Hotel prices for summer keep dropping..

katyringo

DIS Veteran
Joined
Sep 21, 2017
I don’t want word to spread too much, hehe..

But hotel prices for summer keep dropping. 1 week ago my trip would have been $900 at Del all and now it’s $700...

I am SO interested to see how summer crowds play out.

I’ve never seen so much available at the Disney hotels when I’ve checked.
 
YES! This is the thread I've been looking for. So far, it really seems to be happening. Flash sales at off-site hotels. Ticket promo at GetAwayToday. A mid-late Summer promo at DLR hotels (from these new record rack-rates) would confirm it for me.

We'll be watching with interest. So far it feels like Carsland drew more tourists. Although I can remember ticket promos and discounts leading up to that opening. The best DLR ticket deal I ever got was a Carsland promo at Costco in 2012. So far this approach with SWGE is different.
 
Ugh, I wouldn’t mind seeing some discount for October for the Disneyland Hotel, I think the lowest rate (lowest standard view room) still was ~$489/night average across a five night stay (Sat check in Thur check out) and that’s before tax.
 
I saw this thread and checked for my dates 29 June to 3 July. I booked Motel 6 MainGate in November.

I am on the ART shuttle bus route and would only consider switching to the Harbour Boulevard Motels

I checked Desert Inn and Suites, Del Sol Inn, Best Western Plus Anaheim Inn, Grand Legacy at The Park, Tropicana Inn and Suites and all are in the $300 upwards MORE than my total for Motel 6, so I m not changing
 


My guess is a lot of out of town folks decided to wait for Rise of the Resistance to go. Also, Disney World’s GE opens in just a few months and I’m sure altered many plans to see Star Wars.
There’s also the constant talk of these legendary crowds gathering to see the land and that might just be keeping people hesitant to plan anything the first summer.
 
I used to Love staying at the DL Hotel.. but the absolute insane prices drove me away... now it’s gotten to the point where the best way to go is to stay offsite and eat offsite whenever possible... no one should have to justify a reason for going ... but the price gauging is really getting disgusting
 


I used to Love staying at the DL Hotel.. but the absolute insane prices drove me away... now it’s gotten to the point where the best way to go is to stay offsite and eat offsite whenever possible... no one should have to justify a reason for going ... but the price gauging is really getting disgusting
I would love to stay at one of the on site resorts just for fun, but there's no way I can pay those prices.
 
I absolutely hate the prices too and really debated going off site this year, but my preferred hotel chain is Hilton and they seem just far enough away that it wouldn’t be worth it. I love being able to just skip breakfast and walk right into the park and get something in there, or being able to “run” back to the hotel and change clothes (if I’m yucky from the heat or wet from a ride) and then be back in the park... usually in 20 to 30 min round trip. I also usually head back late at night (10pm or 11pm or even midnight depending when the park closes) and while it’s probably safe, I like the idea of being in downtown Disney all the way up to the DLH.

If they wanted to keep prices high, I just wish they would offer something on the back end, getting into one park early JUST for resort guests (alternate park that people with multi-day passes get in early at). That would be a HUGE win because every day for an hour you basically would only have a couple thousand people at most in the park. Or let guest into Star Wars an hour before everyone else, again just for the hotel guests, even if it’s just until the end of the year.

They’ve come through with last minute Halloween party tickets for me before, the staff is super amazing and genuinely pleasant and friendly, and the location is great, but man I wish there was one more major killer “no duh” perk that made the decision a no brainer.

(I’ve never tried the dining reservations because I usually have everything I need booked at ~60 days, but has anyone had luck booking same day or within a day or two primes spots; dessert party, Blue Bayou, etc)
 
It feels obscene that I'm budgeting USD250 per night for accommodation, so the thought of paying at least twice that for one of the 3 onsite hotels is unfathomable to me. Travelling from NZ is expensive enough as it is :D There seem to be so many nice hotels in super close proximity to DL, many that have free breakfast. Off-site's a no-brainer for me.
 
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If they wanted to keep prices high, I just wish they would offer something on the back end, getting into one park early JUST for resort guests (alternate park that people with multi-day passes get in early at). That would be a HUGE win because every day for an hour you basically would only have a couple thousand people at most in the park.

That’s exactly what they do every MWF and Sun with EMH at DCA. The only way to get access to EMH for DCA is to stay on site. It’s true that DL EMH is not as exclusive since it’s also MM but EMH at DCA is great and you can get a lot done.

