New to this board, a few ??

[MrsMud]

Hi all! I'm new to this board as this is the first time I am seriously considering a trip to DL. We have been to WDW twice and US/IOA twice, but never California! I just got the school schedule for next year and it looks like the first week of Oct. may be a good time to go. Our kids are off two days for Rosh Hashanah, and with weekends included we could have a 9 day vaca, and the kids would only miss 3 days of school. I have checked some of the hotel websites and prices are pretty cheap at that time of year. I am currently considering Candy Cane Inn, Ho Jo's and Park Vue. I am leaning toward getting the Citypasses, thus spending 3 days at DL and 1 each at Seaworld, San Diego Zoo, and Knott's.

I would appreciate any info or advice. Crowds and weather in Oct.? Itinerary? So far I am looking at doing DL for 3 days, driving to San Diego for 2 days than back up to the Anaheim area for Knotts -BTW, how far is Knott's in relation to DL? I have Su - Tues. for DL, Th and Fri. for Zoo and Seaworld and Sun (of Columbus Day weekend ) for Knott's. What do you think? Also, am I wrong in thinking most schools DON'T have off for the Jewish holiday? Any advice on hotels in San Diego?
Thanks, I really appreciate any input!

 

[daannzzz]

3 full days at the Disneyland resort should be fine. You can do 2 days at DL and one day at DCA. Knotts is about 4 mile north west of DL. The weather should be pretty nice though it can still get warm.
Cross the Park Vue off your list. It is not even in the same league as HoJo and Candy Cane both of which are great places to stay. HoJos has interior corridors and balconies in most rooms but no free breakfast. They also have two pools where as Candy Cane has one small one. Candy Cane has prettier rooms but no balconies. The gounds are pretty (as are HoJo's) and they have a good free breakfast. Candy Cane has their own private shuttle to and from the parks. HoJo's uses the ART shuttle that costs. Both places are a 7-10 minute walk to the parks. Park Vue is an older motel that was recently remodeled to a degree but it just doesn't compare to the toher two.

 

[bclydia]

I'd say that the three days are a good start for Disneyland. You should be able to do Disneyland in the 2 days suggested above and California Adventure in 1 day.
I recently stayed at the Howard Johnson (December) and while it was nice and clean and all that people say it is, I'd still rather stay at the Comfort Inn Maingate with my children. We were there in June and had a "kid's suite". It ran about $69 US a night but had a separate room with bunk beds for the kids, their own tv and activity table. It also included a continental breakfast. The main part of the suite had 2 queen beds. We loved that we could put the children to bed and close the door and not be forced to go to sleep ourselves. We even had my mother join us for a few days and stayin the other queen bed. Each room apparently sleeps up to 7. The ART shuttle bus stops just next door and only takes a few minutes. A pass for the 5 days was $9 for adults, I think. Also, each room has a small fridge and microwave. I found that I missed the extra space at the Hojo, the microwave and the free breakfast. Also, if you stay at the Comfort Inn, join their points club to earn free stays.
Hope that helps!
Have a great time!
Lydia

 

[MrsMud]

Thanks for the replies!
daannzzz... Sorry about that, I got confused looking at all the different hotels; it was the Park Place Inn that I looked into, not the Parkvue.
I like the looks of the Candy Cane, but it's about $25 more a night than Ho Jos, is it worth it? Does anyone know how the crowds generally are in early Oct.? Anything special going on that might bring in more people?
Thanks again!

 

[bunninose]

October is a great month to go - be sure to check the DL website for attractions that will be down for rehab, since October is off-season. It shouldn't be too bad, but just make sure you know in advance in case one of your sentimental favorites won't be open.

Crowds aren't too bad, compared with Summer and the Holidays. The weather can actually get pretty hot. The last few years we've had days in the 90's thru November. Sadly, it's just not predictable far enough in advance to help you much . It can rain in October, but it's certainly not common. Shorts & T-shirts, with sweatshirts in the locker ($3 - $7 depending on size - not bad at all for the convenience of getting in and out all day long)

I've had relatives stay at HoJo and Park Place. They've loved them for different reasons, so I think you'll be fine whichever way you go. Decide what's really important FOR YOU (free shuttle, free bkfst, lowest price, separate room for the kidlets, big pool, balcony off room, fridge/micro in room, closest to the Parks, etc) and just check them off and see which place wins your business.

Enjoy your stay in my wonderful state!

 

[daannzzz]

The Best Western Park Place Inn is also nice. We had a mini suite which was nice sized and comfortable though I could hear more noise from outside there than at HoJo and Candy Cane. The room decore was nice (better than Hojo) but there are no grounds at this hotel. The pool is small and wedged between to buildings and the parkinglot. The best thing about the Park Place Inn is it's location. It is the closest walk to the parks except for Disney's Grand Californian.
Here is a link to a map with the hotels on it.
http://www.beachcalifornia.com/dlmp.html

The Candy Cane is not listed on there but it is the U shaped place that is about a half an inch above the Four Points and the Holiday Inn Express.

All three places are great but my favorite is still the Hojo.

 

[LucyKate]

3 days at Disneyland is about right - we took 4, which lets us redo all our favourite rides, but 2days for DL and 1 for DCA will let you do just about everything.

We stayed at the Howard Johnson and loved it - I'd never consider staying anywhere else. 10 minutes walk, great rooms, wonderful staff and heated pool.

http://www.scottware.com.au/theme/feature/crowds.htm - the graphs here would indicate October is a superb time to visit - only Columbus Day has any sort of crowd.