# Driving Portland to Anaheim - where to stay in the middle?



## 4evrdisney

Hey all!
We are making the drive from Portland, OR to Disneyland this fall.  We are making the trip in two days as our kids are 3 and 5.  Wondering for you Oregonians who drive . . .  how far do you go your first day of driving?  What city to you stay in?  Any suggestions on a good hotel to stay at?


----------



## DizNee Luver

We live in Salem & are going down towards the end of July.  We are staying just south of Stockton in Lathrop.  We'll be staying at the Hampton Inn in Lathrop, CA.  TripAdvisor had great reviews & all of our experiences with Hampton Inns have been great!!


----------



## 4evrdisney

Thanks!  We were encouraged not to stay in Stockton, as it isn't the safest city (or so friends have said).  Do you know if Lathrop is fairly safe?


----------



## tlovesdis

4evrdisney said:


> Thanks!  We were encouraged not to stay in Stockton, as it isn't the safest city (or so friends have said).  Do you know if Lathrop is fairly safe?



Lathrop is much much better than Stockton!!!


----------



## reynmagsmom

We drive every year from Kelso Wa about 40 miles north of you, my favorite stop off point is Santa Nella it is a long drive the first day but seems to go pretty fast, it's about a 12 hour drive but then the next day you only have about a 4 to 4 1/2 hour drive depending on LA traffic to Anaheim, The best hotel there is the Holiday Inn, decent price and great breaky in the morning, check roomsavers.com for specials we always use coupons from that site for a even more discounted room..... they have a great pool area to relax after a long day of driving....   There are also several places to eat dinner around the hotel, Whatever you choose have a great trip we are driving down in Aug for 6 days in Anaheim then on to Vegas for 2 nights I can't wait!!!!


----------



## 4evrdisney

Thanks all for the suggestions!  I'd love to hear anyone else's thoughts.  I am going to be 7 months pregnant when we make the drive.  But, my past 2 pregnancies have been really easy and travelling even that late in pregnancy has been no big deal for me.  We've just planning on stopping every 2 hours for me to stretch my legs/prevent blood clots!

Our kids are great car travellers so 12 hours doesn't sound too bad.  I'll check out both Santa Nella and Lathrop.  

Any other suggestions?


----------



## farmgirljen

Ok- we drove from Corvallis, and stayed Here :
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Re...Western_Apricot_Inn-Firebaugh_California.html

it is right off of I5 and was very comfortable. the pool was nice- and we had a nice little dinner at the diner across the street. There is a restaurant next door as well, called the Apricot Tree... and there were apricot trees dropping fresh fruit all over while we were there.  It seems like we got there around 5 pm, so I think we drove for about 10 to 12 hours and then we left at 6am and were in anaheim before noon...


----------



## DLovinFam

We are also from the Portland area (Hillsboro).  The last two trips we have staying in Elk Grove, just a few miles south of Sacramento. 

http://www.elkgrovecity.org/

 This was recommended to us by a DISer back in 2005 and they were right on!  It's a real nice clean, and safe little town.

http://sacramento-california.onetravelsource.com/guide-hotels/US/CA/Elk-Grove/

We stayed at the Extended Stay and I believe the Holiday Inn Express.  Both were were nice and worked well for us.


----------



## disheadz

We did the drive last fall and stayed at the HI Express in Santa Nella.  We thought it was nice to have the second day be shorter.


----------



## iLUVdisneyLAND

I am originally from Portland and done the N. California drive a thousand times.  I also have lived in Elk Grove for 2 years, and  on and off in the East Bay for 8 years.

I would recommend NOT staying in Stockton or Lathrop. (really not a safe place!)  Elk Grove is a great place, there are two places to stay, Comfort Inn and Extended Stay America.  Great place to Original Pete's.  From Elk Grove, it is about a 6 hour drive to Anaheim.  I would stay south of Sacramento, so you don't have morning traffic, unless you will be traveling on Sat/Sun, then Natomas might be a good option too.  

Good luck!


----------



## Sleestack

I just wish I lived in Portland!


----------



## Ariel224

Sleestack said:


> I just wish I lived in Portland!



Ditto this ^^. 

Another option would be, once you hit Sacramento, is to cut over to Hwy 99 instead of staying on I-5.  There is a very nice, relatively new, Comfort Inn & Suites right off the highway in the sleepy little town of Galt, about 1/2 hour south of Sacramento.  We have relatives there, and that's our favorite hotel by far.  The 99 drive back from DLR was much more interesting than the I-5 drive down.

And I definitely concur with the previous posters about staying away from Stockton.  We stayed there once and got to hear some guy beating up his girlfriend in the parking lot right outside our door at 1am.


