Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel and Spa is the flagship hotel of the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. Opening in 2001, Grand Californian is the closest hotel to a Disney theme park, just steps away from Disney California Adventure Park and Downtown Disney District, or a brief walk to Disneyland Park. Inspired by the craftsmanship of California architecture and the natural beauty of the golden state, the Grand Californian Hotel offers spacious accommodations, luxurious amenities, fine dining, and more, with the quickest access you can get to both Disneyland Resort theme parks. In this episode, I’m joined by Philander Butler to discuss everything you need to know about this hotel, including the reasons you might want to stay here (despite competitive prices you can get at other hotels) and ways to make the most of your visit.
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This episode is sponsored by K m v travel voted the top travel agency in Orlando in twenty twenty five, who helped us enjoy an unforgettable four night stay at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel and Spa at the Disneyland Resort. To get started creating your own vacation memories and to get rewarded for booking a trip to Disney in twenty twenty six, visit kmv travel dot com slash skyway. Welcome aboard Imagination Skyway. Your guided tour through the worlds of Disney and Imagineering. I’m your host, Matthew Krul, and it’s my job to explore the stories and places we love and the people who bring them to life. Before we get started, remember that you can unlock ad free episodes and bonus content at patreon dot com slash Imagination Skyway. In today’s episode, we discuss everything you need to know about Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel and Spa. Opening in two thousand and one with Disney California Adventure Park, the Grand Californian is the flagship hotel at the Disneyland Resort, offering spacious accommodations, sensational dining and amenities, and the closest proximity you can get to both Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure. In this episode, we’ll discuss all the reasons you should consider staying here on your next Disneyland vacation and how The Grand Californian compares to other hotels in the area. As we begin our journey, please remain seated. Keep your hands and arms inside the podcast at all times and enjoy your journey aboard Imagination Skyway. So it’s about a year later since I was last at Disneyland Resort, recording an episode with Falander. Who’s joining me again today? Falander, welcome back to the show. I’m always happy to be on the show, always happy to be talking to you and even more happy that we are actually face to face right now. I know, talking on the phone like doing it otherwise we’re not around is also always great, but it’s always great to catch up like in person, especially when we are in these beautiful Disney spaces. It is. We were just geeking out about Disney and Resorts before even hitting record. So it’s just a natural conversation about of where we started. But we’re here at, you know, last time we recorded an episode about the Disneyland Hotel, the most classic you can get, the one that started it all here at Disneyland, and arguably at all the Disney parks around the world. But here we’re at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel and Spa, which is just this majestic, gorgeous, inspiring hotel. I think it’s a bucket list day for definitely so many guests, so many Disney fans who wanted to stay here whenever they get the chance. Um, and there’s so much to talk about, but we should probably start with the history. The Imagineering, the backstory. Just setting the stage for people to get a better idea of why they might want to choose to stay here. So take us back. I mean, this hotel opened in two thousand and one. Mhm. He tells us a bit about the history of Grand Californian Imagineering. Whatever helps to paint the picture. Um, it’s really a good way to paint the picture. Especially to add a description for it is for a lot of your listeners that mainly go to Walt Disney World and haven’t been to Disneyland Resort just yet. Is that the the resort has a strong connection to a few Walt Disney World properties that they may have been to. So architect Peter Dominick is famous not only for designing this hotel for us, but also the Animal Kingdom Lodge at Walt Disney World as well as Wilderness Lodge. So if you can kind of picture it in your mind’s eye when you visit those hotels, they have those beautiful, massive lobbies that almost take your breath away when you walk in. Huge, beautiful lobbies. And that’s the same here for the Grand Californian. Um, massive beautiful lobby. Um, and it gives off a very strong arts and crafts movement style look to it. So you get a lot of really lovely, like, um, browns and greens that are all that kind of spaced throughout the entire location. And it really is a probably the closest approximate I would think would be Wilderness Lodge. They kind of have the big totems on the side like that, but a really, really beautiful hotel. But yeah, it opened in two thousand and one with the park. The resort was kind of preparing for the opening of California Adventure. They knew they were going to be having decreased attendance. And of course, you want to have more hotel rooms, which a lot of your listeners know. Walt Disney World has always got another hotel cooking, and they got a lot of stuff coming out there right now. Yes they do. So you want to get some more hotel rooms for all the people coming. But at the time, um, Disney was only running the Disneyland Hotel, which is the original hotel of this, of this resort. And then they were running the Paradise Pier Hotel. But a lot of people don’t know that Disney did not initially own those hotels. Walt, unfortunately didn’t have a ton of money. He spent all of it getting Disneyland off the ground to actually own a hotel. So he, um, uh, ended up partnering with, uh, Jack, rather one of his business partners to or not one of his business partners, one of his friends to open up a hotel. But for decades, that hotel was not run by Disney. You know, Walt wanted to get it back from him. But Jack, I’m assuming at the time was making so much money that he said, Walt, I’m gonna hold on to that hotel. But eventually we got it back. And then same thing. If you kind of think about the positioning of where California Adventure is, there was a hotel that was across the street called the Emerald of Anaheim. It was a Japanese hotel owned hotel. But if you ever go to Pixar Place, which it is now, that hotel looks directly into California adventure. So I’m assuming Disney’s like, okay, we need to own this hotel. Like it faces directly into the park, you know, theme park views, you know, at a future world of color views whenever that show would eventually get built, so Disney ended up buying that hotel and hotel. Hilariously, has now gone through five different name changes since it opened up. Wow. I know. Let me see if I got it right. Let me get mad. Uh. Emerald of Anaheim. Uh, Pan Pacific Hotel. Then Disney buys it is the Disney Pacific Hotel, then it’s Paradise Pier Hotel, and now it’s Pixar Place Hotel. That’s incredible. Five name changes. So adding this hotel was technically the first hotel at this resort in Anaheim that was fully built and then operated by Disney, which is amazing thinking that when this opened in two thousand and one, Disneyland was approaching its fiftieth birthday at that time. So what a fascinating journey to get this hotel off the ground. But yeah, this park at the time when, um, you know, Michael Eisner was CEO of the company, they wanted to get a hotel that they could really call their flagship hotel, which for a lot of your listeners know, Walt Disney World. The equivalent would be the Grand Floridian Hotel and Spa, which is the, like you mentioned earlier, the the bucket list, the one that you see on all the TV shows, and