Is staying on property worth the cost?

[KitKat_Tink]

Hi!

I am currently planning a Disneyland trip for the beginning of October and am stuck on if staying on property is worth it. I have only ever once stayed on property and that was at the Grand Californian. However the Grand Californian is way out of my budget. We generally stay at the Embassy Suites down the street. Since this trip I will be paying for lodging instead of my parents, I had the idea to splurge a little and stay at either Paradise Pier or the Disneyland Hotel. So what I want to know is are the prices worth it? Will my mom be pleased with the hotel (she really only stays at Embassy Suites)? And really anything else I need to know.

There are 4 of us if that helps.

Thanks!

 

[furb & dez]

It's a personal opinion. For every "No," there's an equal number of "Yes" answers.

 

[audrey2580]

I love staying on site because its so easy to walk to/from the parks to hotel. I hate taking a shuttle. Staying on site feels like you are at DL the whole trip. I like PP and DLH and of course LOVE the Grand.

 

[tlovesdis]

If you can get a good price at PPH then I say go for it! The rooms there are big compared to the other two hotels and the walk is not bad when you go through the GCH.

If your mom is used to Embassy Suites, all three of these rooms will seem small since it is just one room, not two like Embassy, but staying on porperty is just so magical!

 

[aurorae]

I love staying on site because its so easy to walk to/from the parks to hotel. I hate taking a shuttle.

Of course, there are lots of Good Neighbor hotels where you don't need a shuttle, and some are closer to the park entrance than the Disney hotels.

 

[farmgirljen]

It is a very personal decision for everyone...for me, I am very budget minded and can not wrap my mind around the cost for staying onsite-especially with out microwaves and minifridges in the rooms! I am on my 3rd trip of 4 planned out in the last 2 years, and love the good neighbor hotels on harbor. They are closer to the maingates than the park hotels, and are a fraction of the price- which means i can stay longer and have more fun! I also want ot add that I am a commando style dis'r..I love to be in the park as early as possible and stay as late as possible, with very little time spent in the hotel room....our last trip, last October was record rainfall for the LA area- my hubby and son spent most of the week in the hotel room, while I pranced through the puddles in the park all day!

 

[Hoku]

Staying on site feels like you are at DL the whole trip.

Exactly! We make every effort to afford DLH but it doesn't always work out that way. PP is ok, but it's far enough away from the action that, for me, it's better to save even more money and stay off completely. If you can afford it, I think it's totally worth staying at DLH.

 

[Halloweenqueen]

We usually stay one time per year onsite. The rest of our trips are budget. We pick the off season times for onsite. Works great.

I love walking from GCH to the parks, but it is a longer walk than many of the hotels on Harbor. We always stay budget when we are going for long weekends. We know we are not spending much time in our hotel anyway.

 

[rramstad]

I have very limited experience -- one trip to DL, stayed at the GCH -- but from the research I did, I had trouble finding a hotel that was nice and close and also had a really great swimming pool. With three kids, a good pool was pretty important, and I wasn't willing to go too far off site, again, because I didn't want to be carrying kids home

If your research turns up a hotel at a good distance from the park that has the amenities you need, and the price is right, that's great! I just couldn't find something that matched up, so I held my breath and clicked "CONFIRM" and watched my VISA melt down

 

[Dobie]

The Dobies like the PPH. It is not a lot more than the motels on Harbor, and we like the perks.

 

[wannagoback]

I think it is IF you have the money. I pay for vacations out of a special savings account. When the money was there, we splurged for DLH. If I'm not comfortable spending that much money then we stay elsewhere. All have been magical trips, I don't think that the hotel has the power to make or break it.

 

[Keurigirl]

We always stay at the Embassy Suites South, and we go at least once a year to Disneyland. For us, the convenience of having two rooms AND a huge, wonderful free breakfast, all at a cheaper price than staying on-site trumps any kind of "magic" from staying onsite. I love the Embassy Suites South property, the ART stops right in front, and it's just really convenient.

That said, in three weeks we'll be staying on property for the first time. We got a deal that included all meals, so the price was roughly the same. I'm super worried about how all four of us (me, dh, DD (4) and DS (19mo) are going to sleep in the same room. DS is a super light sleeper, and not a very good one at that. It will be interesting! I will let you know if the "magic" trumps the conveniences of staying at Embassy.

