Review of Days Inn of Anaheim, CA

We recently took our first family Disneyland vacation. There were 10 of us in total. My 3 children, my husband and I in one group. My sister-in-law, brother-in-law and their 3 children in the other group. For a year, we all worked hard, saved money, and searched high and low to get the most for our money on this trip. This was the true 'Disney or Die' vacation.

Our planning was off to a great start with our on-line reservation at the Days Inn on Harbor Blvd in Anaheim. The Days Inn website was easy to navigate, and the price was pretty good. We stayed 5 nights, in two rooms. My family's room was 2 doubles, and I thought that if we could get a roll-away bed everyone would sleep better. I called the 1-800 number. The Days Inn reception answered and was more than helpful. They did have a roll-away bed available, and yes, they would reserve one for my room. "Yes Ma'am," "Thank you for calling" and "Have a nice Day". The phone call went great, painless. Unfortunately, this was the end of our 'nice' hotel experience at the Days Inn.

I had made sure to call twice during the week before our vacation, just to be sure the hotel still had our reservation, and to let them know our flight was very late in the evening. Everything was set, and we were off to Disneyland. We arrived at the Days Inn around Midnight in Mid April. The driveway was almost impossible to get into. The hotel van was parked in the entry making the driveway very tight. There was only 1 parking spot left. Hopefully, no one else was coming to the Days Inn that night. A couple nights later we saw cars double parked. All the spots were full.

Check-in went ok, after someone showed up at the counter, 10 minutes after we arrived. I asked if a roll-away was in the room. The attendant said there wasn't anything on my reservation about an extra bed, but if I had called, it should be in the room. So, we go to the room. Even though our reservations were made at the same time for the same family, our rooms were on opposite sides and floors, of the hotel. In our room, no roll-away. I call the desk, and "Sorry, there is no roll-away left tonight." Well, it has been a long day, and we decide to just call it a night. Tomorrow, off to Disneyland.

We put the kids into bed, and think, let's unpack quickly, quietly while they are asleep. Looking at the pathetic little 2 drawer dresser, I realize we aren't going to be unpacking very much. I open the first drawer, and it falls apart, leaving us with one drawer for 5 people. We decided it wasn't worth unpacking into one drawer. Oh well, off to bed. Somewhere around 4 am, we are awakened by a thud and the screaming of my youngest, having rolled out of his crowded bed. I assess the damage done by the nightstand, and decide a hospital visit isn't needed, but there is a huge black and blue goose egg square in the middle of his little forehead. (Visible on all of our Disneyland photos) An icepack and an hour later the alarm clock goes off.

In the early morning light, we can see just how stained, worn and dirty the carpeting is. Yuck. The bathroom seemed clean, although the fan and heat-lamp didn't work. We have 3 towels, which are all nice and white, but will have to be shared among the 5 of us. We are all off to the free continental breakfast. This included cake donuts, coffee, orange juice, and what we were told was apple juice, but tasted like dish-water. Can't complain too much, as it was free, and filled the belly. But, we found other breakfast for the rest of our vacation.

While the hotel is only '2 blocks' from Disneyland, I don't advise walking it. These are very, very long blocks, over a freeway and across a very big, busy 5 lane road. There is a free hotel shuttle, which I also don't recommend. We took it the first day. When we went to the check-in counter, the attendant said the shuttles run every 10 minutes all day long. Great, we can come and go as needed. Definitely what you need with young kids. Unfortunately the shuttle only comes every hour. When it is 10:05 pm, and the shuttle just came, 55 minutes waiting for the next shuttle seems like an eternity. We drove our rental car the rest for the rest of the vacation.

The swimming pool looked so inviting in the pictures online. Somehow, it looks like a tropical oasis. In reality it is surrounded by parking spots on all 4 sides. You must walk thru the parked cars to even get into it. The water was clean, but not very warm. We didn't try the pool again.

On our last night, I stopped in at the front desk to let them know we were leaving early the next morning to catch our flight. The attendant said to leave the key in the room when we left. Great, one less thing to do before catching an early flight. We tried to wash all the kids the night before to make morning easier. However, there wasn't any hot water. We figured it must have been a busy night at the hotel, and went to bed. Very early the next morning, I hop in the shower and wait for it to get warm. No such luck. Nice cold showers for everyone, to start the morning. We leave our room keys, grab our luggage and head for the airport.

Vacation over, money all spent, luggage unpacked. I go thru our credit card statement. Much to my amazement, Days Inn has charged me almost twice what my reservation amount should have been. I am very unhappy and call the hotel immediately, at 9 am. They answer the phone immediately and say, yes we see you were charged X amount. I say, this is too much, I made a reservation for this stay. They try to tell me the rate changed. I ask for a manager to resolve the issue and am told there is no manager there, but one will call me back (sure). I asked when, and am told this afternoon. I wait until 4 pm. No call. I call the hotel back. Three times. No answer. I give up and call the Corporate Days Inn phone number. Here I received many apologies, and immediate service. I am put on hold while the corporate office tries to call the Harbor Blvd location. No Answer. I am informed that my account will be credited for the overcharge immediately, and all my concerns will be addressed.

I was very happy with the corporate office of Days Inn prompt resolution. However, I will never again stay at the Days Inn at 1111 Harbor Blvd, Anaheim, CA. Definitely a stay-at-your-own risk location. If you do decide to stay here for a bargain price, check your credit card statement when you get home. They charged my sister-in-law $200 dollars too much also!!