Figuring out where to stay during your trip to Disneyland can seem overwhelming. There are so many options. So many hotels. Where do you start looking?
Disney’s Grand Californian–Staying at this hotel puts you smack dab in the middle of the magic of Disneyland. Literally! Just walk out the lobby doors and you are in the midst of the Redwoods of California Adventure or just feet away from the amazing dining of Downtown Disney. The location of this hotel and the fact that you are transported into a national park lodge make this a favorite. Rooms sleep up to 5 adults and suites from 6-12.
Disneyland Hotel–-This hotel surrounds you in sophistication sprinkled with whimsey. Bring a bit of Disneyland back with you every day with the monorail themed pool slides and a real Tiki bar. When you want to head to the park it is only a short walk through Downtown Disney OR skip the entrance lines and take the Monorail from Downtown Disney all the way into the park in Tomorrowland. Rooms sleep up to 5 adults. Junior suites sleep 4 up to a 3-bedroom that will sleep 14.
Disney’s Paradise Pier— Step away from the fray of the city into the sunny, seaside beachfront of days gone by at this beautiful hotel. Enjoy fun in the sun at the rooftop pools and water slides. This hotel has the largest rooms of the Disneyland resorts and the least expensive rates. Guests are just a short walk away from Downtown Disney to the park entrance or to take the Monorail. What makes this resort extra special is you can see California Adventure Pixar Pier and the backside of the World of Color show from your room if you are on the correct side. Rooms also sleep up to 5. Suites sleep from 6-10. Their signature suites will sleep 13.
One of the benefits of all three of these resorts is that guests may take care of Magic Mornings allowing entry into one of the parks earlier than the normal park goers. Another benefit is obvious. You are immersed your whole vacation in the Disney Magic. Disney’s strength is attention to details and making sure each guest has premium customer service. This shines through in their resorts.
Disneyland is situated right in the middle of busy Anaheim. Just across Harbor Blvd. sits many restaurants and hotels. These are a short walk away which enables guests to not have to pay parking fees at Disneyland. Some of the hotels are simple and some are full service resorts with fantastic amenities such as mini waterparks. Our boys drooled every time we drove by the Courtyard Anaheim Theme Park Entrance and Waterpark Resort. The Castle Inn and Suites and Anaheim Camelot Inn and Suites are also right across the street. Nearby is the highly rated Anaheim Marriott and Clarion Hotel and Suites Anaheim (we have stayed here and it was fantastic. We could even see the fireworks a bit).
This was the option we used on our last trip. We are a family of 9 and my parents came too so that meant we needed to sleep 11. We found a great house in Fullerton that slept us all very comfortably and we had a kitchen. Someday we stay at a Disneyland Resort Hotel. This is definitely on my bucket list. But this arrangement worked well for us this time.
How do I find the option best for us?
Talk with a travel agent specializing in Disney vacations. They are ready to help you narrow your choices and find the accommodations that fit your family best and your budget. And, the best part is, their services are FREE to you.
Undercover Tourist–This website brings you many options that they have researched and can vouch for their quality, value and cleanliness. They have all the latest deals and specials to save you money. See this post about how we saved on park tickets here.
Disney Website–Disney has created an easy to navigate website. You can easily search their resorts as well as the Good Neighbor hotels they recommend.
So, where have you stayed near Disneyland that you absolutely loved or wouldn’t recommend?
Driving to and parking at Disneyland is crazy confusing. Disney World is so easy. Follow the signs to the park you want to go to, drive in to the large parking lot, and then follow the people to walk or take a tram to the front of the park. NOT SO at Disneyland!
Our confusion began driving down Interstate 5 still a couple of miles from Disneyland. I entered Disneyland as a destination in Google Maps and it asked me which parking area I wanted to go to. HUH?! Which do I choose? What’s the difference? Which is better?
Pictures are not the actual parking lot or garage. 🙂
Just about every day we alternated which place we parked. I am going to give you some tips from what we learned. We were staying in Fullerton so we would take Interstate 5 South to get to Disney. Since we drove south, those directions I give are first hand knowledge. My directions driving north come from studying the map without any actual driving experience.
There are two current parking areas; the Toy Story Parking Lot and the Mickey and Friends Parking Garage.