 

[MyYearWithTheMouse]

I know this is going to sound quotidian, but is anyone in your party a really bad snorer or light sleeper? Or does anyone like to stay up later than anyone else? I personally love staying in suites even though it's just me, DH, and DS, because it allows us to put DS to bed and then have a little glass of wine or go read a bit without keeping him up.

 

[mrswh]

Of course, there are lots of Good Neighbor hotels where you don't need a shuttle, and some are closer to the park entrance than the Disney hotels.

This is true, but - and maybe this doesn't matter to some people, but it does to me - it's a MUCH nicer walk through Downtown Disney. Especially in the evening, when there is lots of live music - DTD has a great vibe. I have only stayed at the Grand, not the DLH, but don't mind walking over to the DLH for dinner at Goofy's . . . plus it's not far from the monorail which takes you directly into Tomorrowland.

To me, aside from the proximity and feeling like you're on a Disney vacation, the perks are really worth it if you are going during peak season. Beginning of October, maybe not as worthwhile. We go in the summer and the extra hour in DCA and, this summer, the extra FPs were huge! You also get the MMs though we have yet to use them - it's nice to have the option!

I think you can have a great time no matter what, but there is a little extra Disney magic if you stay on site!

 

[oumagic]

Last year it was worth it to us because we had a package deal for $3500 for 6 of us (2 rooms at Grand Calif) and it was going to cost us close to $3000 for the same deal at HoJo. This year, we are at $2200 for the 6 of us (2 rooms) at HoJo and the it was approx $3500 for Paradise Pier. Every person has a personal answer to what an on-site stay is worth. I think my cutoff is probably $100-150/day extra on a 5 day trip. That could change for special occasions like anniversary or on a shorter trip where I might splurge for the Grand.

 

[Kittyskyfish]

Well, I'm sure your mom will like the Disney property rooms, but we can't define how much more you're willing to invest your vacation funds in lodgings than the park experience.

Speaking as two adult travelers, we don't stay on property at DLR because we spend most of our time in the parks. The added cost of Disney properties doesn't offset the extra perks they offer. We're very happy spending our money in the parks, not for the rooms. We miss all the MMs but it's okay because they aren't worth the extra money. Here, we need just a place to sleep.

Now, when we go to the Caribbean or Hawaii, we spend a lot more money for suites or condos that face the ocean. Sometimes even more per night than the GC peak season rates! Even if we don't spend a *lot* of time in the room, it's worth it to hear the waves from our windows while we sleep and to sit on the balcony watching the water and ships. Here, the lodgings are a strong part of the overall vacation experience and we'd rather trade fine dining every night for a perfect hotel room.

I know that doesn't give you a clear answer on if it's worth it or not, but I'm trying to explain that each person's experience needs are unique and what makes staying onsite a "definite yes" for some may not meet your own needs in the same manner.

 

[dance2874]

We just took a trip in July and did a split stay- part at a near by hotel (a Hilton, so it was pretty nice) and the rest at PPH. It truly didnt feel like we were really 'at' Disney until we checked into the PPH. Next time, I will stay on site or stay less days to make it work with our budget. We just loved the feeling of being there. And we loved PPH! You can also actually get a good view of WOC from the big windows in the hallways if you dont have a park view room. It was better IMO than the reserved area we watched it from in the park the day before.

 

[Bungle]

For us no. I just can't justify the price especially when we think that hojo is great. I can see why others like staying on property but for us we are fine staying down the street.

 

[Disneyanajc]

YES! YES! YES! to the question "is it worth the cost"
We love the DLH... we have stayed on property since 1970 at least once a year.
The only two times we did not stay at the DLH was once for GC and once for PP
(did love the GC and PP but DLH is home)

For the last few years we love booking the 2 bedrooms suites...

But like everything "worth" is what you make of it...jc

 

[DisneyGal358]

We're on the east coast and typically go to WDW in Florida.

Usually we always stay on site. It's great to be engulfed in the magic every moment of your trip. I like to relax and not have to worry about driving and parking. We have stayed off site a few times and saved money but I prefer staying on site.

Now...

With that said, we went to Disneyland back in 2006 for our honeymoon and we stayed at Best Western Park Place Inn & Mini Suites (http://www.parkplaceinnandminisuites.com/).

It was right across the street from the park entrance and the price was in our budget. It was clean and your standard hotel. If we ever make it back to Disneyland we'd stay there again without question.

Good luck planning your trip.