Last minute change of plans and we need to change hotels. Help please!

[Luvmy2Js]

I booked two rooms at the Disneyland hotel for us and my friend for the last weekend of September. Well she told me at the beginning of September that her MIL wanted to go also and asked me to book another room. My husband and I are AP holders so we were booking all the rooms under our names so that we got the AP rate. Everytime I went to call my kids went nuts and I screwed up and didn't call until yesterday. They are completely sold out at all three resort hotels for saturday night.

I feel awful. At the same time my husband decides he wants to take the entire week off and spend two extra nights at Disneyland before heading to San Diego to visit his family. So.... I am thinking that since its my screw up we should give up our room to my friends MIL after I check them all in and we will get a room off-site. This will also be cheaper for us so I am not horribly upset about the move but I am stuck. I am trying to find a hotel and am just unsure on which one to go with.

We stayed at Park Vue in June when we went and I was NOT impressed. It was great proximity to the park but the room was SO tiny and construction was very messy. My biggest complaint was the room size. We had a king size bed and barely had enough room to put up our pak'n'play for my baby to sleep in over in the closet area. I am wanting one of the hotels close to the entrance on Harbor. I have heard great things about the CCI and HOJO but this time we want to be closer to the entrance to minimize walking time with having to go back often for naps with my baby. I have looked up prices at the Tropicana, Carousel, and Camelot but I am just scared to book in case the rooms are awful like PV. Any actual experience would be so helpful. I have read all the reviews on tripadvisor but each has good and bad posted. My main concerns are comfy beds, CLEANLINESS, and a decent size room where I can set up the PNP for my son to sleep in.

Thanks for the help!

 

[disneegrl4eva]

Lizzie,

Why not go with the Sheraton Anaheim...all their remodeling is done, they have big spacious rooms for you, your playpen and more...all the furniture is new and they have a great shuttle that runs twice an hour...very friendly staff who really go out of the way to make you comfortable...rates are very good imo...this is where I stay if I cant stay on property every time

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

If you want one of the rooms within walking distance, then I would recommend the Fairfield, or Tropicana if you are looking for something more economical.

If you don't mind taking a shuttle, then I agree with disneegrl4eva. The Sheraton Anaheim is one of my favorite non-Disney hotels. It has its own shuttle to the parks, & doesn't rely on the ART

 

[Captjackson]

...I have looked up prices at the Tropicana, Carousel, and Camelot but I am just scared to book in case the rooms are awful like PV. Any actual experience would be so helpful. I have read all the reviews on tripadvisor but each has good and bad posted. My main concerns are comfy beds, CLEANLINESS, and a decent size room where I can set up the PNP for my son to sleep in.

Thanks for the help!

We've only stayed at the Residence Inn in Garden Grove (Harbor/Chapman). It's clean and roomy. Perfect for families. Of course, it's not walking distance, which seems to be important to you.
My opinion on TripAdvisor, or any board like it, is that rankings are important. There's no certainty that you'll have a good stay, but the chances are better in a higher rated motel. I've not stayed there, but the Best Western Park Place Inn seems to be a nice place, at least that's the impression from what I've read.

Good luck!

 

[Luvmy2Js]

Thanks for the help. I have spent the evening reading all the reviews and trying to compare the hotels but I am just making this too hard I think, after getting burned with the Park Vue in June. Thanks for the advice. The Sheraton does look really nice but we really want to be in walking distance since usually only one of us will go back to the room with Jace while the other stays. I know it is silly but if it is me going back to the room then I don't want to have to mess with getting Jace plus the stroller and all his crap in and out of a shuttle bus. It would just be easier to be able to walk right to the hotel. I do appreciate the suggestion though. I am going to check the Fairfield right now. For some reason I had skipped right over that hotel. Thanks!

Any more advice is always appreciated. We are so excited to go.

 

[JenDisneylandlver]

Have you tried maybe looking at expedia.com or hotels.com? Sometimes they have rooms at the 3 resort hotels when the hotels are booked otherwise. I know you couldn't get your AP discount though. So that may not be a good option. I haven't had much luck staying offsite the last few years. So I'm not much of a help there, we usually try to stay onsite after the expeirences we've had. Good luck!

 

[disney-super-mom]

I would go with the Fairfield, Best Western Park Place Inn, or HOJOs.

Best Western Park Place is the closest, and literally right across from the entrance to DL, so it's only a 5 minute walk to the front gates. My family stayed there last December, and we thought it was clean, the rooms were large with a fridge and microwave, and the location can't be beat! I even wrote a report on Tripadvisor (dated Dec. 13, 2005 and titled "A nice place to stay when going to Disneyland" I rated it a 4 out of 5).

The Fairfield is a little further north on Harbor Blvd., so it's probably about a 7 minute walk. They get great reviews as well, and the nice thing about the Fairfield is that many of the rooms face DL, so they get a nice view of the park and the fireworks.

My family and I also stayed at HOJO before, and we really like it. The rooms were very clean and plenty spacious, and although the architecture of the buildings is a little funky, the grounds are quite pretty. We would have stayed here again in a heartbeat, but it's a little bit of a long walk if you want to make a quick trip back to your room for a rest or a swim. I have to admit that when we walked back to our room after a long day at the parks, all those other hotels that we passed along the way to get to the HOJO were looking pretty good to us. Still, the rooms here are a little nicer and get a higher rating from me versus the rooms at the Best Western Park Place.

