Grand Californian Hotel

Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel, located within Disney’s California Adventure™, is a deluxe 750-room resort hotel, celebrating the turn-of-the-century romantic Craftsman movement of California. Designed to capture the spirit of the elegant artistic exploration of California’s inspirational coastlines, its Monterey pines and redwood forest, Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel is layered with the memories of the arroyo craftsmen, the mission pioneers, the Plein Air school of painters and daring architecture.

Inspiring design and captivating architecture, Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel is a deluxe 750-room resort hotel property, which offers AAA members uniquely themed accommodations for vacations to the expanded Disneyland® Resort in Anaheim, Calif. Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel, which opened Jan. 2, is the first Disney resort to be located inside a theme park—the new Disney’s California Adventure—and makes stays at the deluxe hotel a unique experience.

Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel celebrates the turn-of-the-century romantic Craftsman movement of California. Designed to capture the artistic exploration of California’s coastlines, with its Monterey pines and redwood forests, Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel is layered with the memories of the arroyo craftsmen, the mission pioneers, and the plein-air school of painters.

"Specially themed hotels have become a hallmark of Disney Resorts worldwide," said Claire Bilby, vice president of sales and travel operations for The Disneyland Resort. "Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel brings this tradition to Southern California and is the first example of a fully themed Disney Resort hotel at The Disneyland Resort. It inaugurates a new era in Disneyland Resort hospitality."

The deluxe hotel offers 24-hour room service, its own entry gate into Disney’s California Adventure theme park, and features rooms that overlook both the theme park and the exciting Downtown Disney entertainment area. For the corporate guests, the hotel features meeting planner offices, a business center, and dedicated meeting and convention check-in facilities.

AAA guests will enjoy the dining facilities found at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel, including the Napa Rose restaurant, which celebrates the extraordinary bounty of California cuisine from its coast to its rich farms and vineyards. Executive chef Andrew Sutton, formerly of Napa Valley’s Auberge du Soleil and the famed Mansion on Turtle Creek in Dallas, will head the culinary team at this fine restaurant. The Napa Rose will also offer an extensive selection of fine California wines. The Storytellers Cafe features family dining and conveys the power of storytelling through its decorative large-scale murals. A Disney character breakfast experience is also available.

Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel features Eureka Springs, a health club with state-of-the-art equipment, massage rooms, as well as dry and steam saunas. The deluxe hotel has two heated pools with a themed water slide, two spas, a children’s pool, and a concierge level with upgraded amenities and services. The beautiful new resort hotel is part of The Disneyland Resort’s $1.4 billion expansion. The Resort’s centerpiece is Disney’s California Adventure theme park, developed on 55 acres of former parking area, located next to the original Disneyland theme park. Disney’s California Adventure will celebrate the fun and diversity of California. From the glamour of Hollywood to the exhilaration of soaring above Yosemite Valley to a gleaming beachfront boardwalk, the new theme park will capture California’s "Golden State of Mind."

At the heart of The Disneyland Resort is Downtown Disney, a public esplanade of retail, dining, and entertainment experiences all within walking distance for guests, conventioneers, and residents. Downtown Disney connects the two theme parks—Disney’s California Adventure and Disneyland—together with The Disneyland Resort hotels.

The opening of Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel brings The Disneyland Resort’s hotel district to a total of 2,242 guestrooms, which includes the existing award-winning Disneyland Hotel and Disney’s Paradise Pier Hotel (formerly the Disneyland Pacific Hotel), offering AAA members a selection of vacation accommodations.

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Published in the February 2001 issue of the AAA Traveler.