Disneyland first timers

So our family has been to WDW several times including as recently as last week lol. So inevitably on the long drive home we begin planning the next trip and DL is a place we’ve wanted to go for awhile as it will all be new to us. We even have a potential travel time in August that appears to be a sweet spot for crowds when California schools are back in but ours are not and many AP have blockouts.

So now the lodging question, which compared to WDW seems overwhelming. We have 5 in our group, 3 adult and 2 kids and would either need 2 rooms or a suite of some kind. Onsite looks prohibitively expensive so whats our best offsite options? Bonus points for great pool and/or water park. Thanks!

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I’m going to refer you to these vloggers! They do video reviews of a lot of the DLR hotels in the area… Really informative and honest!

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The Unofficial Guide has lots of good lodging info. :laughing:

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Good news is that you also have lots of suite choices offsite so will easily be able to accomodate 5. I will.post some of my favorite reviews later.

I used to be an avid DLR goer, but now we moved away so I had to book a hotel. I was super overwhelmed too do I ended up reaching out to Touring Plans travel agency. They found me a two-bedroom suites for a really good deal (and tickets). So if you are getting too overwhelmed, I think it’s a great option. (This is not sponsored by touring plans or anything, I am just planning so many trips this year that I thought someone else could take care of the Disneyland part).

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Thanks all for the replies. Maybe a TA would be helpful in this situation. I also did order the unofficial guide for DL as I have a gift card for a large online seller. Luckily theres plenty of time to figure it out.

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Camelot Inn and Suites has very large family suites. Just one bathroom though, so adjoining rooms may be a better option for your group. Like most motels/hotels on Harbor it’s older, but it was refurbished a few years ago. The pool is very small and unimpressive but fireworks are visible from there.

Courtyard and Howard Johnson probably have the best pools if that’s important to you.

Lodging can be overwhelming since there are so many nearby options. When looking at a map, ignore how close the hotel may be to the nearest ride. You probably can’t get in that way. Look at the distance to the esplanade. When you’re used to WDW it’s pretty mind blowing how close you can get.

Here’s another thread where we discussed this topic a few months ago. All the frequent DL visitors on the forum commented with their thoughts. Hopefully this is helpful!

This post in particular is very thorough!

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