everyone stays in there and it’s so beautiful. Another big, beautiful lobby. But they wanted to have something like that here. And I think these those two hotels are really almost spot for spot. If you think of incredible amenities, amazing restaurants, massive multiple room types, like they are probably spot on. So anyone that has actually ever stayed at the Grand Floridian, I would, I would say this is will feel very similar, very different looks. Of course, you get that beautiful white marble look for the Grand Floridian. Um, but they are very, very close. When you think about a hotel that encompasses all different, all the really great aspects of any great hotel, but the, I think the only difference, which we’ll talk about later, I’m sure, is that entrance. Oh, yes, I was gonna say that this Grand Floridian is definitely the right equivalent, especially thinking about the naming and the flagship property itself. But this to me is a step above Grand Floridian. Yes, I’ve stayed at Grand Floridian in front of my home resorts for Disney Vacation Club. But this one is proximity. The location, I think, is really what makes it unbeatable. But even the the service at Grand Floridian, I mean, obviously is exceptional, but here it just feels a little elevated even above that. And the simple things like even the mouse keeping is, well, every night we’ve come back here, my girls, um, plushies are like tucked into bed. Oh my gosh. And they have the, the grand Californian menu back up for us on the TV. And the room is set to the perfect temperature. And just like all these little, tiny little things that add up, that you get a lot of that at Grand Floridian. But I feel like also this hotel, it could be I wouldn’t say it’s the time of year, it’s July, but it just, it feels more, um, like maybe it’s just the time of day right now, but it even feels quieter. Like, I know that there’s times of day that it’s hustling and bustling through, checking in and checking out. But especially when people are at the parks, this resort gets pretty quiet and low key, and it just feels like a relaxing escape from the park. That is literally like I, I was so excited. I stayed here a year ago and it was a split stay between there and the Disneyland Hotel, and it was me feeling out when I bring the family back. Where do we need to prioritize? Stay up a little bit? And I said, yeah, I know that the price point is more for Grand Californian. It’s a five minute extra walk from Disneyland Hotel. Like, is it that big of a difference? Yeah, no, but there’s something about and I was so excited to walk down into Grand California because I’m like, just like, I’m like, watch this and literally just go downstairs, walk past the bar. Yep. And like, this is it. Like, it’s literally right here. And then at the end of our California Adventure day, walking back and through that entrance to go back to our room and like, our room is like just upstairs. It’s just so close and convenient that you’re not walking back through downtown Disney. You’re not crossing any streets. And like, this is such a first world problem. Like, it’s like I’ve stayed off property here so many times. There is something that’s just so nice about staying here. And you could be depending on the room location because this is a massive hotel. You’re thinking similar to Grand Floridian, close to a thousand rooms, if not a little bit more. But if you if you’re on the right side of the hotel, you can be from room to inside California adventure in two minutes. Three minutes. Yes, definitely. Incredible. Yeah. And all the families know, I know your listeners, they’re like, they remember those days of walking back to the hotel or getting on a bus or getting on a monorail and three minutes. Yeah. I haven’t folded the double stroller once in four days, which, as you know, any parent knows is so nice I can’t even tell you with it’s so nice. Um, and then the two security entrances that you have. I mean, you’re the security here is great at both sides of, you know, downtown Disney and Esplanade, but it’s even better and quicker. And just like to go into the downtown Disney side to get over to Disneyland or to downtown Disney, or even more so to get into the California Adventure entrance. It just feels like a private entrance. Yeah, I was thinking about that too. Even your proximity, because you’re thinking of wonderful hotels at Walt Disney World that are walking distance, like a Saratoga or an old Key West from the Springs. But even that pales to stepping right outside. And then you have all of downtown Disney, like within minutes. And that’s if you’re going out to get, get food and bring it back to your room, maybe. Yeah. Or going out to eat and then coming right back up like it’s so close. And I think it’s, it’s almost hard to explain because I know people at, um, at visit Walt Disney World frequently, they’ll try to think of, oh, I can walk to Grand Floridian, I can walk to Bay Lake Tower Contemporary. It’s like, no, no, no, this is like a quarter of that distance, if not less. It’s literally if you. I know Beach Club is the closest to to Epcot. Yes. It’s like if you were staying in a beach club at the entrance to Epcot was at Beach Club Marketplace. Yes. We’ll just go a little bit further from the lobby, hook a right bam! That’s Epcot right there. Yeah. It’s just but you know, the park is right outside here. You can’t hear it. Yeah, it’s super quiet in here. The rooms are well insulated, too. I notice that we are staying off of the main lobby, and normally I would avoid a room like that because you have so much noise from the lobby. Hustle, bustle. The piano players here usually when my girls are trying to go to sleep, but it’s been pretty quiet in our room, so it’s very well insulated in here, especially with little ones. Yes. Yeah, you can’t beat that. That’s key. The only thing that woke us up was, you know, actually they stayed asleep and woke me up. But nine thirty when the fireworks went off. Oh yeah. Disneyland. Because we have a we have a woods courtyard view, which I have now done twice. And it’s my preferred view because it’s just you get to see the monorail run runs through every once in a while. Even. That’s so silent. Yeah. Yeah. It is very quiet, almost glides by. It’s just so nice. Anyway, we got distracted talking about the great things that are wonderful about staying here. Um, thematically, is there anything else to say about the Imagineering or the storytelling of this hotel? I think what’s really nice about this hotel, and I think depending on who you ask, it’ll change because I remember we talked about last time when we spoke about the Disneyland Hotel, that that hotel feels almost like an extension of the parks to where like you have the monorail slides and like the fiber optic headboards that have the castle on it. And you have Mickey’s hand holding the lights. There’s a lot more subtlety in The Grand Californian. So Imagineering thought not to necessarily make it, because I think it would be hard to beat Disneyland Hotel when it comes to that. Definitely. So they chose to really lean into the arts and craft design and to very subtly weave Disney into it so it doesn’t, like, hit you right in the face when you come in. But I think it’s great because it allows you. Your eyes to linger and look a little bit longer at things, and then you kind of. Notice little nods like, oh, Bambi’s kind of woven into this, or you see Chippendale. And they did a great job of utilizing a lot of Disney’s characters that are like critters or characters that would be in a, a forest or arts and crafts style space like that, you know? So finding the characters woven into the tapestry of like the, the drapes in your room or things like that. So I like the difference in options to where, you know, while Disneyland will never have the type of variety that Walt Disney World has, I think they did a great job imagining between not only Disneyland Hotel, Pixar Place and the Grand California to make it so you. The options feel very