Who has stayed at Hojo's?

[~ButterflyKisses~]

We are visiting Disneyland in September and are thinking of staying at the Howard Johnson hotel. It seems to be highly recommended by alot of people on the board. Is this the best non disney hotel? Are there any better ones within walking distance?

It will be just me and my DF. What room do you recommend? Which building is the best and which should I avoid? I've heard I should avoid certain buildings because of the proximity to the freeway and the noise from the traffic?

Any help you could give would me most appreciated

 

[Kayla's Mom]

We LOVE Hojo's! We will also be there in September. We have never stayed anywhere else, so I can't compare it, but it is definitely a favorite here. I have stayed in buildings 2 and 4. I preferred building 2 as it overlooks the garden pool and has bigger beds. Building 4 is a pavillion building and has oversized doubles (they didn't seem oversized to me!). With that being said, I am staying in the pavillion buildings again in a couple of weeks so it's not a dealbreaker for me. I have never stayed in building 1, but have heard that one can be noisy with the freeway right there.

 

[MickeyNikiNaka]

We were just at the HOJO a couple of weeks ago, and I ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT!

My BFF and her DH came with us and she is what we call a "Hotel Snob" I was really worried that this wouldn't be an acceptable hotel for her, but she had absolutely no problems with it! So, if the Hotel Snob is ok with the HOJO, I am too!

And as for walking distance, it really isn't that far, plus you get to see all of the kiddies coming out from their hotels (ie Tropicana) and how excited they are to be going to DL. And for me, I got even more excited because of it!

Hojo is the best, you really can't beat it! And if you have an entertainment card, you REALLY can't beat it!

 

[IASWAM]

We have stayed at the Carousel, Hojo's, and Tropicana. Big plus for the Trop is the location, down sides are the room size and "continental breakfast". Carousel has a better breakfast but a little farther from the crosswalk. Hojo's is the farthest walk but the amenities, AP rate pricing and atmosphere are worth it, which is why we chose to go back there this year.

 

[avalon451]

Loved HoJo, loved our premium disney-view room on the top floor of bulding one, room 1713. Not too many trees blocking the view, the beds were incredibly comfy, great customer service, loved Castaway Cove and the hot tub, and the walk was fine, especially if you cross Harbor there at Manchester and walk down the West side of Harbor, away from all the crowds. The freeway noise was loud outside on the balcony, but inside the room it's very well insulated and quiet. If you want to see pics of our view, look in my trip report, linked in my siggy below, and look on page 5. Be sure and get your room requests in early-- they honor the earlier requests first. Be sure and call in house reservations directly and talk to them, not the national reservation line. Jennifer and Lorealle are really great at helping you out!

 

[CanadianPaco]

Loved it once and we're going back next month!! Seven minute walk from the hotel elevator to the security at the park - not bad!!

 

[pixiewings71]

HoJo is our first choice, our next couple of trips we are using time share points but once those are gone we will be loyal HoJoers again.

 

[bumbershoot]

And as for walking distance, it really isn't that far, plus you get to see all of the kiddies coming out from their hotels (ie Tropicana) and how excited they are to be going to DL. And for me, I got even more excited because of it!

It's even less of a walk if you cross over Harbor and watch the kiddies from the OTHER side of the street.

 

[Sally_fan]

We stayed there last October & will be staying there again this November. We stayed in building 1 in a Premium Room with Disney View. We had 2 rooms during our stay. We really liked our top floor room but our 6th floor room was nice as well. Although it was there, mainly when the balcony doors were open.....the freeway noise didn't bother us at all. The room was comfortable, the view was awesome, the staff was great.....we really enjoyed our stay there.
We also cross Harbour right at the hotel there & enjoy our quiet walk to the park away from the rest of the crowds. Big thanks to the great people here for that tip!!!

 

[~ButterflyKisses~]

How do you get the entertainment card rate?

Is the entertainment card an American only thing? We're from Australia so I'm assuming we won't be able to get the entertainment rate?

 

[Jade+3]

You certainly can get the Entertainment Rate. I have just booked ours for November, and we also got it in 2007. They accept the Australian Entertainment card.

You can check the availability and make a booking by calling direct 0011 1 714 776 6120, and asking for in-house reservations. I know they close at 5pm, so you will have to get up early!

 

[~ButterflyKisses~]

Thanks for your reply. We have the Perth Entertainment book with the gold entertainment card. Is that the one you mean? How do I know when Hojo's are doing the entertainment rate? Do we need to bring our entertainment card with us when we check in?

 

[Jade+3]

We have the Brisbane card. Just take it with you and show them at check in. I have emailed them in the past to check if the rate is available, then called to make the booking. When you ring, you must ask for in-house reservations.

This will be the 3rd time we have stayed there. We like building 2.

 

[~ButterflyKisses~]

Thanks for your help!

What building are the king size bedrooms in? As it is only going to be the two of us I would rather 1 king size bed than 2 doubles or queens. Do the king bedrooms have a fridge and microwave. What about free in room internet connections?

 

[Kayla's Mom]

I have found this to be very helpful:

http://www.hojoanaheim.com/assets/pdf/room_layouts.pdf

 

[bumbershoot]

Here is (or should be) the link to the hojoanaheim discussion board forum all about the Entertainment rate. Including a thread that is updated often, showing what dates work for the Entertainment Book rate!

ONLY call the 714 area code, Anaheim number. Only call during business hours Pacific time. Ask for, and speak only to, "in house reservations". Doing otherwise will get you to the 800 number operators, who aren't Anaheim and are generally clueless about the Anaheim hotel's very special deal.