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Westin Anaheim Resort Review

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On my most recent trip to Disneyland, I had the pleasure of staying at the Westin Anaheim Resort! Here’s a review of that experience.

Westin Anaheim Resort

Westin Anaheim Resort

Last year, I stayed at the Candy Cane Inn and enjoyed the close proximity to the park. This year, I opted to stay at the Westin Anaheim Resort due to the hotel‘s location and wonderful amenities! Having stayed here 3 nights, I think I can give a fair review of the experience.

The Location

I had read a few reviews mentioning the walk being a little long. However, the map made it look straight forward. Plus, I liked that most of the walk was on Disney’s property, so it felt safer. I walked over via Disneyland Dr versus taking Harbor Boulevard to avoid dealing with the unhoused. Most of the time, I was able to cut through the Grand Californian Hotel to make the walk shorter. However, you can’t do that during park opening. Additionally, one afternoon of my trip, there was a security guard who wouldn’t let me on property since I didn’t have a hotel or dining reservation at the hotel. So, just something to keep in mind if you stay here.

The Resort

I will say, this was a really nice place to stay. Everything felt luxurious and comfy. In fact, I noticed immediately how cushiony the carpet was! I feel most of the time, it’s just carpet over concrete. This was soft and plush!

The bed was very relaxing and the pillows didn’t go flat! The shower even had good pressure! I can see why this is a highly rated resort with all of the deluxe amenities.

The room also features some high tech fancy light switches. It was neat on the first day, but lost a little something by the last day. Also, I couldn’t get the light on the mirror to go out completely, so it lit up the room at night.

Upon arrival, I noticed that there wasn’t any soap at the sink. I notified the front desk on the way to the parks and when I returned to my room that night there were two bars of soap! So, I was pleased with their speed and ability to handle this issue.

Pros

  • Luxe accommodations – This felt like a deluxe resort without the pricetag. It was several hundred dollars cheaper per night than the Disney resorts but was a really nice hotel.
  • Wonderful bed – The bed was so comfy! The bedding was soft and the pillows didn’t go flat!
  • Good water pressure – Not every hotel (particularly in California) has great water pressure. I was pleased to discover the water pressure here was great.
  • Has several restaurants – I like staying somewhere that has at least one restaurant on property for arrival and departure days. Unfortunately, I didn’t get a chance to try out all of the restaurants here. However, I did grab a Chicken Biscuit Sandwich from the Blossoms Market and Cafe before my departure to the airport. It was tasty!
  • Most of the walk to the parks is on Disney property – I appreciated how safe the walk to and from the park felt since this was a solo trip.

Cons

  • More expensive than some closer hotels – This hotel is nicer than most found on Harbor Blvd. However, it’s also more expensive than most of them.
  • Longer walk – The first day or two didn’t seem so bad. However, I was starting to drag by the third day. It’s about 1.0 to 1.1 miles each way.

Is the Westin Anaheim Resort worth it?

I truly enjoyed my stay at the Westin Anaheim Resort. The amenities were amazing. However, I might pick somewhere closer to the parks next time just for convenience. If you don’t mind a longer walk to/from the parks, this is a top pick!

Courtyard Myrtle Beach Oceanfront Review

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Back in April, I stayed two nights at the Courtyard Myrtle Beach Oceanfront hotel with my mom. I thought I would do a review of it in case anyone else is considering staying here.

Courtyard Myrtle Beach Oceanfront

Courtyard Myrtle Beach Oceanfront

This was only the second time I’ve visited the beach. My mom grew up going to the beach in New Jersey though. So, I thought it would be a great idea to book a beachside hotel for this trip. I have to say, it made for a unique experience that I wouldn’t mind repeating.

Standard Double Queen Guest Room

We booked a standard double queen guest room this trip. We chose the Discover Myrtle Beach package that came with free parking as there isn’t free parking at this hotel. In fact, the parking situation leaves something to be desired entirely. I think that the parking structure across the street with tiny spaces and an elevator that went out during our trip is probably the biggest drawback of this hotel.

Fortunately, the room was great. It was amazing to step into our room and immediately see the ocean! I loved having a balcony to sit and look out at the ocean. I’ve never been a beach person. However, sitting on the balcony and just looking out at the ocean made me understand people who are. It was very relaxing and beautiful. I loved watching the sunrise and set from the balcony. It was also cool to see how dark it was at night.

The room itself seemed recently refurbished. The only thing not in working order was the body wash holder in the shower. As you can see in my pictures, housekeeping just set the body wash in the basket on the wall. Everything else was pretty good in this room. The beds were more comfortable than the ones we slept in at a different hotel on this trip.

Really though, you are picking this hotel for the balcony and view.

Pros

  • Oceanfront view – Every room here has a balcony with a view of the ocean! I loved this and it makes me want to visit another beach lotion just to look out at the ocean.
  • Recently refurbished – The room was in mostly good working condition. I was happy with the number of plug ins as well.
  • Comfortable beds – We arrived here after staying one night at a different hotel in Myrtle Beach where we slept in hard beds. So, it was a noticeable difference how much more comfortable these beds were.
  • Good location – Yes, it’s on the beach. However, it was also reasonably close to everything we wanted to do in Myrtle Beach, like the Medieval Times dinner show.
  • Reasonable rates in advance – We booked this hotel a few months in advance. As such, we got a reasonable rate of $209/night! Granted, this was a Sunday and Monday night. However, we were happy with the rate considering it was on the ocean.

