Looking for a place that requires no passport? Go to Disneyland...and that is a big statement coming from this Floridian who has always enjoyed going to Disney World. We really loved the trip because the California Adventure Park has many rides and attractions we don't have at our Florida parks, the weather is amazing, and the layout of the entire Disneyland parks/resorts is fantastic.
Statues at the front entrance - the boy were dressed in their suits when we arrived and ready to start swimming.
So, while you're there, where should you stay? My family and I stayed at the Disneyland Hotel. It is one of three hotels on Disneyland's property. There were pros and cons to this hotel. We selected this hotel for the pool. I thought the family would pick the Grand Californian. Yet, the boys thought the newly done pool at Disneyland Hotel was the selling point. Well, I'm sad to report that the pool was a disappointment.
I'll expand on the pool a bit. And maybe it's the fault of the state we live, but in Florida pools are “done right”. Even local neighborhood pools have fancy water slides, water falls, lazy rivers, lap lanes, etc. So when my boys read there was a monorail with slides at this hotel, it was there first choice. Honestly, it's lame. The boys were done with the slide area in five minutes...yes, five minutes...that's not good for a day planned to play at the pool. Additionally, the slide area is gated in a separate from the pool. So if you wanted to watch your kids, you couldn't really find a chair to sit and watch. As an adult you were going back and forth from the slide area to the pool area. So why are the slides lame? It's a faux monorail, and it does nothing! We weren't expecting a real monorail. Yet, in this day and age when designs are awesome and technology is great, one would think this newly done slide area could have been special.
The price of the rooms does not match the quality of the rooms. But that's the way it is if you want to stay on property. (Travel tip: Disney World is so spread out that you almost need to stay on property if visiting for a week out of town. However, Disneyland is very small in comparison and staying off property would work nicely. Do some research on this and weigh the value with location.) The rooms do have musical firework lights on the headboard. They also play a lullaby. This is a special feature of the room...and about the only special feature.
This is the headboard of the beds. The fireworks are made of little lights that you can turn on.
This photo shows just how "standard" the room was.
Bathroom was tiny...good luck with getting 4 people ready in there.
TravelLady Rating: Convenience is the biggest reason to stay here. It is so close to the parks that it really relieves some of the stress and commotion of the day. We did love the simple walk to Downtown Disney. Per my tip above, you can find off-property hotels with similar convenience.