different as well, so you don’t feel like you’re staying in. All three hotels are exactly the same, and I love that they wove it in because some people are like, I think a great example. My dad is not, he likes Disney, but he’s not super into it. So like, this is to help you to love where it doesn’t feel almost like a Disneyland hotel or Disney hotel, but it is there. And there’s a few equivalents like that, like at Walt Disney World. But it doesn’t like Scream Disney. But I think they do a really good job with the subtlety of it, where it’s just kind of mixed in, like even us where we’re sitting now looking at the tapestry of the carpet and seeing, um, you know, you’ll, you’ll occasionally see a hidden Mickey in the carpet or you’ll see a character like Thumper or Flower. And I think that is especially if these little kids, because they will start noticing, because they, of course, lower to the ground than we are and they’ll start picking out these little things. And I love that sense of exploration that comes with trying to find where the characters are or little things like that. So I’m happy that there is a distinct feeling that is different between all three of them. Yeah. Mhm. And even the in room characters, Chip and Dale are woven into the wallpaper. If you look really closely, there’s a more obvious picture of them in the bathroom, but it’s very subtle how, like you said, how they’re kind of woven into this. Um, so I guess speaking of rooms, there’s different room types, there’s different room views, there’s club level, there’s there’s suites. And each one of those I know is really unique. Beautiful. So what can you say about the room options, how people might want to. Yeah, of course, you have your standard rooms, which are nice and they have a ton of different room categories. You know, obviously theme park view is one of the best ones. And depending on where your room is, they have some that stare directly into California adventure, which is incredible. And you get some rooms that actively face world of color, which is, you know, incredible. And then you have, you know, the room option to turn on the, the audio. Not, not, not any different than like a bay lake tower or contemporary, you know, um, but watching world of color from your balcony, you know, is and to me, I think the proximity is a lot better because the world of color is such a big show and you’re a lot closer to it than I think you would think because people imagine probably best equivalent is Bay Lake Tower. Yeah. You know, staying over there and seeing the fireworks view. But you are so close. Like you, you’re looking down into the park essentially. And so those rooms are absolutely incredible. But then other ones, like you mentioned, where you’re getting to stare out and largely, you know, they’ve done such a great job of adding so much vegetation to the area where it looks like you are actively staying in like a national park on some of these where you’re staying on as just trees. Yeah, very similar to Wilderness Lodge, like some users just like, oh, wow, this is it almost doesn’t even feel like I’m at a, a, a theme park or a theme park resort like that. And also some great views into downtown Disney, which is nice where you’re staring down. And, uh, my wife is a big fan of like people watching, so she’ll get a balcony view and just kind of watch out and sit with a coffee in the morning. And there’s like a fun nature of seeing people walking to the parks, you know, like that first kind of excited, you know, run to get to the parks really fast and a rope drop. Uh, but alongside just the, the regular rooms. They have rooms that you’d find in any type of hotels, like standard rooms. Um, they have a few suites that get a little bit larger. Uh, this hotel is awesome. Also because it added villas in two thousand and nine, so did the vacation club, became a part of the Grand Floridian or Grand Californian. And I do that all the time. Yeah, I know, it’s so close. I felt I knew I was gonna do at least one, so I kind of got it out of the way. But yeah, in two thousand and nine, and that was the very first vacation club, um, activation here on the West Coast. And it’s very small. Unfortunately, uh, it’s super hard to get if you’re not an owner there, even if you are, even if you’re owner there, it’s very hard, but the rooms are wonderful. Same similar, uh, uh, layout to a lot of different, um, vacation club properties where you get your studios, one and two bedroom and three bedroom accommodations. This hotel has beautiful suites as well. Probably the most popular or most famous one is the, um, uh, the El Capitan suite. And it’s, and it’s the sweetest on the sixth floor. And it actually looks out onto. Let me see if I can paint this picture for you, Matt. Uh, it looks out to, you know, the path when you. You probably would have done it tonight when you’re walking from smokejumpers and past Soarin going to the to the Grand California. Yeah, I love that view. Looks directly the opposite that you were walking towards it. So you can see Guardians of the Galaxy mission breakout, you can see Soarin, you can see the, um, mountains of Radiator Springs racers off to the side like cars land and that, um, that hotel has, or that space has, uh, four, four bedrooms in it, a massive like, um, living room area in space. Yeah. Really, really beautiful. And the view I think is the best part about it because you can get a lot of different rooms here that have multiple rooms, but I, um, multiple like a bed options or room options. But I think sometimes the view is very important to people and what they get to see. And you can see actually a tiny bit on the left, a little of Disneyland too, which is nice. Um, and I think the other popular, the really popular one is the, um, what is that one called? The the Arcadia. And that one has a fireplace. And when you go inside. Oh, wow. Yeah. And I, you stayed, uh, in a grand villa. Grand villa here for two nights. Yeah. And that one’s really nice because it has a pool table in it, which is, you know, it’s for a bachelor party. So it wasn’t the most relaxing experience with so many guys in one grand villa. But, um. Yeah, I know there were two here. There’s one that faces I saw the other day when we were eating at the, uh, this morning actually when we were eating at the GCH craftsman bar. Yes. I saw I’m like, yeah, let’s see the, the two story windows. That’s that one. We had it facing the other side. So we actually watched World of Color from our balcony. And it was, I can attest to that. It was so nice to sit there. You could hear the music, you could see it. It was like, if you can, Walt Disney World locals or those of you who know Walt Disney World well, it’s like if you were to watch Luminous from if you’re a hotel was, I’m gonna say realistically, like a little bit closer than Spaceship Earth. Yeah. But you know, it’s not it’s not right there on the water, but it’s very close that you can you can hear it. You can definitely see it. Yeah. Close enough to not even need to turn on the oh no audio at all. Like you’re getting it right there. It’s, it’s, it’s washed right from the balcony with like being their back row, but like being there and it’s such a huge show. So you don’t even feel bad about that. Um, the resort actually is in a bit of a remodel right now too. When it comes to concierge to originally this hotel had the veranda, which is a really nice space, but they are in the midst now of creating a brand new concierge space, a two story concierge space here, which I don’t think to my knowledge, I don’t think Disney has one that’s that large Grand Floridian has a two story. That’s right. It. Yes, it does have a. The other grand has a two story. To think about it too. I’m like, I feel like there’s one. That’s fine. Another way that they are are sister sister resorts is like, oh, we need to up our our concierge game. I still would love to see that one someday be in the midst of doing that. But I also love the veranda here in its current