Why hello there Disney Planners! If you find yourself here I can only imagine you’re thinking of or have decided to splurge on a Disneyland Resort (good for you!). Now it’s time to dive into all the details to make sure you’re spending your money wisely and picking the resort that will not only meet all of your family’s individualistic needs but enhance the magic of your (ok I’ll say it) pricey vacation!

Why Stay at a Disneyland Resort?

There are countless reasons why a stay at a Disneyland Resort may peak your interest. If it’s your first time to the parks or if you’ve never splurged on one of the Disney Resorts and are considering it, I’m happy to tell you that there are many perks that a Disneyland Resort provides you, some obvious and others are more like a hidden Mickey… they’ll surprise and delight you once you find them. Trust me, I could spend hours detailing out all the in’s and out’s of a Disneyland Resort experience and given how fun it is, I’m sure it wouldn’t bore you.

But for the sake of time, I’ll go through the top 10 benefits of staying at a Disneyland Resort, how it will maximize your Disney experience, and how you can justify that higher price tag.

01 | Disneyland Proximity

This one may be obvious, but it really is important to note just how close the three resorts are. It’s our number one perk for a reason!

Off-site hotels and Airbnb’s are considerably further away from the parks’ entrances. You should plan on walking at the very least a mile each way to the parks or finding alternate transportation.

All three Disneyland Resorts are easy walking distance to both park entrances and to Downtown Disney. The Disneyland campus is much more compact than Florida’s Disneyworld. You can think of it as a “one stop shop” experience to the parks and all the entertainment. Entrances are right next to each other with the three resorts all nearby, making commuting a breeze:

• Disneyland Hotel: 0.5 mile from main park entrances; located at the west entrance of Downtown Disney with easy access to the Monorail.
• Grand Californian: 0.3 mile from main park entrances; located centrally in Downtown Disney and offers 2 California Adventure Guest-Only entrances inside the resort.
• Pixar Palace: 0.6 miles from main park entrances; located just south of the west entrance to Downtown Disney with easy access to the Monorail.

If you have little ones, the best perk here is easily the ease of midday breaks or naps. It also allows for sleeping beauties to sleep in or a quick commute home after a long day.

For us, the draw of exploring Downtown Disney on our off day after time at the pools is great. It’s just right outside the hotel entrance making it super easy!

Lastly, and maybe most obviously, being so close simply keeps your steps low before you even reach the park. Have small children? The route is heaven.

02 | Disneyland Park Early Entry (Rope Drop)

Disney Parks Early Entry is one of the best perks for those of you who plan on maximizing every minute in the parks and strategizing how to avoid long wait times or for those with little kids that rise early and won’t last late into the evening.

Disney Resort guests get the luxury of entering a Disney park 30 minutes early every day.

Tip: hit up the traditionally long-wait time rides first. Depending on your choice and walking speed, you can get up to 2 major rides done before regular guests can even enter. My favorite ride choices for Disneyland are to go straight to either Peter Pan’s Flight or Space Mountain as wait times for these tend to be the longest throughout the day. For California Adventure, head (quickly!) to Radiator Springs Racers as it can easily reach a 3 hour wait in peak season and then get in line for Web Slingers.

Do note that only one park is open for early entrance each day. You may want to plan your travel dates accordingly if it matters to you. Days below are subject to change so make sure to check the Disneyland website before you go:

• Disneyland Park: Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday
• California Adventure Park: Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday

Be mindful that only some of the rides are open during Early Entry as well. Check out the list here to make your picks.

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Related: 10 Disneyland Mom Hacks You Need to Know

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03 | Exclusive & Priority Disneyland Resort Restaurant Reservations

If you’ve tried to make a reservation for a Disneyland Resort Restaurant or Disneyland Show before, you’ll know it can be tough to get in. Especially during peak season or if you have a larger group.

Disney, however, saves a number of reservations at select restaurants and shows for Disney Resort guests. If there is something you really want to be sure to do (like the Bippity Boppity Boutique, for example), having a reservation at a Disney Resort is the way to go to ensure you’ll get first dips and the best chance at getting a reservation.

