Disneyland: Priceline, Hotwire, others

[WillTravel]

Some might say the best option is to get a Disney hotel on the property and be done with it. However, you will tend to be stuck with Disney restaurants then, plus you might feel a little Disney-claustrophobic. Plus (my main concern) it costs more! The advantages to being on-property in Anaheim are not as great as in Orlando.

Also, if you don't mind driving each day to Disneyland and parking in the Disney parking lots, and taking the tram to the gates, then obviously you don't have to be so picky about location.

Priceline

Priceline is a bit annoying when it comes to bidding for a hotel near Disneyland. You have a good chance of getting a hotel nearby, but the zone is drawn in such a way that you can end up several miles away and not have access to the shuttle service that hotels around Disneyland use. From what I can tell, if you bid 3* in the Anaheim zone, the worst you will end up with so far as distance is the Hyatt Regency, which does have a shuttle. But I could well be wrong about that, so double-double-check if that is important to you. 2* bids can definitely put you way outside the shuttle zone.

Being "Across the Street"

Even with the shuttle option, it's nice to be across the street. Your kids, particularly if young, might want a rest during the day. You might get wet on some of the rides. You might forget something.

Which brings me to another problem. Every hotel near Disneyland seems to classify themselves as being across the street. You might be misled into thinking this means across from the gates - not so. Across the street might mean that you have a 1 mile walk to get to the gates. Someone out there has a web page of all the hotels that are genuinely across the street - there are about 8 that I would put in that category. Howard Johnson is pretty close too - about 7 minutes walk.

If choosing a hotel across the street is important, choose a hotel that is near 1601 South Harbor Boulevard which I think might accurately capture Disneyland's gate location (Howard Johnson is 1380, but that is a little misleading, as much of HJ's rooms are actually a block up from there). So I'd choose a hotel between 1380 and 1700.

Reviews of Howard Johnson: http://www.betterbidding.com/index.php?act...=howard+johnson

Hotwire

Hotwire is slightly better than Priceline when it comes to zones. If you choose the Disneyland South zone, you have a pretty good (some might say 100%, but I don't know) chance of getting a hotel serviced by the shuttle. Disneyland North is more dicey, or at least that's what I've been told.

Airline Packages

Another option is Alaska Air packages to Disneyland. Other airlines have them too, but I don't know if they are as good as Alaska's. Alaska has a "kids fly free" promotion quite frequently, although I don't know how that works out. You get to choose which hotel you want. The last time we chose this option, I opted for the Howard Johnson. Reverse-calculating from the package price, I worked out that the total price per night was $56, including tax. (They actually have a 1-free-night promotion, but I'm going by the total price overall.) Of course, I could be wrong if I chose the wrong amounts for the airfare -- you know how tricky that can be.

Packaged Vacations

Travelocity also has hotel+Disney pass options. Howard Johnson and other hotels are offered - the prices seem similar to what I got with Alaska.

And I think you can get Priceline vacations for Disneyland also.

I consider the Priceline option unsuitable because I always want to choose a flight that leaves at the end of the day after work, and I always want a return flight that is as late in the day as possible to maximize the last day at the park.

[HollywoodPete]

I pulled this off SideStep (I chose 3 or 4 stars within 1 mile of "1601 South Harbor Boulevard").

You can sort and filter by distance, rating, amenities, and price (2 stars would add another 45 to the list).

0.3 miles Anabella

0.3 miles Anaheim At The Park Travelodge

0.3 miles Best Western Pavilions

0.5 miles Jolly Roger

0.5 miles Anaheim Plaza Hotel & Suites

0.5 miles Best Western Anaheim Inn

0.5 miles Anaheim Desert Palm Inn Suites

0.5 miles Portofino Inn Suites

0.6 miles Best Western Park Place Inn

0.6 miles Carousel Inn And Suites

0.6 miles Coast Anaheim Hotel

0.6 miles Hilton Anaheim

0.6 miles Radisson Maingate

0.6 miles Marriott Anaheim

0.6 miles Clarion Anaheim Resort

0.6 miles Ramada Plaza Hotel Anaheim Res

0.7 miles Holiday Inn Express Anaheim Maingate

0.8 miles Best Western Raffles Inn Suites

0.8 miles Howard Johnson Plaza Hotel Anaheim

0.8 miles Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites Anaheim

0.9 miles Anaheim-Disneyland-Maingate Conventi

0.9 miles Holiday Inn Anaheim-At The Park

0.9 miles Anaheim Carriage Inn

0.9 miles Ramada Limited Suites

1.0 miles Anaheim Vagabond Inn Executive

1.0 miles Peacock Suites Resort

[Lollipop's Mom]

Here is an awesome map to show the locations..

http://www.geocities.com/ashpsyche/Disneyl...andLinkMap.html

I am not endorsing this site at all other than the ease of seeing where the hotels are in relation to the park. I don't know if this guy gets kick back from ressies made from here, but I don't believe he does, as when you go to the site, it doesn't appear it is going through a link that gives him a commission.

