Tucked away on a side street just off Main Street, the charming Hotel Marceline is known for clean rooms, good rates, friendly service, lace curtains in the windows, and fresh flowers throughout. Guests awaken to the smell of freshly baked blueberry muffins. And now there’s electric lighting! It’s a delightful place to stay.
 

The Main Street Hotel is right on Main Street, above the Disney Showcase and the Main Street Magic Shop. Guests enjoy the old world elegance which characterizes this small but splendid turn-of-the-century hotel. All guest rooms feature flocked wallpaper, coffered ceilings, ornate moldings, canopy beds, and clawfoot bathtubs. And, best of all, guests have prime views of the daily parades from their rooms.
 

In the tradition of railroad station hotels worldwide, the Creole Hotel is located at the Frontierland Railroad Station in New Orleans Square. Although the hotel is on the same side of the track as the station, it’s on the opposite side of the track from the passenger platform—and it’s set up so you can’t get across. Also, it can get mighty loud as a train passes by every few minutes. Aside from those issues, it’s a lovely boutique hotel, furnished with antiques.
 

Unfortunately, Hollywood Tower Hotel is not currently accepting reservations. The Hollywood Tower Hotel in California is part of a chain that includes other locations in Florida and France. Also, the hotel is affiliated with the Hotel Hightower in Japan. For some strange reason, all four hotels are closed to overnight guests due to similar supernatural events.
 

The lobby is stunning, though rather dusty. As mentioned in the write-up about the California location, you cannot currently book guest rooms at the Florida location either. It’s a shame. After all, this hotel was once “a beacon for the show business elite.”
 

With its prime location in the Streets of America business district, this deluxe hotel is perfectly situated for business or pleasure. The New York Hotel’s 300 guest rooms are spacious and stylish. The service is impeccable, reflecting a tradition of hospitality unmatched in the Streets of America. The hotel, which was featured in the 1989 motion picture, The Lottery, starring Bette Midler, is so popular that it doesn’t even need a sign.
 

Travelers on a tight budget will appreciate the value of the Chinatown Hotel. Look for the red sign above the Yeung Wo Ginseng Co. Hotel guests enjoy the convenience of expert laundry service at the Chinese Laundry and quick meals at the China Bowl restaurant, both located next door. There’s a great view of the hills of San Francisco from Chinatown. You’ll want to book early to avoid disappointment. After all, there are only 16 rooms.
 

Some guests prefer a hotel right inside a ride. The Hotel Above the Patrick J. Ryan Bar is in The Great Movie Ride—at the entrance to the gangster scene, right after the Mary Poppins scene. It’s a rather seedy place. Some guests find it hard to sleep with James Cagney talking incessantly on the street below (as Tom Powers in The Public Enemy, 1931). This hotel is for guests for whom location is more important than the quality of the room.
 

The Canadian National Hotel provides luxury to discriminating guests seeking the finest accommodations within World Showcase at Epcot—in the tradition of such fabled Canadian hotels as Le Château Laurier in Ottawa, Le Château Frontenac in Québec City, the Empress in Victoria, and Le Manoir Richelieu in Charlevoix. Dine in the hotel’s wine cellar restaurant, Le Cellier.
 

With its convenient location in the heart of Harambe village, the Hotel Burudika is the ideal place to stay before your Kilimanjaro Safari. There’s indoor plumbing. Three of the hotel’s 17 rooms even have private bathrooms. Enjoy all-day dining at the Tusker House restaurant downstairs. Or sit on the hotel’s own terrace, sipping Safari Amber as you listen to the hotel’s stereo boom box.
 

Although still under construction, visitors to the Village of Anandapur are already looking forward to the Yeti Palace Hotel. With the great popularity of the Expedition Everest excursions provided by the Anandapur Rail Service, there’s a need for lodging in this Nepalese corner of the Animal Kingdom’s Asia. It’s too early to know how the accommodations will be. Book now for next season... but don’t be surprised if the hotel’s opening date slips.
 

You’ve undoubtedly figured out that the hotels in this article aren’t real hotels for overnight guests.

What this article is really about is how Imagineers have cleverly added to the atmosphere of Disney theme parks through “hotels” that aren’t really hotels. The Hollywood Tower Hotels are elaborate ride structures, with the hotel being part of the story of the ride. But the rest of the “fake hotels” are ways of dressing up buildings (or parts of larger buildings) that would otherwise have uninteresting walls.

My descriptions in this article are based on my observations and what these “hotels” trigger in my mind—with a few actual facts thrown in. If there are official back stories, I’m not aware of them.

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© 2007-2008 Werner Weiss — Disclaimers, Copyright, and Trademarks

Updated January 18, 2008.

Photo of Hotel Marceline at Disneyland: 2004 by Werner Weiss.
Photo of The Creole Hotel at Disneyland: 2007 by Werner Weiss.
Photo of Hollywood Tower Hotel at California Adventure: 2006 by Werner Weiss.
Photo of Hollywood Tower Hotel at Disney-MGM Studios: 2007 by Werner Weiss.
Photo of New York Hotel at Disney-MGM Studios: 2001 by Allen Huffman.
Photo of Chinatown Hotel at Disney-MGM Studios: 2007 by Werner Weiss.
Photo of the Hotel Above the Bar at Disney-MGM Studios: 2007 by Werner Weiss.
Photo of Canadian National Hotel exterior at Epcot: 2006 by Werner Weiss.
Photo of Canadian National Hotel sign at Epcot: 2007 by Werner Weiss.
Photo of Hotel Burudika at Disney’s Animal Kingdom: 2007 by Werner Weiss.
Photo of Yeti Palace Hotel at Disney’s Animal Kingdom: 2007 by Werner Weiss.