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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013 |
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The real beach is about 16 miles south of the Disneyland Resort, but there’s a beach experience within the Yesterland Resort—Disney’s Paradise Pier Hotel. Paradise Pier at Yester California Adventure represents the heyday of California beachfront boardwalks. This hotel continues that theme. Does the sun on the hotel sign look familiar? It should. It’s the sun face from the Sun Wheel at Paradise Pier. A rooftop pool area includes California Streamin’, a waterslide inspired by California Screamin’, along with a whirlpool spa and toddler wading pool. |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013 Waves on the cornice |
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The Pacific Ocean has waves. So does the cornice of the hotel. |
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Photo by Chris Bales, 2022 Welcome mat |
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Let’s go inside and look around… |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013 Surfer Goofy guarding the lobby |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013 Lobby artwork celebrating Paradise Pier at the theme park across the street |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013 Registration desk with a beach umbrella awning and the Sun Wheel sun face on the counter |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013 Disney’s PCH Grill, featuring California-inspired dishes with seasonal flavors |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013 Surfside Lounge, serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013 Decor in the Surfside Lounge |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013 Sandcastle Cinema, where kids can watch Disney movies from resort lounge chairs |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013 Mickey in Paradise, a gift shop, of course |
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Photo by Tony “WisebearAZ” Moore, 2000 Souvenir t-shirt at the gift shop |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013 Flounder’s Fun ’n’ Games, with popular arcade games |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013 Looking up through the skylight into the bulding’s lightwell |
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The hotel has 481 Rooms, including 25 suites. To accomodate families, standard rooms hold up to five guests, and Paradise Suites are great for groups of up to six. View rooms allow you to gaze across the street at the theme park, or at pools, or at suburban sprawl. |
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The hotel that became Disney’s Paradise Pier Hotel originally opened in 1984 as the Emerald of Anaheim Hotel, a part of the Emerald/Pan Pacific Group owned by the Japanese conglomerate Tokyu Corp. Five years later, the hotel’s name changed to the Pan Pacific Hotel. In December 1995, The Walt Disney Company purchased the strategically-located hotel and took over operations. It became the Disneyland Pacific Hotel. |
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Photo by Tony “WisebearAZ” Moore, 2000 Disneyland Pacific Hotel sign |
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Photo by Tony “WisebearAZ” Moore, 2000 Disneyland Pacific Hotel before conversion to the Paradise Pier theme |
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In January 1998, the Disneyland parking lot, located across the street from the hotel, became the construction site for Disney’s California Adventure. Being directly across the street, the hotel would be visible from the new park. It was so close that a wall or berm would not be able to hide it. The solution was to tie the hotel into the theme of the park’s Paradise Pier section. That meant a new name and a playful update to the hotel’s appearance. |
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Photo by Tony “WisebearAZ” Moore, 2000 in 2000, installing a cornice with ocean waves… |
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Photo by Tony “WisebearAZ” Moore, 2000 …and removing the Disneyland Pacific Hotel sign |
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On November 1, 2000, the Disneyland Pacific Hotel officially became Disney’s Paradise Pier Hotel—a name it would keep until January 29, 2024. The two other hotels of the Disneyland Resort—the Disneyland Hotel Disney’s Grand Californian—were more spectacular, but Disney’s Paradise Pier Hotel had lower room rates, great views into Disney California Adventure from many rooms, and, for part of its existence, its own private entrance into that park. |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013 Guest services |
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As the Paradise Pier at the park changed, small changes were made to the hotel. For example, an updated painting behind the Guest Services counter showed Silly Symphony Swings instead of the Orange Stinger. Then again, the sun face of the Sun Wheel remained on the hotel’s sign until the very end. |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013 Newer paint scheme |
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An updated paint scheme—with two shades of blue instead of one shade of blue-green—looked better than the original. In December 2017, Disney announced that the Paradise Pier section of the park would be split into two lands—Pixar Pier and Paradise Gardens Park—with significant changes to the attractions, shops, and restaurants. On June 23, 2018, Paradise Pier ceased to exist as a section of the park—but Disney’s Paradise Pier Hotel kept its name and theme anyway. |
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Artist Concept Only © Disney/Pixar New theme for the old hotel |
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It took almost four years for a new name and new theme to be announced. On April 28, 2022, the Disney Parks Blog shared the news that Disney’s Paradise Pier Hotel would be transformed into the Pixar Place Hotel. There would no longer be a cornice with waves. Pixar iconography would replace the California surf iconography. |
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Photo by Chris Bales, 2022 In 2022, removing the cornice… |
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Photo by Chris Bales, 2022 … and removing the Paradise Pier Hotel sign |
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The renovation continued through 2023. Paradise Pier Hotel remained open for business. Guests encountered various inconveniences as public areas were updated. They could find themselves in rooms that were or were not renovated. |
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Photo by Christian Thompson/Disneyland Resort, 2024 © Disney Pixar Place Hotel, ready for its grand opening |
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Photo by Christian Thompson/Disneyland Resort, 2024 © Disney Thoroughly “reimagined” inside, reflecting the art and creativity of Pixar |
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On January 30, 2024, the 40-year-old hotel became Disneyland’s newest hotel. That leaves one question… Why is it called the Pixar Place Hotel? It’s across the street from Paradise Gardens Park, and near Pixar Pier. But Pixar Place is a land at Disney’s Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World. |
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© 2024 Werner Weiss — Disclaimers, Copyright, and Trademarks Updated April 19, 2024 |
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