Disneyland Hong Kong's Hollywood Hotel

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While at Hong Kong Disneyland I stayed at the Hollywood Hotel, not to be confused with the Hollywood Tower Hotel. As two of my major interests are Disney and Los Angeles history this was a wonderful intersection of the two.

I'm not really sure why many years after the hotel's opening the postcards are still computer renderings

I have quite a few pictures of the hotel but I'll try to put most of them up now. The hotel had me bursting with excitement even after a 15 hour plane ride and an early morning arrival. the entry gates draw their inspiration from the Pan Pacific Auditorium, although the entry gates are red marble rather than the Auditorium's distinctive teal. The Pan Pacific Auditorium  also serves as inspiration for Disney's Hollywood Studios entry gates and the new entry gates for Disney's California Adventure. Speaking of that when are they gonna get rid of those awful letters, tiles and red bridge.

This is not the only connection Disney has to the Pan Pacific Auditorium, Walt himself showcased his miniatures there which included small scale replicas of Granny's cabin from So Dear to My Heart.  Walt made these miniatures entirely with his own hands and they were exhibited at  an exhibition of pacific living in the early fifties and were an inspiration for what eventually became the Disneyland we know today.

This is the Ambassador Hotel in Tokyo. Also those buses are the best thing ever.

Another thing that the architecture of The Hollywood Hotel draws from is Tokyo's Ambassador Hotel. Having had a throughly mediocre experience there five years ago I was slightly wary of this hotel. While would certainly be called a moderate at Disney World, it was beautifully themed. But it lacked some amenities such as a Spa and room service. My first day jet-lag caused to be shirk some of my picture taking responsibilities and hence I will describe more things than I have photos of.

In between the two twin beds there is an awesome portrait of Mickey and Minnie at Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood as they sunk their hands into the wet cement. One of the things I really appreciated about this depiction other than its general whimsy and fun was the curl of hair by Minnie's hair which is unique to this drawing. I was personally disappointed that they didn't put a huge sorcerers hat in front of the theater.

From my room I had a great view of the park and Disneyland's other hotel The Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel. It was Hazy and overcast during the entire time we were in HOng Kong, but supposedly you can see Hong Kong's skyline from here on a clear night. In the gray haze it's hard to even find the castle.

moving on...

This hotel room was so rich with theming that both the mirror and the shampoo bottles echoed the shapes of classic Hollywood. The Shampoo bottles are awesome by themselves but when you add Mickey ears and a setting meant to mimic the Hollywood Bowl, that's when I'm in heaven. 

I just love the shower curtain. 

I absolutely love the Hollywood Hotel sign, but the use of this sign is what keeps the hotel from seeing as though it is truly a resident of Hollywood's golden age. A stain glass window using this pattern particularly above a doorway would make the hotel seem even more authentic. 

Another glimpse at the wonderful font chosen for this hotel. Also on the sliding doors themselves you can get a sense of the graphic  that plays a large role in the resort. It lines the edge of much of the hotel. I tried to capture it on the Elevator doors, but the shot came out blurry. 

Below is the entry way towards the Guest rooms, this was one of my favorite parts of the hotel. 

A close up of the mickey sculpture in much the same garb he is wearing in the Grauman's Chinese shot in the room. 

The awesome carpet you can see in the elevator area helps the visual exuberance of the hotel's palate, which is continued more boldly in the guest rooms and hallways where a dark red is used and a light teal is used for the exterior wall of the bathroom, which is rounded reflecting the streamline moderne style of the Pan Pacific Auditorium. 

Below is a brief shot from the large back yard of the property which I did not photographed a tenth as much as I should have. It contains a replica of the large entrance gate to the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank. It contains a scaled down version of the El Capitan Marquee and box office in Hollywood. IT also contains a bar by the pool shaped like the Hollywood Bowl. a street like road leads you back to a 1959 cadillac parked in front of a replica of the Hollywood Sign. If you follow the road around the sign you come upon Muhholland Drive and some even older cars not to mention a beautiful view of the harbor. The pool n the back also has piano keys on it. It's fun whimsical and quant. My excitement as I discovered each thing was  well loud. 

The hotel has three wonderful eateries one is sit down, one is quick service and one is buffet. The Studio lounge righto n the main lobby serves standard western fare and was delicious according to others in my party at night they lower a projector and play movies on a screen behind the bar. The night I was there Enchanted was showing. 

and the menu

The Next up is Chef Mickey a fancy free buffet adorned with mickey everywhere: 

and one last blurry shot: 

On the way to the final Eatery there is a room with Disney toys for children and their parents to play called the Malibu Toy Shop: 

My absolute favorite lighting fixture in the entire hotel is in the Malibu Toy Shop

As Goofy would say "Oh Gawrsh!"Speaking of Goofy as I returned from the park around five Goofy was wandering the halls by the Malibu Toy Shop, I grabbed the chance to get a picture with him. 

Here's Goofy tooling around with some kids before I showed up! 

Anyway as we continue down the hall we run into the quick service restaurant Hollywood & Dine! 

That's all from the Hollywood Hotel for now! Although I have quite a few more stationary things to be scanned and what not! Until tomorrow! 

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