----------



## rgDizzyland

We live in Beaverton Oregon and make several trips to Disneyland each year and we have stayed at the Holiday Inn Express in Woodland California on many of those trips (it is right off the freeway and is a new hotel).  Their rooms have always been clean, spacious and they have free breakfast!  And it seems to be the perfect distance for a two day drive. 

Holiday Inn Express Hotel
2070 Freeway Drive
Woodland, CA 95776
(530) 662-7750

However do not stop at the Holiday Inn Express in Williams California, as it doesn't have an elevator!!  

Once your kids get older and can endure a longer first day drive I recommend stopping at Harris Ranch Inn, if you can handle the smell of the near by cattle ranch     The hotel is gorgeous, however the service at the restaurant is slow.  But there is a McDonald's and Red Robin close by (other side of freeway).  Harris Ranch is a nice distance from Disneyland as you can get up in the morning have a relaxing breakfast, and then drive the rest of the way to Disneyland and get there in time for lunch.


----------



## iLUVdisneyLAND

Sleestack said:


> I just wish I lived in Portland!



Me too!  I am being held hostage in California!  hah!  DH's job has us here for at least another 15 years!!


----------



## reynmagsmom

We love living in the Pacific Northwest.. It may rain alot here but our seasons are so pretty from fall to summer, I couldnt imagine living anywhere else, but living closer to DL would be nice.....


----------



## DLovinFam

iLUVdisneyLAND said:


> I am originally from Portland and done the N. California drive a thousand times.  I also have lived in Elk Grove for 2 years, and  on and off in the East Bay for 8 years.
> 
> I would recommend NOT staying in Stockton or Lathrop. (really not a safe place!)  Elk Grove is a great place, there are two places to stay, Comfort Inn and Extended Stay America.  Great place to Original Pete's.  From Elk Grove, it is about a 6 hour drive to Anaheim.  I would stay south of Sacramento, so you don't have morning traffic, unless you will be traveling on Sat/Sun, then Natomas might be a good option too.
> 
> Good luck!



Oh yeah,  It was *Comfort Inn* we stayed at last time.  Not Holiday Inn Express.  We did stay at Extended Stay America though.  I agree...both great places to stay.


----------



## DLovinFam

reynmagsmom said:


> We love living in the Pacific Northwest.. It may rain alot here but our seasons are so pretty from fall to summer, I couldnt imagine living anywhere else, but living closer to DL would be nice.....



  I agree on all counts!!


----------



## TSRE

Ariel224 said:


> Ditto this ^^.
> 
> Another option would be, once you hit Sacramento, is to cut over to Hwy 99 instead of staying on I-5.  There is a very nice, relatively new, Comfort Inn & Suites right off the highway in the sleepy little town of Galt, about 1/2 hour south of Sacramento.  We have relatives there, and that's our favorite hotel by far.  The 99 drive back from DLR was much more interesting than the I-5 drive down.
> 
> And I definitely concur with the previous posters about staying away from Stockton.  We stayed there once and got to hear some guy beating up his girlfriend in the parking lot right outside our door at 1am.



I live in Elk Grove & would recommend taking 99 down from here.  There are a Holiday Inn Express and a Hilton Garden Inn right off the freeway here (99), as well as the place mentioned in Galt, which is about 10 minutes south of Elk Grove.  Anyway, there are a lot more places to stop along 99 than 5 from here to Bakersfield, and the drive takes about the same amount of time.  Especially being pregnant, you might want to be able to stop whenever you want, and I prefer restaurant bathrooms over rest stop ones myself, which we always seem to end up at on 5.

All of the stuff about Stockton makes me feel bad!  I do agree that you wouldn't want to stop there, because there are really bad parts of town, and they do have a high crime rate.  In Stockton's defense, though, there are nicer parts of town.  But, probably not where you would want to stop for the night


----------



## akotecha

Hi guys,
I live in the Lathrop area and work at a hotel off of I-5 and Louise Ave.  I absolutely LOVE Disney!!!!!  And I am one of those moms that stay online and scour the internet for the "best" and most convenient experiences for me and my family.  My girls and hubby know me as our "planner."  Poor me, but, I am fairly organized so it works out okay.  So, here's the scoop.  My hotel is PERFECT for you to stop on the way from Oregon or Washington down to Disney.  We are a Hampton Inn & Suites off of I-5 and Louise Ave in Lathrop, CA.  We offer free hot breakfast (saves tons of $$$$) and free high speed internet.  We have an indoor heated pool and whirlpool with pool toys for the kids (yes!) and even an Entertainment Pavillion outside with foosball, basketball, and ping pong.  We even have a snack shop and a fitness room.  And if you really have a bad drive, and guest laundry room if you want to run a load of laundry.  Many restaurants are located nearby, and even a Target and grocery store.  Call us at *209-982-5070*, and tell them you saw us on this site so my boss gives me some kudos.  lol!!


