Disneyland Resort
Encyclopedia
The Disneyland Resort is a recreational resort
Resort
A resort is a place used for relaxation or recreation, attracting visitors for holidays or vacations. Resorts are places, towns or sometimes commercial establishment operated by a single company....
in Anaheim
Anaheim, California
Anaheim is a city in Orange County, California. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was about 365,463, making it the most populated city in Orange County, the 10th most-populated city in California, and ranked 54th in the United States...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. The resort is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
through its Parks and Resorts
Walt Disney Parks and Resorts
Walt Disney Parks and Resorts is the segment of The Walt Disney Company that conceives, builds, and manages the company's theme parks and holiday resorts, as well as a variety of additional family-oriented leisure enterprises...
division and is home to two theme parks, three hotels and a shopping, dining, and entertainment area known as Downtown Disney.
The area now known as the Disneyland Resort was developed by Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
in the 1950s and for over 40 years was known simply as Disneyland. When it opened to guests in 1955, the property consisted of Disneyland, its 100 acre (0.404686 km²) parking lot, and a hotel known as the Disneyland Hotel
Disneyland Hotel (California)
The Disneyland Hotel is a resort hotel located at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, owned by the Walt Disney Company and operated through its Parks and Resorts division. Opened in October 1955 as a motor inn owned and operated by Jack Wrather under an agreement with Walt Disney, the...
, owned and operated by Disney's business partner Jack Wrather
Jack Wrather
John Devereaux "Jack" Wrather, Jr. , was a petroleum millionaire who became a television producer and later diversified by investing in broadcast stations and resort properties...
.
After succeeding with the multi-park, multi-hotel business model at Walt Disney World in Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, Disney decided to apply the same business model in Anaheim and acquired large parcels of land adjacent to Disneyland. This included purchasing the Disneyland Hotel from the Wrather company as well as the Pan Pacific Hotel from its Japanese owners; Disney re-branded the latter as the Disneyland Pacific Hotel. After its first publicly known proposal for a second theme park in Anaheim was scrapped, construction began in 1998 on a theme park called Disney's California Adventure Park, later renamed Disney California Adventure Park; a hotel called Disney's Grand Californian Hotel; a renovation, renaming, and re-theming of the Disneyland Pacific Hotel as the Disney's Paradise Pier Hotel
Disney's Paradise Pier Hotel
Disney's Paradise Pier Hotel is a resort hotel located at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, owned by The Walt Disney Company and operated through its Parks and Resorts division. The hotel was originally built and owned by Japan-based Tokyu Group, and opened in 1984 as the Emerald of...
; and an admission-free shopping and dining area called Downtown Disney. During the expansion, the name Disneyland Resort was coined to refer to the entire Disney complex, while Disneyland Park was coined to refer to the original theme park.
History and development
Concept and construction
Walt DisneyWalt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
's early concepts for an amusement park
Amusement park
thumb|Cinderella Castle in [[Magic Kingdom]], [[Disney World]]Amusement and theme parks are terms for a group of entertainment attractions and rides and other events in a location for the enjoyment of large numbers of people...
called for a park called "Mickey Mouse Park" located adjacent to the Walt Disney Studios
Walt Disney Studios (Burbank)
The Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, California, United States, serve as the international headquarters for media conglomerate The Walt Disney Company. The Walt Disney Studio's house offices for each of the company's divisions along with creative spaces designed for movie production. The Walt Disney...
in Burbank
Burbank, California
Burbank is a city in Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States, north of downtown Los Angeles. The estimated population in 2010 was 103,340....
(presently the site of the West Coast headquarters of ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
). However, as new ideas emerged, Walt and his brother Roy
Roy O. Disney
Roy Oliver Disney was, with his younger brother, Walt Disney, the co-founder of what is now The Walt Disney Company.-Early life:...
quickly realized that the Burbank location would be too small for the project. The brothers hired a consultant from Stanford Research Institute to provide them with information on locations and economic feasibility.
The consultant recommended a remote location near Anaheim
Anaheim, California
Anaheim is a city in Orange County, California. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was about 365,463, making it the most populated city in Orange County, the 10th most-populated city in California, and ranked 54th in the United States...
, adjacent to the then-under-construction Santa Ana Freeway
Santa Ana Freeway
The Santa Ana Freeway is one of the principal freeways in Southern California, connecting Los Angeles and its southeastern suburbs including the freeway's namesake, the city of Santa Ana. The freeway begins at the Four Level Interchange in downtown Los Angeles, signed as U.S. Route 101...