form, is a really nice space that’s on the sixth floor of the hotel and has views that face off into where you can kind of see the monorail go by, uh, lovely tree views and you actually see the top of the fireworks from there too. Nice. Yeah. And no different than a lot of other really great concierge levels where the food is rotated throughout the day and they have customers that are there to assist you. Uh, but I am very excited based off of the concept art from Imagineering, that new space is being developed, which hopefully should be done sometime next year. Um, but yeah, I didn’t even think about the Floridian. That’s so fun that they’re going to be even more like after that, they’re just competing with each other. Who can, who can be better, who can be more, I don’t know, elegance and elevated. And yeah, I, you mentioned food, so we definitely have to talk about food. I was so happy to we haven’t taken advantage of it. but walk into the room and see in-room dining. Yes, a menu right there. A QR code to scan for the menu. And granted, you know, we had breakfast plans and all that and dinner plans, but not every Disney resort has dining. It’s actually more rare than. It’s just a handful of them that do. So it’s nice to, yes, be able to dine in your room. But short of that, there there is no shortage of dining here. It seems like there’s, you know, I you can count them better than I can. But yeah, that’s like half a dozen places. Yeah. And I think the same when people think of all the really wonderful dining locations that are at the Grand Floridian. Same thing here. I mean, I guess starting off with you, you know, having a character meal in your hotel is amazing, especially for those parents families that are, they really want to see characters. It’s awesome. And then also for the fact that the character are both for breakfast, brunch and dinner, which usually you only. For the most part, most places said that it’s usually just brunch, right? So having a dinner option for characters is sometimes really great for families. Like I know a lot of families where that’s how they wind down their night where like, oh, we’re leaving the parks where we’re still going to have a character dinner. And then they go to the backs of the room after that. So that’s at Storytellers Cafe, which is a really great, um, buffet style buffet style restaurant, all you can enjoy. But they do like a breakfast lunch. They close for around lunch time and then reopen at dinner. But you get really great characters there. Um, actually right now they have Humphrey the Bear in there right now, which is so cool, which is such a absolute deep cut. And I applaud truly whatever resort official that that pitched that idea to bring Humphrey in there. And it fits. It really does. He’s the right character. And it is funny seeing families, you know, they kind of like, who is that? Because they just don’t know. And obviously he’s super cute looking and stuff, but I really do applaud because he could have truly put any of the Fab Five in there. But they’re like, you know what, let’s do something a little different and bring in because I mean that that character has has only appeared there. So it’s kind of like even a fun thing if you know, the history of Humphrey, because he’s featured in a few places in California, Ventura, if you know where to look, you know, he has his he has a store that’s adjacent to Soarin. Mhm. And that’s got some merchandise with him on it. And, uh, you see the you hear the park ranger, Ranger, Audubon, he’s he’s from those cartoons and you hear him talking on grizzly River run. But I really applaud them doing that. But it’s a great location. It’s it’s again, you’re thinking probably from where your room is, what steps you could be down there in two minutes, go down the elevator, make a left and we’re there and like it’s just out the door. It’s literally so close. It’s crazy how close it is. We’re eating there tomorrow morning. Oh, wonderful. Okay. I’m excited to finally get to eat there. I haven’t done that yet. And then Disney’s been doing a really good job of making a lot of seasonal adjustments to these locations as well. So now if you go to, uh, Storyteller’s Cafe during the spring or Halloween or Christmas, they do a lot of really great adjustments to not only the menu to match the season, but also to the characters as well. They did a wonderful one during, um, Halloween last year that was oh no. Um, during Christmas last year there was a nod to Mickey’s Christmas Carol, so they had Mickey and Minnie in their outfits from Christmas Carol. Scrooge McDuck was there, but then they had Goofy as Jacob Marley, which another crazy deep cut, especially for fans that grew up with those films. But they’ve had they’ve had ones where it was a, um, a pajama party. So all the characters were in pajamas. They’ve done, uh, ones where the characters are in Easter, Easter outfits. Like it’s, it’s fun to have a rotational way of looking at it. Also. That’s so delightful. Uh, and then I’m not even done yet. There is another character meal that is in this hotel, so it’s not just one two. And where can you find that in a single hotel? It’s not many places. Yeah, because so also Napa Rose, but just for breakfast, does, uh, princess dining and the princess dining is I, you know, what’s fun about that one is that it is very different than I wouldn’t think people would imagine, because I think their mind thinks of character meals. They think of the character coming to the table and talking to your kids a little bit, a couple of pictures, they move on. They wanted the princess breakfast and Apple rose to feel different. So they have these like character activation moments there. So it’s not just about the meat, but it’s also about the characters getting to spend time with the, um, the kids in a different way. So imagine Belle reading them a story or Mulan teaching them some like basic martial arts. So they have moments where the kids will, like, actively leave the table to go to a small place where the characters are and do things like that. So. And nothing not that there’s anything wrong with this, the normal meet and greet, but they thought about what’s a fun way to elevate this experience. So it’s more than just that, especially when you have the equivalent of storytellers, because these two restaurants are actively right next door to each other. So it’s fun to have those options. And then, um, they close for lunch as well. And that was reopened as a absolutely stunning dinner location. You know, you’re thinking, what’s a good equivalent that a Floridian? Um, probably like narcosis, maybe or or maybe even I mean, Napa rose is gonna be it’s above citricos. It’s it’s somewhere between Citricos and Victorian. Yes. I think that’s somewhere halfway in between those. Yeah. Um, beautiful. They just reopened after a, uh, another amazing, uh, remodel and it’s absolutely stunning in there. And, and Napa Rose is, um, has won a ton of awards for California and Orange County for having a, um, for having such a amazing dinner service there. So we have a lot of locals that live in Southern California that drive down here to eat. And then they leave after that because the restaurant is so well known for being amazing. Um, and then you have a wonderful menu that was created by, uh, Chef Andrew Sutton, and he’s very famous at Disneyland for creating the menus for Carthay Circle and for club thirty three. So you’re getting a really, really fantastic menu, um, at that location. And that’s, uh, you know, for those families that it may be two couples that are couples that are here that don’t have any kids. That’s great. Um, and kids are allowed in there very different from, um, uh, Victorian Alberts where I know they have the, the, the kid restriction there, the age restriction for the kids, but kids are allowed in there. Uh, not that you need to be like super dressed up to go inside. Uh, it is a very popular restaurant, but they do have a really wonderful bar lounge space where you can