This hotel is TOTALLY NOT WORTH THE $$$. Way to expensive $400+ a night w/ view of the park. They gave me a room with view which right infront of the bushes and big tree which I can barely see the park. I request to change another room, and all they can give me is another room w/ not much better probably worse. Room is small, definitely not worth w/ the $$$ paying for. This is totally suck, not what I expected.

Don't get me wrong, this is a marvelous hotel for enjoying Disneyland, and California Adventure. Unquestionably the best. We took the grandkids last month and were able to walk to everything.The rooms and restaurants were outstanding.
Now the not so outstanding part. The pool is much, much too small!! It was off season, and still the pool was totally packed. They had a pool bar, but it was closed! They had an OK snack bar, but it closed at 7PM, and, unbelievably for a hotel of this stature and price, they had no pool area waiter service.
Overall, for kids there probably isn't a better place to stay, but for adults you might want to look further.

This review is for those thinking about using the Grand Californian for a family Disney trip. The bottom line question: Is this place worth the price? Well, the answer is YES, based on four criteria: Location, Service, Concierge, and Security. The location is beyond wonderful. Whether you are a first-timer or veteran, you know there is serious walking involved with a Disney trip. From your room to rides at DCA is less than 3 minutes through a private entrance. The location allows you the flexibility to come and go to enjoy breaks, swimming, and relaxing. Your nerves will thank you about 1PM that you are so close to your Hotel. There is no better Hotel location than this one. The service is clearly outstanding. From check-in to check out the people here have been trained to high service levels. Everyone is helpful and they understand your family is here on vacation. I didn't experience one problem during our 5 night stay. I highly recommend the Concierge Level. In fact, I wouldn't stay here unless I was on this level. They really have this level dialed in right. We paid $50 extra per night and received breakfast, light lunch, wine/cheese/hot hor dourves, unlimited pop/water, free DVD movies, and many extras. The room is beautiful with a balcony. The food was good with plenty of fresh fruits, vegetables, and nice desserts. You do the math and determine if it is worth the price, keeping in mind that bottled water is $2.75 at the park, and a continental breakfast for 4 will be $50 with tip at most restaurants. I really enjoyed waking up early, walking down the hall to a beautiful room, getting a hot coffee, a free newspaper, and relaxing before the kids got up. Then there is the security which is excellent. They don't allow riff-raff coming off the street to hang out or loud obnoxious groups to party all night. The pool had life-guards and security roamed the entire complex. Now, on to other points you should consider. First, the rooms are not that big. A family of four packs in pretty tight with very limited dresser space for an extended stay. They are really nice rooms, just small. Stay away from the MINI BAR! Do not have them open it upon check in. Everything in the bar is computerized. If your kids move anything (and they will) then you will be charged whether you used it or not. Bring your own stuff and use the concierge level instead for goodies. The swimming pools are good. They are nothing fantastic, however are very clean and kids enjoyed the small slide. The lounge chairs are extremely nice. There is no service to the swim area and there will be lots of kids running around. Bring water/drinks or use the Snack shop off the pool area. Be advised that there is no "adult-only" hot tub. The Hotel has a great "baby-sitting" service if adults want a night out on the town. It is not cheap ($13/hr per kid) but is well run. Finally, there is nothing inexpensive about this Hotel, Downtown Disney, DCA, or Disneyland. Spend the money to stay at this Hotel (Conceriege Level) and plan accordingly to offset other costs. Pack snacks, rent or get a small fridge for your room for food/drink, bring movies from home, and other items you will need for the trip. Please e-mail if you have questions about our stay at this Hotel. Thank you.

We stayed at the Grand Californian for 2 nights this month. We really liked the lobby, it was really beautiful and huge! Very nice and I bet it looks even cooler to a little kid!

We had a suite, which was nice, the furniture and decor was obviously designed with the fact in mind that alot of children would stay in the rooms so everything is kind of un-breakable.. heavy lamps, furniture, but nice. Kind of a woodsy theme.

Very kid friendly! It was just me and my boyfriend stopping in for some fun during a business trip, but his kids would have really loved it.

We were a bit suprised there were no theme-rooms, maybe they will add some later.

We paid the additional 200 a night for the concierge, another service which I feel is best if you have younger kids. They have waters, sodas, and things like mini sandwhiches, mickey shaped scones with jams and stuff to put on them, chocolate dipped strawberrys, and other cookies and things. (in the afternoon)

In the morning they had fresh fruit, bagles and cream cheese, muffins, that sort of thing. I can see if would be great to bring the kids there to get snacks and things especially the waters as kids are always wanting to stop because they are thirsty or need a snack.

Stock up on the water bottles and bring them along it will save you a ton of money in the park, as well as having breakfast there will save lots. They also have cereal etc for the kiddies.

We are glad we did get the concierge service though, it was nice! If you can afford it, do it! We paid about 800 per night for our room (suite) and the concierge.

From what I have heard the suites are much better than the average rooms.

The location was un-beatable, it made up for the over-priced room service. (over 60 dollars for 2 american breafasts)

The service was nice, but we didn't feel that anyone went out of their way for us. No-one was rude however, just average! Room service took 45 minutes.. ordered ice-cream and it was almost melted when it arrived.

The room service food was good, the portions are completely insane so I would reccomend ordering one plater per two people. We are not sure if the food portions are bigger everywhere in the united states compared to canada, but we were a little shocked! Some plates even come with two beverages, so its perfect to share..

We really did love the location and the lobby was amazing, but if you are looking for excellent service and to pay around the same price try the Raffles L'Ermitage in Beverly Hills. It is a wonderful hotel, and to have a limo drop you off and pick you up at specified time is around 240 dollars.

Both hotels are nice, but we love the Raffles most! If you have small kids I suppose the disneyland hotel would be more fun just because it is Disney.
:)