. Covered by Orange County's
Orange County, California
Orange County is a county in the U.S. state of California. Its county seat is Santa Ana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 3,010,232, up from 2,846,293 at the 2000 census, making it the third most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County and San Diego County...
namesake orange groves at the time, the consultant correctly predicted that the location would become the population center of Southern California. Since the location was remote in the 1950s, Walt Disney wanted to build a hotel so that Disneyland visitors traveling long distances could stay overnight. However, the park had already depleted his financial resources, so he negotiated a deal with Hollywood producer Jack Wrather
Jack Wrather
John Devereaux "Jack" Wrather, Jr. , was a petroleum millionaire who became a television producer and later diversified by investing in broadcast stations and resort properties...
in which Wrather would build and operate a hotel called the Disneyland Hotel
Disneyland Hotel (California)
The Disneyland Hotel is a resort hotel located at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, owned by the Walt Disney Company and operated through its Parks and Resorts division. Opened in October 1955 as a motor inn owned and operated by Jack Wrather under an agreement with Walt Disney, the...
across the street from Disneyland.
1955–1998: One park
Disneyland held a special televised press preview event on the ABC networkAmerican Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
on July 17, 1955, and opened to the public the next day. Although the preview event was disastrous and would later be dubbed "Black Sunday", Disneyland became a huge success in its first year of operation. The hotel, which opened 3 months after the park, enjoyed similar success. Walt Disney originally wanted to build more facilities for Disneyland visitors to stay in Anaheim, but since all his financial resources were drained, entrepreneur
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
s established their own hotels and other hospitality industry
Hospitality industry
The hospitality industry consists of broad category of fields within the service industry that includes lodging, restaurants, event planning, theme parks, transportation, cruise line, and additional fields within the tourism industry. The hospitality industry is a several billion dollar industry...
businesses in the area surrounding the park and hotel, eager to capitalize on Disneyland's success.
To Walt Disney's dismay, the city of Anaheim, eager for the tax revenue generated by more hotels in the city, was lax in restricting their construction, and the area surrounding Disneyland became the atmosphere of colorful lights and flashy neon signs that he had wanted to avoid (and which years earlier had caused the city of Burbank to deny his initial request to build his project in Burbank). The city also constructed the Anaheim Convention Center
Anaheim Convention Center
The Anaheim Convention Center is a major convention center in Anaheim, California. It is located across from the Disneyland Resort on Katella Avenue. Much of the Anaheim Convention Center has been renovated in recent years with state-of-the-art facilities...
across the street from Disneyland's original parking lot, and residences were constructed in the area as part of the city's growth in the late 20th century.
Eventually, Disneyland was "boxed in", a factor which would later lead Walt Disney to acquire a significantly larger parcel of land for the construction of Walt Disney World. In later years, the Disney company gradually acquired the land west of the park, most notably the Disneyland Hotel in 1989 following Jack Wrather's death in 1984, the Pan Pacific Hotel (now Disney's Paradise Pier Hotel
Disney's Paradise Pier Hotel
Disney's Paradise Pier Hotel is a resort hotel located at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, owned by The Walt Disney Company and operated through its Parks and Resorts division. The hotel was originally built and owned by Japan-based Tokyu Group, and opened in 1984 as the Emerald of...
) in 1995, and several properties north of the Disneyland Hotel in the mid to late 1990s.
1990s: Planning an expansion
After Walt's and Roy's deaths in 1966 and 1971, respectively, the Disney company would go on to achieve success with the multi-park, multi-hotel resort complex business model of Walt Disney World in FloridaFlorida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, which opened in 1971, while continuing to achieve success with the one park, one hotel business model at Disneyland.
In the 1990s, however, Disney decided to turn Walt's original park into a multi-park, multi-hotel resort destination as well. In 1991, Disney announced plans to build WestCOT
WestCOT
WestCOT was a planned theme park that was to have been built by The Walt Disney Company in Anaheim, California, United States. The park was intended to be a west coast version of EPCOT Center, a park devoted to international science and knowledge at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, and was to...
, a theme park based on Walt Disney World's EPCOT Center
Epcot
Epcot is a theme park in the Walt Disney World Resort, located near Orlando, Florida. The park is dedicated to the celebration of human achievement, namely international culture and technological innovation. The second park built at the resort, it opened on October 1, 1982 and was initially named...
