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[happyatchristmas]

So we have booked a christmas room at DLH for our trip in November. Our parents are now going to join us however they are going to book a golden forest room at Sequoia Lodge. My dilemma is do we stay at DLH which we live for location etc or swap to a golden forest room like my parents at sequoia which would save us £1000  but the hotel is further away and we won't be in the pink one. If you have stayed in these hotels please could you give some advise would we feel disappointed if we swapped or is the golden forest rooms, lounge etc make for a better deal nit just money wise but facilities etc. my hubby really wants to stay at DLH and don't want to swap hotels if we would be disappointed. I've never been to sequoia so no idea what it's like. Any help is appreciated feel like my head will explode trying to decide x

[cazspence]

Honestly if it was me I'd stick with pink one. Were off again in November and struggling for funds, I'm having to work all the overtime I can. If I didn't we could still go but would have to downgrade. Which I couldn't. DLH is just so perfect. Just my opinion mind. If u want to save pennies then do change as that's a lot of pennies to be saving.

[itslizi]

Unfortunately I can't make the comparison as I've never stayed in Disneyland Hotel, as my usual hotel of choice is Sequoia Lodge.

I've not even experienced the Golden Forest Rooms, so they are something I've only heard of, though I've only heard good things about them and you do have the added bonus of a quieter dining for breakfast, though don't take my word for that.

The choice is your's, and I know I would struggle to downgrade once I had the best but you will be saving a lot of money, and I've had not issues with Sequoia Lodge. It would also be lovely to experience the park together with family and I've always personally enjoyed the walk though Disney Village every morning and evening, especially the walk around the lake. Although if one day that was too much you always have the option of taking the bus back round. I've used the swimming pool that Sequoia had to offer and we ended up using it day to cool off. 

Ultimately only you know whether your experience would be slightly damaged but I've found that I don't spend loads and loads of time in the hotel, and that £1000 you're saving could be spend in the shops so you have items that hold a memory which you'll have in years to come.

[Andybear]

I'm with itslizi.  I've never stayed in the Disneyland Hotel (and don't want to - I could do a lot with that £1000!).  Sequoia Lodge is my hotel of choice, I love it.  I've also never stayed in a Golden Forest Room and am always very happy with a normal room.  It's not far to the parks from there - 10 minutes or so and the walk around the lake is lovely.  I know people who've stayed in both and they think the SL is better than the DLH.  In their opinion it's the location that makes the DLH so expensive and they don't think it's worth such a high price.  But as I said, the walk to the parks from SL isn't far.  One thing to ask yourself - what's more important to you, staying in the same hotel as your parents or staying in a more expensive hotel not with them.   Only you can decide 

[Uragano Tati]

I stayed in both but it was loooong time ago.
I have to say that the best thing of the DLH is that it is so close. We went there in January, it was freezing, we had also a snowstorm, and having the chance of going in our room for a little break everytime we want was great.
The SL is a beautiful hotel and I liked it a lot. We didn't experienced the Golden Forest (it didn't exist at that time).
1000 £ are really a lot (I don't know the exact change, but I know that they are quite more than 1000 euros!).
It's your decision, it depends on how much you consider the closeness, but for me there would be no doubt: downgrade.

[gemma2806]

I have always wanted to stay in the DLH and every visit to DLP ends with me saying that next time it will be a stay at the DLH but it never works out! DLH is extremely expensive for what it is but I must admit if I got the chance to stay there I wouldn't turn it down.

That being said Sequoia Lodge is my family's favourite hotel and we've stayed in the standard, Montana, Montana lakeside and Golden Forest Club rooms. I must admit that we have been completely spoilt by GFC and have said that when we stay in the Sequoia Lodge in the future it will ALWAYS be in the GFC.

I imagine that returning to the DLH at the end of the day must be wonderful but I do love that walk through Disney Village to start and end a day. The GFC is lovely and so cosy in the evenings especially during Christmas time. I also think the benefits of this club are the best benefits of any club level in DLP, obviously this is just my opinion!

It's a tough one as I would love to stay in the DLH but being very budget conscious and wanting to get the most for my money it would be hard to turn down an amazing hotel and club like the Sequoia and an additional £1000 to spend, trust me I'd spend every penny in resort!

[happyatchristmas]

Thanks for all your replies. We are still trying to device what to do. We love the DLH and as we have booked a christmas room I was really looking forward to that. But the perks of the GF room are very tempting. If anyone has stayed at both hotels and can give me their perspective that would be appreciated. DH is still leaning towards DLH his parents also might come as well now so maybe when they decide where they want to stay that might have an influence. Thanks for everyone's advice I really appreciate it xx

[Sonyak3]

Not much help but when I was booking my November trip I was comparing the prices of each as we were willing to splash out a little and I just thought of all the things I could buy with the extra money and all d more treats and that we cud give the kids so we settled for the GF.we hav previously stayed in Newport and Santa Fe and with the amount of time we spend in the room I also swayed d decision to the cheaper choice. The Christmas room does sound kinda cool thou.i will stay dreaming of stayin in d pink one even thou my son is refusing to ever stay there cause it's pink!!!!

