kef0913

Just got back from this hotel - I succumbed to the evil beast and took the family to Disneyland. Here's my impressions.

The hotel is definitely aging. The floor we were on actually sloped slightly. Rooms are standard - more tourist class than high end. 3* is more for location and hotel amenities than quality.

The staff was very conscientous and friendly, with the exception of the executive lounge. Almost everyone we spoke with mentioned my gold status and seemed eager to please. The exec. lounge desk person was polite, but the attendants seemed harried and somewhate rude. Evening hors d'ouevres consisted of wontons and dipping sauce and a little cheese and crackers. They ran out very quickly. Breakfast was sweet rolls, bagels and cream cheese and cereal boxes. This too, ran out very quickly. The staff seemed overworked and given the number of people in the executive lounge, either they were allowing anyone in, or they sold some sort of special that included lounge access to too many people.

Parking is $11/day and the shuttle to Disney is $3/day. Beware of restaurant recommendations from the Concierge desk. They sent us to a sushi bar that was little better than food court food and was at The Block in Orange (a mall).

We paid $119/night and I felt this was fair, but not a great deal. I see that the hotel regularly goes for up to $200 and sometimes as low as $79.$200 seems quite high to me.

Hope that helps.

Keith

AndrewPTLM

Taking my daughter to see Mickey during spring break.
Any advice for Hilton Anaheim?
How is the Vacation Station? Executive lounge ok?
Thanks in advance.
(I'm sure there were comments on this prop in FT. Unfortunately the search function is not working and google doesn't seem to give what I want).

Jeeves

You might want to check the Anaheim Convention and Visitors Association calendar to see what's going on while you are there. If there is a big convention going on, your room rate will be quite high and the place will be very busy. You can usually figure out how busy they are based on the room rate they want to charge you. During slower periods, they might charge you less than $100 per night but when they have a convention going on, the room rates start pushing $200 per night.

I think the facility overall is pretty good. The Executive Lounge can get busy and finding a seat at breakfast can be a problem during peak times. It does have a good northerly view of Disney - a good place to watch fireworks if your room doesn't face north.

You can walk to the Disney parking lot between the Hilton and the convention center. You can then jump on the Disney parking tram and avoid paying for Disney parking or the $3.00 per person Anaheim Transit Trolley. Obviously, not a big cost saving but something you might not be aware of.

The rooms vary quite a bit. Some need upgrading. Parking costs about $13/day in a somewhat confusing multi-level garage.

Overall, I like the place when the price is right.

wilp888

You should try to get one of the Lanai (I think that's what they call it) rooms. It's on the 5th or 6th floor and they have their own private patio.

SEA_Tigger

It's one of my favorite Hiltons, actually, in terms of service.

The Lanai Rooms are very nice, but can be loud with folks enjoying themselves outside your door.

The Executive Floor rooms are very nice. Paid for my room (was a Silver) and the rate they charged me ended up being $70 less then the rate quoted. ^

Executive Lounge was nice, but didn't spend too much time there as it was during a convention and it was always packed.

flyinbob

Jeeves is right about checking the AVCB schedule. I was over at Downtown Disney and Disneyland this morning for an hour or so and it was pretty tame, spring breakers not yet in full force I guess. But the overhead road signs warned of heavy traffic due to a Natural Products convention this weekend. As the Hilton is virtually attached to the convention center, check the calendar. http://www.anaheimconventioncenter.com/events.cfm

jdn

I'm pretty sure it is the 5th floor, and I don't think "private" is the right word to describe the public "deck" area shared by the whole hotel that you have a sliding glass door to access from your room. Don't get me wrong, I like them, but private isn't the right word. Also, if you are in a lanai room, you will not be able to see anything other than hotel rooms and sky, as the rooms go up another floor or two enclosing the space. If you want a "theme park view" you won't get this on the lanai.

So far this Hilton is the only one I've been to as a Gold, so I can't compare. I would say the lounge is friendly and comfortable, but not plush. If you want a couch, check out the lobby or 2nd floor.

I would have to say that if you are getting 2 rooms (as opposed to sharing with your youngin), ask for connecting rooms, and ask if one of them can be a corner connecting room. I had this once, and the corner room is a little larger, and the big windows are nice to look out from. Also, the connecting door is towards the end of the room as opposed to right near the front door.

I didn't know about the disney parkinglot trick. I will have to check that out next time I go visit Mickey!

wilp888

There is a whole wing of Lanai rooms facing away from the "public deck" where the private patio is an extension of your room and nobody else has access to it unless they climb the wall. It's a pretty long walk from the elevators. I think they face the parking lot but you can see the fireworks at night from the patio. The only drawback is that people from the upper floor can look down onto your patio.

LLM

FYI, the fireworks are on hiatus.

SAGA

Any idea for how long?

flyinbob

Check Disneyland.com for all park updates, but you can expect most things to be back in operation by May, when Disney starts their 50th anniversary year celebration.

AndrewPTLM

Thanks for all of the helpful information.
Just checked the dates I wanted. At $89 per night, it is a steal.
I'm IN.
Again, thanks.

Macken7

I took my daughter (Age 9) to Disneyland for her vacation breaks this past February and in April 2004.

The first time we had the fifth floor. We were able to see the fireworks partially, that is from the outside deck of our room and also from the executive lounge. The pool is on this floor negating to have to take an elevator to/from the swimming pool. The pool is nice and it is heated.

The second time we opted to stay on the executive lounge floor, which we requested at check-in. If your getting the $89 dollar rate that would indicate that there is no significant convention activity on your dates. On our second trip for the first day we went to HoJo’s to avoid the $190 rate for the first night and it was inconvenient to change hotels after the first day. The advantage was that you go by the lounge every time that you use the elevator. You can grab something cold to drink coming and going. My daughter liked to make hot chocolate, which made her day. Small things can go a long way.  We even had some cookies several nights. Some of the appetizers may not appeal to all kids.

Second time we waited a while at the Hilton desk, but no one came over to help us. So we ended up checking in at the main lobby. One night we were late for the Café Oasis Restaurant by about ten minutes and they were very gracious in going out of there way to give us something to eat for our room.

Both times we went to the Hilton VacationStation desk and requested and received a welcome gift of I guess you would call it a small accessory type bag with a strap, which we used to fit in the all important autograph book, pen, camera and Disneyland information. Was especially good for those rides where you don’t want to lose control of your belongings.

There is a McDonald’s and Millie’s Restaurant, where you can collect IDINE/Reward points across the street from the front of Disneyland. Meant to go out the back way and try those trams, but the bus was rather convenient and never did try that approach.

The website mousesaver.com has some interesting information including a nice plug for the Hilton Anaheim.

safetymom

Does anyone know of any discounts for the Hilton Anaheim? I used AAA but hoping there is something out there for a better rate. Thanks.

JDiver

Check the Embassy Suites Buena Park for Dizzyland - they have a van to Disneyland, it's near Knott's Berry Farm, has a nice pool, is family friendly and can often be had relatively inexpensively.