----------



## Mindy71

We drove from Raymond, WA & stayed at the Holiday Inn Express in Tracy.  It was just fine & left us with only a few hours to get to Disneyland.


----------



## MartinaC

Wow, great to see so many Oregonians on the Disboards. We live in Canby and also plan to visit Disneyland at the end of July.
We have family in Modesto Ca. so we plan to drive there and then go the rest of the way the following day. Lathrop is just outside of Stockton and I agree with pp that you should drive just a little further on to another town. If you are planning on taking interstate 5 all the way to Anahiem Santa Nella is a nice small town and much safer than Lathrop. If you plan on cutting over to highway 99 around Stockton or Manteca, then Ripon and Turlock  have some new Hotels right off highway 99 and then you would only have about a 6 hour drive to Disneyland.


----------



## 4evrdisney

Wow!  Thanks everyone for the tips.  I think we are going to aim for Elk Grove or Santa Nella.  I so appreciate everyone taking the time to respond


----------



## DizNee Luver

akotecha said:


> Hi guys,
> I live in the Lathrop area and work at a hotel off of I-5 and Louise Ave.  I absolutely LOVE Disney!!!!!  And I am one of those moms that stay online and scour the internet for the "best" and most convenient experiences for me and my family.  My girls and hubby know me as our "planner."  Poor me, but, I am fairly organized so it works out okay.  So, here's the scoop.  My hotel is PERFECT for you to stop on the way from Oregon or Washington down to Disney.  We are a Hampton Inn & Suites off of I-5 and Louise Ave in Lathrop, CA.  We offer free hot breakfast (saves tons of $$$$) and free high speed internet.  We have an indoor heated pool and whirlpool with pool toys for the kids (yes!) and even an Entertainment Pavillion outside with foosball, basketball, and ping pong.  We even have a snack shop and a fitness room.  And if you really have a bad drive, and guest laundry room if you want to run a load of laundry.  Many restaurants are located nearby, and even a Target and grocery store.  Call us at *209-982-5070*, and tell them you saw us on this site so my boss gives me some kudos.  lol!!



Hooray.....I'm glad my investigating was right on this & the Hampton Inn there!!!  We're staying for a night on the way down on July 24 & getting 3 rooms.....so happy to hear we'll be thrilled with our choice!!!


----------



## akotecha

DizNee Luver said:


> Hooray.....I'm glad my investigating was right on this & the Hampton Inn there!!!  We're staying for a night on the way down on July 24 & getting 3 rooms.....so happy to hear we'll be thrilled with our choice!!!



I am glad to help.  I hate aimlessly searching online, and love seeing others opinions, esp those who have kids.  So, glad to help.  I am so jealous you are going this summer, wish I was too.    Have fun, and hopefully I will meet you when you come in July.


----------



## Ariel1033

I know this thread is older, but thank you all so much for the tips!  This is exactly what I needed!  Thanks again!


----------



## MrsD.Duck

We are from Eugene. We leave early morning (4 am) switch drivers in Ashland, breakfast in Redding, switch drivers, switch again before Sacramento. Switch again at rest stop around Tracy. Switch drivers every hour and a half. Lunch in Coalinga area just off I-5. Stay the night at the bottom of the grapevine in a small area called Grapevine. Not much there but there is a Ramada limited that isn't  bad. Get up in the morning and you are at Disneyland in about 2 hours or so.  Yesnit is a detailed plan, but we have been doing it for 20 years. Decided  to fly this year.


----------



## Nonsuch

farmgirljen said:


> Ok- we drove from Corvallis, and stayed Here :
> http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Re...Western_Apricot_Inn-Firebaugh_California.html
> 
> it is right off of I5 and was very comfortable. the pool was nice- and we had a nice little dinner at the diner across the street. There is a restaurant next door as well, called the Apricot Tree... and there were apricot trees dropping fresh fruit all over while we were there.  It seems like we got there around 5 pm, so I think we drove for about 10 to 12 hours and then we left at 6am and were in anaheim before noon...


Apricot Tree is out of business, but there are several other fast food restaurants nearby.  
We usually stop at the McDonalds for a bathroom break and quick breakfast.  DW says the bathrooms are "nasty", so we might start driving until Harris Ranch (which is very nice).


----------



## 2 Pinks

We like in Klamath Falls and tend to stay in Sacramento, but its with my parents.  This year we have the pleasure of being able to fly from SMF down which is a nice change.