, on the site of the original Disneyland parking lot.
The cost to build WestCOT was estimated at US$
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
3 billion, largely due to the high cost of land that Disney would have needed to acquire. With the new Euro Disney Resort—which opened in 1992—becoming a financial and public relations albatross
Albatross (metaphor)
The word 'albatross' is sometimes used metaphorically to mean a psychological burden that feels like a curse. It is an allusion to Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner ....
for the company, Disney was unable to finance the project, and cancelled WestCOT in 1995. In the summer of 1995, Disney executives gathered in Aspen, Colorado
Aspen, Colorado
The City of Aspen is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Pitkin County, Colorado, United States. The United States Census Bureau estimates that the city population was 5,804 in 2005...
for a 3-day retreat. At the retreat, the executives came up with the idea for a California-based theme park—dubbed Disney's California Adventure—to be built on the same site slated for WestCOT. US$1.4 billion was budgeted to build the park, a retail district, and hotels.
1998–2001: Park becomes resort
Construction began in 1998 and the majority of the Disney property outside of the original park was a construction site until 2001; the interior of Disneyland Park remained largely untouched during this time. Temporary surface parking lots were set up across West Street with tram service to the main entrance to offset the loss of the 100 acre (0.404686 km²) parking lot. Parking lots were also set up on smaller parcels of land Disney had acquired east and southeast of the park, primarily used for employee parking as well as guest overflow parking.Several Disneyland landmarks were demolished during this time, most notably the marquee
Marquee (sign)
A marquee is most commonly a structure placed over the entrance to a hotel or theatre. It has signage stating either the name of the establishment or, in the case of theatres, the play or movie and the artist appearing at that venue...
on Harbor Boulevard, whose three versions had stood at the entrance to the Disneyland parking lot since 1958; the last was installed in 1989. Also demolished were all of the Disneyland Hotel's original buildings from 1955, as well as most of the hotel facilities outside of the three guest room towers. The remaining Disneyland Hotel facilities were extensively renovated to replace some of the amenities that were demolished.
Aside from Disney California Adventure, new construction on the former parking lot included Disney's Grand Californian Hotel and Downtown Disney. A section of the southeast corner of the original parking lot initially remained in use as a parking area, earmarked as future growth space for California Adventure. A Bug's Land
A bug's land
"A Bug's Land" is a section of Disney's California Adventure at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. The area is based on the Disney·Pixar film "A Bug's Life"...
, The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, more commonly known as Tower of Terror, is a drop tower thrill ride at Disney's Hollywood Studios , Disney California Adventure Park, Tokyo DisneySea and Walt Disney Studios Park . It is based upon the television show The Twilight Zone...
, and backstage facilities were incrementally built into this space, and it was completely built over with the construction of Cars Land
Cars Land
Cars Land is a new themed land at Disney California Adventure Park that is currently under construction. This land will be built as part of the $1.1 billion expansion plan for Disney California Adventure Park on the former Timon Parking Lot behind the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror and A Bug's...
.
Across West Street from Disneyland Park and the construction site of Disney California Adventure, the six-story Mickey & Friends Parking Structure was built on newly acquired land north of the Disneyland Hotel as the replacement main parking area for the theme parks. The Disneyland Hotel was downsized to accommodate the construction of Downtown Disney and surface parking lots. The Disneyland Pacific Hotel was renovated, re-themed, and renamed to match the portion of Disney's California Adventure the hotel tower overlooks, becoming Disney's Paradise Pier Hotel.
Streets were regraded, renamed, re-routed, or outright eliminated, and the traffic pattern to access Disneyland and the Disneyland Hotel by vehicle, widely known among locals and frequent visitors for over 40 years, was altered. Most notably, West Street was regraded
Regrading
Regrading is the process of raising and/or lowering the levels of land; such a project can also be referred to as a regrade. Regrading may be done on a small scale or on quite a large scale...
, re-routed near its intersection with Ball Road, and renamed Disneyland Drive between Katella Avenue and Interstate 5.