actually order the items off the menu from that too, which is awesome. So like, even if you just kind of stroll up and say, oh, can I sit at the bar? They will bring you the menu to the bar spot. Well, that’s a good little hack, which is awesome. Yeah. So like, because it is very popular and I can understand like, if you’re, you know, last minute and want to get a spot there, they’re like, oh no, we’ll take you right at the bar, which is awesome. Uh, next we have Hearst Stone lounge. So this is a lounge that exists just off the main lobby inside the hotel. And this is a location that’s open for dinner. They are, um, a reservation based, but they also do tons of walk ins where, and this is more of a casual location that serves, um, a number of different things. I like that there’s a big variety across this. So there’s things like massive flatbread pizza for your family, a signature burger, uh, salads, things like that. But this one’s kind of a nice one because it has a bar extension that’s there. So when they have the TV there, so oftentimes you’ll see people there either watching, uh, you know, whatever, um, major sporting events. I’m sure there are a lot of people watching the World Cup and then just recently for sure, but having that right off the lobby is really, really wonderful. Uh, because it adds just another dinner option to a place that already has so many options. Uh, so just dinner, not breakfast or lunch. And during the holiday season, you’ll, you’ll kind of get an offshoot that’s right next to it that serves a lot of really delicious treats. So think, um, uh, grand Floridian, you know, people would buy gingerbread or things like that. So that’s off to the side. Uh, and they do that during, uh, Halloween and Christmas season. It’s kind of a hack for a lot of Disneyland locals because a lot of the really popular Halloween or Christmas based items that are served in the park, they also were serving them in the hotel. So a lot of people are road tripping to get to whatever the best treat is or trying to mobile it or find it, that you can just walk right in the hotel and get it. And that’s usually like the Mickey gingerbread cookie or things like that. Yeah. So it’s, it’s kind of a great hack where a lot of the locals that know they’re like, oh, you don’t, you can get it in the hotel. You don’t have to go in the park. And with the hotels being easy and accessible for everyone to walk into amazing, amazing. Uh, and we’re not done more places. I know I’m saying I’m just. I’m just listening to you talk because I know you got more, uh, and then, oh, you have a wonderful destination that’s right next to the pool called the, um, the craftsman’s bar. And you think another full bar location that’s got TVs. Another great place for anyone that’s, uh, moms or dads that love catching up on sports. Uh, but this location is a table service location right off the pool and the menu that is served. There is also what they would bring you to the pool. So if your family either had a cabana at the pool or they just were lounging around, they have customers that are walking around and taking orders from you to bring you items to the pool, which is awesome. But this is a great place that’s open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, which is nice. Um, and it’s a great location because it’s not terribly hard to get into, you know. Uh, they have a very fast service that can kind of get you in and out really quickly. Another awesome menu that has like really large pizzas for you. Great. Uh, I can attest to a really a fantastic breakfast burrito that is amazing. And I’ve had before their, uh, the giant nacho plate that you and I saw. Yeah. Which is a giant plate for sure. Huge. Yeah. If you do any listeners come that that thing is for two people. It will not tell you that, but it is for two people for sure. Or oftentimes people will get it as a shareable for the whole family. Um, and that’s a fascinating location and probably arguably what we talked about earlier, the best hack, uh, is right next door to it is a small location called the craftsman’s Grill. Now the craftsman’s grill and the craftsman’s bar, they share the same menu, but the craftsman’s, Um, grill is a quick service location. So now think about table. Table service style meals, but you can get them quickly as a quick service. And that is so clutch for families that are looking for just a quick meal. You know they want to hurry up and eat and get back into the parks. Or maybe they’re coming in and they want to hurry back because they have world of color or something. But thinking really great quick service or quick table service meals, you can get in ten minutes and either eat there in a small location or maybe take back to your room. Yeah. So I see a lot of families in the morning. They’ll come down, grab some food and take it back up, back up to their room to eat, or they will eat there in the morning and then make their way into the parks like that. But I’ve told so many guests about like, we all, we want a table service meal or somewhere nice to eat on. Like, listen, if you just go into the Grand California Hotel, they have a place that is right off of the pool that gives you really great meals, uh, and no reservation. You just walk right in. You literally walk right up to the counter and order it. I mean, I did that tonight before meeting with you, and I got my food in six, seven minutes from when I ordered it. Impressive. Impressive. So I even tell people, even if you can’t get a reservation at Craftsman’s Bar, the exact same menu is served at the grill. So you can just go and get that and not have to worry about maybe, you know, you don’t want the wait, the, the, the table service aspect of the waiter coming and taking your order. We just want to get this food and go. So really great options. And that’s that’s one. Yeah. One two three four, five options. You have five options that are all very different, which I think is important, you know, for everybody. Yeah. And all incredible options. And then if you want something else, you just pop on out to downtown Disney, which is wild to think that you can use the amount of options you have if is wild. Like not even thinking about the hotel because you step right out into downtown Disney and there is a there’s ice cream, there is a quick service, um, a Mexican inspired location. I love black tap for good burgers. Yeah, black tap shakes, all kinds of things literally right across. I mean salt and straw. You mentioned ice cream. It’s like right there at that entrance. They have the, um, Naples and the Napoli. Naples for Napoli for getting quick service pizza to take back to your room. Uh, I kind of think of like, um, Porto’s is gonna also be. Yeah, it’s gonna be right there. Yeah, yeah. Just truly an embarrassment of riches when it comes to food. Uh, it is fascinating to how much food is that close to you and whether or not you want to take it back up to your room or take it, or actually eat out and kind of stroll through downtown Disney or walk the hotels, um, there really is no shortage of options like that at all. Yeah. No, it’s amazing down by the well, down by the pool, bars, the pool. So there’s just one pool here. It’s like one big one major pool, and then like a number of slides into that kind of dot around it. Not the biggest property, because I know people are thinking of really, really massive pools that exist. It’s not Stormalong Bay. No. Yeah. That when you get right of your head, that curly is the king of the king of Hotel Lakeshore Lodge. Might, yeah. Might crown. That may take it. I know what that lazy river edition and the kids play fireworks views from there that they’re talking about. Yeah, I know. Time will tell. But I’m I’m looking forward to that. So yeah, the pool is not a major. It doesn’t have the same kind of thematic elements like the Disneyland Hotel with the monorail slides or if you stay at Pixar. Plus they have a really cute, um, a crush from Finding Nemo slide that’s there. So the thematic