What hotels are similar to Howard Johnson in Anaheim?

[Walt Disney1955]

In early September I am going to Southern California. Obviously Disneyland (first time) is on the agenda. The hotel I already have booked is the Howard Johnson located practically across the street from Disneyland. They pride themselves in being associated very much with Disneyland. The problem is for a 9 night stay my total is $1,670. It is affordable compared to the Disneyland hotels of course, but is there another hotel on that strip (within walking distance) that is just as good and has that Disney feeling to it?

If I could save a few dollars I will. Thanks.

 

[WDW1974]

If my math isn't off isn't that like $170 someodd a night? Is that one room or two?

You could use Priceline.com's bidding service ... I have seen folks get hotels like the Marriott Anaheim Suites and the Crowne Plaza Garden Grove (have stayed at both and are wonderful) for $45-60 recently. That's a big difference. Both are about 1 1/2 miles from DL down on Harbor Blvd and feature regular transport to the parks (although it is through the city's resort transport, ART, which charges a nominal fee and you can buy tickets for as long as a week).

I'd do that waaaaay before I'd pay $170 for HoJo's/

 

[WDWFigment]

The HoJo does a great job with marketing, which is why it's so prominent in Disneyland circles. I've never stayed at the HoJo, but several Disneyland vets I know think it's overrated--and loud (it's right by the freeway).

Our go-to hotel around Disneyland is Anaheim Desert Inn & Suites. It's closer than the HoJo and is usually cheaper. It's nothing special, but it's not terrible, either. If you go a little further away, though, you can get much cheaper rooms. All depends upon what you're looking for.

I'm sure some day we'll do the HoJo, as it frequently has $59/night "retro rates," but I'd never pay over $100/night there.

 

[Californian Elitist]

You can actually stay closer to Disneyland for cheaper, I'm sure, at the Desert Inn.

Edit: Tom has already mentioned it.

 

[NemoRocks78]

The HoJo really isn't worth it. It's quite a trek from the crosswalk vs. the other hotels in the area. Best Western Anaheim Inn is my go-to place, but I've also stayed at Desert Inn and enjoyed it. There's really not a bad hotel around there.

 

[Walt Disney1955]

The HoJo does a great job with marketing, which is why it's so prominent in Disneyland circles. I've never stayed at the HoJo, but several Disneyland vets I know think it's overrated--and loud (it's right by the freeway).

Our go-to hotel around Disneyland is Anaheim Desert Inn & Suites. It's closer than the HoJo and is usually cheaper. It's nothing special, but it's not terrible, either. If you go a little further away, though, you can get much cheaper rooms. All depends upon what you're looking for.

I'm sure some day we'll do the HoJo, as it frequently has $59/night "retro rates," but I'd never pay over $100/night there.

Fair enough. The Hojo seems to pride itself in being a sister hotel for Disneyland in a way. They say you can see the fireworks from the pool area. Now, I am assuming there are several hotels around that area that can make that claim legitimately but I am just wondering how accurate it is. I also assume any hotel around that area would sell the hopper passes for relatively the same price.

Thanks for the info, everyone. I will look into it a bit more. As it stands, my wife and I are in a room with two double beds, hehe, so that isn't the best option. But I just wanted badly to at least book something in the area. We will do three days at Disney, one at Universal and the rest of the time split the days between the beaches/Hollywood, etc. Maybe have a down day if the hotel is alright.

If there is anything else you can add, go for it. Thanks.

 

[KeithVH]

Wow, that's more than twice what we paid last year (per nite). It does have redeeming qualities. It's clean and has consistent quality. And the non-tower rooms are pretty darn big, especially with those half-dome ceilings. And Mimi's is on the way both ways to/from the park. But definitely not worth that price; not when Paradise Pier is what, ~$200/nite (don't quote me on that, need to check)?

Candy Cane is another reputable location right on the corner around from the bus depot. However, I always have this impression it is less accessible. But decent prices for a decent room.

 

[Californian Elitist]

If there is anything else you can add, go for it. Thanks.

First of all I want to say I'm happy you're venturing out of theme parks in California. There's A LOT more to California than just theme parks.

As far as suggestions go, I would suggest going to the Disney Soda Fountain on Hollywood and Highland, the Grove and Farmer's Market. These are some of my favorite places to go and anyone can enjoy them.

 

[WDW1974]

The HoJo does a great job with marketing, which is why it's so prominent in Disneyland circles. I've never stayed at the HoJo, but several Disneyland vets I know think it's overrated--and loud (it's right by the freeway).

Our go-to hotel around Disneyland is Anaheim Desert Inn & Suites. It's closer than the HoJo and is usually cheaper. It's nothing special, but it's not terrible, either. If you go a little further away, though, you can get much cheaper rooms. All depends upon what you're looking for.

I'm sure some day we'll do the HoJo, as it frequently has $59/night "retro rates," but I'd never pay over $100/night there.

HoJo's was the first to get in bed (so to speak) with the blogger/fansite community. I recall them being the official hotel for LP.com MANY moons ago. It also was the first hotel I ever stayed at in Anaheim on my first visit way back in 1990 (what were you Tom? six? ... sorry, just had a MAJOR B-Day!) ... It was so long ago that they still had an old HoJo's restaurant that had been turned into a Bob's Big Boy (it's basically where the front parking lot is now) and I had a club sandwich and the bacon was dry and ... I'm even sounding old now!!!

