Staying at the Disneyland Hotel and Why You Should too!
In my quest to stay at ALL of the Disney Resorts (this little goal is news to my husband, lol) on our recent Disneyland vacation we stayed at the original Disney hotel! The Disneyland Hotel itself! I was quite excited to experience it!
The main lobby welcomes you with a large park map of Disneyland complete with fireworks.
Disneyland Hotel lobby as you enter from the drop off area.? In this picture, the sliding doors to outside are just beyond the picture on the right.
To the left of the entrance is the check-in desk with plenty of space for the family to hang out while they’re waiting.
While the kids waited for us to check in they made themselves at home in the cutest little teacup chairs!
It had Disney Magic vibes written all over it! I was sold before I ever even saw my room!
Every kid feels special in a teacup chair!
Our room wasn’t quite ready yet and we didn’t want to waste one Disney second! So we made our way to Disney’s California Adventure! I may have jumped up and down and danced around my kids in excitement! They may have rolled their little eyes in embarrassment! Maybe… I just can’t help it!? I get so excited at Disney!
The proximity and ease of getting around Disneyland are so much different than Disney World! And in a whole lot of ways much nicer! It’s much more relaxed!
The Main Gate to both Disneyland and California Adventure are just a 10-minute walk through Downtown Disney from each of the 3 Disney brand hotels, and park hopping at Disneyland feels more like moving between lands with only the esplanade between them. It’s a breeze to park hop!
Our Room Is Ready
When our room was ready we received a text message with our room number.? This made it easy to come back to our room without going back into the lobby. The keys that were provided to us at check-in were now good to use!
After reaching your room you can call and have your bags delivered. Disneyland is not like Disney World where your bags will be placed in your room while you’re gone. But they were prompt with their delivery. We had all of our stuff within 10 mins of our request.
Room with a view!
After playing at California Adventure we were excited to lay by the pool with drinks in hand and enjoy the more relaxing parts of our Disney vacation! Park exploring is hard work people!
Do you see these pillows?? I love them!? The one on the left bed reads “A dream is a wish your heart makes” and the right says “when you’re fast asleep”.? It doesn’t seem like much but it’s the details that make Disney so special!? The headboards at the Disneyland Hotel light up, have fireworks and play “when you wish upon a star”.? It’s simply magical!
Our room slept 5 with 2 queen beds and Disney’s signature convertible sofa. Not all rooms accommodate this many guests so make sure you’re specific in how many people are going! We added my mom to our travel plans after making the reservation so it had to be updated to ensure we would all fit!
Disneyland Hotel has three towers of rooms with varying views. The Fantasy Tower which is the main building with the lobby.? The Adventure Tower and the Frontier Tower.? We stayed in the Adventure Tower and had a nice view of Downtown Disney from the 6th floor.
In the evenings we were able to see the hustle bustle of the Disney nightlife and hear the music. The music was done by 10 pm or so and wasn’t an issue for sleeping kids or parents!
If you’re particular about your view you’re able to select it when you make your reservation. I wasn’t too particular and booked the standard room and just took what they gave me.
I hate to get a view of a parking lot or rooftop but sometimes I just deal! When you go as often as I do, I try not to be too picky and select the room that is the least expensive that fits our needs.
Occasionally I splurge for the best, but it’s not a regular thing for me. I’m more interested in going and going often than always having the best views or concierge service. To each their own! everyone’s priorities are different!
Adventure Tower Lobby
From the Adventure Tower Lobby, you can easily exit one side and be right at the pool and close to Trader Sam’s Grogg Grotto.? Which I highly recommend for fun food and drinks.? Or you can exit out the backside and be at the edge of Downtown Disney.
This greets you as you step off the elevator and head to your room.
You’ll find this Adventureland Mural on the pool side of the lobby.
This is the lobby on the backside of the Adventure Tower that leads towards Downtown Disney and has the elevators.
In Room Dining and Other Dining Options
My mom was traveling with us this time and I took advantage of the free vacation babysitting! Jeremy and I went on a date to Carthay Circle while the kids and my mom stayed in. There were so many great things about this arrangement!
There is an “In-Room” dining menu, aka room service but they decided against that and visited the quick service area by the pool for dinner.
They ordered it to go and enjoyed dinner in the room while entertaining themselves with endless Disney TV! Everyone has their own happy place! I for one can not sit still long enough to watch tv in a hotel room! Not when there is too much to explore so close by! Maybe this is why my children relished in this moment with their Nana!
Date Night at Carthay Circle
I realize this post is about staying at the Disneyland Hotel and not necessarily a play by play of our Disneyland vacation but I wanted to mention date night for one reason. The ease of it at Disneyland!
Yes, at Disney World you have the option for some great date nights at various resorts. Obviously how easy depends on where you’re staying. Table service meals are not available at the value resorts and signature dining is only at the Deluxe Resorts.
At Disneyland we had all options available to us within a 10-minute walk, even dining in the parks. I’ve had Carthay Circle on my list to try for a while so that’s what I chose. I was really interested in the nostalgia of the restaurant and trying out some of the signature drinks. It was a good choice! We loved it.
So to recap the day so you can understand just how easy it was!
- 9 am breakfast at?The Coffee House at the Disneyland Hotel
- 9:30 Pool with a drink in hand
- Noon – lunch by pool and second drink
- 1:30 – Disneyland by monorail (Monorail for fun! Not really necessary for transportation purposes.)
- 6:00 – Back to the room, shower dressed for dinner
- 8:30 – Carthay Circle in CA Adventure
- 10:30 – bed!
Such an easy Disney day doing ALL the things!
Disneyland Hotel Pool
Resort pool days are my favorite kind of days! There is just something so fantastically magical about laying by the pool at a nice resort with a drink in hand. The kids are playing happily and all is right in the world!
Our pool time at the Disneyland Hotel was just as I expected! It’s different than a pool day at home or at a normal hotel. It just has a different vibe. I highly recommend it!
Disneyland Hotel has two pools. One large pool for swimming, seen above and a second smaller pool and splash area with the slide.
There are two slides in that contraption above. Nothing too scary. The kids were entertained by it for about 45 mins and then wanted to go back to the big pool. It was a little chilly outside so they may have stayed longer had they been warmer waiting in line.
Both pool areas have cabanas that can be reserved which would be a great option on a hot and busy summer day. Other pool lounge chairs are on a first come first serve basis and I imagine will fill up pretty quickly on a warm summer day.
Poolside Magic the “Pool Bar”
The poolside bar and snack service were great. The menu had some fun items and everything we tried was good!
I always opt for a frozen drink when laying by the pool! I had the Fros? (shown above) and the Banana Cabana. Both were great!
For lunch, I enjoyed the shrimp tacos! They were some of the best I’ve had! I highly recommend them!
Our stay at the Disneyland Hotel was amazing!? If you’re visiting Disneyland soon I highly recommend staying here!? The views and amenities are great but mostly the ease of moving between your hotel and Disneyland/California Adventure makes this a great place to stay.
If you have questions about staying at Disneyland Hotel or your visit to Disneyland and California Adventure you can email me at jamie@LOTMV.com and I’d be happy to answer all of your questions!
