Disneyland's Paradise Pier Hotel: Nice n' Easy

As part of our awesome Halloween Time event at Disneyland last month, a few of us bloggers were treated to a one-night stay at the Paradise Pier Hotel. This was my family's first time staying at any of the Disney properties, and we had a great stay; a nice room, and easy access to both parks. Hence my title, Nice n' Easy. Hey, you think it's easy being this clever?

Our room was very spacious, and we had a great view of California Adventure. Sure adults love looking out over a moonlit ocean or a spectacular lake, but there's nothing kids like more than peering out their window and seeing a huge Mickey ferris wheel! Or watching the cars on Mulholland Madness! My only complaint is that this makes it extremely difficult for the adults to sleep in, though, because how can you just lay there when there are rides to be ridden! And shows to see! And churros to eat!

We had a great breakfast at the hotel's Hawaiian-themed restaurant, and they had a whole Lilo & Stitch thing going on the whole time. At 11 and 13 my daughters work very hard to pretend they're not into that sort of thing, but for younger kids (and less jaded tweens and teens) it would be a fun treat with character greetings, sing alongs and games.

My girls however, were not above ooh-ing and ahh-ing when this arrived at our table. Just sayin'.



They have a great breakfast buffet which we didn't take advantage of since we weren't that hungry, and besides eating takes a long time and how can you sit there drinking your coffee when there are rides to be ridden! And shows to see! And churros to eat!

Another great feature is the arcade located in the lobby. Since we were there for only one night my girls didn't have time to hang out and blast asteroids or drive the grand prix, but we'll make sure and bring lots of quarters for our next visit. That may even buy us a couple hours of sleep in the morning next time, or some time alone in our room when we want to do something other than watch Gossip Girl. Oh, the plans we have!

Also, another great feature for the little ones: This adorable video-watching room located just off the lobby. Not sure if it's allowed, but next time I think I'll grab a Mai Tai from the bar and hang out there myself.



Okay, but here's THE BEST TIP EVER, if you already have your park tickets. This came to us courtesy of one of the workers who happened to be driving by us in one of their service carts and we asked him for the easiest route to the park. (We had just exited the hotel through their back entrance.) Earlier we had walked through the Grand Californian and through Downtown Disney, which proved to be a slightly longer walk than my city girls could handle without complaining. But this guy told us to follow the signs to Downtown Disney and it was a very short walk to the Monorail terminal. There you can use your ticket to go through security (a much shorter line than we encountered at the main entrance) hop on the Monorail and head into Tomorrowland. Easy! and nice! I'm getting a lot of mileage out of that title of mine.

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tags: disneyland | paradise pier hotel | disneyland hotels | disneyland character breakfasts | disneyland hotel reviews

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