be my husband, daughter (6 this year), and myself. (my parents would also be going, but would stay in their own room) We will also be doing off Disneyland sites as well - Sea World, SanDiego Zoo, Universal Studio's, etc.
Hooked on Disney after going only once!!
Thanks for any help you can give!

 

[pxlbarrel]

The one thing about Disneyland is that there are tons of hotels nearby that offer reasonable rates and most of them are walkable or you can take a shuttle to DL/CA. It's not necessary to stay at a Disney hotel.

Is it desirable? Yep...but is it that important that you stay one of them?

There are some really nice hotels nearby. Check them out...some of them even offer suites so your parents might be able to stay in the same suite saving you even more money.

 

[daannzzz]

Non of the Disney hotels at Disneyland take you to the parks by tram. See there locations here. http://www.beachcalifornia.com/dlmp.html
From the Paradise Pier Hotel and the Disneyland Hotel you walk to the parks (or you can stop at the Monorail station at Downtown Disney and enter Disneyland that way. The Monorail stops in Tomorrowland. From the Grand Californian Hotel you walk to the parkls but its location is as close to Disneyland as the tram stops and it has it's own private entrance into DCA. The prices are higher here because the hotels are MUCH closer to all the action and there are fewer of them. Many of the motels and hotels next to the park are decent enough and many of them have shuttle service.

 

[jakoky]

hi there, in dec 04 my family and i took our first ever WDW trip...we had a blast...after much research, we stayed onsite, something i believe now is the only thing to do at WDW, we stayed 9 nights(not near long enough)...i had been to DL 5 times before this, but all by the time i was 13, so i knew when i took my family(who had never been )that things would have changed hugely. Well, we went this may 06(from the 13-23) and had such a great trip...i had worried whether my kids would like it after doing disney world first...my 15 yr old daughter and 12 1/2 yr old son both said they preferred disneyland, my 10 1/2 yr old cant decide and i cant decide, because to me there is no comparison...they were both amazing in their own way, but we did not stay on site in disneyland...we stayed at the candy cane inn, which is about a 7 minute walk from the gates of DL, california adventure, and downtown disney....unless i win the lottery, when we go back next year i will again stay offsite...(which i would never do at WDW)..We stayed for 10 nights, which i realize after reading reviews is much longer than most people,and staying off site made this possible....We did Dl with 5 day hoppers(which is again what i will do next time), a day at universal studios, a day of shopping, and 2 days at the pool, and then a whatever day....it was great.....Hope u have fun, but i know you will
sharon

 

[SamIAm21]

I just got back from Disneyland (what a fabulous park by the way) and we stayed at the Howard Johnson. It was clean, safe and the staff was really friendly. It was a mere 10 minute walk to and from the front gates of DL or DCA. The price was right, the room was very nice, and we were really only there to sleep. Directly across the street (Manchester) there is a Mimi's Cafe, which was a great place for breakfast and dinner at very reasonable prices.

Check out of DL's Good Neighbor Hotels. If I go back, I think I am staying at the Best Western Park Place Inn and Suites. You really can't get any closer to the park than that!!

 

[PrincessAbby'sMom]

Awesome site! Thanks!

 

[PrincessAbby'sMom]

Did you stay at a different hotel by Universal?? Is it very far from Disneyland?

 

[michelle320]

A Disneyland Hotel is definetly NOT needed to have an amazing time at a Disneyland and California Adventures! We have stayed at Candy Cane Inn for the last 3 years and wouldn't change to a different place unless we were forced to! The rooms are very nice and the people who work there are very friendly. They are close enough to walk to the parks, have a shuttle service, and serve a nice, fresh, complimentary breakfast. Their pool and hot tub area is very quaint. They have a gazebo over the hot tub and the beautiful landscaping makes you feel like you are huddled in a beautiful hacienda, even their parking lot is cobble stone! It's like you are taken away from the fact that you are on a busy street. You'd never realize that you're right next to a theme park if it wasn't for the screams that you can hear (barley) from the California Screamin Coaster! Since Disneyland and California Adventures is directly across from each other and Downtown Disney finishes the 3rd point in the triangle you don't need a car to get anywhere! You can take a shuttle from the airport!

Our last stay we did use a car and took a ride down the Pacific Coast Highway. Our daughter had never set foot in the Pacific's waters. Now she can say that she has!

Book a room at Candy Cane Inn and use the money you saved from a Disneyland Hotel to stay an extra night or two!

Michelle g

 

[PrincessAbby'sMom]

Thanks to all - this is exactly the replies I wanted. Please keep them coming. Don't think it was already said so you won't reply - I want everyones opinion! Thank you, Thank you, Thank you.
You guys make it so much easier to plan or do anything at Disney!

 

[amw]

Here's a map that lists the closest hotels, and links for those hotels. The hotels on Harbour are closer walking distance than the on-site hotels (except for the Grand). Most inlcude free parking and free cont. breakfast. You can literally walk back and forth between your hotel and park gate in 10 minutes. Also, both parks have the same entrance area, making it super easy to park hop.

http://www.accommodationsneardisney.com/default.asp

 

[Luv'sTink]

Check out of DL's Good Neighbor Hotels. If I go back, I think I am staying at the Best Western Park Place Inn and Suites. You really can't get any closer to the park than that!!

This where we always stay and no you can't get any closer (other than GC) If you go to I think you can get shuttles to almost any attraction but they are pretty far away so a rental car would probably be best.

 

[JayS]

We have stayed at 3 different hotels all walking distance to the Park Entrance Plaza. All were nice, but small rooms. But hey, you don't need any more than a place to sleep and pool to jump in and they all had that.

If you want a budget choice, there's lots (walking distance) to choose from. If you are looking for a nicer hotel that isn't as expensive as the 3 Disney choices, then your selection of walking distance options may be limited - but those properties will all likely offer free shuttles to/from the park.

 

[SpectroBelle]

A Disneyland Hotel is definetly NOT needed to have an amazing time at a Disneyland and California Adventures! We have stayed at Candy Cane Inn for the last 3 years and wouldn't change to a different place unless we were forced to! The rooms are very nice and the people who work there are very friendly. They are close enough to walk to the parks, have a shuttle service, and serve a nice, fresh, complimentary breakfast. Their pool and hot tub area is very quaint. They have a gazebo over the hot tub and the beautiful landscaping makes you feel like you are huddled in a beautiful hacienda, even their parking lot is cobble stone! It's like you are taken away from the fact that you are on a busy street. You'd never realize that you're right next to a theme park if it wasn't for the screams that you can hear (barley) from the California Screamin Coaster! Since Disneyland and California Adventures is directly across from each other and Downtown Disney finishes the 3rd point in the triangle you don't need a car to get anywhere! You can take a shuttle from the airport!

Our last stay we did use a car and took a ride down the Pacific Coast Highway. Our daughter had never set foot in the Pacific's waters. Now she can say that she has!

Book a room at Candy Cane Inn and use the money you saved from a Disneyland Hotel to stay an extra night or two!

Michelle g

I agree! We just got back yesterday from the Candy Cane Inn. The location is great. It is very easy to walk to the parks, you don't have to cross any busy streets. However, it is not necessary to walk at all, they have a dedicated shuttle that is ONLY for their guests and it runs constantly all day. This is a big advantage IMO over the other off-site hotels.

It is not as luxurious as Disney property, but it is very clean and well maintained and much cheaper!

Now, having said that, I do hope to someday stay in the Grand Californian to be pampered a bit.