Any info on the HOJO???

[wnickles99]

Was torn on whether we should stay at the Howard Johnson or one of the others. I have wife, 8 and 5 year old girls. Is this a hotel that one would highly recommend? Any info would be appreciated. Do they have vcrs or microwaves in the room? Do you think the kids would like this choice?? Any comments would be appreciated. I read some posts about highway noise being unbearable? What's your opinoin? WOuld you return to this hotel?? Thanks for all in advance. Is the management there accomodating to preferences of the customers?
Walter

 

[daannzzz]

Howard Johnson is a great place to stay. It has 6 buildings each with interior corridors and most rooms have balconies. The rooms are abit bland looking but they are comfortable and clean. In general it is a fairly quiet place unless you are placed near the freeway. I have been 5 times now and only once had to deal with the freeway and it wasn't so much the noise as the rooms are well insulated as it was the large trucks hitting a seam in the road and I could feel them. This was in bulding# 2 along the back side. I had a room here on the Harbor BLVD side and it was fine. Once I had a room in the tower facing the freeway and when I closed the door I could hardly hear it. Just ask for a room away from the freeway.
There are two pools. The quiet pool is in amongst some pine trees and is pretty. The main newly rebuild pool is near the front of the hotel, is decent size and has a nice patio area. There is a very small childrens area with a wading pool and a water squirting turtle. The grounds of the HoJo are well landscaped with trees and shrubs and flowers. Almost all the other places nearby have no grounds at all. Just Parking lots surrounding the motels.
The walk to the parks is about 7 minutes but there is also the ART shuttle that costs $2 a day per adult.
Other good places to stay (all with exterior corridors and not as nice of a pool area) are...
The BW Park Place Inn
The Park Inn
The Candy Cane Inn
The Desert Inn and Suites
Here is a link to show you the area and where some of the accomodations are located.
http://www.beachcalifornia.com/dlmp.html

 

[Sonya in Boise]

I stayed at the HoJo in November and was pleased with our stay. We had a larger home office room (that has a microwave) in Building One and it had a balcony with a view of the park. The room was quiet, we did not hear traffic, but we could hear when others were walking and talking in the hallways, but nothing so major that disrupted our stay.

The property is very well kept. The rooms are clean and beds were comfy. There was a small sitting area in the room that had a table lamp (the lamp was tall and had a glass circle/table attached to it) that was perfect for the kids to sit at and eat breakfast or take out dinner.

The bathroom has a sink inside and also a sink outside which was nice when we were all getting ready for bed or to visit the parks in the morning. Since we went in Novmeber, we did not check out the pools, but we are thinking of a trip this September and HoJo's is at the top of my list.

We would stay there again and I recommend it to my friends.

 

[dsnylndmom]

We stayed there at the end of last dec. and really enjoyed our stay too!

We were on the 7th floor, facing the parks and the kids(5 & 9) could see the fireworks from the room! Our room had a vaulted ceiling and just seemed sooooooooo big! Would defitnely recommend it!

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

<font color=navy>Here's some pics I took when I was there a couple of weeks ago ...


Howard Johnson - taken from the Disneyland Monorail.

Another pic of the Howard Johnson. This one has the ART shuttle on the street.

Main pool area at the Howard Johnson. This looks like a great place to watch the fireworks on a hot summer night. You can see the Monorail track in the background.

Close-up of turtle splash area

This is another view of the pool area, with one of the buildings behind. Just about all the rooms have balconies or patios.

The other pool at the Howard Johnson Hotel

Another view of the other pool

I walked through the buildings, and I took this pic from the building at the very back. That's the Santa Ana (5) Freeway, and in the background are the San Gabriel Mountains (not a sight you're likely to see during the summer months).

 

[disneyfan67]

Hello, I'm a new member and I'm going to be staying at the Hojo in May 2005 and I would love to see the pictures Mary Jo has. All I get is a red x, what am I doing wrong? Any help would be wonderful. Thank you.

 

[Disneyland_emily]

I've fallen for the HOJO- Ive now stayed there twice and loved it and already booked for next July

Its not a bad walk to DL and the rooms are good sized and the staff great

-em

 

[rafikimom]

I would love to see those pics also but I too am getting those red x's.