Toy Story Parking Lot
Traveling South from Interstate 5 you will take the Harbor Blvd Exit. Traveling North you probably would want the Katella Ave. Exit. You will enter the parking lot from Harbor Blvd. There will be signs showing where you turn left to enter the parking lot. Upon entering will be a booth to collect $25 for most vehicles ($40 for preferred parking) or you can pay ahead and show your voucher. All oversized vehicles must use the Toy Story Parking lot and there is an additional fee.
Once you park, head toward the shelter type structures where you will catch a bus. Most likely you will just be able to follow the crowd. Strollers will need to be folded up to take on the bus. All children must have a specific seat. They may not stand.
Our parking spot never seemed to be a long walk to get to the buses. We didn’t have to wait too long for a bus. One morning there was quite a line but it moved quickly. Once on the bus, settle back for the ride. On Sunday the bus ride seemed relatively short. The ride seemed to get longer and longer throughout the week. This was due to more traffic on the roadways that the buses have to travel to get to the drop off point. You will be dropped off fairly close to the bag check and entrances of the two parks. Disneyland will be on the right and California Adventure on the left.
Leaving the Park
When you leave to catch the bus back to your car there is decent signage after passing through the bag check area. Make sure your stroller is folded up while waiting in line for the bus otherwise you might have to wait for the next one.
Mickey and Friends Parking Garage
This is a HUGE parking structure that you drive into. They are in the process of constructing another one nearby.
Driving South on Interstate 5 you will take the Disneyland Drive Exit. If you are in the carpool lane you can remain in that lane and it will take you to the right spot. Driving north you would take the exit toward Ball Road and then turn onto Disneyland Dr.
You will enter the garage on the ground floor which opens up to many lanes of ticket boots ready for you to pay $25 ($40 for preferred parking) or you can pay ahead and show your voucher. Once through the booths you will follow arrows and cones up to the designated floor to park. There are cast members directing you to the correct spot just like the parking lots. After collecting everything you need for the day follow the signs toward the tram.
You will be directed toward escalators and elevators which will take you to the ground level. The first time we parked in the garage we were on the 6th floor. We rode a short escalator to the 5th floor and then a super cool, very long escalator all the way from the 5th floor to the ground.
To the Entrance by Tram
Continue following the flow of traffic back into the garage where you will go through the bag check (this is your only bag check station) and catch the tram. For us, on Monday there was only one tram running so we had to wait for about three to finally get on. On Thursday there were two trams running so we were quickly on our way to the park. Stroller must also be folded up to ride the tram.
After a 5-7 minute ride, the tram will drop you off at the end of Downtown Disney closest to the park entrances. Since you have already had bags check you can head directly to the entrance and be on your way to a Magical Day.
To the Entrance by Foot
Once on the ground you can walk to the park. Ask a cast member to point you in the correct direction. It is about a 10-15 minute walk to the end of Downtown Disney. There is a bag check to enter Downtown Disney. After bag check walk a little ways and turn left. You will walk all the way through Downtown Disney to get to the park entrances.
Leaving the park
When you leave the park to catch the tram there is clear signage directing you. Please be aware–the cast members attending the boarding of the tram are serious when they tell you to stay behind the yellow portion of the sidewalk. They want you completely behind. Even your toes on the yellow is too much and they will not allow the tram to leave until you step back. So, make their job easier and the wait less for everyone by remaining behind the yellow line!
Both parking options have limited number of parking spaces designated for those with disabilities. You must have appropriate placard or license plate. Standard fees apply. At the Toy Story Lot select buses have the capability of transporting most wheelchairs and ECV’s (some larger equipment cannot fit). At the Mickey and Friends Garage some trams possibly can accommodate otherwise there are wheelchair lift-equipped vans that can take you to the entrance.
Final Thoughts
Each day we alternated between the two parking methods trying to decide which we liked better. I preferred the garage while my husband preferred the parking lot.
The buses were easier for the stroller
The buses seemed slower because of all the traffic on the roads
The tram was more difficult for our stroller but once on felt faster
The amount of walking seemed about equal unless you have to park in the back of the garage. Each floor is huge and some parking spots are very far from the escalator.
I really liked the bag check before the tram. Then once we got off the tram we could head straight to the Magic rather than having one more distraction.
I think once the new garage opens up I would stick to the garage over the parking lot.
All in all, I don’t think that either way was faster. It really is about which method helps you get more into the spirit of Disney.
