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While the Grand Californian has little to no flaws, I did hesitate to give it a flawless, high-grade "deep impact" rating, for a few limitations that needn't be present. For one, there is no reason why the monorail should not stop at the hotel, which has the monorail passing right through its courtyard to Downtown Disney. Second, while I did not have any major problems entering through the special entranceway myself, it does seem a bit narrow; during vacation seasons I can imagine this special entrance is a bit overcrowded. However, the overall resort still deserves a solid thumbs-up, regardless of the minor limitations.

Disney's Grand Californian Hotel

(Aneheim, California)

A Review by Techtite

A new theme park --Disney's California Adventure-- means more people, and therefore needs a new hotel/resort complex. As a result, Disneyland now offers the Grand Californian Hotel (in addition to the timeless Disneyland Hotel). This hotel is so close to the new California Adventure theme park, it even includes its own private entrance to the park, just behind the hotel pool. That alone is reason enough to check this intriguing hotel out on your next trip to Disneyland, which is bound to be a very pleasant stay. 

The biggest problem with this new hotel --if you can call it that-- seems to be the potential misconception, by people who have visited the Grand Floridian Hotel in DisneyWorld. They might presume this is a similar hotel, only on the west coast. This is a dangerous misconception, since these two hotels are very different in appearance. Grand Floridian, for example, resembles an old-fashioned Florida mansion. Comparatively, one might think the Grand Californian is a salute to a similar type of mansion complex in California; like, say, the majestic houses of Beverly Hills. Unfortunately, this is not the type of "Grand Californian" architecture that the hotel's designers had in mind...

Instead, this is more of a salute to the old-fashioned wooden lodge in the wilderness. In fact, this hotel (exterior shown here) is not much different from Orlando's Wilderness Lodge Resort, with only a few differences. Its wooden decor, and constantly lit fireplace in the lobby, is much like an old-fashioned vacation lodge, deep in the forest. This decor was probably chosen, based on the hotel's chosen entranceway to California Adventure; right next to Grizzly Peak. Certainly, people expecting a Grand Floridian type of decor will be quite shocked when they first approach the front desk. However, after as little as one night of stay, you'll probably agree they have chosen a very tranquil, enjoyable atmosphere for this new hotel, in many ways.

The best part of this hotel is location. This includes rooms that (if facing the best directions) include a great view of either California Adventure or Downtown Disney. Speaking of excellent location; while Disneyland Hotel still has a feeling of "crossing the street" to get to Downtown Disney and the parks, Grand Californian has its own entranceways, right into either Downtown Disney (for free) or California Adventure (with tickets for the park available at the front desk). As for Disneyland, it's within walking distance from the hotel, via Downtown Disney. For that matter, walking to any place within Downtown Disney is relatively easy --including the AMC movie theater-- since the hotel is right at the halfway point of the Downtown Disney "street." Such a good location of the hotel almost makes up for a strange design flaw, in that the monorail does not stop within the hotel, even though it passes right through it!

Yet another plus of the hotel is its eating possibilities. Behind the pool is a sort of fast-food area, where people can grab a quick byte at nearly any reasonable time of the day or night. The "Storybook Cafe" has a nice buffet breakfast, complete with characters for the kids, and with non-character lunch and dinner menus for the adults. Best of all, though much more pricey, is the Napa Rose restaurant, with its excellent view of Grizzly Peak in California Adventure, and very unique, gourmet menu selections. I ate at all of the above at least once, and loved each of them. Furthermore, the room service menu includes many of the best selections at the Storybook Cafe, in case you'd rather just dine in private.

Of course, the true reason for going to Disneyland is to enjoy the parks themselves. However, it is equally nice to have a good nights sleep while visiting there, and the Grand Californian provided that service in spades. I stayed there for many days, during a convention, and the food, room, service, and overall experience was all excellent. It may not be the "clone" of Grand Floridian that many anticipated, yet it's still a great, new hotel to consider staying in during your next Anaheim, California vacation.

	Final Rating : Large Crater. A nice, new resort at Disneyland, with its own entrance to the new theme park! If you like the looks of California Adventure, this is the resort to stay in.
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