The construction on the Disney property was accompanied by the city of Anaheim's renovation of the area surrounding Disneyland, now dubbed the Anaheim Resort. The flashy, colorful neon signs that lined Harbor Boulevard and other area roads—which Walt Disney himself had opposed many years earlier—were taken down and replaced with shorter, conforming signs. Streets surrounding the property were widened, repaved, and landscaped, and variable-message signs were installed to assist with traffic flow. Freeway onramps and offramps were reconfigured as part of a larger expansion project on Interstate 5
Interstate 5 in California
Interstate 5 is a major north–south route of the Interstate Highway System in the U.S. state of California. It begins at the Mexico – United States border at the San Ysidro crossing, goes north across the length of California and crosses into Oregon south of the Medford-Ashland metropolitan...
between State Route 91
California State Route 91
State Route 91 is a major east–west freeway located entirely within Southern California and serving several regions of the Greater Los Angeles metropolitan area...
and the Orange Crush Interchange
Orange Crush interchange
The Orange Crush Interchange is a freeway interchange in the city of Orange, California, near the confluence of the cities of Orange, Santa Ana, Anaheim, and Garden Grove. The Disneyland Resort, The Block at Orange, St...
.
2001–present: Disneyland Resort
Most construction was completed by early 2001, and Disney California Adventure held "preview" openings in January 2001. Word of mouthWord of mouth
Word of mouth, or viva voce, is the passing of information from person to person by oral communication. Storytelling is the oldest form of word-of-mouth communication where one person tells others of something, whether a real event or something made up. Oral tradition is cultural material and...
reviews from those entitled to attend the previews (mostly Disney employees, annual pass holders, and American Express
American Express
American Express Company or AmEx, is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in Three World Financial Center, Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States. Founded in 1850, it is one of the 30 components of the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The company is best...
card holders) were largely negative. The park opened to the public amid much fanfare on February 8, 2001; however, the negative reviews impacted attendance, and the company's initial attendance projections for the park were never met.
Disney spent much of California Adventure's early years attempting to boost attendance at the park. In the short-term, Disney brought the venerable Main Street Electrical Parade
Main Street Electrical Parade
The Main Street Electrical Parade is a regularly scheduled parade, created by Bob Jani and project director Ron Miziker, famous for its long run at Disneyland at the Disneyland Resort most summers between 1972–1974, 1977–1982, and 1985-1996...
to the park, quickly added Who Wants To Be A Millionaire - Play It!
Who Wants To Be A Millionaire - Play It!
Who Wants To Be A Millionaire - Play It! was an attraction at Disney's Hollywood Studios theme park at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida and Disney's California Adventure Park in Anaheim, California...
, and offered discounted admission and other promotions aimed at boosting attendance.
In addition to the short-term fixes, long-term projects to address the park's early criticisms have included the permanent addition of a bug's land
A bug's land
"A Bug's Land" is a section of Disney's California Adventure at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. The area is based on the Disney·Pixar film "A Bug's Life"...
to add attractions geared towards children, and The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, more commonly known as Tower of Terror, is a drop tower thrill ride at Disney's Hollywood Studios , Disney California Adventure Park, Tokyo DisneySea and Walt Disney Studios Park . It is based upon the television show The Twilight Zone...
as another E ticket
E ticket
The phrase E ticket refers to an unusually interesting, thrilling or expensive experience. It derives from the admission ticket system used at Disneyland and Magic Kingdom theme parks before 1982, in which the E ticket admitted the bearer to the newest, most advanced, and/or most popular rides...
. Some of the park's oft-criticized early attractions were closed within the first year of operation, including Superstar Limo
Superstar Limo
Superstar Limo was a dark ride in Disney's California Adventure Park at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California.-History:Superstar Limo was situated in the Hollywood Pictures Backlot area of the park and was one of the original attractions featured on opening day.The attraction closed in 2002,...
, Disney's Steps in Time, and Disney's Eureka! - A California Parade.
After Disney California Adventure's opening, new attractions began appearing at Disneyland Park as well, including The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (attraction)
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh is a dark ride based upon the film The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, itself based on the Winnie-the-Pooh books by A. A. Milne. The attraction exists in slightly different forms at the Magic Kingdom in the Walt Disney World Resort, Disneyland, and Hong...
and Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters; both were modeled after similarly named attractions at the Magic Kingdom
Magic Kingdom
Magic Kingdom Park is one of four theme parks at the Walt Disney World Resort located near Orlando, Florida. The first park built at the resort, Magic Kingdom opened Oct. 1, 1971. Designed and built by WED Enterprises, the park's layout and attractions are similar to Disneyland in Anaheim, California...