We have stayed at several places in and around Natomas, right off the freeway, that I can recommend, but it looks like you have found somewhere!


----------



## RedHotMama

This IS an old thread!



DLovinFam said:


> The last two trips we have staying in Elk Grove, just a few miles south of Sacramento.
> 
> http://www.elkgrovecity.org/
> 
> This was recommended to us by a DISer back in 2005 and they were right on! It's a real nice clean, and safe little town.



I live in Elk Grove! It really is a nice town.



Ariel224 said:


> The 99 drive back from DLR was much more interesting than the I-5 drive down.



I agree! We choose to drive down 99, too. There are so many more places to stop to use the restroom or get food.


----------



## Indiana Scott

We're in Seattle. We left at 1:00AM and and drove straight through getting to the resort area around 7:00 PM. So driving straight through is possible if you don't have to stop too often. 
I was wiped the next day.


----------



## lalasmama

We did the Salem to Anaheim road trip 2 summers ago. We stayed at Super 8 in Willetts one way, and a Super 8 in Willow (I think!). Both were easy, cheap-ish, and pretty comfortable!


----------



## Erin M

So many fellow Oregonians! Love it!


----------



## 2 Pinks

RedHotMama said:


> This IS an old thread!



Bwahaha!!!!! I didn't even notice the date!


----------



## Ariel1033

lalasmama said:


> We did the Salem to Anaheim road trip 2 summers ago. We stayed at Super 8 in Willetts one way, and a Super 8 in Willow (I think!). Both were easy, cheap-ish, and pretty comfortable!


Did you go down I-5? Or what way did you go?


----------



## lalasmama

Ariel1033 said:


> Did you go down I-5? Or what way did you go?


We did I-5 to Grants Pass, cut over to Bandon (?) on 101, then followed that down to Willetts. It cuts through the Red Woods, which was a must for us. The next dat we went over to San Francisco, and then over to I-5 the rest of the way.


----------



## Ariel1033

Erin M said:


> So many fellow Oregonians! Love it!


I see that you go in September a lot....how is it then? Crowd wise?  That is when I think we are going to go.


----------



## Lumpy1106

I-5 is the quickest way, but if you can spare a little extra time driving, cut over to the East bay on the 580 just south of Stockton and take the 101 down.  It is SOOOO much nicer!  There are nice places to stay in Tracy or on the other side of the Altamont Pass  in Livermore or Pleasanton.  Form there head south on the 101 and you can stop just about anywhere.  Note that Kng City, Templeton, Paso Robles and Atascadero get pretty hot (though on par with everything you will find on the 5 and 99), but once you get over the Cachuma Pass into San Luis Obispo it is much cooler the rest of the way down.

I would estimate the drive is an additional 4 hours without stops and you are DEFINITELY going to want to stop.

If you really can't spare the time though...
I'd chose the 99 over the 5 and stop in Fresno.  There are several nice hotels that are a little off the 99 on the route to Yosemite.  That's why they are there; people from So Cal will leave in the evening and stop there before making a morning drive into Yosemite.

But seriously, you are on vacation; take an extra day and see the Central Coast. You won't be disappointed.


----------



## Erin M

Ariel1033 said:


> I see that you go in September a lot....how is it then? Crowd wise?  That is when I think we are going to go.


I actually haven't been in September for a three years, but we have plans for this year and next for birthday celebrations. When we did go three years ago it was good, busy but good. The weather is still warm, the school crowds had dissipated a bit, but the Halloween crowds had kind of come so I think it still felt rather full. Totally manageable with a plan though. I think the Halloween time crowds have increased in the past few years though and with SWGE who knows what it will be like. Fingers crossed!


----------



## Mmk1997

We are from a town 20 miles south of Vancouver Canada.  We have done the drive 3 times (2009, 2013, 2018).  The first time we stopped in Stockton (Motel 6 right by the I5 south area) on the road for about 920 miles that day.  Very long day, but only 360 miles to Disneyland the next day.  As for how rough it was, we got in late, slept, got up and drove again the next day, so we did not notice it.  The second and third times we stopped in Corning and Red Bluff. As the goal is Disney, we travel then stop, sleep, and the go again.  We don't use the town or the hotels to their full potential just as sleeping points.


----------



## Lumpy1106

Mmk1997 said:


> The first time we stopped in Stockton (Motel 6 right by the I5 south area) on the road for about 920 miles that day.


Wait a sec..
You actually stayed at the Motel 6 in Stockton?  You Cannucks are cray-cray!  Would not recommend - ever!  I lived in Stockton for about 6 months - I will never go back.


----------

