Hi Noel!
Welcome to planDisney!
This is a great question. How fun that you have a friend who lives so close to the magic where they can visit for the day! Guests at a
Disneyland Resort Hotel are allowed to have visitors stop by to say hello, check out the hotel, and even stay to enjoy a meal. And the
Disneyland Hotel is not one to be missed with all of the magic and memories and mementos everywhere you look. Be sure to check out the lobbies in each of the hotel towers for interesting artifacts and antiques from the different Disney decades!
Parking for Guests visiting a Hotel Guest is kind of tricky. It's completely up to the guard at the parking lot stand, but usually, if it's a short visit (under an hour) it's not a problem. Your friend might be instructed to
take a ticket, which incurs an hourly charge, but, if you dine at a
Disneyland Hotel dining location, up to three hours of parking can be validated as part of the meal.
Parking in the Downtown Disney Parking lot is a similar validation system, just a bit more confusing: the first hour is a *$10 charge, then hours 2, 3, and 4 are complimentary when you spend a minimum of *$20 at a Downtown Disney District shop. OR, hours 2-6 are complimentary when you have a same-day
Downtown Disney District table-service meal validate your receipt.
However, if you're hoping to have your friend park and then enjoy a full day in the theme parks, the best option for your buck would be to either have your friend park in the
Parking Structure or call the
hotel lobby and see about adding your friend's car to your Guestroom charges for the day.
I hope that this helped to clEAR up your question, Noel! And I hope that you and your friend have so much fun catching up at The Happiest Place on Earth! Be sure to follow the
official planDisney Instagram account for even more tips and tricks. And if you have any more
Disneyland Resort vacation planning questions, We're All Ears!
~Kristen
*Prices listed are current at the time of answer and are subject to change without prior warning.