It’s now T-Minus Ten Days and Counting to the extraordinary Fifty Five Fifty double birthday party at the Disneyland Hotel on July 16th. Construction is kicking into higher gear for the latest renaissance of the hotel, and I’ve seen some encouragement that not every room in the hotel is going to be hermetically sealed. Right now, they’re working on the roof right above the Wrather Suite. The next couple of years will likely see the biggest changes since the late ‘70’s.
From 1961 to 2009, the Monorail Station was part of the Disneyland Hotel, as was everything between the current “Downtown Disney” station and where the hotel now “starts” at the Sierra Tower.
The Marina Tower was completed in 1970, marking the westward shift of the hotel’s focus to a quad between the towers.
This cover of the Hotel’s 1968 edition of Check-In magazine depicts the fantastic marina planned between the recently expanded Sierra Tower (1966) and the coming-soon Marina Tower (1970).
An artist’s rendering of the Disneyland Hotel in its magnificent heyday of the Eighties. With the completion of the Bonita Tower in 1978, the Hotel reached its pinnacle of magnificence.
The vast marina made it seem as if the entire quad between the towers was flooded with water.
The Marina was dotted with miniature and model ships - including this replica of the Queen Mary, which was also owned by the Wrathers (and later by Disney when it finally bought out them out in 1989).
Paddle boats ply the Marina at the height of available activities for children of all ages.
A page from the Hotel’s guest magazine indicates how plentiful - and how plenty corny - the Hotel’s entertainment and activity offerings were in the fabulous Eighties. I heart the ‘80’s!!!
As we know, things have changed a bit since then, when the vast marina was drained and the Neverland Pool was built in the quad, to replace the Olympic Pool lost to Downtown Disney construction.
You’ll be able to enjoy a last-chance bird’s-eye view of the current configuration of the ever-changing quad, and see the start of construction as the Hotel is transformed once again. Friday night, July 16th. Hope to see you there!
A word about Parking:
There are actually 3 options available:
1) If you have the right kind of AP, you can park for free in the
Mickey & Friends Parking Structure. It’s a short walk from there to the Disneyland Hotel, and it’s safe to leave cars in the Structure till the wee hours of the morning.
2)
Free Parking at the Disneyland Hotel - Follow signs to
Downtown Disney / Disneyland Hotel onto Magic Way - and take the
second left from Magic Way to the Disneyland Hotel. Follow the signs to Self Parking.
Self Parking at the Disneyland Hotel will be
FREE - but you may have to make two elevator trips between the 11th floor and the Front Desk to show them a room key in exchange for an exit voucher. At some point after midnight, the parking lot ticket booth will close and you’ll be able to exit for free without an exit voucher.
3)
Downtown Disney - Follow signs to
Downtown Disney / Disneyland Hotel onto Magic Way - and take the
first left from Magic Way into the Downtown Disney parking area. The first 3 hours are free, or - with a validation from any Downtown Disney business establishment, the first 5 hours are free. After that, technically, the lot charges $6 per hour (with a maximum of $30) - but the ticket booth closes around midnight and you’ll be able to exit for free any time after that.
oooooh, Ten Days to Go!!!!