. Other major projects at Walt Disney's original park included a substantial renovation of the nearly 30-year-old (at the time) Space Mountain
Space Mountain (Disneyland)
Space Mountain is a steel roller coaster attraction in Tomorrowland at Disneyland in Anaheim, California. After the success of the Magic Kingdom's Space Mountain, the Imagineers made plans to build another on the United States West Coast. The ride opened on May 27, 1977, ten years after the...
, the return of Submarine Voyage
Submarine Voyage
The Submarine Voyage thru liquid space was an attraction at Disneyland in Anaheim, California.The attraction, which featured ride vehicles designed to look like Navy nuclear submarines, opened on June 14, 1959...
as the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage
Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage
Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage is an attraction located in the Tomorrowland area of Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California, which opened on June 11, 2007...
, and the introduction of new trains to the Disneyland Monorail System
Disneyland Monorail System
The Disneyland Monorail System is an attraction and transportation system at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, USA...
.
In 2007, Pirates of the Caribbean
Pirates of the Caribbean (theme park ride)
Pirates of the Caribbean is a log flume type of dark ride at the Disneyland, Magic Kingdom, Tokyo Disneyland, and Disneyland Paris theme parks....
was refurbished to bring its look closer to that of the film franchise
Pirates of the Caribbean (film series)
Pirates of the Caribbean is a series of fantasy-adventure films directed by Gore Verbinski and Rob Marshall , written by Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer...
. The Resort celebrated the 50th anniversary of Disneyland Park from 2005 to 2006 in an 18-month celebration known as the Happiest Homecoming on Earth
Happiest Homecoming on Earth
The Happiest Homecoming on Earth was the eighteen-month-long celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the Disneyland theme park, which officially opened on July 17, 1955...
. This was part of the larger Happiest Celebration on Earth promotion at all Disney theme parks. The Year of a Million Dreams promotion was the successor to the Happiest Celebration on Earth, and ran from 2006 to the end of 2008. Disney's current promotion, What Will You Celebrate?, began January 1, 2009, and offered free admission to visitors on their birthday in 2009. Disney has kept the Celebrate! marketing theme in 2010 for its US based parks, but no longer offers free admission on a guests birthday.
Present expansion
In 2007, Disney announced a US$1.1 billion expansion project for Disney California Adventure, including construction of a new land based on the Disney-PixarPixar
Pixar Animation Studios, pronounced , is an American computer animation film studio based in Emeryville, California. The studio has earned 26 Academy Awards, seven Golden Globes, and three Grammy Awards, among many other awards and acknowledgments. Its films have made over $6.3 billion worldwide...
film Cars
Cars (film)
Cars is a 2006 American animated family film produced by Pixar and directed by John Lasseter and co-directed by Joe Ranft. It is the seventh Disney·Pixar feature film, and Pixar's final, independently-produced motion picture before its purchase by Disney...
, a new evening water show—Disney's World of Color, as well as substantially retheming and adding new attractions to existing areas. The project began construction in 2008, and will be completed in phases from 2010 to 2012. Disney's Grand Californian Hotel
Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa
Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa is a AAA Four Diamond Hotel located at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. Added as part of a major expansion of the Disneyland Resort in 2001, it is the resort's flagship hotel and is the first and only hotel there to have been originally built and...
completed an expansion to add Disney Vacation Club
Disney Vacation Club
Disney Vacation Club is a vacation timeshare division owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company. It allows buying real estate interest in a DVC resort. Disney Vacation Club's President is Claire Bilby....
suites, while the Disneyland Hotel
Disneyland Hotel (California)
The Disneyland Hotel is a resort hotel located at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, owned by the Walt Disney Company and operated through its Parks and Resorts division. Opened in October 1955 as a motor inn owned and operated by Jack Wrather under an agreement with Walt Disney, the...
started an extensive renovation in the summer of 2009 and is expected to last the next few years. In early 2010, the park was renamed to Disney California Adventure (i.e., the possessive form of "Disney" was dropped).
There has been widespread speculation since the construction of Disney California Adventure started that Disney would build a third park in Anaheim, most likely a water park
Water park
A waterpark is an amusement park that features waterplay areas, such as water slides, splash pads, spraygrounds , lazy rivers, or other recreational bathing, swimming, and barefooting environments...
. However, Disney CEO Robert Iger
Robert Iger
Robert A. "Bob" Iger is the president and chief executive officer of The Walt Disney Company. He was named president of Disney in 2000, and later succeeded Michael Eisner as chief executive in 2005, after a successful effort by Roy E. Disney to shake-up the management of the company...
stated in 2007 that the company's focus is to fix its second park before moving on to a third park.
