Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
9. ROOM UPGRADES
Sometimes a room upgrade is as good as a discount. If you're
visiting Disneyland Resort during a slower time, book the least expensive room your
discounts will allow. Checking in, ask very politely about being upgraded to a pool
view room. A fair percentage of the time, you will get one at no additional charge.
NON-DISNEY HOTELS
WHEN WALT DISNEY BUILT DISNEYLAND,
he did not have the funding to include hotels
ortopurchasethepropertysurroundinghisthemepark.Consequently,theareaaround
the park developed in an essentially uncontrolled manner. Many of the hotels and mo-
tels near Disneyland were built in the early 1960s, and they are small and sometimes
unattractive by today's standards. Quite a few motels adopted adventure or fantasy
themes in emulation of Disneyland. As you might imagine, these themes from five
decades ago seem hokey and irrelevant today. There is a disquieting (though rapidly
diminishing) number of seedy hotels near Disneyland, and even some of the chain
properties fail to live up to their national standards.
If you consider a non-Disney-owned hotel in Anaheim, check its quality as re-
ported by a reliable independent rating system such as those offered by the Unoffi-
cial Guides, AAA Directories, Mobil Guides, or Frommer's guides. Also, before you
book, ask how old the hotel is and when the guest rooms were last refurbished. Be
aware that almost any hotel can be made to look good on a website, so don't depend
