Walking Distance Hotels

[EddieK76]

We are WDW people but thinking about going to Disneyland over Fall Break.

Right now Castle Inn and Suites is the cheapest but we don't know anything about the quality. We won't be spending a super amount of time as we are thinking of this

Or we could do the Howard Johnson Water Playground for 400 total more or the Westin for 400 more than the Castle Inn. When we go to WDW we are DVC members so only stay at Deluxe Resorts. If anyone has any other insight on hotels or certain ones to look at let me know.

Monday--Park
Tuesday--Park
Wednesday--Hollywood Backot Tour
Thursday--Park or Ooogie Boogie Bash (swap previous park days for the OBB)
Friday--Fly Back

We'd likely only come back to the room to sleep at night and for a bit during the day.

Also,

 

[Hobbes]

Look for Anaheim Park Tourist on Youtube-they have made videos of lots of the Harbour Boulevard hotels. then when you have further questions, come back here and ask Crystal-she is Anaheim Park Tourist (well one half! ) Rudy Having Fun on Youtube also does a few hotel vlogs so might be helpful to watch

 

[sophy1996]

Most of the walkable places are going to be motel-style, so more comparable to All-Stars then deluxe. Nothing wrong with them, but they likely won’t be what you’re used to. If you really don’t care and won’t spend much time there, then I’d save the money. But if you want something more upscale, look at the Westin. That’s where we stay most of the time when we aren’t on property.

PS-if Fall Break means October, be aware that this is right up there with Christmas/New Year’s as the busiest time at DLR. WDW people often don’t realize just how busy October is at DLR.

 

[EddieK76]

Most of the walkable places are going to be motel-style, so more comparable to All-Stars then deluxe. Nothing wrong with them, but they likely won’t be what you’re used to. If you really don’t care and won’t spend much time there, then I’d save the money. But if you want something more upscale, look at the Westin. That’s where we stay most of the time when we aren’t on property.

PS-if Fall Break means October, be aware that this is right up there with Christmas/New Year’s as the busiest time at DLR. WDW people often don’t realize just how busy October is at DLR.

Thank you. Yes, that would be the last week of October. We are used to crowds as we regularly frequent WDW during Spring Break, Thanksgiving or Xmas time....

Is the Westin really walking distance as it appears to be very close to DCA???

 

[sophy1996]

Thank you. Yes, that would be the last week of October. We are used to crowds as we regularly frequent WDW during Spring Break, Thanksgiving or Xmas time....

Is the Westin really walking distance as it appears to be very close to DCA???

Yes, it’s about 5-7 minutes farther than Disney’s Paradise Pier hotel. I think we timed the Westin walk to be just under 15 minutes from door to security checkpoint at DTD.

 

[BroadwayHermione5]

We really enjoyed the Fairfield Marriot on Harbour Blvd but were jealous of the courtyard next door for their water playground and pool size! Loved Fairfield though!

Howard Johnson has been undergoing some awesome refurbs from what I’ve seen online and on social media!

 

[godfather927]

We are WDW people but thinking about going to Disneyland over Fall Break.

Right now Castle Inn and Suites is the cheapest but we don't know anything about the quality. We won't be spending a super amount of time as we are thinking of this

Or we could do the Howard Johnson Water Playground for 400 total more or the Westin for 400 more than the Castle Inn. When we go to WDW we are DVC members so only stay at Deluxe Resorts. If anyone has any other insight on hotels or certain ones to look at let me know.

Monday--Park
Tuesday--Park
Wednesday--Hollywood Backot Tour
Thursday--Park or Ooogie Boogie Bash (swap previous park days for the OBB)
Friday--Fly Back

We'd likely only come back to the room to sleep at night and for a bit during the day.

Also,

We are in the same boat as you and decided on the Westin. Sounds like it's a 20 min walk in through DTD and a bit shorter leaving because we can cut through the GC.

