??s for those who have used pts for Disneyland stay

[jimmytammy]

DW presented me today with the idea of doing the marathon in sept at Disneyland. Now being that we have never traveled farther west than Nashville brings up ??s

Like....which hotel to use pts.? Definitely prefer onsite. How many days beyond the marathon to see both parks? Any other things I might be missing.

 

[JimC]

We just returned from DL. Four nights GC concierge on points. The resort is wonderful one of Disney's best themed resorts -- think Poly, WL or AKL. But the concierge level is not that spectacular. Services are minimal. The food in the lounge is quite good, but you can't possibly eat the difference in cost in free food. Overall I rate the concierge level as not worth the premium. Get a Theme park or DD view room and you will have a great time.

A four night stay is plenty for both parks, DD and enjoying resort amenities in the afternoons.

At the time we made our reservations the points worked out to an equivalent of a 20% discount from a cash rate.

Go to mousesavers to check park tickets discounts and compare to the DVC discounted AP. We bought discounted tickets from a link on Mousesavers then upgraded to the DVC DL AP for very little extra. The dining discounts and an additional visit early next year will make the extra dollars to upgrade a good decision for us.

 

[disgirl]

In 2004, we stayed at the GC also, not concierge though. We had a Californian Adventure Park view, which also gave us a nice view of the main pool with the slide. It is a beautiful hotel, a lot of points compared to the other onsite hotels, I believe. However, IMOH, it was the nicest hotel I have stayed in and was worth staying there on points. We were there for 4 nights but I do think 3 would be plenty to see it all. The closeness of DTD and the parks to the hotel was great and made for a less tiresome return back to the room each night. Good Luck and have fun planning. I am sure you will have a super time wherever you decide to stay!!

 

[KelNottAt]

We stayed at the GC on points prior to our DCL cruise this past June. We arrived before dinner on Thursday and spent the rest of that day at DTD. On Friday we experienced the highlights of a jam-packed DL until 2PM, swam until 4PM, ate dinner, then spent the evening at DCA. Saturday we were up and out early to head to the ship.

I'd say doing both parks in one day was not nearly enough time. Next time (if there ever is a next time) we'll probably allocate 2 days for DL and 1 day for DCA.

Have fun,

 

[wintergreen]

We stayed at the DL Hotel Concierge level on points a few years ago, and thoroughly enjoyed it. The room was very large, by Disney hotel standards, and the view of the fireworks from the Concierge Lounge was fabulous! Spent three days in the two parks, and felt like that was enough. If we make it out that way again, I'd like to try the GC.

 

[castleri]

Stayed at both GC and DLH in 2001 and DLH again this July- GC is very much like WL - DLH rooms were bigger and we had a full sized daybed in the DLH (I asked for it since we had 2 teens of opposite sex so needed three beds). Both trips they upgraded us to the pool view for no extra points. At the GC they sent up a mat to put on the floor and a sleeping bag- no rollaways there. If you stay at any of the 3 hotels you can use any of the 3 pools. Points for the DLH were lower this time around due to the 50th celebration. I would never pay the extra points again to stay at GC - we overlooked the entry way and parking lot and the room was the equivalent of a moderate at WDW. The main areas of it are beautiful and I think they have different views for different point levels but for me it wasn't what I expected. 3 days for doing both parks should be enough
and sometimes they have the buy a 2 day pass and get the 3rd day free. I got my passes from a ticket broker but can't remember which one now. Can't remember if it was someone on this site or on mousesavers that suggested it.

 

[jimmytammy]

Thanks for all the replies!!

 

[wdwstar]

we have ressies at the DL hotel using points for this coming easter and DVC lowered the points for that hotel only about 10 points per night until the end of 2006. we have never been to DL so i couldnt tell you anything about the hotels except DL hotel you can have up to 5 people per room.

 

[tmt martins]

Stayed at PP in june very nice not bad walk.
watch fireworks from pooldeck best seat in the house

 

[winjos]

We've stayed at the PP ('02) and the GC - concierge level, DCA view ('04 - points).
PP: Nice hotel if you get a nice view. We were celebrating our DD's 1st bd (March) and they upgraded us to a DCA view. It was spectacular. The walk to the parks is not too bad. We had booked the room for about $99. They were running a special on expedia.

GC: We stayed on points because we had extra points and our DS was only 3 months old and we didn't want to fly from CA to FL.
1) Thought the rooms would be bigger
2) Enjoyed the concierge lounge. We visited it many times during the day and evening (great cheese and wine!!). We would eat a big lunch at the parks and then snack at the lounge during the rest of the day.
3) Paid a lot of points (~108 for two nights). I called a couple weeks before our stay to confirm our reservation. The cast member told me the price of the room we had booked ($350 each night) and it was significantly lower than the point to $ ratio used on these boards. We are talking about $300+ difference.
4) Love the entrance to DCA --- very convenient!!!

The GC does run specials, however it is difficult to book a room. If you want to experience the hotel (very nice ambience and decorations), points may be the easiest way.

Regarding the parks... With the 50th anniversary, the parks are very busy. They are heavily advertising the parks in the So.Cal area. So, there will be a lot of locals there. I would say 2 hard days (commando style) and 1 casual day (revisit what you missed). DCA is usually less crowded than DL. However, we've seen 4+ hour waits for the rapid ride!!

Enjoy!

PS: the points for DLH are lower during the 50th celebration -- may be worth it!