Originally Posted By avro_imagineer ^^ More intial investment, although the savings of a newer building (Ie, lower operating costs, more efficient use of space, no longer 40 years old and brand new requiring less maintenance). This would also allow them to move upmarket if they so desire. But...
Originally Posted By jmuboy Not know much about the plans for the DL Hotel, I'm guessing the whole reason they are gutting these buildings is to modernize fiber optics, phone, internet, power, plumbing etc. Giving the place a fresh modern new look so it can maintain its current price points is just a nice side effect?
Originally Posted By fkurucz <<They could easily accomplish that without having to loose revenue on the other towers while each tower is rebuilt.>> I'm not sure that I would be too crazy about staying at the DLH while this was all going on. The only time we stayed there (2000 IIRC) there was a great deal of work going on at the time and it definitely did not feel "magical".
Originally Posted By Hans Reinhardt I don't think anyone would want to stay in a hotel while major construction was happening just outside the door. In a perfect world Disney would build a fabulous new fourth hotel property and then demolish the Disneyland Hotel to the ground and start from scratch. That way they could absorb the lost revenue from the closing the DLH while laying the foundation for future financial growth with the fourth property.
Originally Posted By EighthDwarf Just a thought, but in this economic downturn, they might be better off tearing out the DLH and making sure the other 2 hotels are filled to capacity, thereby keeping room rates high. If they are having trouble filling all 3 hotels, which it seems like they are given the rock-bottom AP rates, they ought to use this time to position themselves to take full advantage of the economic upturn (whenever that happens). Looking at their financial statements, they seem well-positioned to do something like this.
Originally Posted By Hans Reinhardt That's another idea. Considering the high occupancy rate that DLR has it's surprising to me that Disney hasn't announced plans for a major expansion of their hotel room stock.
Originally Posted By jmuboy Three hotels were in the plans before the economy went south. None were announced, but were strongly rumored. A 4th "on property" and 2 Disney branded hotels at GardenWalk. Obviously, it looks like only the DL Hotel upgrades and the Grand Ca expansion will be the only hotel changes we see at the DLR for a while. And talking about DLR hotels, can I say how much I hate the lobby area of the Paradise Pier hotel? Can they please migrate away from the concept art theme? Give the lobby a real beach-side hotel feel? Especially since all the concept art used in the lobby is from DCA 1.0!
Originally Posted By Westsider Good point on the circa 1999 DCA concept art in the Paradise Pier Hotel lobby! By late spring most of that artwork will be out of date and unrelated to what is there. By 2010 ALL of that artwork will have little relevance to the theme park across the street. Good idea at the time to include it back in '01, but it's looking dumber and dumber by the day in '09.
Originally Posted By avro_imagineer Of course a minor renovation of the lobby at this point in time wouldn't be out of the question. If you think about it you update your house decor (paint/carpet and other minor stuff) after 8 or so years is not out of the question.
Originally Posted By jmuboy The lobby of the PP Hotel needs a fresh look. It doesn't have to cost a ton of money either.
Originally Posted By ArchtMig ^^^Wouldn't have to worry about freshening the look of the lobby if they'd just flatten the whole building.
Originally Posted By gadzuux I've pointed this out before, but the steel skeletal superstructure of these towers are perfectly fine, and don't need to be replaced. If they went to the trouble and expense of demolishing the existing towers, they'd then have to go to the trouble and expense of putting in new steel to replace what they just ripped out. This cuts both ways. On the one hand, they can save enormous amounts in construction costs by simply maintaining the existing steel infrastructure. The downside is that the dimensions of these 'new' buildings would remain pretty much as is - the big blocky rectangular structures that are there now, only more modern. Even then, there's still a silver lining. DLH hotel rooms are suprisingly large, especially given modern day hotel standards. It's unlikely that they would build a new hotel today that devotes as much square footage to individual rooms as the current DLH. I think a "middle ground" was hinted at earlier by hans. They could build a new and more impressive 'grand lobby' approximately where the BAH is now, and the two adjoining towers would become separate wings branching off of the new lobby space. The problem I see with this is that it would be difficult to provide vehicular access, and they'd still need the driveway and entrance by the north tower. I've long thought that DLH needs an upgrade. It only gets more urgent as time passes. There's a LOT of competition in the high-end hotel room market in the resort area. And for the premium pricing that disney sets, you can get a much better room for much less money at a dozen or more nearby hotels. So the situtation as it exists cannot continue much longer. They either need to upgrade the hotel, or drop the pricing. I agree with the earlier poster that said they should build a new hotel complex in the area FIRST, then proceed with the systematic upgrades to the DLH. When they're done, they'll have four full service resorts. But since this project looks like it could stretch out over many years, at least they'll always have three in the interim.