Another great perk that’s not talked about enough: ability to make reservations in advance of other Disney-goers! All dinner and show reservations for become available at 6am 60 days out. Disneyland resort guests, however, get to make reservations at 6am 60 days out from the first day of their hotel reservation, for the entire length of their hotel stay (up to 10 days).

This means, you get first dibs on all reservations for days 2-10 of your trip. Travelers not staying at a Disney resort will need to make each day’s reservations when it’s 60 days out. Not only does this give you priority times and the best chance at snagging a popular restaurant, it also allows you to plan your whole trip at once.

04 | Guest Only Entrance to California Adventure

Mentioned above, the Grand Californian offers 2 Disney Resort Guest entrances to California Adventure.

Guests staying at a Disneyland Resort may use the designated Guest Only Entrances to California Adventure. Clearly this is a huge perk for those staying at the Grand Californian Hotel & Spa, given the entrances are inside the resort. You can quite literally roll out of bed and right onto Grizzly River Run!

This perk comes in handy for many reasons. The first being that it cuts off extra walking when heading to and from your hotel. Regardless of which resort you are staying at, you’ll save walking 0.3 miles to the main park entrances. This saves you time in the morning and steps overall for the day. Two big pluses if you ask me.

And let’s not forget the best part: short entry lines! Save time on getting into the park and beat the rush to all those rides. This is especially handy if you’re doing Early Entry.

Entrances drop you off in either Grizzly Peak or by Goofy’s Sky School which puts you pretty central to accessing all parts of the park quickly. Always nice!

Guests staying at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa can enter through the hotel’s entry gate while Disneyland Hotel and Pixar Place Guests can use an entrance across the street from Pixar Palace.

05 | Straight to Room: Disney Package Delivery of In-Park Purchases

Ok who doesn’t like hand delivered purchases straight to your room (for free!)?

No more lugging purchases around the park all day… No more stuffing your child’s new Buzz Lightyear stuffy into the stroller, only to find it went missing at some point throughout the day… Worried about your wallet falling out of your pocket while you’re upside down on the Incredicoaster? Fear no more!

That’s right! All purchases made in the park can be charged and delivered right to your room.

Simply connect your hotel reservation to the Disney App to allow you to use your mobile device when making purchases. A barcode will pop up for cast members to scan in the My Hotel Reservations section of the app. All charges will be on your hotel room bill at the end of your stay.

Anything you buy and don’t want to carry? A cast member will be more than happy to deliver it right to your room by end of day. For free!

Talk. About. Service! Am I right??

06 | Discounts on Vacation Packages

While you should always compare pricing to other sites, Disney does offer discounts on Disneyland Resort packages when you book a Disneyland Resort and your Disneyland Park Tickets together.

Beyond a discount price off your total hotel and park package, Disney offers “Magical Extras” for Disney Vacation Package travelers: both in 10% off select restaurants and stores in Downtown Disney as well as an exclusive Walt Disney Travel Company collectible pin and lanyard for guests aged 3+ (super great for all you pin collectors!).

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Related: 20 Essentials for Your Disney Park Bag with Free Checklist Printable!

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07 | Fantastic Pools, Gyms, Spas, and Other Hotel Amenities

No surprise but Disney’ does their amenities to a tee’s amenities are nothing short of magical! Everything about each of the Disneyland Resorts is magical so whether you’re looking for a total Disney themed experience inside and outside the parks or simply want a top of the line hotel experience, Disney clearly has you covered.

The Grand Californian Hotel & Spa is known for their elegance and massive lobby that is sure to impress. For your off park days, the Tenaya Stone Spa is a luxurious space to relax and recharge.

Pools are a big perk when staying at a Disney Resort and regardless of which one you choose, they are all fantastic! All three hotels offer rentable cabanas for a long day pool-side.

The Grand Californian has 3 pools: enjoy a 90-foot water slide, a pool side cafe, and so much more for a fun midday break or day off from the parks.

