Is it worth it to stay with Disney?

[cellarhound]

I think it depends on what it is you want with your Disney Experiance...

The Disneyland Hotel is more than just a business attached to DL... It is an institution of itself... And it's an important part of DL history and how Theme Parks where built...

I think it is important to stay there at least ONCE if you can... If not go exotic and pitch a tent at Traveler's World... That is a lot of fun too...

[Darkbeer]

I think off-site is better, all I really need is a bed and a shower....

Many of the hotels on Harbor are closer to the Main Entry Plaza and are great if you need to run back to your room.

Many come with a free breakfast, which helps the budget.

They offer hotel shuttle service, something that Disney doesn't offer, even though the Paradise Pier is 3/4 mile walk from the Main Entry Plaza.

Now, some hotels are better than others, and the pricing can be crazy...

I like to start with

www.travelaxe.com

That gives me the current pricing levels for the hotels specific to my dates.

Then I check the deals at

www.mousesavers.com

And see if I can find something better for the type of hotel I am interested, and of course, I check the current HoJo rate...

http://www.hojoanaheim.com/mousesavers/

After that, I check some hotel web sites, then go to hotwire.com to see what type of pricing they are offering. The drawback to Hotwire, you don't know exactly where you will be staying, so if you don't have a car, you could be in trouble.

Then folks have there favorites, HoJo's and Candy Cane Inn seem to come up a lot....