elements are not as, um, strong. They lean, they lean far more far into the, um, the national park aspect of it, but a really lovely pool, uh, a lot of Jacuzzi and a few slides for kids as well, which is great kids and kids at heart, kids and kids at heart. Um, so while I’m, uh, well, I, it, It doesn’t have a lot of those strong Disney elements. I don’t think anyone should kind of put it down a peg. Um, even if you do love those aspects added into it, I think just having a great pool that’s off the hotel is awesome. And then being right next to all those dining locations is excellent. Um, and it’s nice, you know, for the people that truly do want those pool days, which a lot of kids do, and especially right now in California, there’s a solid heat wave. Nothing like Walt Disney World, of course. No, not even close. Not even close. Um, but those days when you want a nice pool and then again, you’re the way, the, the way the pool is positioned. You’re also steps from your room as well. Like I think if you’re, if you’re coming out of your room and you’re having Napa rose on your like left and then on your right, that means the pool is another. What, twenty feet from that? It’s ridiculously close. Yeah. So so, so close. Um, but yeah, some, some families, The pool is a big, big part of it, you know, and for I know for a lot with little kids, it’s not necessarily the, the amount of slides and maybe just the, the pool there in general. So don’t let that bring you down. If you’re looking that your kids love to swim and you see how, um, elaborate looking Pixar placed their pool and slides are and design hotels, pool and slides are don’t let don’t let that be a thing that kind of holds you back from staying here. Yeah, absolutely. And across from the pool, we’ve got a spa. Yes. That’s right. Um, so between spa spa and the other amenities, what are the, what are the things that we haven’t discussed that you can also do here? I think a great thing about this hotel, and there’s a really subtle one, and I’m not sure you can actually help me with this if they don’t do it at Walt Disney World. For the people that like to get up early, they actually do a exercise class inside California Adventure before the park opens. They do that at a few of the resorts. I don’t know how early, but they do have resort activities that are. yeah, movement oriented, whether it be yoga or, um, someone that pops into my head. And this one is really nice because they essentially, they’ll have a cast member come and grab you from the lobby in hotel group of people and you go into California Adventure before the park opens. Oh, well that’s cool. Yeah. So they have you essentially are people who love to run or jog. They actually do a big lap running around the entire park before it opens to guests. Wow. So I’ve come, I, I’ve seen early in the morning and they always do it before park opening, but you come inside and you’ll meet a cast member. They’ll do stretches, things like that. And then they will essentially do a big jogging lap. So you actually are running through California Adventure while the resort is or by the park is being finishing up cleaning before the guests open. I wish I would have known about this before leaving. He’s like, that’s amazing. I signed up for that, but I can’t think. But it’s something that you think about like, oh no, of course it works so well because you’re again, steps from that park, so you don’t even think twice about it because you’re not thinking like, oh, I stay at I’m at Wilderness Lodge. I’m not really next to a theme park or I’m at Animal Kingdom Lodge. I’m close to Animal Kingdom, but not that close. So I’d have to get in the car. But yeah, you meet the instructor and then walk right into that park and there’s how cool to have it be before the park opens. Like, that’s really great. So you think of a lot of really great, um, uh, uh, type of amenities that or, uh, recreational activities, like they do movies by the pool. Um, they do, um, trivia. They also do a really incredible, um, art of the craft tour. So they have a cast that are walking around in about a half hour and teach you the history of this hotel. Wow. Yeah. And they’ll point out really subtle things that Imagineers hid, like hidden mickeys that are woven in this space as they talk about the art direction overall for the hotel. But how great to have a hotel that actually offers a tour of it where actually teaches you because I love they do something similar on, um, Disney Cruise Line where they will have a cast member take you around and show all the fun things that Imagineers added into the concepts. Ideas were things, how things were shaped and things like that. So those two things are like really special. And I don’t think I don’t think there are a lot of hotels, if any, that offer one. Things that are like that, because I’m sure all of our all Disney hotels offer some really great nuggets of information that a tour would help fill in those gaps, but definitely don’t offer that there. So the fact that the Grand Californian Hotel has not only an Art of the craft tour where you can learn about that, but also a exercise class that you can take in the morning that takes you into a pre open park. Like those, I think are things that are really fantastic for people who appreciate like, I know you would love that tour. I would for sure. And also just being in the park in the morning, like you’re someone who likes to jog and run, doing it in a park that isn’t open yet, like seeing the sun kind of come up. It’s a little bit foggy. Like it’s so much fun. That’s magical. It’s really like I’m imagining truly magical. When I come back, I’m doing that. That’s definitely true. Yeah. I mean, it’s being here. or just. It was so nice and I just. It feels like something that could become an annual trip for us because of how special and different it is. Um, you know, the. One thing I always fear about Grand Californian, which for anyone who hasn’t stayed here at least because I’m gonna bring it up. The price, the price, the price. It’s not it’s not cheap. You’ve got you’ve got rooms you can stay in that are just as close to Disneyland’s hotel entrance for half price or less. Yeah. And so it’s not like Walt Disney World off property versus, you know, on property. Like there’s a huge advantage to staying in beach club versus an Airbnb. Mhm. You know, down in Kissimmee. Yeah. But here you can get an Airbnb in Anaheim. Yeah. That’s just like two minute drive to the parking garage and then on the tram and you’re here Or like I said, forget Airbnb or driving. You could stay. There’s countless good hotels. Yeah. You just walk on down into the Esplanade like it’s it’s super convenient to stay on property. So I always hear like, you know, price point here at Grand Californian just feels so much above what I think people would be expecting of it or, you know, it just because I’ve, I felt that way for a long time myself. Like, how can I justify staying here? And now I get it now that I’m like, I’m here. But and this is the second time now can I do it for two weeks? No, like I can’t. No, no, no, no. But for the length of stay of staying here for a few days and doing the parks and, you know, doing it for like half a week, let’s say it’s not as um anyway, I’m just gonna ask you like what, when people tell you about that, like, what do you, how do you normally respond to that? Um, yeah, that’s another thing I, I tell people like, I, I don’t deny that. You know, when it comes to pricing for certain aspects of Disney, um, where, yeah, this is pricey, you know, and it’s a, an excellent experience that I think you really want to sit down and think about with your family. I think that things like that are end up being worth it. Um, but I think not very similar to how you said it. Sometimes it takes you having to kind of kind of pull the button on it or push the button to see if it’s gonna be worth it to you. And you can easily find, like you said, tons of hotels. But I think for, you know, if you’re someone that