Disney Hotel Lady

• Walking distance
• Breakfast
• Pool
• Gym
• Offers suites/kitchens

In this week’s post, we explore the Desert Palms Hotel on Katella Avenue.

No crosswalk necessary at this hotel, as it sits on the same side of the street as Disneyland!

This property is deceptively large. You have to be sure you know which floor you are going to and which elevator will take you there. I wish we were given a map at checkin, but we were not.

We initially had booked a standard double queen room. But noticing the discounted upgrade sign at the front desk, we asked and were granted a (paid) upgrade to a 1-bedroom suite with bunk beds.

Technically, this is a one bedroom since you can close off the bunk bed room from the king bed room. But I think that’s a bit of a stretch since the barrier is a barn door with a frosted glass center. There is also a frosted glass window in the wall separating the areas.

The king bed area felt a little tight with how the furniture was situated. We couldn’t pass each other at the foot of the bed / front of the storage center. It was a one-way bridge situation. The desk and fridge are also in the king area. The fridge was large and that’s always appreciated.

The bunk bed area held, of course, the bunks, a dresser, separate TV, and access to the balcony. The beds were surprisingly big – looked like actual full beds, both top and bottom, as opposed to twin size.

Extra points to the bathroom here as there was a sink both inside the bathroom proper and a standalone sink and mirror just outside the bathroom. There was no soap provided, however, at the sink on the outside of the bathroom. Lots of spots for hanging towels though!

The towel animal on the bed was cute.

The TV worked well and Wifi was sufficient. We did purchase a day of “upgraded” internet to ensure a smooth connection for a Zoom meeting.

Interestingly, you are given the option to leave a tip for your housekeeper online with a credit card. We were especially happy about this since we had forgotten to pick up some extra cash before we left home. (Housekeeping is provided every 4th day or as requested.)

Breakfast is included in your rate here. It’s 6:30-10am every day and located on the 5th floor. Options were fairly standard. There was plenty of seating.

Remember the room service option we’ve observed in other hotels? Provided by Camo Eats, we found the kitchen for all those options is actually located inside this hotel. Naturally, you will find the same room service offered here with the addition of a pickup option. Just head downstairs to the lobby to pickup your order.

The pool area is surrounded on all sides by the building, making a “pool courtyard” if you will. This makes it feel small. The pool towels are also small. We wondered if they were made for use by some small animal, like a rabbit, as opposed to humans, haha. The pool and hot tub were perfectly usable and provided nice relief to aching feet and backs (uh oh, are we showing our age?).

Several “onesie” restrooms are located just inside from the pool area. No direct access from the pool deck so be sure to dry off a bit before heading in.

The gym had a reasonable square footage but limited equipment.

The lobby is quite spacious with lots of seating and a kids’ area. The gift shop is in the lobby. It’s a self-serve store like we saw at the Best Western Park Place Inn (or like you might see in some airports these days). Sorry we forgot to get a picture of the gift shop and lobby.

If you need more options than the small gift shop offers, 7-Eleven is right next door or CVS and Walgreens’ are across the street.

There is an ART bus stop right outside, but it’s hard to wait for a bus when you can walk to Disney faster.

Overall, this would be a solid choice for your lodging needs.

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