The initial impression of the hotel is that of those hotels built in national parks by the railroads back in the 1920's and 30's. The exterior fits the image as does the lobby area. Unfortunately, that's as "GRAND" as it gets. There is nothing special otherwse except the price, which is way too pricey, even for Disneyland, which is now too pricey to visit except on a very special occaison. If you are comming to Disneyland and plan on staying in one of their hotels look for a package deal to save $. I give the hotel and both parks a poor rating because of price and because Disneylands upkeep, appearance, and maintenance standards have visibly dropped. I would also say the hiring standards of the castmembers/staff have also dropped.unless I just happened to be there for 2 days when about a third of the staff just felt surly.

We stayed for four nights in late October, 2012. Check in was quick and impersonal. Communal areas were noisy, uncomfortable and busy. Room was dead average. Beds were fine but we had to get two queens rather than one king. Nice that it is a non-smoking property. We did not go to the pool but it must have been fun because there were so many people there throughout all four days. Restaurants are way too expensive for the quality of food and service. So nice to walk out of the hotel and be in Adventure Land or close to the entry to Disneyland. Really like the restaurants in the area I think is called Disneytown.

We just completed a 4 night stay at the Grand Californian staying in room 2259. The room was small and we really wanted to get a room with 1 queen and 1 bunk bed but that was not available even though we asked for it a month prior. After deducting the cost of the park hopper passes and character meal at the Storytellers Cafe the room cost $600 per day. The bathtub drain was partially clogged and a puddle of water always appeared. The view was poor and the arch on the facade partially blocked the view which really wans't much unless you like looking at cars driving into the hotel grounds.
Room 2259 was the farthest from the lobby too. Staying here gives you the "privilege" of getting into the park an hour earlier than the general public but the wait to get in resulted in an 30 minute delay so we only had about 30 minutes before the hordes descended on fhe park. I think getting charged $22 a day for valet parking is just pure greed on Disney's part as well. We would have paid half of what we paid if we stayed at a hotel off of the Disney property.

Aside from location, the Grand Californian is not grand except in its pricing structure. The staff gives the impression that the magic is missing. The rooms, two queen beds and an average bathroom, are as tired as Tink. The room rate is expensive. I can not speak to the other Disney hotel, Paradise Pier, but look at your other options before you book this hotel.