Disneyland Good Neighbor Hotel Review: Hotel Menage
Hotel Menage is a Disneyland Good Neighbor Hotel located about 12 minutes from the parks near the I-5 freeway. The hotel aims for trendy and chic, and succeeds somewhat. This review features photos of the hotel, plus thoughts about our experience of staying here.
Let’s start the review by covering the location. With it being only a 12 minute walk from Disney California Adventure and Disneyland, the location is pretty solid on paper. It’s essentially right across the street from the HoJo Anaheim, both of which the I-5 freeway runs past. For those unfamiliar with the 5, it’s a major highway running through Orange County, which right away should raise concerns about noise. I never had any trouble sleeping or really noticed the sounds of the freeway, but light sleepers might want to think twice about booking this hotel, just the same. Likewise, when walking to the park, you have to cross the I-5 on and off ramps. There are pedestrian traffic signals here, but it still seems like a bit of a sketchy intersection.
Hotel Menage is one of the 39 Disneyland Good Neighbor Hotels. To get an idea of how it stacks up to the competition, check out our Disneyland Hotels Reviews & Rankings post. You can also read our overall comparison of the benefits of staying off-site versus on-site in our Where to Stay at Disneyland post.
So what are the pros and cons of staying at Hotel Menage? Let’s take a look…
I started by calling it a hotel that somewhat succeeds at being chic and trendy. This success is entirely in the common areas, particularly the main lobby where the dining options can be found and just outside there by the 24-hour pool and lounge area.
I’d go as far as to describe these spots as posh, and they are certainly nice places to relax and unwind. The atmosphere all around the lobby is really fun and laid back.
This alone makes it the kind of place two honeymooners or childless twentysomethings might go for an adults-only Disneyland trip enjoyed at a relaxed place. Maybe my mind is in the gutter, but the name of the hotel itself sounds very…um…”adult.”
Think of this as the Trader Sam’s and pool area at Disneyland Hotel, except at a much lower price point and not as geared towards families. This isn’t to say it’s not family friendly, but it doesn’t overtly cater to families like the Disneyland Hotel. Worth noting is that Hotel Menage doesn’t serve a complimentary continental breakfast like many other off-site hotels in the area. Would it really kill them to throw out some bagels and bananas? I mean, it’s one banana, what could it cost them, $10? If you want breakfast here, the buffet will set you back $13/adult.
After seeing the lobby, I was really optimistic about Hotel Menage, thinking it might become a go-to spot for me, especially given the bargain price I scored on the place and its fairly close location to Disneyland and Disney California Adventure. Unfortunately, this chic and trendy vibe falls apart once you leave the lobby and pool area.
This isn’t to say the rest of the hotel is weak, it just has a distinct “motel” vibe to it, and doesn’t feel like a happenin’ spot once you get to the guest rooms. Whereas my initial impression was that Hotel Menage was brand new when I saw the lobby (I still have no clue when it actually opened…I can’t find any news articles on it, so I’m guessing it’s at least 10 years old), it feels overly worn once you get to the guest rooms.
There’s not really anything wrong with the guest rooms, per se, and they stack up just fine with many other hotels on Harbor Boulevard, they just don’t really feel fresh and modern at all.
The bedding in the rooms is nice and comfortable, and there’s some neat art, but that’s about it. The furniture looks like it has seen better days and is ready for replacement, and there are dings and wear on every wood surface in the room.
Perhaps this all wouldn’t have been any issue whatsoever had the lobby and pool area not set the bar high, but it all really stands out when juxtaposed against those cool, modern areas.
It’s really a “Tale of Two Hotels” (the lesser-known sequel to Dickens’ famous title). Quite simply, the rooms are desperately in need of a refresh to bring them in line with the chic boutique atmosphere the Hotel Menage is trying to create.
The good news is that there’s not really anything wrong with the rooms–they are perfectly passable–and the location is pretty solid, so if you’re not planning on spending every waking hour at Disneyland and are looking for a budget-priced hotel with a stacked set of amenities, Hotel Menage is a great option.
In addition to the aforementioned restaurants, pool, and bars, Hotel Menage has a fitness center (and a fairly nice-looking one, at that), a business center, meeting & event space, and it even allows pets (albeit for a $25 fee plus a cleaning fee; I overheard one pet owner irritated by the string of fees added onto her final bill). These fees seem a bit extreme to me–although I doubt I’d ever take my pet to a hotel, I think every hotel could use more (quiet) dogs. It is scientifically proven that dogs make any hotel seem 27% cooler. Really, the hotel should be paying the pet owner.
Booked directly, Hotel Menage costs around $100-120/night before tax, which actually isn’t bad for what it is. With that said, it’s pretty regularly on Hotel Tonight in the $70-90/night range (I’ve been watching over the past 3 months, and I’d say it’s available 75%+ of the time if you look at least 1 night in advance). If you are comfortable winging it a bit and don’t mind potentially staying at a different hotel on Harbor Boulevard, I highly recommend waiting and using Hotel Tonight to book.
