Staying at the Residence Inn in Anaheim, California

Business Editor at Large·NZ Herald·

12 Mar, 2017 09:00 PM3 mins to read

Anaheim's new Residence Inn.

Liam Dann and family check into a hotel overlooking Disney California Adventure Park

Location: Disneyland is just a 15-minute walk or 8-minute bus ride from Anaheim's newest Residence Inn. One of dozens of family-friendly hotels located around the theme park's perimeter, it boasts a roof-top pool with splash zone and kids' suites with bunk beds and fun decor. Built next to Anaheim's new Convention Centre on West Katella Ave, it's not to be confused with the other two Residence Inns at Maingate and Garden Grove.

Getting there: One hour and 15 minutes' drive from LAX. We pre-booked a Karmel Shuttle service.

Check-in experience: Check-in is at 4pm. Our flight arrived much earlier but the hotel was happy for us to stash our suitcases at reception and hang out at the rooftop pool while we waited for our rooms to be cleaned.

Rooms: The family suite was perfect for us. Apartment style, it had a full kitchen, living room and two bedrooms with their own bathrooms. Our boys loved their zany bunk room with spotty walls and stripy floors and our daughter slept in the master bedroom's spare double bed.

Free Wi-Fi? Yes, but it's slow. If you want to upload large files (like our daughter's daily vlog) it's worth paying for a faster service.

View: Our suite overlooked Disney California Adventure Park, perfect for enjoying Disneyland's regular fireworks displays. We had a great view of the rear of Radiator Springs, the original Tower of Terror and the Matterhorn.

Exercise facilities: The 24-hour gym has free weights, treadmills, bikes and stepping machines. The pool, splash zone and spa are open till 10pm each night.

Services: Daily housekeeping service. The on-site laundry is coin operated and open 24 hours. If you rent a car you'll need to pay a daily parking fee. Uber is so cheap and readily available we didn't need one.

Food & Drink: The hotel's free buffet breakfast provides a slap-up feast to fuel your day. There are options for all the family from a hot breakfast of waffles with bacon to healthy options such as muesli with fresh fruit and yoghurt. Filter coffee and iced drinking water are available free all day in the lobby — great for refilling water bottles. The CVS Pharmacy nearby has packed lunch options like filled rolls and salads and is open 24 hours for any other snack food, cold drinks and drugstore products you might need. For meals, you can find loads of chain restaurants nearby. We took a 10-minute Uber ride to the trendy new Anaheim Packing District, a restored farmers' market/food hall with more than 20 artisan eateries and outdoor bars.

Value for money: At the more expensive end of the scale, but you get what you pay for.

Perfect for: Families wanting a quality retreat close to Disneyland. Refresh the kids by popping back for a swim half-way through your Disney day.