Location, location, location. Just like the old real estate adage, sometimes it is all about location when you’re picking a hotel. And when you’re planning a trip to Disneyland, you really can’t beat the location of the Courtyard Marriott Theme Park Entrance in Anaheim, California. This brand new hotel is literally across the street from Disneyland, just a 5-minute walk to the theme park’s entrance. And not only is the location to die for, the hotel itself is pretty awesome, too.

Like the name suggests, the Courtyard Marriott Theme Park Entrance is just steps away from both Disneyland and Disney’s California Adventure – 2,000 feet from the entrance, to be exact. That is a shorter walk to the entrance of the Disney parks than two of the three Disney hotels. The hotel’s other main selling point? Its 20,000 square foot waterpark called Surfside, featuring water slides, pools, a children’s splash area and more.

Best of all – the hotel is brand new, having just celebrated its one year anniversary in August 2016. And it isn’t a refurbished property; the Courtyard Marriott Theme Park Entrance was built from the ground up with modern amenities and families in mind. We had the opportunity to stay there this summer and I have to say, this is definitely my new favorite hotel in the Disneyland Resort area!

What Works for Families

• Surfside Waterpark included free with your stay
• All rooms feature bunk beds
• Spacious rooms comfortably sleep up to 6 people
• Large gift shop on site
• Lots of dining options onsite and within walking distance
• Great views of the water park and Disneyland
• Easy walk to Disneyland, Disney’s California Adventure and Downtown Disney

What Doesn’t Work for Families

• Very small swimming pool
• More expensive than other area hotels
• No bar or food service in the waterpark
• No self-parking option and valet is $20 per night

The Hotel

The Courtyard Marriott Theme Park Entrance is designed exclusively with families in mind, with amenities and services that make it feel more like a full-service Marriott than a Courtyard brand hotel. It is six stories high and features 202 guest rooms and 19 suites.

The lobby is huge, with rich dark wood floors that sprawl throughout the entire first floor and colorful, comfortable seating areas. There is also a library of Disney books as well as a business center and computers. An outdoor patio offers views of the park and a fire pit for evening lounging.

Waterpark & Amenities

Aside from its fabulous location, the hotel’s biggest draw for families is Surfside Waterpark, an exhilarating water playground on the hotel’s second level complete with four water slides, a 400-gallon drench bucket, water cannons, kids’ wading pool, hot tub and swimming pool.

This water play area is great for younger kids, but my 11-year old got bored pretty quickly after going down the big slides a few times. Also, the swimming pool is fairly small, and on the hot summer day we were there it filled quickly with bobbing bodies. On a good note though, the hot tub holds 15 people so you’re not going to be squished. Bonus – you can see the fireworks from here at night!

The resort also offers a fitness center, a big retail shop featuring lots of Disney gear and meeting space.

The Rooms

We stayed in a waterpark view room with great views of (obviously) Surfside Waterpark and Disneyland beyond. From our balcony we could see the Matterhorn and Space Mountain, and the Monorail zooming by every couple of minutes. Really added to the Disneyland experience having this exciting view!

The beds were very comfortable, and the bathroom was well-appointed. I loved that the bathrooms all have both a tub and separate stand-up shower, as well as two sinks. I don’t have little ones any more but I can only imagine how helpful this would be trying to get a bunch of kids ready to go in the morning!

The rooms have a host of other amenities, including Keurig coffee makers, microwaves, mini-fridges, Netflix, and a cozy table area. They are tastefully decorated with vibrant colors and Marriott’s signature bedding.

All rooms are a spacious 530-550 square feet square feet, and feature either two queens or a king bed, and all rooms comes with a set of bunk beds. For families looking to spread out even more, suites are also available.

Dining

The Bistro is the hotel’s onsite restaurant and offers healthy choices, a variety of breakfast and dinner options, beer and wine, and specialty beverages made with Starbucks coffee. Great for grabbing a bite in the morning, but there are lots of restaurants nearby more worthy of a visit. Try Pizza Press, Mimi’s or Panera all within a stone’s throw, and of course there are the myriad of fabulous dining options in Downtown Disney, adjacent to the parks.

Healthy Tip for This Destination

You’ll probably get your share of exercise just walking around the parks, but if you’re looking for more of a workout this hotel has you covered! The Courtyard features the 1,100 square foot Life Fitness Center with free weights and traditional cardio equipment including treadmills, elliptical machines and Flexstriders.