 

[bwvBound]

Sorry for the obvious question: but are you also stalking/waitlisting DVC at the Grand Cal?
I'm hoping you are working two plans:

a) DVC at the Grand Cal by hook or by crook​

b) off-site hotel as backup plan​

 

[Pluto468]

Depending on your budget and size of your party, you could also keep an eye on the resort hotels because they often have discounts. I've seen prices less than or the same as off-property hotels before.

If you might want to be right across the street from the Disneyland entrance, look into theses hotels. They are all less than a 5 minute walk:

Best Western Park Place Inn
Park Vue
Tropicana
Best Western Anaheim Plus Inn
Camelot Inn

Also, do look for Anaheim Park Tourist's videos on youtube. Crystal and her husband do a great job with room tours and reviews of their overnight experience.

 

[crystal1313]

If you are used to staying at deluxe at WDW, I would lean towards the Westin. It’s a beautiful hotel and we absolutely loved it there. The walk is not bad at all and the service was top notch. We had a better stay there than we did at the GCH. Have a wonderful trip!!

 

[ClaraOswald]

If you don't mind motel style, there are a lot of hotels within minutes of the crosswalk on Harbor. I feel like if you want nicer places, you typically need to have a longer walk, like the Westin, or stay on-site.

 

[ter-moo]

My favorite walking distance motel is the Candy Cane Inn. You could also check out any of the nicer chain hotels that are easy to walk from that are near the corner of Katella and Harbor:
Springhill Suites Convention Center
Marriott Convention Center
Hyatt House
Hotel Indigo
Residence Inn Convention Center

 

[kristensideaoffun]

As others have said, most walking level hotels are motels and not comparable to a WDW Deluxe Resort. We are Bonvoy members and have stayed at every Marriott chain that is walking distance to the parks.

If you’re looking for a full-service hotel, the Westin (our #1 full-service) and the JW (#2) would be the best ones. Both are beautiful hotels, but I prefer the Westin as it has more variety when it comes to dining amenities and the walk is much more pleasant. I also like the design of the rooms better at the Westin. Last time we were upgraded to a GORGEOUS studio overlooking the hotel entrance and the Incredicoaster with and entire wall of sliding windows that opened to a Juliette balcony. But you can definitely feel the walk to both of them by the end of the day. Before we had our youngest (and before the Westin was complete), we would Uber back to the JW to save our feet at the end of the night.

Other favorites are (in order with our favorite being the Courtyard):
1) Courtyard Theme Park Entrance - HUGE, clean rooms with two showers, actual table with seating for meals in the room, waterpark, great service, and short walk 5-7 minute walk.
2) Residence Inn Convention Center - Huge, clean rooms with kitchens, nice rooftop pool area with large hot tub, fire pits and plenty of seating, bar in the lobby, free breakfast with good variety of food and large breakfast area that doesn’t feel overcrowded, great service, short 10-12 minute walk (could be shorter if you get all the green lights and are good at weaving in and out of people). They also used to allow you to use the neighboring Springhill Suites rooftop deck for fireworks viewing, not sure if this is still offered.
3) Springhill Suites Convention Center - Big rooms (although this hotel was built at the same time as the RI, I find the rooms to be showing wear more quickly), free breakfast with good variety (but much smaller b-fast area that often feels very crowded and squished together), postage stamp size rooftop swimming pool, rooftop fireworks viewing are, 10 minute walk. They used to allow you to use the pool at the neighboring RI, not sure if this is still offered.
4) Fairfield Inn - Small rooms (but they are clean), quick 5 min walk, no free breakfast (although Panera, Mimi’s and McDonalds are right there), small pool (you’ll end up with pool envy looking at the Courtyard. This is usually the lowest price out for the bunch, but it also significantly lacks in amenities. It also built like a motel with exterior corridors so it is much noisier.

I’ve also stayed at the Marriott and Sheraton by the Convention Center and the Courtyard further down Harbor, but they are just too far for us to consider staying at again, even with being able to walk into the Toy Story lot to hop on the shuttle.