[samuelvictor]

There should really be two main things to ask yourself when considering this:

1) How often are you going to want/need to get back to your hotel room? For example my family eat breakfast, then don't return to the hotel again until the parks close. Some people like to nip back to the hotel for a sitdown/rest/nap or to keep stuff there that they don't need to carry. If you are going to need to return to the hotel regularly, then the Disneyland hotel is obviously your best bet, but if not, the Sequoia is honestly not that far from the parks at all, and its a pleasant walk.

2) How well off are you? Would that £1000 extra spending money make a big difference to your stay? For example dining in more restaurants, buying clothes/souveniers/ride photos/art in the parks, doing extras like Buffalo Bills, Ice Skating, Boats on the Lake, Cinema, Arcades, Shooting Galleries etc...

I may not be the best person to advise, as personally my family always go for the cheapest possible hotel option (Santa Fe when the kids were young, and Cheyenne now they're older, due to the difference in sleeping arrangements) and we have never had anything to complain about as far as  the cleanliness of the rooms, comfort of beds etc. Of course, they are the most basic hotels, but they have recently been refurbished and are fine for my family's purposes. However our decisions still come down to the two questions above. As we are not going to return to the hotels during the day, and we aren't too well off so ANY extra spending money is a lifeline, we go for cheaper hotels.

Honestly, if we were well off enough to not have to worry about spending money in the park, we'd go for the Disneyland Hotel, just because it's so nice. However the Sequoia, New York and Newport Bay are also very nice. If anything they feel a little more "grown up" than the DLH, though all are premium quality. The Cheyenne and Santa Fe are perfectly adequate, but obviously the "budget" options.

[Aurora1]

don`t have much to add that hasn`t been said!
As for the pool, the one in SL is much nicer and bigger then the one in DLH. Ok, you have to go out the hotel, but still...
It is a though decision.. I stayed at both (standard room in DLH and GF in SL) ANd we`ll stay in SL GFC again this fall!

[Livvipivvi]

Hiya, I've only ever been to DLP once and stayed in the HNY, so can't comment on which one is better etc. All I can add to what has been said so far is that when we booked, I was torn between staying in the DLH and the HNY. We were in a position where we could afford the pink hotel, but although spending money would have been ok, I would have had to be careful. Then there was the HNY, which was much cheaper and although in my heart I really wanted the pink hotel experience, the cost won out and I booked HNY.

Don't get me wrong, HNY was lovely, but (this may sound silly) I left DLP feeling unfulfilled and like we hadn't had the fullest DLP experience.  So as soon as we got home, I got online and started looking into going back and staying in the pink hotel. I'm planning on going back just before Christmas and staying in the DLH this time.  We've not booked yet, I'm saving like mad to pay for it lol, but I'm determined to go back and stay in the pink hotel.

I'm a bargain hunter and while I've been saving I have wobbled about the cost a few times and looked into going back to HNY and priced up for SL, which I've heard is supposed to be lovely in the winter, especially Christmas, but I know that if I book to stay in either of those, I will come home feeling unfulfilled again lol.

So based on this, if it were me in your position, I would consider if you are going to be able to go back and stay in the pink hotel another time. If it's something that you really want to do and you don't know if you will have a chance to do it another time, then I'd stick with the pink hotel. But if going back won't be a problem, then it would be nice to stay with your family.

If you could go back another time, maybe you could stay in SL this time and put the £1000 towards booking the pink hotel for next year. That way, you will still have it to look forward to 😊😉😊

[happyatchristmas]

Thanks everyone for all your help. We have decided to stay at the pink hotel    the trip is to celebrate our 5 year wedding anniversary and the first time taking our son. This is the first time we've been back since our honeymoon and don't know when we will be able to go back. On that basis DH said that we should treat ourselves this time as for once we are able to afford it. We are also paying half for my parents to join us  and now DH'S parents are also coming with us and staying at sequoia in a golden forest room.

It also may be a good thing that we are staying at a different hotel as the parents can get a little competitive with just one grandchild to fuss over so we may need some space to retreat to 

We do actually tend to use the room in the day time too for a break or a nap and as it's winter will be spending more time there in the evenings than we may have done in summer.

I really appreciate all the advice and we really did consider saving the pennies and spending them in the park but I couldn't help feel disappointed in the end that we wouldn't be in the DLH and I am soooooo looking forward to the christmas room so we are following our hearts and buying no christmas presents! Haha