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Disney Hotel Fifty Years Young

November 4, 2005 at 9:21 AM | 0 Comments

Once upon a time, in a land not so far away, there was a magical kingdom. This was no ordinary kingdom, this one used a mouse and a fairy. This month, the The Disneyland Hotel celebrates 50 years of housing sleeping beauties.

Disney fanatics may dispute this celebration, as the park actually opened in `54, at which time the hotel was hardly done (seven rooms were available--one for each dwarf, obviously.) The hotel opened its 103 units on October 5, 1955 (that's seven dwarfs + 101 Dalmatians, minus 5 lost boys--for those who are mathematically challenged).

In those days a standard room cost about $9, and a deluxe was about $22. Today, $9 won't get you a pair of mouse ears.

As for the building, The Bonita Tower was the first hotel building in the US to use solar heating, which would be impressive if the building was anywhere other than SoCal.

Oh, and as for amenities:

When it opened, one of the Guest amenities included a color television in every room. This kind of luxury was unprecedented in a hotel at that time. At one point during the hotel's history, Guests were able to check-in from their cars using a unique drive-in registration desk.

As we all know fairy tales have a formula: 3 wishes, happy endings, and most importantly a moral message. So what is the moral message of this hotel story? Drive-in registration desks never really caught on.

Related Stories:
·   The Disneyland Hotel Celebrates 50th [Magical Mountain]
·   Disneyland Hotel Reviews [TripAdvisor]