Originally Posted By jmuboy Blue Sky Disney blog commented further on 3-10-09 about the coming "retro" upgrade to the DL Hotel. I also like the idea of joining the Marina and Sierra towers with a building located where the BAH currently stands. The drive up lobby portico could be moved to the far eastern end of the Marina Tower. That would put it as close as possible to this new central lobby. In the end, I see the 3 Towers remaining separate entities. Either way, hope the BAH goes away during the upgrade. And yes, I used the old Tower names because I can never remember the new ones and which building they apply to.
Originally Posted By Dabob2 I can't see this happening, but ultimately what I think would be great is: A new, fancy "New DL Hotel" along the lines of the one at DLP constructed in the East Esplanade (current shuttle pickup area). Somebody did a map overlay to show that, surprisingly enough, such a hotel could fit here nicely. The lobby would be on the second floor; ground level would just be arches that pedestrians would walk under. Advantages to this hotel: new, fancy, charming, and you can't get closer to the gates. This would allow them to charge a premium, of course. Then, combine the current DLH and PP hotels into one huge complex that is large enough to have real resort elements like a huge, Vegas-style (but even more tricked out) pool area, tennis courts, etc. For the disadvantage of being further away, you'd have all this cool resort stuff that neither the "new DLH" nor the GCH has room for. So you could charge a premium for THAT. That would give them three properties they could charge big coin for; of course, it requires big coin to build too. And it leaves them without a moderate hotel (sort of PPH's niche now), but perhaps one of the rumored hotels at AGW could fill that niche (with the other being the modern "boutique hotel." No matter how nice the third gate will be (when it opens), that hotel will always be further from DL itself than the others, and DL will always be the centerpiece of any vacation to DLR.
Originally Posted By avro_imagineer ^^^ Given there are 4 towers in that plan, couldn't they put one at a lower deluxe price point? Or have a system where those at the PPH could pay to upgrade to a "resort pass" Ie keep the Paradise Pier but allow access to the ammenities, while upgrading the DLH towers?
Originally Posted By Dabob2 Actually, in my fantasy plan, the current towers are replaced. But if they weren't, the towers could be priced differently based on view - they already are in practice.
Originally Posted By ryanbalas In all my visits to DL and visits to parts of the hotel - it has always seem dated. I don't know. They can do so many amazing things but, seem to hold off when it comes to the towers. Also, I have noticed nobody has mentioned this - they have only owned the hotels for about 10 years, tops. They were built and operated by an outside company since the beginning (Walt found someone to build the hotel when he ran out of money while building the park). So, in real estate terms - this timing might be right on track. Earn some money after spending the bucks it took to purchase them and using our wonderful tax system space out the upgrades and improvements to get the right deductions several years in a row. If I was going to spend some bucks, I would go for the Grand CA. Otherwise, I Priceline and always get a nice room for just a few bucks (three times - Hyatt for 50 bucks a night!!).
Originally Posted By trekkeruss <<They were built and operated by an outside company since the beginning>> Jack Wrather. The Bonita Tower (now the Wonder) was named for his wife, as was Granville's (now Steakhouse 55).
Originally Posted By avro_imagineer Bonita Granville wonder why that sounds familiar Keep in mind the Silver Banjo, etc. Without these companies/investors Disneyland would have only been a might have been.
Originally Posted By jmuboy Disney has owned the DL Hotel since 1988. They bought the DL hotel, Queen Mary and Spruce Goose in the deal. The last 2 were later sold. I think Disney keeps toying with the idea of tearing down the towers which has delayed any true renovation work on the hotel. Now it seems they may FINALLY be close to a plan to keep, but gut and retheme, the entire property in stages. Not the ideal plan maybe for fans, but a plan that could work okay if done correctly. If you There is a great book on the history of the Disneyland Hotel. It came out during the DL 50th Celebration. It's called DL Hotel - The Early Years. The website for the book is <a href="http://www.magicalhotel.com/" target="_blank">http://www.magicalhotel.com/</a>
