We stayed here for four nights from June 21-25, 2008. We decided at the last minute to book one room at the Grand Californian rather than two rooms at a less expensive property (the Candy Cane Inn) given the Grand Californian's proximity to the parks and the fact we were travelling with a 3 and 5 year old who would be taking mid-day naps. We could not have been happier with our decision. First, we were pleased that staying in the park allowed us to take the Disneyland Express bus from LAX to the hotel, which was easier and cheaper than renting a car. Check in was the least enjoyable part of our stay, as the hotel was mobbed when we arrived and our express check in paperwork could not be located. But, we were given a nicer room than the one we booked, on the 5th floor with a great view of DCA (trees partially obstruct the views on the lower floors). We could also see fireworks from Disney from our balcony at night. The room was not huge, but had adequate luggage and storage space for 5 people and a stroller. There was no pull out sofa in this room but our son slept on a sleeping bag and mat provided by the hotel between the two beds, which worked fine. The room had a fridge and a flat sreen TV and the TV had cartoons and "bed time stories" at night for the kids. We enjoyed our balcony and view of the park, and found the room to be extremely quite despite the fact that the hotel had to be full. The room was clean and comfortable and reliably freshened twice a day. The biggest benefit (and reason for the price tag) was of course the location. The hotel has its own entrance into DCA, which was incredibly convenient if you need to pause for a nap or to get dry clothes after riding Grizzly Peak. The hotel also has an entrance into the middle of Downtown Disney. From there you can turn left and walk to the Monorail and ride that to Tommorowland, or you could turn right and walk out of Downtown Disney and directly to the main gate of Disneyland, which we found to be the more convenient option, as it is only a 5 minute walk. We went back and forth from the parks to the hotel every day, and could not have imagined doing so if we staying further away, given the 90+ temperatures and two small children. We also enjoyed the hotel's pool, particularly the small kids' waterslide that even young toddlers can enjoy. We found the pool to be quite crowded on some days with no available chairs, but other days were less busy. Pool wait service exists but is spotty, but this may be a deliberate effort to limit alcohol consumption poolside. The hotel's food is quite good though expensive, and the snack shop by the pool is convenient, although stocked with only particular brands (e.g., only Kellogg's cereal, so no Cheerios). We'd stay here again in a heartbeat when returning to Disney.

I do not think we have ever had a bad experience with Disney and this trip was no exception. The hotel amenities and staff were excellent! Our only disappointment was with the Room Service Manager, Jennifer. Our singing and dance company had an impromptu meeting at the hotel and someone forgot cups. Jennifer made it clear that the hotel could not accomodate us and that we needed to go to the local 7-eleven. Thank goodness for our concierge, Kacy. Kacy was the epitome of customer service and what Disney represents. One simple phone call and she was able to accomodate us.

Thanks to you Kacy!

We just got back from a fun 4 days at the Disney Grand Californian Hotel. I went with low expectations after years ago staying at the Disneyland Hotel and being very disappointed. Even my cynical non-Disney loving husband was pleasantly surprised. Expensive yes but you can't you put a price on the location. I was really glad of the special entrance to California Adventure as we were travelling with our two young children and took frequent breaks from the theme parks and enjoyed the pool. We found most of the staff to be extremely courteous and they went out of their way to accomodate special needs like meds that needed immediate refridgeration. Our quiet, clean room was on the 5th floor overlooking California Adventure - it wasn't the Ritz but was nice enough. Our bed was extremely comfortable and I appreciated it after an exhausting day in hot 92 degree weather. We had turn down service with chocolates every night and no shortage of towels etc. We enjoyed room service a few times, the club sandwich and cobb salad were lovely. We can't wait to go back.

We have just returned from a week at the Ritz Carlton. The hotel is magnificent and we have never experienced such incredible service before. It was so lovely that it was hard to drag ourselves away from the hotel to go to the theme parks at all. In fact we didn't bother with Disney , having been before and just did a few trips to Universal. It was so hot and busy there, we couldn't wait to get back to the peace and tranquility of the hotel.
We stayed on the club level with its own concierge and club lounge where 5 different food presentations are laid out each day. We were just expecting a few nibbles but breakfast is a lovely continental spread with cheeses fruit pastries etc. During the afternoon it's literally like tea at the Ritz in London with champagne etc. Quite difficult to fit in any meals out after all that!
The pool is lovely, not as big as the Marriott next door but more luxurious. Our kids are 11 and 13 and they enjoyed it. The pool attendants were wonderful, laying out 3 towels per sun lounger, with one rolled up as a head rest. The waitress even came into the pool with a tray of smoothies for everyone to try.
The Spa is out of this world. Not for under 16 really but they were quite happy for my daughter to have some treatments. Expensive but fabulous.
Restaurants are great. Normans is very smart and we dined there for our daughter's birthday. They even printed a special menu wishing her a happy birthday.
We paid $299 per night for a room on the club level which we thought excellent value. There were 2 double beds so the four of us shared.
Overall I would say this is probably the best hotel we have ever stayed in on holidayand I am extremely fussy! Perhaps not the most convenient if all you want to do is theme parks, but if you want to mix a little luxury with the odd trip to the parks then this is an absolute must