On my last visit to Disneyland I decided to stay at the Paradise Pier hotel. The Paradise Pier Hotel is one of the three resorts that Disneyland offers. I wanted to tell you guys all about my experience at the hotel and the fun things it has to offer! If you want a shorter description of my stay and opinions of the hotel scroll down to my pro and con list closer to the end! Hope you enjoy!!
Let's start with the location. The Paradise Pier Hotel is located next to the Disneyland Hotel and across the street from The grand Californian Hotel. This hotel I would say is about a 10 minute walking distance from the main entrance from parks and about 5 minutes for Downtown Disney. If you are planning to go to Disneyland then the monorail is right at the back entrance and I would say it is about a five minute walk.
Paradise Pier hotel is beach themed celebrates the heyday of California beachfront boardwalks. Each room is decorated with a mix of vintage/ modern beach themed furniture and decor. I really enjoyed the rooms at the hotel they were very spacious, clean and fun! With the opening of Pixar Pier each room now comes with a Luxo ball pillow which was the perfect touch of fun! My room came with two queen size beds, a couch, desk, entertainment cabinet with refrigerator inside full size closet and fun surf themed bathroom. We had a beautiful view from the 8th floor overlooking the new Pixar Pier and California Adventure Park!
On the third floor you can find the pool and viewing area of fireworks! At night if you choose to view the fireworks from your hotel Paradise Pier will play the soundtrack of the fireworks so its like your right in the park! The whole family can enjoy a dip in the Paradise Pool or a fast-paced, twisting plunge down the California Streamin’ waterslide.There is also the Paradise Spa whirlpool which is great to dip your feet in after a long park day.The rooftop bar that is located right next to the pool where you can order food and drinks!
At this Hotel they offer the PCH Grill which is a character dining meal! As you eat the characters will come to your table, sign some autographs and take some pictures you'll be sure to remember! Donald and his friends only come out for breakfast which is a fun filled buffet you wont want to miss. I always say my Disney day's don't start until I've had my Mickey waffles!
The Pros and Cons of the hotel
I truly did enjoy my stay at Paradise Pier Hotel, however I did not enjoy the walking distance after long park days. Heres a fun tip! If your ending your night in California Adventure, you can cut through the California Adventure, Grand Californian special Entrance (this hotel connects directly into the park) for a short cut back to the hotel. I believe this is frowned upon but after a long day you just want to get back to the room. We were never stopped by any cast members and told not to do it so we used this shortcut several times. We also cut through their special downtown disney entrance if we were coming from Disneyland. BUT don't attempt this in the mornings they will turn you away if your not a guest at that hotel!
Since I travel to WDW a lot I was shocked to see that Disneyland charges their hotel guest for parking. This is another example of something I wasn't to fond of, Disney vacations are expensive as is so to charge your guest for parking when your paying extra money to stay at their hotel doesn't sit right with me.
What I did love is the EMH (Extra Magic Hours) hours given to their park guest, during these early mornings we got so much done! We took full advantage of the Maxpass and was able to conquer all of the rides that normally have the longest wait times during EMH. The theming was fun and playful and worked with the charm of the hotel. Everyone at the hotel was super friendly and provided that awesome Disney magic every day and every night!
If you have the extra money to spend I would definitely say stay and play at the Disneyland Resort Hotel's! I stayed at the Grand Californian when I was younger and that was an amazing time as well! You really do get treated like royalty when you stay on property! Every vacation is a new adventure.
Hope you enjoyed reading about the hotel and my stay at the Paradise Pier Hotel. If you have any questions or want to pick my brain to learn more feel free to message me on Instagram or shoot me and email. You can find all my information on my Contact page on my site! Click Here
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Love and Pixie Dust,
Nicole Ashley
xoxoxo