 

[HaleyB]

We just stayed at HOJO's, I will not stay there again. It is an older hotel, but so are most if not all in the area. We booked a King room with the Mousesavers discount. The first thing I didn't like was the cancelation policy (4pm 2 days before check in!) but perhaps this is standard for the area?

When we checked in we were somewhat annoyed that the front desk is up a set of stairs (we had our luggage with us). The staff was friendly and efficiant and our checked in took just minutes. We had a 6th floor king room in building (is it 1? well the only building with more than 4 floors I think). The freeway noise was horrible and the small balcony was locked (and we couldn't get it open). After about 10 minutes I decided I needed to ask for another room. That is huge for me, it is the 2nd time in my life I have asked to have a new room. They were no where near booked. When I asked for a quieter room I was told I would have to upgrade from a king to two queens and it would be $30 more a night. That made me mad, it would be one thing if I was just being picky but they have to know the rooms are loud by now. They offered me ear plugs! I asked for the manager and she did give us a new room at no charge but told me that it was the policy to charge for the change and that almost all the King rooms were loud like that.

The beds were rock hard. That is a negitave for me. Last of all both rooms were not very clean and both were very worn. The rooms were not super dirty, just not perfectly clean. Grime in the corners, stains on the bed covers, lose tiles in the bathroom sorts of things. No bugs or really gross stuff.

All in all it was OK, but not great. I didn't use the pool, and it looked nice (but smallish), but I think I can find a better room for $90 a night (I could be wrong, but I am going to try).

I would advise anyone who stays here to ask for a quiet room.

 

[Hojoanaheim]

Dear Haley,

I'm very sorry to hear about the problems you experienced with the quality our Hotel. We are aware of the noise issues with rooms facing the freeway, and are experimenting with new sound-proofing materials for the existing double-windows and double-doors. We may also offer new discount pricing for these "feeway rooms" for those who are not bothered by the noise or just prefer a less expensive room. We will be continuing our property improvements during our parking lot and lobby renovations in the Fall which will add more ADA ramping and include removal of the steps into the registration building.

I have passed along your comments regarding the condition of the two rooms to our Director of Housekeeping and Maintenance to make sure the cleanliness and condition are up to our standards.

I do hope your visit to Disneyland and Anaheim was otherwise enjoyable!

Sincerely,

Jonathan Whitehead
Assistant General Manager

 

[Buttercup26]

We love the HoJo and found it to be very well maintained and clean. I personally have never been bothered by the noise, some people are obviously more sensitive to it than others.

It is a great place for kids, they have two pool areas, a nice sized game room and wonderful store/gift shop. The main pool area is nice, the pool is decent sized and there is a kids pool & spray area, as well as the hot tub. It's always stocked with lots of towels.

The home office rooms in building 2 (overlooking the quiet/garden pool) are particulary nice and very large. Those rooms have a microwave as well as a fridge. All the HoJo rooms have a fridge but only the home office rooms and suites have the micro.

The grounds are beautiful, wonderful foliage and flowers. I have found the staff to be exceedingly helpful and accommodating.

I would highly recommend the HoJo to a family with kids!!

 

[Amy&Dan]

I think it all depends on what you are used to. I think many of the people who post the negatives are used to staying at the properties on or near Disneyworld. I know one recent negative post was from someone who usually stays at WDW moderates and you cannot compare this hotel to a WDW moderate. For those with upcoming reservations I would call the HoJo and make sure you are in a non-freeway side room. The room we had was right above the pool and very quiet. The hotel is older but I found it to be very well maintained. The pool is small but my kids pretty much enjoy any and every pool and my 8 year old loved the spray jets. The reason I liked this are the staff, the lovely grounds, larger rooms, the price and the nearness to Disneyland. I found the rooms to be slightly dated but the large size and cleanliness made up for that. I am a picky person who loves to stay onsite but sometimes the price of doing that just isn't worth it. I am sorry that some people have had some negative experiences lately and I think that if they hadn't been on the freeway side they would have felt differently! I would definitely stay here again but can see why some people might feel differently based on their experiences.

