Pixar Place Hotel

Pixar Place Hotel
The upper portion of the building
Former namesThe Emerald of Anaheim (1984-1989)
Pan Pacific Hotel (1989-1995)
Disneyland Pacific Hotel (1995-2000)
Paradise Pier Hotel
General information
TypeHotel
LandlordDisney Experiences
Technical details
Floor count15

The Pixar Place Hotel is a hotel at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. It is owned by the Walt Disney Company and operated through their Disney Experiences division. The hotel is themed after the artwork of Pixar.

The hotel was formerly known as the Paradise Pier Hotel, having been purchased from the Tokyu Group in 1995 while it was still part of their Pan Pacific brand of hotels.

During this period, the hotel had a California boardwalk theme. In 2022, Disney announced that it would be renovated into a Pixar-themed hotel. The renovations were completed in January 2024 when the hotel opened in its current state.

History

The building was opened in 1984 as the Emerald of Anaheim, part of the larger Emerald Group of hotels. The hotel, owned by the Tokyu Group,[1] was rebranded to The Pan Pacific Hotel in 1989,[2][3] before undergoing a $4.5 million dollar renovation in 1994.[4] The property had been leased for it by businessman P.C. Chao.[5]

Around this time, Disney began to acquire land in the area as part of a planned expansion to the Disneyland Resort, and hoped to acquire the hotel, which was reportedly inside the proposed area of expansion. However, negotiations failed due to the owners disagreeing over the proposed sale price.[5][1]

Paradise Pier Hotel

The Walt Disney Company eventually purchased the hotel in December 1995 and renamed it to the Disneyland Pacific Hotel. While the price was undisclosed, it was reportedly around $36 million. At the time the hotel had around 350 employees, most of whom remained employed at the hotel after the change of ownership.[1][6] The hotel underwent a major renovation the next year.[7] The Third Floor, a restaurant opened while the hotel was still the Emerald of Anaheim, was renovated into the PCH Grill.

The building was renamed to the Paradise Pier Hotel in 2000, Paradise Pier being the name of a themed land in Disney California Adventure.[8][3][9] During this time period, the hotel was themed after the boardwalks of California.[10]

Pixar Place Hotel

In April 2022, it was announced that the Paradise Pier Hotel would be redesigned into an artistic hotel themed after the work of Pixar Animation Studios.[10] The original Paradise Pier area at Disney California Adventure had previously been rethemed into Pixar Pier in 2018.[11] The hotel underwent renovation while still open. An area in the swimming pool themed after the Finding Nemo franchise was opened in August 2023.[12] The completion reopening date was announced in October.[13]

The completed Pixar Place Hotel was fully opened on January 31, 2024.[11] The hotel features a statue of Luxo Jr. in the lobby, and includes production artwork from every feature film produced by Pixar at the time it opened, including Toy Story, Luca, Cars, Ratatouille, and Elemental. Each floor of the hotel is themed after a different film.[14] The hotel now contains the 6,500 square-foot Great Maple restaurant. It is the first restaurant not owned by Disney to open in the resort, and is part of a larger chain.[15][16] The lobby is also home to the Sketch Pad Cafe, an eatery which sells coffee and baked goods, and STOR-E, a gift shop whose name is a pun on the film WALL-E.[11][16]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Vrana, Debora (December 12, 1995). "Disney Acquires Pan Pacific Hotel in Anaheim; Real estate: The new Disneyland Pacific Hotel is bought from a Japanese firm for a reported $36 million". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2026-08-16.
  2. ↑ "Emerald Hotel now The Pan Pacific". The Orange County Register. September 28, 1989.
  3. 1 2 Campa, Andrew J. (2023-05-27). "A Pixar-themed hotel is coming to Disneyland Resort. Here's a sneak peek". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2026-08-16.
  4. ↑ By (1995-12-13). "Disney Working On a Deal To Lease Chicago Theatre". Sun Sentinel. Retrieved 2026-08-16.
  5. 1 2 "Hotel Standing in Way of Disney Expansion Plans : Negotiations: The Pan Pacific could be a key part of the park's projects, but its owners say the entertainment giant's purchase offers are too low". Los Angeles Times. 1991-03-27. Retrieved 2026-08-17.
  6. ↑ "Marketing Brief -- WALT DISNEY CO.: Company Purchases Hotel Near Theme-Park Entrance". The Wall Street Journal. December 12, 1995.
  7. ↑ Sandi, Cain (January 27, 1997). "Anaheim dominates meeting room scene". Orange County Business Journal.
  8. ↑ E. Scott, Reckard (May 18, 2000). "Disney, Anaheim Discuss Future of Strawberry Farm". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2026-08-16.
  9. ↑ Chao, Fifi (July 21, 1997). "No Mickey Mouse fare at PCH Grill". Orange County Business Journal.
  10. 1 2 Chen, Eve (April 28, 2022). "Disneyland is giving one of its hotels a Pixar-themed makeover". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2026-08-16.
  11. 1 2 3 Marten, Todd (2024-02-02). "At Disneyland's Pixar Place Hotel, hang out with Bing Bong and fall in love with animation". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2026-08-16.
  12. ↑ J. Campa, Andrew (July 31, 2023). "Disneyland's Paradise Pier adds Nemo- and Dory-themed features as it converts to Pixar Place". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2026-08-16.
  13. ↑ Brew, Caroline (2023-10-23). "Pixar Place Hotel to Open at Disneyland in January". Variety. Retrieved 2026-08-16.
  14. ↑ Tremaine, Julie (February 2, 2024). "Disneyland's new hotel offers an experience you can't get anywhere else". SFGATE. Retrieved 2026-08-16.
  15. ↑ Chung, Sonia (2024-02-27). "Great Maple Adds To Disney Dining". Orange County Business Journal. Retrieved 2026-08-16.
  16. 1 2 MacDonald, Brady (2023-10-23). "Disneyland sets opening date for Pixar Place Hotel makeover". Orange County Register. Retrieved 2026-08-16.
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