(I’ve never tried the dining reservations because I usually have everything I need booked at ~60 days, but has anyone had luck booking same day or within a day or two primes spots; dessert party, Blue Bayou, etc)

I was able to get F! BB reservations last minute through onsite hotel when they did not show available on line. Back when they had the Anna & Elsa Boutique in DTD we also got reservations there twice when they were not otherwise available. Once was in an on-site hotel exclusive time slot an hour before it opened to the public. DD was the only one in there and it was awesome!
 
That’s exactly what they do every MWF and Sun with EMH at DCA. The only way to get access to EMH for DCA is to stay on site. It’s true that DL EMH is not as exclusive since it’s also MM but EMH at DCA is great and you can get a lot done.

I didn’t realize DCA didn’t have MM on the same days as EMH! I thought those two applied to both parks on the same days, which yes still cuts down traffic, but most people buy a multi day pass...
 
I snagged a closer (within walking distance) hotel last week for only $5 more total for our stay. Now I'm going to check again and see if there are even better deals for our dates :)
 
I didn’t realize DCA didn’t have MM on the same days as EMH! I thought those two applied to both parks on the same days, which yes still cuts down traffic, but most people buy a multi day pass...
DCA has MM on Sun, Mon, Wed, Fri. This is for DLR hotel guests only.
DL has EMH on Tues, Thurs, Sat. This is for DLR hotel guests and those with 3+ day hoppers they can use once.
 
I am staying at the Disneyland hotel for the first time this summer for 6 nights but keep looking at other hotels. Its weird that the offsite hotels that I normally stay at are closer. lol It makes it hard when all of these deals are happening, I could pay less and be closer? I do want the extra magic hours and I do want to explore this hotel, so I am going to suck it up. Its probably going to be a one and done for me no matter how much I love it.
 
I am staying at the Disneyland hotel for the first time this summer for 6 nights but keep looking at other hotels. Its weird that the offsite hotels that I normally stay at are closer. lol It makes it hard when all of these deals are happening, I could pay less and be closer? I do want the extra magic hours and I do want to explore this hotel, so I am going to suck it up. Its probably going to be a one and done for me no matter how much I love it.

It's at the end of the Downtown Disney walk (just a little past where the ESPN Zone used to be). It's a "protected" walk all the way to the hotel (on Disney property, past security, lit very well, no roads to cross or walk next to). It's approx. ~2300 feet from the DLH to the front turnstiles of Disneyland (so just about 0.4 miles). Based on Wikipedia the average walking speed of an older individual (so hopefully taking worst case) is about 2.8 mph, that means the walk is roughly 8 to 9 minutes and that matches about what I've seen. Five minutes is doable but usually 7 or so minutes with crowds and not wanting to get sweaty right from the get go in the morning sun :P (plus looking at downtown Disney shops). GCH distance is about half of that. If the monorail is running and that is an option for you, then it's about 500 feet from the monorail, so approx. 2 minutes walk at a relaxed pace.

I would assume waiting for the light at Harbor would basically make the time between the two about the same, but you lose the "magic" of walking along downtown Disney. I also find the security at that end of downtown Disney to be extremely fast (often walk right on through, sometimes one or two people in front of you)

Edit: I should also note that DLH is really easy and quick to drop bags at the bell hop and hit the parks on the day you check in (long before your room is ready), or at check out, and then leave the car parked after you check out and hit the parks all day before leaving. The other hotels probably offer that too, but Disney feels really secure and quick with that.
 
DCA has MM on Sun, Mon, Wed, Fri. This is for DLR hotel guests only.
DL has EMH on Tues, Thurs, Sat. This is for DLR hotel guests and those with 3+ day hoppers they can use once.
Just an FYI for people that you flipped the terms - EMH is for hotel guests, MM is at DL only and is for 3+ day ticket holders. So DCA never has a “MM,” only “EMH.”

The info is all the same, but the terms can be confusing.
 
I am staying at the Disneyland hotel for the first time this summer for 6 nights but keep looking at other hotels. Its weird that the offsite hotels that I normally stay at are closer. lol It makes it hard when all of these deals are happening, I could pay less and be closer? I do want the extra magic hours and I do want to explore this hotel, so I am going to suck it up. Its probably going to be a one and done for me no matter how much I love it.

Also, from my experience, if you buy your tickets AT the front desk they will code as travel on most credit cards, so if you have a credit card that offers bonus points for travel purchases it might be worth buying tickets when you check in (obviously not special event tickets though). Using my Chase Sapphire Reserve card a 5 day park hopper with MaxPass earns enough points for about $21 if I redeem for travel, which isn't too bad. (I don't know why buy I never feel ok buying the Disney tickets from the online retailers that discount them a little bit, so I always get them direct from Disney).
 

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