 

[Disneyland_emily]

I just came back from DL staying at the Super 8 on Katella after staying my last few stays at the HOJO and while my stay at the Super 8 was very enjoyable and I found nothing wrong in my stay- I've found myself much more partial to the HOJO than I wouldve realized to the fact that unless there is a HUGE difference my preference is now with the HOJO.

 

[LucyKate]

We stayed at the HoJo in December with two girls aged 9 and 5 (at that time) and we loved it.

We had a Disney view room (which costs a bit more) and did not notice the noise (it faces away from the freeway).

We thought the beds were very comfortable, the room a good size etc. It came with a coffee maker but no microwave or (as far as I can recall) VCR. You can order a microwave or book a home office suite whch has one. But the in house TV has Disney (of course) and pay per view movies, and on the one or two nights we didn't spend in DL, these kept them very happy.

Mimi's across the street did great food, the staff were superb (as evidenced by the fact they cruise sites like this and respond to any complaints) and there was a good shop on site.

Yes, there were a few steps up to the front office - but only a few and I can't rate this in any way an inconvenience.

If we return to Disneyland, it's the only place we will stay.

 

[HaleyB]

I just wanted to jump back in and thank Jonathan for his reply. I think the thing that most made me unhappy with my stay was that when I asked to be moved to a quieter room I was told I would have to pay more for the room. Not booking a King room and asking for one of the inside buildings would prevent that situation. I have a feeling the higher floors are the worst for noise (I was on the 6th floor originally), I really felt like I was standing on the shoulder of the freeway, it was that loud. I had heard there was 'some freeway noise' in some rooms but this was way beyond what I expected. I literally could not hear my husband from across the room when I was sitting near the window.

I think someone else noticed I tend to go to WDW and stay onsite, and I think that did taint my view a little, I stayed at the Pop Century which was inexpensive and brand new. The inexpensive onsite rooms in WDW have spoiled me, but that is a good thing. Disneyland is just a different place, some things are better and some not as good as WDW. I also have read so many very positive reviews of this property, I think I had too high an expectation.

Although I have been to Disneyland many 100's of times this was my very first time staying in an area hotel. I loved being in the middle of things and the walk to DL from HoJo's is quick. I grew up in the area and know that most of the area hotels are older than me, so I am not sure why I didn't expect it to be a little old and worn. I have never stayed at any of the other near by hotels so I can't say how this one compares.

On the positive side the grounds were very well kept, the property was well lit at night, and parking was plentiful. It really is a 7-10 minute walk to Disney and there are so many people around it feels very safe. There are lots of places to eat within walking distance. The rooms are large and have a nice sized fridge in them. Also there were no problems for us with noise from the halls or elevators or bathrooms, all of which are often issues in hotels/motels.

 

[disneyfan67]

I've been playing around with dates on expedia for early October and they seem to have some great prices with air/hotel combo and the Hojo is looking good. I just don't want to be stuck with one of the freeway rooms if I book through expedia. I'm really interested in the Hojo and for the price, I don't think I can beat it.

 

[LucyKate]

HoJo have a best price guarantee. Contact the hotel directly with the best price you can find, and they will match it.

That way you deal directly with the hotel and can requst rooms.

Be aware though, that the cheapest rooms will almost certainly be the freeway noise rooms, so you then may have to pay a little extra to get a better room.

Mousesavers.com also have special rates at the HoJo which we found beat anything we found elsewhere on the net.

 

[CdnDisneyFan]

To the posters that wanted to see pics, I found a site that has pics of the hotel inside and out, as well as other hotels in the area, and restaurant menus. Go to http://www.dlresortinfo.com/HoJos/hojohotel.html to see HoJo's pics, and it's easy to navigate from there!

Jules

 

[MrsMud]

To the posters that wanted to see pics, I found a site that has pics of the hotel inside and out, as well as other hotels in the area, and restaurant menus. Go to http://www.dlresortinfo.com/HoJos/hojohotel.html to see HoJo's pics, and it's easy to navigate from there!

Jules

Wow, this is a great site. Thanks!!