Overall, despite my complaints about the guest rooms not really fitting the tone the hotel has established for itself, I am a fan of Hotel Menage. It fills a nice niche at Disneyland that I don’t see occupied by any other hotel, appealing to young people who want a spot close to Disneyland, but also want to have a bit of adult fun. The only other hotels that I’ve been to that somewhat appeal to this same demographic are Disneyland Hotel and the major brand name Convention Center hotels. In the case of the former, it still skews towards families, and in the case of the latter hotels, they are significantly farther from Disneyland. In the case of all of those hotels, they are much more expensive than Hotel Menage. It’s definitely not a hotel that will appeal to everyone, but if these amenities appeal to you and you’re fine with a “just okay” room, it’s a great option.
As for figuring out the rest of your Disneyland trip, including how to save money on Disneyland tickets, our Disney packing tips, the best restaurants for dining at Disneyland, and a number of other things, check out our comprehensive Disneyland Trip Planning Guide!
Your Thoughts…
Have you stayed at the Hotel Menage? Did you enjoy your stay? Considering this hotel? Do you prefer staying off-site or on-site at Disneyland? Please share your thoughts or questions in the comments section below!
Just wanted drop a note about demographic appeal and ammenities.
This hotel was my 10-year-olds choice for our May trip (so I might comment again after). The grown-up theme of the pool and lobby were big selling points.
The clinchers for me were 1) the 24 hour pool/hot tub access because we discovered with our first trip to Disney World was that we would spend the day in the parks (often from rope drop or just after to closing) and THEN hit the pool/hot tub back at the hotel. Our biggest complaint with staying at Pop Century was the limited pool hours and lack of hot tub for a similar price point to off-property hotels. And, 2) access to a microwave. We are budget conscious vegetarians who carry a fair amount of packed food in the parks (so we don’t feel bad at all splurging for one big meal a day and whatever fun snacks we want – from both a nutrition and budget perspective). Having access to a microwave is essential. I called and confirmed that there is one for guest use in the breakfast room.
I will start off saying that the front desk staff was great, Mike checked me in and this experience was great.
OK, the hotel: The best thing about this place is the pool and restaurant. My mother has been an employee for over 30 years and I used her friends and family rate, I am glad because if I spent more than $50 a night for what felt like a motel I would be more aggreviated. I stayed here because of location to Disney the room had a leaky frig and I went to use the restroom and the toilet paper had some sort of brown/yellowish liquid on the roll..sickening!!!!! Then the fire alarms kept going off but they announced on the intercome that they were “test”, then 15 min later they come back on and say the FIRE has been put out…..what in the world!!! Needless to say I couldn’t wait to get out of that hotel, I was not comfortable nor happy with my stay.
deafening traffic noise from the freeway. the hot tub water looked yellow, and constantly had the capacity of people in it. the beer selection at the bar is ho hum. i wouldn’t recommend staying here.
I’m going back for a week in October, and want a place that I’d enjoy lounging around in when I’m not at the park. This place looks interesting–especially one of the suites, if I want to splurge. 😀 Thanks for the review!
I thought it’s worth updating this to say that this is now a Starwood property – meaning SPG fans can use points there.
Interestingly, it’s listed as an ‘unbranded’ property, rather than a Marriott/Four Points etc – presumably they’re too ashamed to put their name to it as it stands!
We booked a room at $74 / night on hotwire. It was a stinking hot deal I just could not refuse for a very very last minute trip to Disneyland with my 10 yr old. I’m a little nervous about this walk, but I guess we will just have to see. I know there’s a mention of the ART bus, does anyone know if you still have to cross the freeway to get to this?
We stayed at the hotel Menage three years ago, and I specifically liked the walk for a reason a few people may “get”.
Though our kids are now adults, we still love the anticipation of starting our Disney day in the morning, and seeing how close to the front of the line we can get before park opening. We review our touring plan and FP strategies, and speculate how many favorite rides we can get in first thing before the lines get long.
So the short walk from wherever we are staying is fun and full of growing excitement and the thrill of the chase!
What I loved about the Menage was that the crossing of Harbour Blvd is right at the beginning of the walk, instead of at the end, where more often than not, you are bunched up with a large group of other excited early morning Disney fans, eagerly waiting for the crosswalk light to change and allow your herd to cross the last barrier to bliss!
Because we were already on the Disney side of Harbour when we got to the Esplanade entrance, looking over and seeing the throng waiting to cross, as we just fast-walked our way around the corner, already starting to open our various backpack zippers for bag check, made it feel like we were already winners in an undeclared race!
A very silly, and I guess selfish, reason to like the walk from Menage, but in my mind, a valid one, none the less!
A clarification of my post–it’s not Harbour that you cross at the beginning of the walk, but the I-5.
The point is you’ve crossed the traffic hurdle early on!
I stayed at this hotel about 12 years ago or so- it was called something else at the time. They definitely did some nice upgrades to the lobby and pool areas that you showed, but looks like they didn’t do much with the rooms.
Really disappointing that the rooms look similar now to what they looked like 12 years ago, especially with the hotel touting itself as a chic boutique hotel.
Thanks for the review! I’m surprised to hear you so positive about the location of the Menage. I’ve seen good deals there before, but it seemed the consensus on the various Disney forums was that the walk was awful. Might have to consider it again after seeing this.
