The hotel was designed by architect Peter Dominick of 4240 Architecture Inc. (formerly part of Urban Design Group Inc.). It has 948 rooms, in addition to 44 suites and 71 villas.
Craftsman style buildings often use garden themes, which was Peter Dominick's inspiration for the hotel's forest theme. The reception hall is based on the interior of the Swedenborgian Church in San Francisco, increased in scale to accommodate the large reception desk. The central lobby has a large fireplace and arching beams overhead, and is furnished with chairs and sofas arranged around small coffee tables.
Many of the items found throughout the hotel have been crafted by modern practitioners of the Arts and Crafts style, and some early Roycroft items are on display in the lobby.[2]
The hotel opened on January 2, 2001, as a part of the parks expansion for Disneyland Resort.
At about 3:00 am on December 28, 2005, a Christmas tree in the main lobby caught fire after electric maintenance workers replaced lights on the tree. All 2,300 guests at the hotel were evacuated within four minutes. The fire was contained by the hotel's sprinkler system and by the AnaheimFire Department. Two guests were treated for minor injuries, one of which was a severe headache. Guests were returned to their rooms by 7:00 am.[3]
On September 18, 2007, the Disneyland Resort announced an expansion of Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa that would increase accommodations by more than 30 percent and include the first Disney Vacation Club villas in Anaheim.
The 2.5-acre (10,000 m2) expansion on the hotel's south side added more than 200 hotel rooms and 50 two-bedroom equivalent vacation villas and marked the West Coast debut of Disney Vacation Club, Disney's vacation ownership program. During this expansion and renovation, a swimming pool was added as well as a 300 space underground parking garage. Peter Dominick designed the ambitious expansion to complement the existing hotel. The project was completed in September 2009.[4]
With the completion of this major expansion, Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa became the fourth-largest hotel in Orange County.[5]
The Villas at Disney's Grand Californian Hotel
The Disney Vacation Club villas, added as part of the hotel's expansion, include kitchens, living and dining areas and other home-like amenities. The guest rooms feature the same decor as the hotel rooms in the original structure and continue the Californian Craftsman motif.
Napa Rose's head chef, Andrew Sutton, formerly of the Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek's restaurant in Dallas,[9] was hired from Auberge du Soleil in Napa Valley, and former general manager and sommelier Michael Jordan [citation needed] was hired from the Patina Restaurant Group.[7] Disney hired Sutton and Jordan in order to raise the credibility of its food and wine program.[7][10] The restaurant has won multiple awards[11][12] from different organizations, such as the Wine Spectator, Zagat, The Southern California Restaurant Writers and the Orange County Business Journal.[13]
Craftsman Bar & Grill
Craftsman Bar & Grill, formerly known as White Water Snacks, is the refurbished quick service restaurant located in Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa.[14] Initially opened in 2001 with the hotel, it re-opened in 2019 under this new name with an expanded pool deck and revised menu.
Gallery
View of hotel from Disney California Adventure
Arts & Crafts architecture of the hotel
Storytellers Cafe entrance
A view of the three pools and Disney California Adventure in 2006
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