Cons

  • Parking – There’s a $20/day parking charge without the Discover Myrtle Beach package. This charge allows you to park in the parking structure across the street. Unfortunately, the parking garage is not as new as the hotel. It’s too small for modern vehicles. It was difficult to back up in this garage and to fit into the spaces. Additionally, the elevator went out during our stay without any explanation or apology from anyone. Walking up and down several stories with your stuff is not fun.
  • Limited TV channels – My mom enjoys watching tv before bed. Unfortunately, this hotel had a limited selection of channels for her to choose from. Not a deal breaker, but just something to keep in mind.
  • Check your bill – We booked the package that included parking. However, the final bill charged us for parking. So, we had to go down to the front desk to have it fixed. The front desk staff was friendly and helpful. Just pay attention to your bill.
  • Low chairs on balcony – The chairs on the balcony were a little difficult for my mom to get in and out of. It’s not a huge thing, just something to know.

Is the Courtyard Myrtle Beach Oceanfront hotel worth it?

While the parking situation is not ideal, I enjoyed the hotel and room itself. Maybe take a car instead of an SUV if you stay here so your car can fit the spaces better.

Sheraton Park Hotel Review

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On my most recent visit to Disneyland, I stayed off-site to save some money since I was traveling solo. However, I didn’t want to stay somewhere shabby. So, I stayed at the Sheraton Park Hotel at the Anaheim Resort. This is my review of my four night stay there!

Sheraton Park Hotel

Sheraton Park Hotel

Unlike Walt Disney World, Disneyland has only three on-site resorts and they are all considered deluxe resorts. Seeing as how this was a last minute solo trip, I didn’t feel right spending that much money on this trip. So, I opted to stay somewhere that was nice and within walking distance to the parks without paying a fortune. I ended up going with the Sheraton Park Hotel at the Anaheim resort. Here are the pros and cons of staying here.

Pros

The majority of these bullet points are the exact reasons why I chose to stay here.

  • Location. It’s technically near the convention center, so it would make a great conference/event hotel. It’s also a 15-ish minute walk to the theme parks. I loved being able to just walk to the parks. That’s a huge perk over visiting WDW and dealing with the buses.
  • Restaurant. Unfortunately, I never was hungry enough to enjoy dinner here, but it sounds amazing! Nonetheless, I was very thankful for the 6 AM breakfast of french toast. I always prefer to stay somewhere with a restaurant so I don’t have to wander far if I get hungry. So, this was a nice perk.
  • Newly refurbished. The rooms were recently refurbished and are really nice. Everything still looks shiny and new, so you don’t have to worry about something falling apart or being overly dirty.
  • Comfortable. The beds are very comfortable. Also, I had a very quiet stay here, which is more than I can say for some other theme park stays.
  • Balconies. Every room has a balcony to look out over California. Some rooms even have a theme park view. I had a city view and was happy with that.
  • Disney Good Neighbor Hotel. I booked a Disneyland Good Neighbor package, which was super convenient for booking the hotel and park tickets together. Plus, I was able to log-on and make payments. I intend to make a future post about the pros of staying at a Good Neighbor Hotel in the future.

Cons

Now, admittedly some of these are minor or even petty complaints. However, they are things that I didn’t like and want to share for complete honesty.

  • Walk by homeless. Remember that short walk I mentioned as a pro? Well, it seems a lot longer when you are dodging the homeless. This certainly wasn’t the hotel’s fault as it wasn’t on their property. Although, a free shuttle to/from the park would be a nice amenity to have at night here. I probably won’t stay here again for a strictly theme park visit again unless I’m with my husband simply due to the night time walk.
  • No free in-room Wi-Fi. This was a complete surprise as I assumed every hotel with business guests would offer free Wi-Fi. However, there was only free Wi-Fi in the lobby here and that was a nuisance.
  • Dark bathroom. This probably wouldn’t bother most people. However, there isn’t a light over the shower. So, it was a darker bathroom than I’m used to. Also, I could see how people with limited vision could have trouble with this room.
  • Air conditioner is finicky. It seems like it shuts off after there’s no movement in the room for a period of time. I can’t guarantee that’s what was happening, but the room was certainly warmer when I slept or left it. I can see this being a bigger problem in the heat of summer.
  • No early access to room. I attempted to check in a little early, however my room wasn’t ready. In fact, my room wasn’t ready at check-in time either. They did store my luggage for me while I waited, but it was a bit of an annoyance to start the trip this way.

Is the Sheraton Park Hotel worth it?

If you are considering a stay at this hotel for a conference at the convention center, it’s probably a good option. If you are comfortable walking past the homeless population, then it’s a terrific option for a Disneyland stay as well. As I said above, I will probably look at spending a good bit more money to stay on-site next time just to feel safer on the walk as a female traveler.

Have you stayed here before? What was your experience like?