This will be short and sweet. We are headed to Disneyland in a few weeks. My kids have never been to Disneyland. We have been to the World a few times and love it. In the past it has been more economical to head to Florida rather than California; more days for not much more money, less expensive housing and car rental. This time we are biting the bullet and visiting Mickey a little closer to home.
I am so excited to take this trip for a few reasons:
We will get to see our daughter who is in college in Ohio. Disneyland was a hook to get her to agree to spend her Spring Break with us rather than do something with friends (turns out that she would have gladly spent it with us even at home because she has been quite homesick).
To celebrate the adoption of two of our kids.
We get some warmer weather.
I LOVE DISNEY and haven’t been to Disneyland in 18 years. This was the only place we went when I was a kid. I didn’t go to Disney World until I was 26 years old. I can’t wait to go on the Matterhorn and Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride.
Okay, enough drivel. On to why you are reading. How we got cheaper Disneyland tickets. It all started with a newsletter from Mouse Savers. I have subscribed to the monthly newsletter for years. Each month I am alerted of many great deals for Disney World and some for Disneyland. In January the newsletter mentioned that Disneyland tickets were going up but that Undercover Tourist has some left for a few days at a discounted price. We had been contemplating whether or not we would even going to Disneyland since last summer but this new information tipped the scales. WE WERE GOING!!
Undercover Tourist is an authorized reseller of Disney tickets for Disneyland and Disney World. We have purchased from them before and sailed through park entry. Through their website you can also purchase tickets to Universal Studios, Sea World, Legoland, Go Cards, and many other attractions. They even sell ski tickets for resorts in Colorado. You can book hotels and car rental too.
At the end of 2018 we adopted two of our four foster children. We were beyond thrilled but reality also started to sink in. We were now the ones solely responsible to feed, clothe, educate, and show them the world. $$$$ Now we are confident that God placed these children in our family to care for and He is going to equip us for this tremendous task. But, in order for us to be able to have some of the extras we have enjoyed (TRAVEL springs to mind) we would probably need a little extra income.
Our first multi-day trip to Disney World 2007
As a family, we are committed to me being a stay-at-home Mom. Throughout the years God has provided for our children to attend a Christian school but that has involved sacrifices. We feel very blessed but we don’t have the largest house, the fanciest cars, all name brand clothing, or take extravagant vacations. Over the years I have had a few different home businesses to help make ends meet (my favorite has been teaching sewing lessons).
Thoughts of a blog take root
In January, I decided that in order to be able to fund some of the extras in our lives (travel, helping our our kids in college, and some home remodeling) I needed to work at something from home. I thought I would enjoy trying to start a blog. Originally, I tried my hand at a saving money blog. I do like to save money and try to do so each day. But, as I researched different aspects of creating a profitable blog I kept hitting roadblocks.
My world upends with just one pin
Then one day I was on Pinterest ( I LOVE Pinterest!!) getting some ideas for a family command center. I wanted to make a board with chores for my kids with money attached. I looked up “Work for Hire” as that is what these projects are often called. What popped up was a couple ideas of what I was looking for and then a ton of work from home pins. As I scrolled down I came across a pin that BLEW MY MIND!! The pin led to a post about becoming a travel agent selling Disney vacations. WHAAAAT??!!
Our boys with Buzz Lightyear in 2014
Now, many years ago I though that I would love to be a travel agent. How fun would it be to help people plan dream vacations! But, I watched as one by one the travel agents closed up in our city and put those dreams aside. In the last few years I have planned a number of vacations to Disney World and Disneyland. I would see posts for travel agents wanting to help plan Disney trips. How cool would that be!! I didn’t look into it too much thinking that the agents would have to be based in Florida. So, when I read these posts it was like MY WHOLE WORLD WAS ROCKED!
New blog ideas soar to new heights
I immediately started researching, thinking and planning. Now when though about writing a blog all the pieces seemed to fall into place. All the road blocks toppled. My confusion and trepidation diminished. My plan is to pursue becoming a travel agent specializing in selling Disney vacations and possibly Alaska and Hawaii. But, even if the travel agent career doesn’t pan out I am still OVER the MOON about my new blog direction.
Spinning on the teacups in Disneyland in 2019
An so it begins..
I can’t wait to share with you about some topics I am very passionate about…travel to Disney, Alaska, and everywhere in between. My desire through this blog is to share inspiration, ideas, and planning tips. I hope to encourage you to grab a hold of your vacation dreams and make them a reality.
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