Recently, my husband and I took a quick getaway to San Diego. We stayed at a lovely hotel right next to Old Town San Diego State Historic Park, which we have visited in the past. This Courtyard by Marriott is really great for families who are interested in visiting the Old Town area, or who just want to stay nearby because it offers plenty of convenient restaurant options.
Small surface lot for guests to park, an underground parking lot is also available
The hotel features a small surface lot and larger parking garage underground, and costs $25 a night (which is very affordable compared to other hotels in the San Diego area). Free street parking may be found in the neighborhoods nearby, but you can also take a shuttle or rideshare from the airport for approximately $15.
Luxurious lobby area of the hotel
The hotel offers a reasonably priced coffee bar which converts to a bistro bar in the afternoons. There is also a small outdoor pool and spa, which we didn’t visit on our trip.
Bathroom with large shower
Our room was clean and comfortable, with a very nice shower in the bathroom. A useful sized mini fridge and coffee maker were also included. Our room faced Old Town, but some rooms may face the freeway and have some road noise. Since it was just the two of us, we stayed in a room with a king sized bed, which we found very comfortable.
Standard King room
For us, the location of the hotel is very convenient. It is very close to the freeway, so it’s easy to drive to other attractions in the San Diego area. We also love that it’s only a couple blocks from Old Town, a state park featuring historical buildings from California’s past, many delicious Mexican restaurants, and beautiful shops from local craftsmen.
View of Old Town and surrounding neighborhoods from our room
I recommend this hotel for it’s convenient location and high quality atmosphere (without the high price).
Even though we are locals to the Disneyland Resort, we decided to spend a couple days at a hotel to make our return to the Parks a little more special. If you are looking for a hotel that’s walking distance to the Disneyland Resort, clean, quiet and high-quality, then the Holiday Express and Suites on S. Manchester Ave is perfect for you.
Our room with 2 Queen beds and a sofa pull-out bed
The hotel only offers a valet parking service, which we found to be convenient and quick. It took us about 10 minutes to walk from the hotel to the entrance to the Disneyland Resort on Harbor Blvd. The room itself featured two queen beds with an additional sofa bed, offering space for up to 6 to sleep comfortably. My favorite features were the spacious mini fridge and the Keurig (good coffee is essential to my morning).There was also a microwave, very helpful when you’re traveling with kids who demand snacks at all hours. I was also impressed that a white noise machine was in every room, ironically we had brought our own machine from home, it was even the same brand. Some rooms are freeway adjacent (which can be said for many of the hotels in the area), and the provided Dohm white noise machines will really drown out that background noise.
Keurig machine, mini fridge and microwave all in our room
We all found the beds and pillows to be comfortable, which helped us rest up for our big 12 hour marathon day at Disneyland. The shower tub included wall-mounted shampoo, conditioner, and body wash.
Clean and modern bathrooms
The only thing we found mildly disappointing was the included breakfast, but as for many things, you can blame Covid. Normally, the hotel stay includes a hot breakfast buffet. While the hotel did provide other options, they were not the best for our family. Our breakfast was a bottle of water, granola bar, fruit cup, packaged breakfast pastry, and a frozen Hot Pocket (which could be cooked in the room’s microwave). It was a good assortment, but didn’t provide juice or other drinks for my husband and daughter. I assume that they’ll bring back their normal buffet as soon as policy allows.
Our hotel provided breakfast, which didn’t offer as much variety as their normal buffet.
The walk to the Disneyland Resort is quick and easy. More importantly, you walk past a Mimi’s Cafe, Panera Bread, and McDonald’s, which offers you many options for food throughout the day.
The Disneyland Resort and Downtown Disney are only a 10 minute walk from the hotel!
I would say that for the cost and convenience, this hotel is a great option for those families who want a clean and comfortable place to sleep. I would highly recommend this hotel for your next visit to the Anaheim area.
If you’re looking for a Southern California spot where the whole family can enjoy the pool under sunny skies, this is it! The Hyatt Regency Indian Wells in Palm Desert features an incredible pool area with a lazy river, water slides for big kids and little ones, a splash pad, and many other pools, giving everyone plenty of space.
Lazy River and Large Water Slides
This was the first vacation we had taken in over a year, and it was a perfect quick escape! From Orange County, the Palm Springs area is about a two hour drive, with many convenient places to stop for a bite (or a restroom break) if needed.
This stay was not sponsored in any way. We did book a special package which included a one day cabana rental and a free room upgrade, which was available to anyone at the time that we booked it.
Pool View from our balcony
We stayed in a One King Bedroom with Pool View, which featured a pull-out sofa bed. The room was spacious for the 3 of us, with a step down into the “living room” area and a small balcony. The room overlooked a section of the pool which closed at 6 pm, so it was quiet during the evening. For me, the best features were the separate bathtub and shower in the bathroom, and the mini fridge for keeping our drinks cool. My daughter’s favorite detail was the enormous TV which could connect to Google Chromecast (and allowed her to stream some of her preferred shows).
Splash Pad
Checking in for our pool cabana was simple, and our server was helpful and attentive. We had heard that the pool area could get very crowded, but we were pleasantly surprised by how much space was available. Having the cabana was a nice treat on our first day, and on our second day we had no trouble at all finding lounge chairs in the shade around 9:30 am. There are two medium sized pools when you first enter the pool area, which tend to be the busiest. Hidden off to the side is a small pool with only a 4.5 feet maximum depth, great for younger kids. Just beyond that is the fun and refreshing splash pad, as well as a smaller kid’s water slide and shallow wading pool (ideal for toddlers).
1 of 2 main pools
The lazy river and larger water slides are located in a separate area, which closes at 6 pm each day. There were plenty of single and double inner tubes available for the lazy river every time we checked, although my daughter (and many other kids) preferred to float or swim along without one. While my daughter didn’t meet the height requirement for the taller slides, she loved the smaller one!
Small Waterslide
We all enjoyed our lunch and drinks from the pool bar, and I was impressed by the high quality of the meal. Our food came out quickly and the drinks were strong, so no complaints at all!
Our room package also included a $25 credit at Citrus Marketplace, so the next morning we picked up a nice assortment of breakfast items to share. I was excited that they offered Starbucks coffee, which meant that I was able to order my favorite soy latte. The hot food items were all pre-prepared just like a standard Starbucks, so they could not be customized at all. There were also pastries, along with cereals and a large variety of snack items.
Citrus Marketplace
After our breakfast, we spent a couple more hours at the pool, and had no trouble finding some lounge chairs in the shade. It’s important to note that when the slides and lazy river close at 6 pm, the main pool area becomes more crowded. It may be difficult to find a chair at that time if you hadn’t claimed one earlier in the day!
Overall, we really enjoyed our experience! We were pretty much there to enjoy the pools and we definitely accomplished that goal.
Smaller Pool, maximum depth 4.5 feet
For me, the size and variety of activities offered in the pool area made this trip amazing. We have stayed at similar resorts in the past, but this is the best pool area we’ve encountered by far. I would highly recommend the Hyatt Regency Indian Wells and we will definitely be returning to float in that lazy river again.
Castles, Characters, and Crayons 