truly loves that Disney guest service, being that close to the parks, which is hard to beat, to be honest, you know, um, like I’ve seen people, um, if you can imagine for the listeners, um, you stepping into California adventure from this hotel entrance and you have an attraction right in front of you, but so grizzly River run the water attraction. It’s so fun to see families and they do it as a joke. They will go on grizzly River, run like minutes before the park closes and get soaking wet, and then they run into their hotel room, which, when you think of fun little things similar to that, like that’s something that you are creating really funny core memories. You’re creating those moments that are kind of lasting. And even if you don’t do it all the time, like I think for a great bucket list moment or a major celebration, because it is pricier of our three hotels and also pricier, definitely more so than those quick, those, um, good neighbor ones that are closer, like you said in Airbnb. But there is something special about, um, splurging every once in a while and treating yourself to something really nice. And I think the quality is what will allow people to believe that it is going to be something that felt like it was worth their time. I always lean back on a quote that is, uh, that Walt once said about, um, the pricing of things. Yeah. You know, and that Money is an aspect of the the Disney experience that’s always been around. I think people like to think about it as a more modern Disney thing, but it’s, uh, the, the, this experiences in the parks have always been pricey just relative to the time period. Like even as a kid, I didn’t come that often because Disneyland was always the most expensive theme park. You know, things like Universal Studios, Hollywood and SeaWorld were a lot less expensive. But I think the more important thing about it is the, the cost associated, like with the experience that you get in. So the quote that I always like to tell people all the time from Walt’s when it comes to thinking about how much things cost, and I think it matches perfectly with the experience you’ve had, where you finally got to say and you’re like, okay, like I see it beforehand, it was just a number. Now it’s a number and associated with a magical experience. So Walt said back in nineteen sixty three, I don’t care what guests think about how much they paid when they came in. I care what they think when they leave. There might be some sticker shock, but they’re going to have such a great experience all around. They’re going to be grateful. And I think that as long as Disney continues to uphold on the on the experience and match what they’re charging for it, that I think that you leave with those great feelings, you don’t feel like it was like, oh, we can’t, we shouldn’t do that again. And that’s great because that’s up to Disney to continue to hold themselves at such a high level and make it so this hotel has wonderful things like, you know, you coming back to the room and seeing the stuffed animals tucked in the great service when you check in room service, all these wonderful restaurants and, you know, and great customers. And as long as that stays at a high level, I think it will justify it. And I always tell people, please, you know, you talk so much with a lot of your, um, uh, compatriots that are travel agents to look for the deals. You know, there are often so many amazing deals where you’re saving twenty percent, thirty percent off of hotels and those, those are your moments when you should be looking to stay at the Grand Californian. You know, I would hope that no one’s doing like, rack rate for these hotels, but there’s always a fantastic deal in a travel agent to help you find those. If you think, okay, I really want to splurge. Can you help me find a time period that the Grand California Hotel is, you know, uh, that is a little bit more affordable for my family. And sometimes I tell people to like, maybe you do your splurge for the hotel as opposed to something else that you would do. Yeah. So maybe we don’t do this thing because we’re doing this thing instead, you know, and, and kind of change that. Or maybe you were going to do three nights there, but you’re like, oh, if we do two, we’ll do that instead. You know, it’s kind of like play around with it. But I think the point to always remember based off of what you and I are both saying is then don’t, um, don’t let the price scare you, you know, find those deals, talk to a travel agent, especially since they offer us pretty complimentary service. Like let them find the deals for you because Disney is always offering a really fantastic deal where if you’re a local or someone traveling around a travel package that includes tickets. You know, there’s always a really great opportunity to stay here for, um, a portion of what it normally costs. Um, and those moments where you have a big birthday or a celebration that is largely what experiences like this are made for. You’ll always know there’s a less expensive experience of anything you’re doing, you know, but I think it’s okay to, you know, to treat yourself, especially if you’re someone who actually likes staying on Disney property and maybe you always do. Pixar place, or maybe you always do all star, you know, or pop century, you know, like, you know, maybe we’ll try and moderate this time. Let’s do this. Or, oh, someone graduated or it’s a wedding anniversary or something like that. So, um, I’m happy because every time I’ve stayed here, I have been blown away by it. I’m happy the same thing has happened to you. And especially with a recent, your last most recent stays and that, that we continue to match, uh, the expectations so you don’t feel shortchanged when you leave? No. Definitely not. And yeah, I mean, we this trip got an incredible deal. And I mean, the rates this summer were excellent. We got four nights here for the same price. I paid two nights last year just because of the incredible deals that they were offering. Um, and I, you know, the other thing about this hotel that justifies the price point for me is when I go to Walt Disney World, I want to be immersed in the bubble as much as possible. A big thing, this is the most Disney bubble you can get. Yeah. And I, I truly, truly have to say that because you can. If you just want to do a Disney trip, you can have, you know, bring a car or Uber or whatever it is from the airport or wherever you’re coming from, park your car or, you know, pull up out front, walk into this lobby. And if you’re just doing Disney, you will not see anything outside of this until you leave? Yeah. Between walking into California Adventure, walking into downtown Disney, walking into Disneyland like this is the most brms. Yeah. Experience you should get, you can get because yeah, at the, um, the Disneyland Hotel, you know, you’re going to be, um, especially for like higher up, you could see like outside is like a mountains, which is great. Yeah. You got like a twelve, twelve floors. It’s a big tower. Yeah. Yeah. Here. I mean, yes, you can have a standard view facing the, the front entrance and the, and um, Disneyland drive a bit, but like outside of that, uh, you can really like, I haven’t seen the streets of Anaheim since I arrived here four days ago. Yeah. And so, uh, I love that. Like, I just love that you are just like walking from one thing to the next and everything is Disney themed. Yeah. There’s no roads here. You know, even Disney World, they’re traveling on roads from here to there. Yeah, there Disney roads. But the roads are getting the bus. Um, here you’re just totally immersed in full theming nonstop. And so that to me, is just so worth it to just kind of like escape the real world for real. It’s hard for people to put it’s hard. It’s hard to, to until you see it. I think until you do it, it’s hard to understand, you know, and it’s something that’s, it’s hard to kind of put a price on it. It’s, it’s hard to equate it to because when you try to describe this because again, people