Another map is found here...

(although its a bit older)

http://www.beachcalifornia.com/dlmp.html

I still would suggest coming to this wonderful board and making ressies via here when you can! This site is a valuable resource!! Just use those 2 for research!

[dave]

For those who intend to bid in Fullerton area, you might want to check rates at Wyndham Anaheim Park before bidding as this hotel has now come up on PL as reported elsewhere.

Low rates of $59 on some dates, so PL might not save you much.

[Mouserjan0222]

I pulled this off SideStep (I chose 3 or 4 stars within 1 mile of "1601 South Harbor Boulevard").

You can sort and filter by distance, rating, amenities, and price (2 stars would add another 45 to the list).

0.3 miles Anabella

0.3 miles Anaheim At The Park Travelodge

0.3 miles Best Western Pavilions

0.5 miles Jolly Roger

0.5 miles Anaheim Plaza Hotel & Suites

0.5 miles Best Western Anaheim Inn

0.5 miles Anaheim Desert Palm Inn Suites

0.5 miles Portofino Inn Suites

0.6 miles Best Western Park Place Inn

0.6 miles Carousel Inn And Suites

0.6 miles Coast Anaheim Hotel

0.6 miles Hilton Anaheim

0.6 miles Radisson Maingate

0.6 miles Marriott Anaheim

0.6 miles Clarion Anaheim Resort

0.6 miles Ramada Plaza Hotel Anaheim Res

0.7 miles Holiday Inn Express Anaheim Maingate

0.8 miles Best Western Raffles Inn Suites

0.8 miles Howard Johnson Plaza Hotel Anaheim

0.8 miles Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites Anaheim

0.9 miles Anaheim-Disneyland-Maingate Conventi

0.9 miles Holiday Inn Anaheim-At The Park

0.9 miles Anaheim Carriage Inn

0.9 miles Ramada Limited Suites

1.0 miles Anaheim Vagabond Inn Executive

1.0 miles Peacock Suites Resort

From what I see, this list isn't very accurate. Best Western Park Place Inn is AT the crosswalk into DL, not 0.6 mile away, whereas the Pavillions is farther. The BW Anaheim Inn is 4 doors away from the BWPPI. There are many sites that list the hotels in the 'green zone" or directly across the street that I feel are more accurate.

[Malcon10t]

" I pulled this off SideStep (I chose 3 or 4 stars within 1 mile of "1601 South Harbor Boulevard").

You can sort and filter by distance, rating, amenities, and price (2 stars would add another 45 to the list).

0.3 miles Anabella "

It appears SideStep (whatever that is) is extremely inaccurate. The Anabella is, by the shortest route (thru the Grand California and DTD), .75 miles from the Disneyland Turnstiles, whereas the Carousel is less than .25 from the turnstiles and is at 1510 S Harbor. Perhaps because there is no such address as 1601 S. Harbor, it is confused. 1570 S Harbor is the crosswalk to the turnstiles.

[AztecWolverine]

Here is an awesome map to show the locations..

http://www.geocities.com/ashpsyche/Disneyl...andLinkMap.html

I am not endorsing this site at all other than the ease of seeing where the hotels are in relation to the park. I don't know if this guy gets kick back from ressies made from here, but I don't believe he does, as when you go to the site, it doesn't appear it is going through a link that gives him a commission.

I still would suggest coming to this wonderful board and making ressies via here when you can! This site is a valuable resource!! Just use those 2 for research!

========================================================================

PLEASE DO NOT USE BRET'S DISNEYLAND LODGING LINK MAP, OR THE RECOMMENDATIONS MADE BY HIM ([email protected])!!

