Just returned from two nights three day stay. Hotel stay was Thursday and Friday night. Some aspects of the hotel are top notch and they provide services that no one else can.

Went with two teen daughters. Front desk, bell staff very friendly and efficient. Servers were also excellent and food was good. Of course location can't be beat. Have previously stayed at the Disneyland hotel and off property. The Grand Ca had a more relaxing feel, I guess it was more peaceful and quiet. Of course it's still Disneyland but there were pleanty of places to sit in quiet if you needed it, both inside and outside.

Check in - We arrived at 11am. Did not expect our rooms to be ready. Front desk staff said the hotel was not too full and so upgraded our room. Checked our bags, received our park hopper tics and went to Ca Adventure. Entrance to Ca Adventure from hotel is for hotel guests only. But after 12noon anyone can use this entrance. Not needing to walk to the front gate of Ca Adventure and wait in line was a huge bonus. At 3:30 pm returned to the hotel to check in and freshen up. Room was not ready so I asked if the room cat. that we orginally booked was ready. It was and the only diff was the view . We had a standard room overlooking a quiet little courtyard. Envisioned sitting on the balcony but never did.

Location of room was excellent, 2nd floor right up the stairs from the lobby so walking downstairs in the morning to get coffee or a latte and fruit took only a couple mins. The bar in the lobby serves coffee, lattes, danish, fruit early. Whitewater snacks opens at 7am.

Room itself was basic but had a subtle disney touch and was overall clean and comfortable, although not very large. Toilet and shower are not seperate. I noticed two things about the room but they were not things that I felt the need to complain about. Just above the toilet paper dispenser there was a wad of white sticky marshmellow type stuff. I wiped it off. When I used the phone by the bed to set up a wake up call I noticed that the base where you place phone receiver had some oil and dirt substance all in it. Looked to me to be some sort of buildup over time. Ick. I did not feel the room was dirty in any other way and felt totally comfortable in the room.

The first night we had turn down service with chocolates on the bed and little notes... a very nice touch. They also left a plan of events notice. One of the events that I had wanted to sign my kids up for was only $15 pp ages 13-17 from 12:30-3:30 guided ride and snack tour. We did not get the chance to do this due to lunch reservations at blue bayou but sounded great for the kids to get a chance to go on the main rides and not have to wait in line.

I forgot to leave a tip for houskeeping the first night. We left for the parks and did not return till late. The next day I did leave a tip morning and evening but we did not receive any future housekeeping services. Since we were not in the room much it was not a big deal and not worth calling down to ask for but it did seem a little odd to me not to recieve any housekeeping services other that initial turn down service. A newspaper was left outside our door and there was a basket with towels... left outside room doors in the mornings so we did have enough towels.

The only real gripe I had with my stay was the last day. I requested and was granted late check out for 1pm on our departure date. We had been up till park closure the night prior and then got up Saturday morning for 7am early entry to Disneyland. By 10 am one of my daughters was very tired. I told her to go back and take a nap while my other daughter and I stayed in the park. Housekeeper came in the room, woke her up and told her it was check out time and she needed to leave. She called me and I told her to tell housekeeper that we had a one o'clock check out, which she did. Housekeeper left and said she would make a call. We returned to our room at 12 noon to shower and pack. A male houskeeping staff came in the room and I told him we would not be checking out till 1pm and had approval for this. He appologized. I got in the shower and two more times a female houskeeper came into the room to tell my daughters to leave, the last time according to my daughter she was very rude and just stood there glaring at my daughter. I did not see this but she's not known to exagerate. Not sure but perhaps the angry attitude and lack of housekeeping, other than their uninvited requests for us to leave the room, was due to me forgetting to leave a tip for them upon check in??

Again I did not complain as we were leaving and it was really just a minor inconvenience. We got ready and left the room at exactly 1pm as agreed. left our bags with bell hop. My kids went back to Ca. Adventure to use the fast passes we collected in the morning. I went to guest services and they fixed my key so that it would work at the pool. I layed at the pool and relaxed until they were done in the parks. When it was time for us to leave for our flight we had our bags within a couple mins, grabbed a cab and were off to the airport. Could not have been easier.

If you want the whole disney experience and are willing/able to spend the extra I would recommend this hotel. There were the above mentioned glitches but the overall service and atmosphere was excellent . My kids wanted to do more of the parks vs. hotel. We had planned to spend time swimming and taking a break but did not end up using the pool for that. If you are traveling with little ones it would be even more beneficial to use the pool for the afternoons and hotel for a nap.

Disneyland is one of those "magical" places and I figured this time around since we were already spending $$$ to just go ahead and do it all the way. I don't regret it but a person can spend a fraction of the cost and if you are organized enough still have just as great a time. You can also go relax in the lobby for free. The servers in the resturants were great. It's so much nicer to sit down and have good food and service out of the crowds, and we did not wait too long for meals/snacks.