Right now booked at the Carousel for a trip this summer… interesting to see that Disney just bought them! Booked a refundable deal there hoping to catch something better when the trip gets closer.
I don’t know that I’m “so positive” about it’s location. It’s fairly close, but the walk is unpleasant. I don’t think it’s as awful as others do, but perhaps if I had small children crossing the I-5 ramp with me, it would be much more unnerving, worrying about them? I guess I should look at it from a parent’s perspective, too. I did cross at the same time as families, and they seemed to take it in stride, but still…
Thank you for an awesome blog and reviews! Disney just bought Carousel Inn! http://www.ocregister.com/articles/disney-659941-hotel-inn.html
I saw that! There are strong rumors that Disneyland purchased a business park behind the hotel last year and that the eventual plan is to tear both the business park and the hotel down, with the park becoming a parking structuring and a pedestrian skybridge connecting it to the Esplanade over the hotel and Harbor Blvd.
That’s the supposed long term plan, at least. In the short term, I think they will allow existing management to operate Carousel Inn.
perfect timing on the “You gotta keep yo grill clean!’
I just wanted to say that you have really upped your references lately and they always make me laugh. As always, I appreciate the review and fantastic job!
For what it’s worth, great deliberation went into that Arrested Development reference. I did not want to include that link (and didn’t originally) because that sort of spoils the joke. However, AD isn’t *that* popular of a show, and I didn’t want 75% of the people reading this to think I thought a banana costs $10.
These are the tough decisions over which I toil when I *should* be proofreading… 😉
We stayed at the relatively new SpringHill Suites at Anaheim Resort/Convention Center on S. Harbor in November (I think it just opened in October). I thought it was a great location and it had a CVS on the ground level. There were 2 TVs, one in the bed area (I wouldn’t call it a bed room) and the other by the desk area which made it easier for me to watch TV when my husband went to bed early. Parking was underground (sometimes a little tight). I’d easily stay there again (we used to stay at the Marriott Suites on Harbor).
If you don’t mind me asking, what kind of nightly rate did you get there? It’s a hotel I’m wanting to review, but whenever I’ve checked, it seems a bit pricey.
We got a grand opening special AAA rate of $119 for a studio suite with a king bed. I haven’t checked the current prices but bummer if the current rate is a lot higher.
Great review Tom, have you review the Carousel Inn? Looking at that for 7/14-20 (getting $140 a night through my wifes work) and was curious if you had any thoughts on that one. Thanks.
Funny you should ask about this on the same day Carousel Inn is bought by Disney!
No, I have not stayed at Carousel Inn yet, but I do want to review it. I have seen it for as low as $82/night on Hotel Tonight, but I have balked at that price because they charge for WiFi AND parking. There’s no way on earth I’d pay $140/night to stay there. You can get comparable hotels for much less.
I know typically you can get comparable hotels for less but everything is priced pretty high that week because of the 60th anniversary on the 17th. The Carousel is going for $180-$200 on most sites and about the only ones under $140 are the Menege and the Castle it seems. If I am missing something and any of those hotels on Harbour are going for less than $100 I’d go with that but not many hotels can beat close the Carousel is. There is always those express deals on Priceline but I want to know where I’m staying.
Ahh…it didn’t even dawn on me that those dates included July 17. Yeah, you’re going to be paying more.
I’d probably opt for Castle Inn, especially if you have kids. I stayed there recently, and it’s totally dorky, but it’s a fine hotel, albeit slightly farther away (still a very easy walk) than Carousel Inn.
I agree- charging for WiFi AND parking is crazy in fact there’s no reason to charge for wifi and no reason for large charges for parking.
It’s just clickbait. You see a great rate on fillinthetravelsitehere and click on it, only to find a addl $50 in stupid fees.
My wife and I stayed here last year and absolutely hated the walk. It’s hard not to have your heart pumping and adrenaline flowing after crossing the very busy I-5 and ramps. We also had to pass several vagrants on the way who were often in the middle of the path — including one who we saw every time we made the trip and was always brushing his teeth.
Were we to stay here again (and I doubt we will) we would get a bus pass for the trip and avoid the walk.
You gotta keep yo grill clean! 😉
I didn’t think crossing the I-5 ramps were quite that bad, but it’s definitely not as pleasant as a “normal” intersection.
Anaheim has a high homeless population and I think the bus stops in the area are common hangouts; you’re going to see them virtually no matter where you stay on Harbor.
It wasn’t really the ramps that were scary so much as all the traffic underneath the bridge.
As for staying on Harbor, I think I’d opt for a hotel on the other side of the road next time.
I’m a huge walker around the Disneyland Resort, but I also hated this walk.
It’s not far to the Parks, just unpleasant.
The Resort is cool though.
A very “hip” vibe.
I saw the toothbrusher guy when we went in Dec. 2014. He was there every day when we walked past from staying at the HoJo. I crafted an entire history for him including his rise and fall in the dot com boom and how he ended up at the southbound bus stop outside of the cast member pickup area. Thanks for reminding me of him.