It's biggest plus was the room was huge and looked across at the Matterhorn. It was great. But not much beyond that and nice pools. Went back twice in the 90s and rooms had been updated and the Santa Ana freeway had been expanded almost on top of the place. It's OK, but I will never get the love for it that many Disney Dweebs (shout out to Mr. New Hampshire himself!) have.

I just became hooked on Priceline.com in the late 90s and have stuck with it (spending $15 a night for the Anaheim Marriott for two weeks about a decade ago certainly helped!) I see many folks staying at these little independent or mom and pop places for 2-3 even four times what I can get a nice chain place for on PL.com and don't quite get that.

 

[Walt Disney1955]

The HoJo does a great job with marketing, which is why it's so prominent in Disneyland circles. I've never stayed at the HoJo, but several Disneyland vets I know think it's overrated--and loud (it's right by the freeway).

Our go-to hotel around Disneyland is Anaheim Desert Inn & Suites. It's closer than the HoJo and is usually cheaper. It's nothing special, but it's not terrible, either. If you go a little further away, though, you can get much cheaper rooms. All depends upon what you're looking for.

I'm sure some day we'll do the HoJo, as it frequently has $59/night "retro rates," but I'd never pay over $100/night there.

I actually made a reservation to Desert Inn last night. Probably going to cancel the Hojo one. I was told they allow guests to sit atop the roof and watch the fireworks at night. That's a nice touch. The total was $200 less than Hojo but still a decent $1,400 and change. I'll still keep an ear to the ground

 

[WDWFigment]

I actually made a reservation to Desert Inn last night. Probably going to cancel the Hojo one. I was told they allow guests to sit atop the roof and watch the fireworks at night. That's a nice touch. The total was $200 less than Hojo but still a decent $1,400 and change. I'll still keep an ear to the ground

Desert Inn is nice, but I wouldn't pay that much for it. (I've never seen it anywhere CLOSE to that price...I hope Cars Land didn't cause the off-site hotels to raise their rates.)

I'm willing to pay a bit of a premium for the location, but if money matters, you might look a little further away or use one of the bidding sites. There are ways to game sites like Hotwire--check out betterbidding.com.

 

[wiigirl]

You can actually stay closer to Disneyland for cheaper, I'm sure, at the Desert Inn.

Edit: Tom has already mentioned it.

I have stayed there...not bad...

 

[Walt Disney1955]

I have stayed there...not bad...

Alright did some checking. The Ayres Inn, 3 miles from Disneyland, is about $600 cheaper than the Desert Inn and the Hojo. That is insane. The place looks pretty good too. There is some kind of discount happening right now though.

So here is the question, does anyone have some information on the Ayres Inn? The location is not what I was thinking about but shaving off that amount of money is hard to pass up. They still have the hopper tickets there and there is still a shuttle twice an hour to Disneyland. Do I pass this up or is it worth getting a hotel on Harbour Blvd. to experience a bit more of a Disney feeling? (eg. see fireworks from your window

 

[NemoRocks78]

Alright did some checking. The Ayres Inn, 3 miles from Disneyland, is about $600 cheaper than the Desert Inn and the Hojo. That is insane. The place looks pretty good too. There is some kind of discount happening right now though.

So here is the question, does anyone have some information on the Ayres Inn? The location is not what I was thinking about but shaving off that amount of money is hard to pass up. They still have the hopper tickets there and there is still a shuttle twice an hour to Disneyland. Do I pass this up or is it worth getting a hotel on Harbour Blvd. to experience a bit more of a Disney feeling? (eg. see fireworks from your window

$600 is a huge amount to save, heh. I would sure do it if I could push that $600 towards something else. I've never stayed there but I've been in front of it a couple times (on the way to events at the Honda Center across the street) and it looks like a pretty nice place. The area isn't bad, either. If you're cool with the shuttle and want to save the money, I'd say go for it.

 

[Californian Elitist]

I say save your money too. You could spend that on souvenirs and goodies around the rest of California.

 

[Nicole]

We are staying there the week between Christmas and New Years (at the HoJo) and I think I'm paying $137 a night - it's a rate I got through the Mousesavers website (or maybe newsletter??) Have you tried going that route?

 

[WDW1974]

Alright did some checking. The Ayres Inn, 3 miles from Disneyland, is about $600 cheaper than the Desert Inn and the Hojo. That is insane. The place looks pretty good too. There is some kind of discount happening right now though.

So here is the question, does anyone have some information on the Ayres Inn? The location is not what I was thinking about but shaving off that amount of money is hard to pass up. They still have the hopper tickets there and there is still a shuttle twice an hour to Disneyland. Do I pass this up or is it worth getting a hotel on Harbour Blvd. to experience a bit more of a Disney feeling? (eg. see fireworks from your window

Is it the one across from The Honda Center formerly The Arrowhead Pond formerly The Pond? If so, that place is VERY nice (or was in the past) and is MUCH better than either Desert Inn or HoJos, by quite a margin even forgetting a $600 savings, which to me is significant.

 

[Walt Disney1955]

Is it the one across from The Honda Center formerly The Arrowhead Pond formerly The Pond? If so, that place is VERY nice (or was in the past) and is MUCH better than either Desert Inn or HoJos, by quite a margin even forgetting a $600 savings, which to me is significant.

Well I booked that one and am unable to cancel it, so I guess I am going. Can't go wrong for $900. I will cancel the Hojo now.

 

[WDW1974]

How many nights is that $900 for?

 

[Californian Elitist]

Well I booked that one and am unable to cancel it, so I guess I am going. Can't go wrong for $900. I will cancel the Hojo now.

Very good.