Yes, the Grand Californian is expensive, but the location is worth it. We stayed here for three nights, and enjoyed the experience. Check-in was quick and easy, and we were given a room overlooking Downtown Disney. Worried at first about noise, we were really impressed with the quietness of the room when the balcony doors were shut. And the bonus - we were able to watch the fireworks from the balcony.

Not sure about the complaints about parking. The parking lot is just across the road from the hotel - a three minute walk. Luggage services were excellent. And, as you would expect at Disney, all staff were extremely friendly.

We didn't eat in the hotel itself, as there were so many options in Downtown Disney or in the parks themselves. But the kids loved the pool in the hotel which has a great water slide and watchful lifeguards.

The best thing about the hotel is the proximity to Disneyland and Californian Adventure; there is a connecting gate to the latter and a five minute walk to the former. So you can start early in the morning, come back to the hotel for a swim in the afternoon, and then get back to the parks in the evening with the minimum of walking.

What didn't we like? Not much. Although the room was good, the hotel's geography meant that we ended up walking a lot to get to the room (although we did have the benefit, as mentioned, of a view of Downtown Disney). And the drinks service at the pool is very slow. Had we relied on circulating drinks staff we would have waited 45 minutes. Fortunately you can go to the service window and get served there.

I stayed for 2 nights with a girlfriend and her two children (ages 4 and 6) and for the most part, we loved this hotel. It was worth the extra money to be so close to the park if the kids got grumpy and we needed a fast break! It's a very classy and adult hotel, but very kid and teen friendly.
The room, although not terribly large, was decorated tastefully with mission style furniture and had a flat-screen TV and DVD player that was great for the kids to watch movies on. We noticed that there was a pack and play in the closet. It also had double sinks and vanity in an area separated from the bath and toilet, which was nice when mutiple adults and children are getting ready at the same time. We payed extra for a great view of the fireworks from Disney and a room overloking Downtown Disney. It got a little loud at night with an outdoor band on the street below us, but if you closed the sliding glass door to the balcony, you couldn't really hear it and we all slept fine. But beware when you are booking your room - our room was a VERY long walk from the elevators, and I am NOT kidding around! If you have small children and are concerned about this, you may want to verify where your room is located when you make your reservation. We had an issue with the lock on our door breaking one night and it was a pain in the butt to go back and forth and deal with the reception desk, but in the end, they provided us with great customer service and $100 off our bill so that made it better. That's another thing - the customer service at the hotel - the pool waiters, bellboys, concierge, lounge bartenders, room service - everyone was very friendly and helpful. The restaurants and lounge are spacious and upscale, but child-friendly too. We also noticed in the huge lobby with atrium that there were tons of small gathering areas with tables and chairs and they provide board games and things to do - perfect for teens that need to "get away" and do their own thing but still be nearby. The hotel has it's own private park entrance to the California Adventure park - so if my husband and I had teens, I could see us enjoying a drink in the lounge and letting the kids go and ride a couple rides and then come back to check in - it's that close by!
The pool area was also very nice - they have a large cafe serving hot and cold sandwiches and salads and snacks, and there are two water slides that the kids went crazy over.
I gave 4 stars rather than a full 5 for the hotel being so expensive and our room being very far from the elevator and stairs, but all-in-all, we had a great experience with this property and would return again.

We have visited Disneyland / Disneyworld before but never stayed in Disney accommodation so thought we would give it a shot.

The valet service was excellent, our luggage and car were whisked away (buy guys wearing ridiculous pedal pusher trousers and silly caps). Check in was a real experience, dont miss it! We were seen by a lady called Linda - I dont recall ever remembering someone's name before. She was a real character and kept referring to herself in the third person and calling it "her" hotel. This is more than likely all Disney training. She was absolutely hilarious in a freaky kind of way, but we will always laugh about it and never forget it.

Our room was pretty much what we expected - a double with bunks and a roll out bed for our third child. It was robust and clean, well kitted out. Our view was of the Grizzly rapids ride. The best thing about it was the position - brilliant for popping in and out of the park, changing when you get wet and freshening up. You get the feeling that you are still in Disney when you are in the hotel and it is slightly strange, but it is what it is. If you stayed there and werent going to Disney it would feel terrible, but we are all there for the same reason.

The hall is quite amazing, high ceilings and a log fire in a chilly air conditioned atmosphere which us Brits found very amusing.

We had a Chip & Dale breakfast, we were a bit disappointed, there werent very many "critters" about, but my five year old was happy which I guess what it is all about. It would have been nice to see one of the big characters from Disney there - like Donald or Mickey.

An unforgettable experience, and we were glad to have tried it out.