Disneyland will sprinkle a healthy dose of Pixar pixie dust on the aging Paradise Pier Hotel as part of a multimillion-dollar renovation that will include a new back entrance to Disney California Adventure for hotel guests.
The Pixar makeover of the Paradise Pier Hotel was announced during a State of the Disneyland Resort presentation hosted by Disneyland Resort President Ken Potrock on Wednesday, April 27 at the Hyperion Theater in Disney California Adventure.
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Potrock’s presentation comes a year after Disney’s Anaheim theme parks reopened after 412 days of pandemic-related closures.
“It is a really important milestone and another anchor in our continuous momentum, really not just for Disneyland but for Anaheim and Orange County and other related business partners,” Potrock said during a media briefing earlier Wednesday.
The Pixar Hotel will have a new entry portal into Disney California Adventure for hotel guests. The new DCA back entrance is expected to stretch from Paradise Gardens in DCA to Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel vehicle entrance via a backstage passageway.
Paradise Pier Hotel will not close during the Pixar makeover with portions of the hotel renovated on a rotating basis.
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The name of the existing hotel on Disneyland Drive is a holdover from the Paradise Pier boardwalk area of DCA that was rethemed as Pixar Pier beginning in 2018 with areas dedicated to “The Incredibles,” “Toy Story,” and “Inside Out.” The former Pan Pacific Hotel, built in 1984, was purchased by Disneyland a year before DCA opened in 2001.
The Paradise Pier renovation will completely reimagine the theme park resort’s least expensive hotel with Pixar stories. Upcoming Pixar films could be incorporated into the renovated 15-story hotel in the future if they prove popular after their theatrical release to keep the hotel fresh and relevant.
Concept art released by Disneyland shows Pixar’s iconic Luxo Jr. lamp sitting on top of the red-starred blue and yellow Luxo ball in the lobby of the refreshed hotel. A kinetic art mobile in the lobby atrium includes characters from “Finding Nemo,” “Monsters Inc.,” “Wall-E,” “The Incredibles,” “Inside Out,” “Toy Story” and “Coco.” Luxo balls also line the exterior of the rethemed hotel.
Disney has other hotels based on Pixar movies around the world — including the Toy Story Hotel at Shanghai Disneyland and Disney’s Art of Animation Hotel at Walt Disney World that features “Cars” and “Finding Nemo” elements. Despite online speculation, Disneyland’s new Pixar Hotel will not be themed to a single movie or film franchise.
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The new Pixar-themed hotel does not have an official name yet — but for now most Disneylanders will likely refer to it as the Pixar Hotel. No dates have been announced for the start or completion of work.
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Disneyland has already begun renovation of the Paradise Pier Hotel pool that will get a new Pixar theme.
The renovation represents a major investment in the tens of millions of dollars that will completely reimagine the rooms, swimming pool, lobby and exterior of the hotel, according to Potrock.
In other Disney hotel news, the new Disney Vacation Club tower under construction next to the Disneyland Hotel will be named The Villas at the Disneyland Hotel.
The backstory of the DVC resort will pay tribute to classic films from the Walt Disney Animation Studio. The timeshare property rooms will be used by hotel guests when not occupied by DVC members.