I'm sure there's a few other places (like the Candy Cane Inn) that are close and would be fine for you as well, but I can't really comment on those because either we've never stayed there or because we've never checked them out before.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

[hlbtimes2]

I normally recomend the CCI, but if you need space for PNP, I wouldnt recomend it. The rooms are nice, but they are small. I've stayed at the fairfield, and think it would probably work for you. The rooms are larger then the CCI, and the walk is easy.

 

[ter-moo]

I've stayed at the Carousel. The rooms are fine--a bit more stylish than some of the other cheap hotels.

They are also spacious enough for you, and you get a free breakfast (nothing great, but it's free!)

My biggest complaint with this place was there was no hot tub. (I like to soak my feet after a day at Disneyland.) Other than that, I had a good experience. I do like the Candy Cane better (did you know it has a free private shuttle that runs every half hour?), but if you need to be closer, I think the Carousel will be fine for you.

 

[Luvmy2Js]

Thanks for the suggestions. I have narrowed it down to Carousel, BWPPI, and Tropicana. Does anyone know if you can book the Tropicana direct or do you have to go through expedia etc? I can't find a website for them anywhere too see about direct booking. I am going to call the Carousel and see how the renovations are coming and if they are done since I have read about that. I really appreciate everyone who has volunteered ideas. I booked all our character meals this morning so I really need to get this hotel thing buttoned down.

 

[Zoemakes5]

We stayed at the Anaheim plaza. Right there on Harbor. Not fantastical or fancy, but we loved the size and comfort of the rooms. The kids loved the pool, and we loved the price. We did a family suite for the 5 of us and could have, frankly, been just fine with just one room. (Family suite is two connecting/adjoining rooms.) Had a fridge and micro. We would do again in a minute. Easy easy walking distance back to the room. It's on the corner up from the bus stop entrance. They have a nice little gift shop and I know that kids eat free for some of the meals. They didn't have full time restaurant, but we didn't need or want it. Particularly since we bought stuff to eat in the room for breakfast and late night snacks.

 

[samkj]

Here's the website for booking the Tropicana direct. http://www.bei-hotels.com/tropicana/index.html

 

[molarman]

I stayed in the Tropicana two years ago , just after a renovation there. I had a 1 BR suite (king bed in bedroom, sofabed in parlor). The rooms are very spacious. Of course, it is not a 5-star resort, but we are fairly picky guests and we had no complaint EXCEPT for the complimentary continental breakfast--don't waste your time with the breakfast, head to McDonalds two doors down for a quick breakfast before heading out to the park.

We usually stay at the Grand Cali, but sometimes it is worth the savings to stay at the Tropicana -- it is so close, it is probably closer to the Disneyland turnstiles than the Disneyland Hotel (and probably equal distance that the Grand Cali after you walk up and down the halls there.

I'd give the Tropicana a 8 out of 10. Very clean, good housekeeping, just not a "brand new" hotel like those further south down Harbor. The proximity to the main gate is worth it all!

 

[Leofoenget]

I booked two rooms at the Disneyland hotel for us and my friend for the last weekend of September. Well she told me at the beginning of September that her MIL wanted to go also and asked me to book another room. My husband and I are AP holders so we were booking all the rooms under our names so that we got the AP rate. Everytime I went to call my kids went nuts and I screwed up and didn't call until yesterday. They are completely sold out at all three resort hotels for saturday night.

Pirates of the Carabeien quest for gold contest winners booked took it. It has been booked for weeks now.

pain i know

 

[TheZue]

I would suggest the best western park place inn as well. If you get the room with the pull out sofa and the king bed there will be lots of room for your pack and play since the room is designed to have room for a pull out sofa. We stayed there last year and found it very roomy and had our stroller in our room with the sofa bed out the entire time and it was a fairly standard Best Western type caliber of room.

Somebody else mentioned the residence inn. We stayed there when we were on our honeymoon with some friends and it is also very very nice. But I totally understand about not wanting to take a shuttle with a baby, the baby gear, and the stroller lol. It's a lot of stuff to get on and off.

 

[Amy&Dan]

I will also vote for the Tropicana. Great location and nice, recently remodeled rooms. They do have suites as well. Good luck with your decision!

 

[disneyfansmandl]

We have stayed at the Tropicana and it was fine. None of the local hotels compare to the Disney Magic at their hotels but if you just go in knowing that and accept the room for what it is, should be fine. We have been staying at the Grand Californian since it opened and most others will really be a let down but look how much money your saving! Buy yourself a nice dinner at Blue Bayou and enjoy!

 

[MulanFan]

We were very happy at the Tropicana. They were great and the rooms were clean (and we had a toddler with us). Good luck!

 

[Luvmy2Js]

Thanks for all the advice. I have no idea what was up with the Tropicana but the Saturday rate was $661. The other nights were normal but Saturday was wacked and I kept trying for a few days to see if it changed but it didn't. It was that way on their website and on expedia and the like.

I ended up booking at the Carousel. I really hope it will be ok. My sister and her family decided to go at the last minute and they needed a suite so we got them the 3 room suite for 179 a night and we got a standard room for 89. I have read good and bad reviews so I guess we will see. I am already starting to pack since the countdown is ON!!