location of monorail 23 years ago, am I crazy?

[edhmom]

I've been wondering about this since I went to Disneyland last time. My husband and I went to DL in 1997 for our first wedding anniversary and stayed at the DLH. I seem to recall the monorail going right to the hotel, and a little gift shop right below / next to it. Am I crazy for remembering it this way because that's obviously not the case anymore.

 

[Go💛Go]

I've been wondering about this since I went to Disneyland last time. My husband and I went to DL in 1997 for our first wedding anniversary and stayed at the DLH. I seem to recall the monorail going right to the hotel, and a little gift shop right below / next to it. Am I crazy for remembering it this way because that's obviously not the case anymore.

The Monorail station didn’t move. It’s the DLH that was renovated and changed for DTD.

We used to love to take the Monorail, shop, and eat at DLH.

 

[edhmom]

The Monorail station didn’t move. It’s the DLH that was renovated and changed for DTD.

We used to love to take the Monorail, shop, and eat at DLH.

That makes more sense. I couldn't imagine them moving the monorail, but last time I was there it just seemed so much further away than I remember.

 

[KPeterso]

I have pondered that many times. I remember visiting as a kid (in the 80s) and us going over to DLH to the hotel to eat and monorail dropping us right at the hotel. The answer makes sense though.

 

[bcla]

This has the evolution of Disneyland through maps:

https://www.kcrw.com/culture/shows/design-and-architecture/disneylands-evolution-through-maps
This shows a pretty clear outline of the monorail path:

Of course it was pre Toontown. When Downtown Disney was built, a few of the towers of the Disneyland Hotel were torn down and that's where Rainforest Cafe and ESPNZone were built. So yes it went right up to the Disneyland Hotel, but the hotel was downsized for Downtown Disney.

You can compare this outline to a satellite map of Disneyland and see that the monorail really hasn't changed its route. But everything around it changed.

 

[tenneycjt]

I remember that when it dropped u off there was a little sports bar there too, we ate and had burgers . I don't think it was espn yet

 

[JoanneAZ]

I remember riding the monorail over and eating lunch at the Monorail Cafe at the DLH.

 

[bcla]

I found this video from 1991:

You can see where the hotel is. The ride itself was boring because it just crossed acres of asphalt. Now it goes into California Adventure and by the Grand Californian. There's a lot more to see from the monorail these days.

 

[Susie63]

I found this video from 1991:

You can see where the hotel is. The ride itself was boring because it just crossed acres of asphalt. Now it goes into California Adventure and by the Grand Californian. There's a lot more to see from the monorail these days.

Wow. Our first trip was in 2010. This video is kind of unreal

 

[bcla]

Wow. Our first trip was in 2010. This video is kind of unreal

My first visit was in the 70s. I remember when I was younger we always made a visit to see Dancing Waters at the Disneyland Hotel, which was free.

 

[gary1955]

When Downtown Disney was built, a few of the towers of the Disneyland Hotel were torn down and that's where Rainforest Cafe and ESPNZone were built. So yes it went right up to the Disneyland Hotel, but the hotel was downsized for Downtown Disney.

just a small clarification, the parts of the Disneyland Hotel that were torn down when Downtown Disney was built were low rise buildings between the towers and Disneyland Drive. I believe they were all retail, restaurant and office space. some of the bungalows may still have been around then, but I'm not certain about that.

 

[5kidsmommy]

Love this thread. I haven't been to DL since 1995. I grew up in San Diego so all my memories growing up were going up to DL. Even when I moved to Arizona in 1992 my then not husband and I had DL passes. I loved taking the monorail, it was just cool. In middle school my friend's family stayed at the Disneyland Hotel and she invited me. It was so exciting. Happy memories.

 

[starry_solo]

I remember when you didn’t need passes to ride the monorail. Just to exit in the park....

 

[bcla]

I remember when you didn’t need passes to ride the monorail. Just to exit in the park....

I’m old enough to remember when it was an E ticket ride.

However, when it went to unlimited rides, I thought that they would do UV ink hand stamps exiting the Disneyland Hotel station and check them when entering.

There was also a tram to the Disneyland Hotel using the same equipment as the parking lot trams. The trams had license plates because they crossed a public street.

 

[gary1955]

this popped up on my Youtube page today. pretty good history of the Disneyland Hotel. at about 21 minutes it goes into the transformation of the low rise portion of the original hotel into Downtown Disney. this may account for some people's belief that the Disneyland Hotel was torn down and "new" hotel towers were built farther back.

 

[edhmom]

this popped up on my Youtube page today. pretty good history of the Disneyland Hotel. at about 21 minutes it goes into the transformation of the low rise portion of the original hotel into Downtown Disney. this may account for some people's belief that the Disneyland Hotel was torn down and "new" hotel towers were built farther back.

THANK YOU! That explains exactly what I needed. It also explained why I couldn't see the koi ponds in any recent pictures.

 

[Going2DisneyAZ]

I'm old enough to remember no admission fees. Just tickets to do anything. Ah the old ticket books. I bet I have some in a box somewhere still. Always came home with extra A and B tickets.

 

[hopemax]

That makes more sense. I couldn't imagine them moving the monorail, but last time I was there it just seemed so much further away than I remember.

It's interesting the way your mind plays tricks on you based on visual cues. The old walk didn't seem as long when you were walking by the lap pool, and a couple buildings with shops, offices and restaurants. But now with the Downtown Disney buildings looking so different than the hotel buildings it feels so much farther.