The Disneyland Hotel offers 2 pools: 2 whirlpools spas, 2 monorail waterslides, and a fun waterplay area.

And last but certainly not least, Pixar Palace Hotel has recently opened up their brand new third floor Nemo-themed swimming pool with a whopping 186-foot-long Crush’s Surfin’ Slide. At night, you can actually view the Disneyland firework show from the pool!

08 | Great Accommodation Options for Large Groups

While there are numerous lodging options for large groups, no one does it better than Disney. Every group is different but typically one thing is common: the more people in the group, the more opinions, agendas, speed of pace, and timelines there are to account for and consider. All of which can make coordinating a Disney trip or day in the parks a nightmare for the host (or the one most passionate about the agenda).

Staying at a Disney resort can alleviate a lot of that.

For starters, transportation to the parks is not an issue. Given your close proximity to the parks, you’ll clearly be walking which means coordination and expense of alternate transportation for a large group is not necessary. You can all easily come and go from the parks at leisure. This is great for the sleeping beauties of the group: those that don’t want to be rushed in the morning, those who like a nap midday and those with early bedtimes. Truly, having a close hotel room means you have a lot more freedom and less group disruption.

Beyond that, Disney offers some amazing options that will truly enhance your experience if you want to splurge on the extra pay out. It takes staying at a Disney Resort to a whole new level as some of these options are breathtaking. They make you want to find a large group just so you can go (anyone interested? I need 8 more people to make my group work!)

Top best two options for large groups:
**both include living quarters, full kitchen & dining, and up to 3 bedrooms

• Grand Californian Signature Suits: The Arroyo suite sleeps up to 13 guests
• Disneyland Hotel The Villas: Home-Like options that sleeps up to 12 guests

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Unsure if a Disney Resort is best for you? Check out: Disneyland Lodging: Which type is best for you?

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09 | My Disney Experience App Makes Everything Easy

Such a great age we live in with our mobile giving us easy access to anything we need, right at our fingertips! Gone are the days of having to keep track of printed tickets and God forbid RUN to your next ride only to see the wait time is, dare I say, 2 hours long! Did I just age myself?

Now, Disney has an app for that. And truly, they have a fantastic app for ALL of that, including everything you need for your Disney Resort stay all in one place: park tickets and passes, hotel and dinner reservations, planning tools, park updates and so much more.

Whether you stay at a Disneyland Resort or not, you’ll definitely want do be using Disney’s free My Disney Experience App. But, Disney Resort guests have an added section of their Disneyland App, “My Hotel Reservation” which includes special extras such as:

• Mobile check-in
• Digital key
• In-app chat
• Room Service Ordering
• Barcode for in park purchases

When you have littles to keep track of, this is super handy and keeps you right on track!

10 | Save time and $ on Simplicity: no car, no parking, no added transportation

This one is very dependent on what you have planned in addition to Disney park days as well as your mobility, but for most Disney focused vacations this is a great perk.

With a higher than average price tag on your resort stay, it’s nice to acknowledge where you are saving a few dollars.

If you plan on only staying in the Disneyland campus vicinity you can easily walk anywhere you need to be, saving you on transportation to and from the parks. Whether you’re saving on uber/lyft rides, not renting a car (save rental fee, gas, $25/night resort parking + any other parking fees) or saving time with a long commute to the entrance, all three Disneyland Resorts hands-down save you time and money in commuting.

Final Thoughts

As your weighing out all the many options for your next trip to Disneyland, it’s important to consider what is most important to you. There is no right or wrong when planning Disney and truly, any trip you plan is sure to be magical. You simply can’t go wrong with Disney. My best recommendation is to take some time to think about your top three “needs” (ie Early Entry, reduced walking, overall expense) and work out a plan focused on those.

If you are still unsure if a Disney Resort is right for you, check out my blog post Disneyland Planning Guide: Where to Stay . I compare the pros and cons of Disney Resorts, nearby Hotels and nearby Airbnb’s.

Best of luck to you and all your planning!

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Experienced a stay at any of these Disney Resorts? Share your personal pros and cons below!

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