Guest blogger Becky Breiland of the Mousetalgia podcast (www.mousetalgia.com) relates some of her thoughts on staying in the Disney resorts at Disneyland.

I really enjoy staying on property when we go to Disneyland. It’s not an all-the-time thing for our family, but if there is a good rate or a special occasion we will make the effort to immerse ourselves fully in the Disney magic. I’ve always loved the uniqueness and special touches that the hotels put into their rooms. Plus, I really enjoy a good waterslide.

At our recent stay at the Paradise Pier, I was surprised to learn that the rooms had been “refurbished.” According to the cast member at the desk, the rooms were redone in May and June of 2011. Somehow I had missed this information and was pleased to see some love put into the Paradise Pier. I think that this was somewhat badly needed as I had noticed previously that many of the comforters were pilling and this gave a bit of a dingy feel to the room.

Paradise Pier décor has now fallen in line with the other Disneyland hotels, switching to white linens, with a themed sash across the bed. They’ve added their own cute touches, most noticeably a beach ball pillow to give it a little “beachy” feel. While you cannot tell from the picture below, there are white-on-white Mickey silhouettes on the top layer of the beds, which are also a fun touch.

I think it is very interesting that the Disneyland Resort Hotels have started to go this route. Now all three of the Disneyland Resort hotel beds have a more uniform feel to them.

Disneyland Hotel room.

Grand Californian Hotel room.

At first, I was really bummed out by this move. I thought it made the rooms feel so much more generic and maybe took away a bit of the resorts’ identities. The more I think about it though, I’ve decided that the hotels are now more “Disney” than ever before. It has become the small details that make each room so special. While it’s not immediately obvious, it’s things like the Mickeys on the comforter, or the different pillows and the various shower curtains that make it more than just an ordinary hotel room and give it that Disney touch. While I long for the old bedspreads at the Disneyland Hotel with all the attractions on it (I have 3 yards of this fabric from ebay), I also really appreciate the clean, crisp feel that the white linens give. To me, the white linens make each of the hotels seem more modern and also more clean. I love climbing into bed between the crisp white sheets after a long day at the parks. It seems so immediately relaxing.

While characters play a large and important role in the parks, they aren’t what make New Orleans Square feel like New Orleans (just as an example). Instead it’s the sails from the ships that you can see in the background, and the architecture of the buildings and the balconies. The same is now true for all three of the Disneyland Resort Hotels. The architecture of the bed frames, accent pillows and art in the rooms helps the visitor to be transported to an entirely different place. As with most things Disney, the devil is in the details.

About the author: Becky Breiland has been traveling to Walt Disney World and Disneyland since she was three. One of her fondest memories is getting Mickey Waffles for breakfast on those early Disney trips. Becky, her husband, and two friends comprise the Mousetalgia.com podcasting team. Mousetalgia is a show dedicated to the exploration of Disney’s past, present and future, emphasizing the theme park culture and the people who have imagined Walt’s happy place into existence. Go “Carpe Kingdom!”