Disneyland Resort
The Disneyland Destination near Los Angeles, CA, also known as Disneyland, is an entertainment resort that offers a variety of attractions. A branch of The Walt Disney Company called Parks, Experiences, and Products is in charge of the park’s operation and ownership. Aside from its two theme parks (Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure), the city is also home to three hotels and a shopping, dining, and entertainment complex known as Downtown Disney.
Walt Disney conceptualized and designed the resort back in the 1950s. However, on July 17, 1955, the Disneyland Resort officially opened its doors to guests. The site consisted of Disneyland, a 100-acre parking lot (with 15,167 places), and the Disneyland Hotel, owned and operated by Disney’s business partner Jack Wrather.
Because of the success achieved by Walt Disney World in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, with the multi-park, multi-hotel business model, the company purchased vast tracts of property near Disneyland to replicate the same business model in Anaheim.
The property was; renamed the Disneyland Resort to cover the entire complex, while the original theme park was renamed Disneyland Park during the construction phase. The Walt Disney Company sold the Disneyland Hotel to the Tokyu Group, which purchased the Pan Pacific Hotel from the Wrather Company.
In 2000, the Pan Pacific Hotel transformed into Disney’s Paradise Pier Hotel. In addition, Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa, a second theme park titled Disney California Adventure, and the Downtown Disney retail, dining, and entertainment district were all added to the property in 2001, bringing the total number of attractions to four.
Walt Disney’s early idea for an amusement park was creating a “Mickey Mouse Park” near the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, California (presently the West Coast headquarters ABC).
In developing new ideas, Walt and his brother Roy realized that the Burbank location would be insufficient for the project’s needs. So they hired a consultant from Stanford Research Institute to provide them with information on possible sites and information on economic feasibility. The consultant advised a remote location in Anaheim, close to the Santa Ana Freeway, which was still under construction at the time.
The consultant was correct in his prediction that the region’s orange groves would eventually become the population hub of Southern California. Disney intended to create a hotel at Disneyland because the location was so far away from Southern California’s population centers in the 1950s. This would allow tourists driving long distances to spend the night at the park.
To avoid losing all of his financial resources, Walt struck an agreement with Hollywood producer Jack Wrather. He would build and operate a Disneyland Hotel directly across the street from Disneyland.
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Los Angeles, California’s Getty Center, is home to the Getty Museum and other initiatives of the Getty Trust and a site for the Getty Institute. The Center, which cost $1.3 billion to build and opened to the public on December 16, 1997, is well-known for its architecture, gardens, and panoramic views over Los Angeles. Located at the top of a hill and connected to a visitors’ parking garage located at the bottom of the hill by a three-car, cable-pulled hovertrain people mover, the Center is a destination in itself.
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