Expansion spreads across the world
The expansion of Disneyland into the Disneyland Resort later had a similar effect on its sister properties in JapanJapan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, both of which also were single parks. In 2001, Tokyo Disneyland
Tokyo Disneyland
is a 115 acre theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort located in Urayasu, Chiba, Japan, near Tokyo. Its main gate is directly adjacent to both Maihama Station and Tokyo Disneyland Station. It was the first Disney park to be built outside of the United States and opened on April 15, 1983...
became Tokyo Disney Resort
Tokyo Disney Resort
is a theme park and vacation resort located in Urayasu, Chiba, Japan, just east of Tokyo. It is owned and operated by the Oriental Land Company with a license from The Walt Disney Company. The resort opened on April 15, 1983, as a single theme park , but developed into a resort with two theme...
with the addition of Tokyo DisneySea
Tokyo DisneySea
is a 176-acre theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort located in Urayasu, Chiba, Japan, just outside Tokyo. It opened on September 4, 2001. It is owned by The Oriental Land Company, which licenses the theme from The Walt Disney Company. Tokyo DisneySea attracted an estimated 12 million visitors in...
. The following year, Disneyland Park Paris became Disneyland Resort Paris
Disneyland Resort Paris
Disneyland Paris is a holiday and recreation resort in Marne-la-Vallée, a new town in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. The complex is located from the centre of Paris and lies for the most part within the commune of Chessy, Seine-et-Marne....
with the addition of Walt Disney Studios Paris.
Location
The Disneyland Resort is located several miles south of downtown Anaheim, near the border of neighboring Garden GroveGarden Grove, California
Garden Grove is a city located in northern Orange County, California. The population was 170,883 at the 2010 census. State Route 22, also known as the Garden Grove Freeway, passes through the city running east-west. The city is known outside the Southern California area for being the home of Robert H...
. The resort is generally bounded by Harbor Boulevard to the east, Katella Avenue to the south, Walnut Street to the west and Ball Road to the north. Interstate 5
Interstate 5 in California
Interstate 5 is a major north–south route of the Interstate Highway System in the U.S. state of California. It begins at the Mexico – United States border at the San Ysidro crossing, goes north across the length of California and crosses into Oregon south of the Medford-Ashland metropolitan...
borders the resort at an angle on the northeastern corner.
Not all land bordered by these streets is part of the Disneyland Resort, particularly near the intersection of Harbor Boulevard and Katella Avenue, and along Ball Road between Disneyland Drive and Walnut Street. Disneyland Drive cuts through the resort on a north-south route and provides access to the Mickey & Friends Parking Structure, Downtown Disney, and the three hotels. Magic Way connects Walnut Street to Disneyland Drive just south of the Mickey & Friends Parking Structure and provides access to the parking structure, Disneyland Hotel, and Downtown Disney.
Special offramps from Interstate 5 combined with a reversible flyover over the intersection of Ball Road and Disneyland Drive permit easy access into and out of the Mickey & Friends parking garage during peak morning and evening traffic times. The official address of the resort is 1313 South Harbor Boulevard.
Theme parks
- Disneyland Park, the original theme park built by Walt Disney, which opened on July 18, 1955.
- Disney California Adventure, a theme park that celebrates the history and culture of the Golden State, which opened on February 8, 2001.
Other attractions
- Downtown Disney, an outdoor retail, dining and entertainment district located between the entrance promenade of the Disneyland Resort theme parks and the Disneyland Hotel.
Resorts
- Disneyland HotelDisneyland Hotel (California)The Disneyland Hotel is a resort hotel located at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, owned by the Walt Disney Company and operated through its Parks and Resorts division. Opened in October 1955 as a motor inn owned and operated by Jack Wrather under an agreement with Walt Disney, the...
, the original hotel built by Jack WratherJack WratherJohn Devereaux "Jack" Wrather, Jr. , was a petroleum millionaire who became a television producer and later diversified by investing in broadcast stations and resort properties...
which opened in October 1955 and was acquired by Disney in 1988. - Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & SpaDisney's Grand Californian Hotel & SpaDisney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa is a AAA Four Diamond Hotel located at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. Added as part of a major expansion of the Disneyland Resort in 2001, it is the resort's flagship hotel and is the first and only hotel there to have been originally built and...