(http://www.geocities.com/ashpsyche/DisneylandLinkMap.html)

Because of his recommendations, and my desire to keep an extended family near the East gate, because of young children who needed naps, we booked several rooms at the Del Sol Inn and the Desert Inn & Suites, next door to each other. They have the same miserable ownership, and the same pitiful conditions. I found giant live cockroaches in my Del Sol room two nights in a row, and brought them, alive in a cup, to the front desk. The best they could do was take $40 off of our final bill (of about $240). Next door at the Desert Inn & Suites, our guests found unspeakable things under the bed, and stuck on the wall. The mattresses were filthy and extremely uncomfortable. The door lock was broken and they wanted to wait until the next day to fix it. Only after persistent and firm protests did they finally agree that it was indeed a safety issue, and wouldn't wait until the next day. The AC didn't work well, the elevator was awful, dirty, and crowded, and the pool & jacuzzi was jammed with screaming kids and an outrageous amount of chlorine. The fumes were overwhelming. The continental breakfast was a joke. We only stayed there because of the location, and we really lived to regret it. It was a very busy time at Disney, and rooms were expensive, but no one could pay us to ever go back to these two hotels. It would be better to get one room at the Candy Cane for nap taking, since they have their own private air conditioned shuttle every half hour, and then get the other rooms on the outskirts of Disney -- Knott's, Cerritos, La Mirada, Fullerton, John Wayne Airport vicinity, etc. This is assuming that Priceline rooms are unavailable below $70, and you have budget minded travelers. The John Wayne Airport vicinity hotels (on Dyer sp?) are great buys and charge far less in hotel taxes. So if you need multiple rooms multiple days in high season you can save a bundle by staying there. And the hotels I've stayed in there have pools, too. The drive is only about 20 minutes, as I recall.

Note that though I wrote to Bret and shared our terrible experiences with him, he NEVER adjusted his high recommendations of these two hotels one iota. In fact, he still recommends them highly!! I, for one, AM CONVINCED he gets kickbacks from these hotels. I hate to admit that his map IS useful when trying to find hotels close to Disney, but it cuts off numerous hotels to the south that Priceline bidders often get (the Hyatt Regency Orange County, and the Crowne Plaza, for ex.). These two hotels share a private shuttle bus, which is very rare in the Disney area, and they run every half hour, just like the Candy Cane. Because they are private, the shuttles run like clockwork, unlike the red Anaheim shuttles, and they are rarely crowded. The slight inconvenience of having to plan your timing, and wait for one at the shuttle area, is nothing compared to the horrendous experience of staying in a proximate flea-bag hotel. The only hotel near the east gate area that I would stay in, because it is within walking distance of Disney, is the Fairfield. Nice rooms with two beds + nice small sofa bed and frig. Great value for families, if you can fit into one room, though the pool is relatively small for the size of the hotel, and it can get crowded and noisy... Note that many of the rooms at the Candy Cane can be cramped.

[DisneylandGuy]

========================================================================

...Note that though I wrote to Bret and shared our terrible experiences with him, he NEVER adjusted his high recommendations of these two hotels one iota. In fact, he still recommends them highly!! I, for one, AM CONVINCED he gets kickbacks from these hotels. I hate to admit that his map IS useful when trying to find hotels close to Disney, but...

If you scroll to the bottom of the http://www.geocities.com/ashpsyche/DisneylandLinkMap.html, you'll see that there is a disclaimer there. Coincidentally, I put that disclaimer there for people like you. In case you missed it, here it is (read it all the way to the end, that's the best part):

DISCLAIMER

Please don't e-mail me after your trip and complain about the free service I offer or tell me to change my reviews because your visit stunk.Go to one of the links above and post your own scathing review.

[Jazziered]

This is a good map of the Disneyland area.

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

The green shows walking distance, yellow shows the shuttle area.

Howard Johnson on Harbor Blvd. is one of the most favored off site hotels by the Disneyland fanatics. (um not that I am one of them... :) ) I like the Howard Johnson too. It is clean, decent, nice pool, and I try to get the Entertainment C ard rate.

http://www.hojoanaheim.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=14

The key is to make your reservation early (714-776-6120 ask for inhouse reservations), keep a watch on the web page, they release new dates all the time. I check twice a day. And when you see the rate for the days you want, call this number and again ask for in house reservations. 714-776-6120 This has worked twice for me. I know for a fact that it works well for others too. The only thing is you have to buy an Entertainment C ard. You can buy the Enterainment b ook for your area and use the coupons where you live. You just need the card for the reservation. They WILL ask for it. If you don't wind up getting your price, you do have to cancel 48 hours advance. That is the only downside...

I have used my Entertainment C ard and coupons enough to pay for itself.

http://www.entertainment.com/discount/?linkName=GOOGLE

There are lots of Disneyland specific forums out there. And I have found out a lot about local hotels from these sites. Just google in Disneyland forums. That is how I found them...

And Trip Advisor is a good way of finding out about hotels too.

Trip Advisor:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/