Best areas/hotels to stay for a visit - from DFW (Los Angeles: restaurants, codes)

[Mommy24kids]

My family is traveling to Irvine in June 09 for a family reunion. We are staying at the Marriot for a few days but would like to travel to Anaheim late to enjoy Disneyland. What are the best places to stay that are economical for a family of 2 parents, 1 grandparent and 6 children.

We may also try to take a quick trip to Los Angeles while there.

Any suggesstions would be ever so helpful.

Michelle

[bmwguydc]

I would suggest looking for a hotel in and around the South Coast Plaza area, which is Costa Mesa/Santa Ana. It's generally less expensive than Irvine, yet not terribly far from Irvine, about 2 miles, and it's roughly 8-10 miles from Disneyland as well. You're close to the 405 freeway as well, so that will bring you right into Los Angeles, the west side of LA actually.

Some hotels to check in the area would include:

Comfort Suites John Wayne Airport
LaQuinta Inn South Coast
Hilton Costa Mesa
Doubletree Santa Ana/OC Airport
Doubletree Club OC Airport
Embassy Suites Santa Ana

The Comfort Suites and La Quintas will be a little bit lower in price and amenities. I think there's another LA Quinta nearby that's a La Quinta Suites and it might be in Santa Ana.

[bhcompy]

Near Disneyland there are quite a few hotels and you can probably find quite a few deals. I would suggest using an online reservation website like priceline and comparing to whatever you come up with direct from the hotel. There are two Ramada Inns I believe near there and they are very reasonably priced and adequately maintained. Not 4 star, but good enough.

Ayres is a local chain that provides large rooms that may be able to accommodate more people and for what you get(including a hot breakfast) may be worth it as well. You can score a room with 2 beds, a divider between the beds, and a couch or two(typically a couchbed) for the same price as a stay at the doubletree

[flo2900]

Originally Posted by Mommy24kids

My family is traveling to Irvine in June 09 for a family reunion. We are staying at the Marriot for a few days but would like to travel to Anaheim late to enjoy Disneyland. What are the best places to stay that are economical for a family of 2 parents, 1 grandparent and 6 children.

We may also try to take a quick trip to Los Angeles while there.

Any suggesstions would be ever so helpful.

Michelle

katella ave runs east-west by disneyland...the whole strip is filled with hotels and restaurants...do not need to drive!

[raisun]

Another hotel by Disneyland you might check into is the Howard Johnson on Harbor. They just went through a nice rehab and the rooms look good; and its not that expensive.

As bhcompy said, all your major chains are up there; hilton, marriot, etc, etc. If you are really into bargin hunting, I would also check out some of the disney fan message boards (mouseinfo.com, mouseplanet.com, etc - let me know if you want a more exhaustive list), several of the hotels advertise on these sites and offer discount codes if you're referred from one of the sites!

[BRinSM]

if you will be in the area over a weekend, i stongly encourage you to stay in or around john wayne airport. the hotels in that area cater mainly to business travelers, so weekend vacationers can you usually get very good deals at nice hotels. i stayed at the crowne plaza a few months ago and only paid $70. Although this area isn't next to Disneyland, it is certainly less than a 30 minute drive. Santa Monica/Venice are also less than an hour up the 405 as someone had mentioned earlier.

[bmwguydc]

Originally Posted by BRinSM

if you will be in the area over a weekend, i stongly encourage you to stay in or around john wayne airport. the hotels in that area cater mainly to business travelers, so weekend vacationers can you usually get very good deals at nice hotels. i stayed at the crowne plaza a few months ago and only paid $70. Although this area isn't next to Disneyland, it is certainly less than a 30 minute drive. Santa Monica/Venice are also less than an hour up the 405 as someone had mentioned earlier.

I agree with this advice, as I have gotten great deals in South Coast and Irvine. Plus, on the departure end of the trip, it's nice to be close to John Wayne, as opposed to having to commute, since one never knows what can happen on the freeways. It's great to stay near Disneyland, too, but the hotels there may not have the same level of discount, though you are close to Disney, which is a plus. You might even consider switching hotels on your last night to be closer to John Wayne, especially if your departure time is anywhere near a rush hour.

[mkward62]

The Holiday Inn-Anaheim Resort off Katella and the I-5 on South Manchester is where we stayed with our kids. We booked a corner suite room with King Bed and it was plenty of room for 4 of us. The kids slept on the pull out sofa bed. We had a mini fridge/sink and 2 tvs and the room was nice and large. I think we paid around $139 per night or so? There was a bus that picked up and dropped off for disneyland on the corner that was convienant and ran all day/evening. It is further away from the true "resort" area but the value was worth it.

On another note, if you truly want the disneyland experience you should stay 1-2 nights at the Disney Grand Californian. We absolutely loved everything about the hotel, however don't splurge and DO request a room with sound proof glass...not one on the boardwalk side where it is very noisy. You just have to walk through the lobby directly into California Adventure Park. The entrance for Disneyland is directly across from the public entrance/exit for California Adventure. It is pricey but worth the splurge.

Hope you have a good trip!