, based on the craftsman style of architecture of the early 1900s. - Disney's Paradise Pier HotelDisney's Paradise Pier HotelDisney's Paradise Pier Hotel is a resort hotel located at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, owned by The Walt Disney Company and operated through its Parks and Resorts division. The hotel was originally built and owned by Japan-based Tokyu Group, and opened in 1984 as the Emerald of...
, a hotel themed after the section of Disney California Adventure it overlooks.
Operations
Major administration and service properties (other than those integrated into park/hotel facilities) include:- Team Disney Anaheim, the administration building for the Resort that also houses its employment office.
- Disneyland Resort Center, an ancillary administration building primarily serving the Hotels of the Disneyland Resort and Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings & HoneymoonsDisney's Fairy Tale Weddings & HoneymoonsDisney's Fairy Tale Weddings & Honeymoons is a program offering wedding and honeymoon services to couples at the Disneyland Resort in California, the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, the Hong Kong Disneyland Resort in Hong Kong, and on the Disney Cruise Line. It operates within the Walt Disney...
. - Mickey & Friends Parking Structure, the primary parking area for guests of Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure.
Transportation
Unlike the Walt Disney World ResortWalt Disney World Resort
Walt Disney World Resort , is the world's most-visited entertaimental resort. Located in Lake Buena Vista, Florida ; approximately southwest of Orlando, Florida, United States, the resort covers an area of and includes four theme parks, two water parks, 23 on-site themed resort hotels Walt...
, all properties at the Disneyland Resort are located within walking distance from each other; therefore, there is very little vehicular transportation between properties. The Disneyland Monorail System
Disneyland Monorail System
The Disneyland Monorail System is an attraction and transportation system at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, USA...
transports guests between the Tomorrowland station, inside Disneyland Park, and the Downtown Disney station (formerly known as the Disneyland Hotel station). Admission to Disneyland Park must be purchased to ride the Monorail. Parking lot trams provide free transportation from the Mickey and Friends Parking Structure, the main parking area, to a Tram stop in front of the World of Disney store in Downtown Disney, near the Main Entrance Plaza.
Shuttles to off-site hotels and overflow parking areas pick up and drop off at the Main Entrance Plaza east of the theme parks' main entrance. Taxis are available on the west end of Downtown Disney, near the ESPN Zone. Anaheim Resort Transit (ART), a quasi-government agency designed to help improve the air quality in the city of Anaheim, also provides shuttles on a pay per ride, or pay per day basis from Disneyland's east shuttle area to various hotels and other attractions in the area. Disney has made a deal with the ART system and the OCTA to operate buses from the Toy Story parking lot, which is located south of the Disneyland Resort. Disney also operates the Pumbaa Lot on Disney Way, and has the Simba Lot west of the Paradise Pier Hotel. Disney also has contracts with the Anaheim GardenWalk and Anaheim Convention Center, where Disney can use parts of their parking spaces on selected days.
Public transportation is available from the Orange County Transportation Authority
Orange County Transportation Authority
The Orange County Transportation Authority is the public sector transportation planning body and mass transit service provider for Orange County, California. Its ancestor agencies include not only the prior Orange County Transit District but also such diverse entities as the Pacific Electric...
(OCTA) and Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority
Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority
The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority is the California state-chartered regional transportation planning agency and public transportation operating agency for the County of Los Angeles formed in 1993 out of a merger of the Southern California Rapid Transit District and the...
(Metro) adjacent the east end of the property, along Harbor Boulevard. OCTA also provides service along the north and south ends of the property, along Ball Road and Katella Avenue, respectively.
Emergency services
The Disneyland Resort maintains a private security staff charged with protecting the company's assets and interests, including controlling access to restricted areas, detaining shopliftersShoplifting
Shoplifting is theft of goods from a retail establishment. It is one of the most common property crimes dealt with by police and courts....
, enforcing park/resort rules, and imposing and enforcing trespass
Trespass
Trespass is an area of tort law broadly divided into three groups: trespass to the person, trespass to chattels and trespass to land.Trespass to the person, historically involved six separate trespasses: threats, assault, battery, wounding, mayhem, and maiming...
warnings. Most of the time Security officers working in guest areas serve as de facto
De facto
De facto is a Latin expression that means "concerning fact." In law, it often means "in practice but not necessarily ordained by law" or "in practice or actuality, but not officially established." It is commonly used in contrast to de jure when referring to matters of law, governance, or...
information posts, and also handle guest issues such as lost children and personal property damage. Law enforcement outside the authority of Disneyland Resort Security is the jurisdiction of the Anaheim Police Department (APD), which maintains a regular 24-hour presence at the Resort.
