Residence Inn By Marriott Anaheim Resort Area

By the third night, I was ready to leave. My jacket got wet in the rain, and when I tried the hair dryer, I found a caked-on white substance all over the back. Housekeeping knocked at 1 pm, but we told them we were in the room and they left ten minutes later. When we got back at 1 am, nothing had been cleaned or changed. If you want to handle housekeeping and customer service yourself, this hotel is for you. The night before, the toilet was clogged with something other than toilet paper, and there was mold in the vents. I asked for clean towels and help with the toilet. Four hours later we were carrying up our own towels, and the only person working had to find time to bring us a plunger so we could deal with it ourselves. The can opener was so brown it looked like it had been dragged through mud. Disgusting. The first night, the water took five minutes to get warm or hot. The TV kept going black on about half the channels. The fridge wasn’t cold enough and its temperature control had been removed. Ice was available in Walmart freezer bags for a fee, and there was no clock or alarm. This was my worst Marriott experience. I know we deserve better.

We spent four nights here for a Disney visit, and it was very convenient to get to the parks with only a quick ride. Our Gold Elite status got us a room upgrade and late checkout, which we appreciated. The rooms are roomy and work well for families, though they feel dated and could use updating. Breakfast was good, but the vegetarian choices were limited and could be better. A solid option for a Disney trip.

The staff were wonderful with my family, always friendly and helpful. We’ve been loyal guests with our families for more than 25 years, but the hotel has gone downhill over the last decade. It was a really great place ten years ago. On our next trip, we’ll definitely stay next door unless there’s a major renovation. There are useful things nearby, including restaurants and Target, and Disney is very close. A shuttle next door costs $7 per person for the whole day. Breakfast had lots of options and stayed clean despite the crowds. There’s also a small store, and the kids got little Disney freebies like Croc charms, bubbles, and stickers. Our room was clean. The pool was freezing, like a cold plunge, even for us Canadians. A heated pool would have made it much nicer. The towels were old and so small they wouldn’t wrap around my five-year-old. The rooms and building are showing their age: our carpet was coming up, things around the room were worn, the fridge was dented, the window coverings were discolored and a bit dirty, and the bathroom was old and a little gross. The whole place felt run down and lacking color.

Late checkout was part of my Gold Elite benefits, but all our keycards stopped working at 9:30 am while my family was at breakfast. Standard checkout is 11, so that felt very unwelcoming. I also asked for toilet paper at 9:58 and it never came. We packed up and left because the service problems clearly weren’t isolated. I’ve contacted Marriott Corporate and expect my points for this stay to be refunded. This was a major disappointment from a brand I trust and disrupted our vacation. We also had trouble with the room and the people around it. There weren’t enough blankets the first night, even after I asked for more, so we were cold all night. The sofa bed was badly worn, and its springs left me with lower back pain. At 1 am, other guests kicked and banged on our door and tried their keycards to get in. I reported it through the Marriott app, but the front desk said they’d help if it happened again. It did happen again at 6 am, leaving us feeling unsafe and unsupported. A guest outside our window talked loudly and cursed on the phone until 4 am, so we couldn’t rest. After returning late from the parks on the second night, we couldn’t find a parking space or any sign telling us where overflow parking was. I had to message the front desk and learned the overflow lot was at another hotel across the way. Better signage would have saved us that frustration. At arrival, no one acknowledged my Marriott Gold Elite status, greeted me, thanked me, or offered a welcome gift. No one addressed basic benefits like complimentary water, an upgrade, or late checkout. None of the three keycards worked at first, so after a long travel day my family and I couldn’t get into our room. Once they were fixed, the welcome gift still hadn’t been provided. I requested it through the app, then picked it up from a rude front desk employee who abruptly shoved chips and wipes into a bag and handed it to me. This was by far my worst experience with Marriott.