look at the website and they just see the amount. Yeah, but they don’t see the experience yet. And it’s hard. And I, I totally agree, if people have balked at the price before and not have done it because it is more than what you would pay normally, but, um, and maybe it’s not a, maybe you come once every two years, you know, as opposed to once a year, but you make that once every two years really, really special by doing that. Um, and it’s great. It allows Disneyland and Walt Disney World to build more attractions anyway and offer up new things since your last visit. But yeah, I always caution people that, that, uh, don’t be afraid that, um, find those deals, that bubble is, it is very special, you know, especially when it’s at Walt Disney World, you know, especially or if you have a location that you’re staying at that has transportation there, you know, or this walking distance here, you know, that that, that entrance into California adventure is unbeatable, spectacular, unbeatable. And if you’re on the fence about it, I mean, do a split, stay, right? Like, do you do two or three nights that you’re a good neighbor hotel or Disneyland hotel or Pixar Place hotel, whatever it’s going to be. And then do your last night or two here and just finish strong. I think, I think you’ll you’ll understand it, especially having the direct contrast, um, between the two, between the two. Yeah. Any other advice you would offer for someone who’s thinking about staying here or has chosen to stay here and hasn’t stayed here before? I always want to let people know not to. Very similar to Walt Disney World. If you’re here on property next time, and maybe you did do a good neighbor, uh, come into the hotel. You know, they. Disney has always done a great job of making sure that, um, you know, you can easily walk into these hotels. I oftentimes will see people that are doing not something not too different. What we’re doing right now, just kind of chatting, having a, having a late night, uh, bite at from her stone lounge or their, um, just relaxing after a day or maybe they’re waiting to go home and they are just catching up. But yeah, come inside and kind of see it. Come inside and take a look. Well, you don’t get to go into the rooms. Every other aspect of this hotel space, including the convention area, is largely open for you to walk around. And I think that kind of gives you a great vibe. Um, Disneyland feels very different from Walt Disney World in the sense that they’re the exploration of the hotel seems kind of baked into the overall experience. While Disneyland being such a locals park, people that are traveling in tourist wise usually don’t come into these spaces, you know, so they’re staying across the street at a good neighbor hotel or an Airbnb. They come in for the parks, they do the parks and then go home. They don’t have a strong reason to go there. Walt Disney World on your week long vacation. Oh my gosh. You’re you’re you’re going everywhere. You’re taking buses, monorail, Skyliners, you’re doing everything. So in that place almost demands you explore it. Well, that feeling is not nearly as strong here because of the size difference. Yeah. So I encourage people to come inside here, take a look, sit in the lobby, go to one of the bars and grab a drink. Uh, maybe end your evening here. Um, before you, uh, go home with, like, dinner. I also say, because of the proximity, the parks, it is very simple to play all day at Disneyland. Walk a seven minute walk to the Grand Californian, have a character dinner, and then you can make it back in time for fireworks. Yeah. Yeah. Like it’s that close. So I encourage people to, you know, there is something to be said about taking a step away from the park because the parks are, you know, there’s, it’s a very, uh, big experience. It can be loud. It can be sometimes hot or stressful. Go do a nice dinner at the hotel and come clap back out, you know? Well, I know someone would immediately, like, scoff at that idea. At Walt Disney World, because that is not close at all. Like, oh yeah, let’s go to, um, Sanaa. You know, and then make it back to Epcot. It’s like, that’s like, that’s like, that’s your, that’s at least an hour’s worth of transportation alone. Like depending on what park you’re coming through, like, oh, let’s leave Magic Kingdom, go have dinner at Sanaa at Kidani and then make it back for fireworks. Like that’s a hike. That is a, that’s your, you’re not even counting dinner. That’s at least an hour of transportation, definitely, let alone waiting for a potential bus to do that trip for you, you know? So here, it’s so easy to do. So don’t let the fact that it’s a smaller property, if anything, embrace that because it makes it so that you are easy. I mean, that really wonderful restaurant we talked about, um, uh, the craftsman’s grill that is from the moment you, the moment you finished your food, that’s a. Five to seven minute walk from where you would watch World of Color. Like you can’t beat that. Yeah. That’s that. You can’t beat that. That’s easy for you to step out of California adventure for lunch or dinner. And they head right back in the parking to finish out your night. So I truly, um, suggest people to come in and kind of experience hotel because everything in here is largely up for offer other than like staying in the room. So go to the bars, try a meal one time, you know, do a character meal. Napa rose like just try a few things out. And I think a little bit of what it is and what it could be will rub off on you. Because otherwise, if you, if you just know this place as the number you see on the website, it will never be more than that. So you kind of have to, you know, stretch out a little bit and, and, and come inside and feel it because it’s usually when people come into spaces like this or like the Grand Floridian, you know, or, um, the destino tower where they’re like, they’ll say things like, oh man, we gotta stay here one time. Yeah, usually because you don’t hear that from people when they’re just talking about it. It’s when they step into the lobbies, they’re like, wow, this is really nice, you know? Or they had a meal here and they’re like, oh, this is really nice. You know, that’s where those kind of thoughts come from. It’s a cozy place to stay. I’m not gonna lie. As you kind of get, you’re like getting we’re sitting, I’m looking forward to getting back in that comfy bed. And it’s just so nice. It’s so nice. Um. Oh, we’ve got another hotel to do. So I think next year I’ll come back, if not sooner. We’ll do the Pixar Place Hotel. Yes. Round out the three. Assuming Disney doesn’t build another one. Isn’t that amount of time too? Yeah, where can I? You’ve been on the show so many times, but where can people go to follow you? Um. I am always posting some delightful Disney deep dives on my Instagram page, which is Philander. So my first name P h I l a n d r and then C eighty five. Um, every Monday I’ll post some really great deep dives that are associated with Disney’s history. You know, deep dives and fun hidden facts or really fun topical, um, uh, things that have happened with the company. I love the, the richness of the heritage and how it is constantly honored by Imagineering in very subtle ways. So I like to post those deep dives, the ones that you wouldn’t necessarily think about. I think, um, when people think of hidden Disney things, their mind goes to a certain place and I want to take you beyond even that place and you do the subtle every time. Good, good. I’m happy to hear that. And that’s means something coming from you. I always learn something. You know your stuff too. Yeah. I you you teach me so many things with those posts. So good, good. Greatly appreciative of it. But, uh, it’s been so much fun. We’ll continue our conversation beyond the podcast episode, as we always do, but I’ll have you back on the show again soon. Can’t wait. Pixar place next time. Let’s do it. Welcome back to Imagination Central. 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