The resort maintains its own private fire department
Fire department
A fire department or fire brigade is a public or private organization that provides fire protection for a certain jurisdiction, which typically is a municipality, county, or fire protection district...
, called the Disneyland Resort Fire Department (DFD). DFD has several fire trucks stationed throughout the resort property and has the capability to put out minor structural fires; however, its primary purpose is fire prevention and investigation. Most of the department's operations are behind the scenes; the Main Street Fire House and other emergency-response-themed facades at the Resort are for show only and are not actual operations of the DFD. The resort also maintains a staff of nurses 24 hours a day to operate first aid
First aid
First aid is the provision of initial care for an illness or injury. It is usually performed by non-expert, but trained personnel to a sick or injured person until definitive medical treatment can be accessed. Certain self-limiting illnesses or minor injuries may not require further medical care...
stations situated in each park and hotel, as well as to act as first responders to emergency situations that occur away from the first aid stations. Fire and rescue services beyond the capability of the DFD and/or the nursing staff are handled by the Anaheim Fire Department (AFD), which has a station just east of the Resort property. AFD also maintains a constant paramedic
Paramedic
A paramedic is a healthcare professional that works in emergency medical situations. Paramedics provide advanced levels of care for medical emergencies and trauma. The majority of paramedics are based in the field in ambulances, emergency response vehicles, or in specialist mobile units such as...
presence at the Resort.
Attendance
The May 2008 issue of trade magazine Park World reported the following attendance estimates for 2007 compiled by Economic Research Associates in partnership with the Themed Entertainment AssociationThemed Entertainment Association
The Themed Entertainment Association is an international non-profit association that represents creators, developers, designers and producers of themed entertainment...
:
- Disneyland, 14.87 million visits (No. 2 worldwide)
- Disney California Adventure, 5.68 million visits (No. 11)
Executives
The president of Disneyland Resort is George Kalogridis. Kalogridis reports to Al Weiss, president of Worldwide Operations for Walt Disney Parks and ResortsWalt Disney Parks and Resorts
Walt Disney Parks and Resorts is the segment of The Walt Disney Company that conceives, builds, and manages the company's theme parks and holiday resorts, as well as a variety of additional family-oriented leisure enterprises...
.
Current management
- President, Disneyland Resort - George Kalogridis
- Vice President, Disneyland Park - Jon Storbeck
- Vice President, Disney California Adventure - Mary Niven
- Vice President, Downtown Disney and Disneyland Resort Hotels - Tony Bruno
Past management:
- President, Disneyland Resort - Ed GrierEd GrierEd Grier was named dean of the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Business on February 8, 2010. Previously, he was President of the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, which comprises the Disneyland and Disney's California Adventure theme parks, the Disneyland Hotel, Disney's Grand...
(2006–2009) - President, Disneyland Resort - Matt OuimetMatt OuimetMatt Ouimet is the president of Cedar Fair Entertainment, a publicly-traded company that owns 11 amusement parks in the U.S. and Canada.Cedar Fair's board named him president in June. Ouimet is scheduled to take over as the chief executive officer in 2012, when the current CEO, Richard "Dick"...
(2003–2006) - President, Disneyland Resort - Cynthia HarrissCynthia HarrissCynthia Harriss is an American retail and tourism industry executive, most notable for her senior roles with Gap Inc. and The Walt Disney Company.-Early life:Harriss was born Indiana and received a bachelor's degree from St. Louis University in Missouri...
(1999–2003) - President, Disneyland Resort - Paul PresslerPaul PresslerPaul Pressler is an advisor of the New York- and London-based private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice. Formerly president and CEO of Gap, Inc...
(1994–1999; Chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, 1999–2002) - President, Disneyland Resort - Jack LindquistJack LindquistJack Lindquist served as the president of the Disneyland amusement park in Anaheim, California from 1990 until he retired in 1993...
(1990–1994)- Former Senior Vice President, Operations - Greg EmmerGreg EmmerGreg Emmer was the senior vice president of operations at the Disneyland Resort, responsible for the daily operation of all aspects of the resort including Park Operations, Food & Beverage, Lodging, Entertainment, Store Operations & Distribution Services, Maintenance and Engineering, Downtown...
- Former Senior Vice President, Operations - Greg Emmer
- Former Executive Vice President - Dick Nunis (1972–1980)