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I never win anything. It has been thus all throughout my life so far. With
that in mind, despite the fact that I visit Disneyland at least once a week, I
figure the chances of one of those Dream Squad cast members walking up to me and
handing over a prize is some where between slim and none. And if per chance, I
did break my no-win streak, I am quite sure I'd be awarded something I'd find
totally useless like say, a lanyard of pins (not being what one would call a pin
aficionado). The odds of me winning a stay in the Disney Dream Suite then, would
seem to be pretty poor, so I figured I'd never get to see the Dream Suite in
person.
That is ... until yesterday.
Somehow I got picked to take an Annual Passholder tour of the Dream Suite.
How that happened, I have no idea. In fact, I am all astonishment that it did
happen, but not being one to look a gift horse in the mouth, I was pretty
pleased and jumped at the chance to tour the Dream Suite.
Like many of you, Dear Readers, I've been looking at pictures online and
reading reports from folks who have toured the Suite already. My opinion was
that although pretty, the Suite looked a little over the top, almost bordering
on gaudy, but that you could really tell lots of money had been spent getting
this little corner of the Year of a Million Dreams up and running. Pictures
don't always tell the real truth though, so I was really curious to see what the
Suite would look like in person. Gaudy? Or Gorgeous?
After having been through the Suite, guided by the lovely and gracious cast
member Karen (one of the 8 concierge cast members in charge of seeing to the
Dream Suite's real guests every need), I have to say, the Dream Suite is not
gaudy, it's definitely gorgeous, lots of fun, and full of good old Disney magic!
And, how divine it would be to spend the night there.
My tour started at the new elevator (shown above), installed between Pirates of the
Caribbean and Tarzan's Treehouse, which took me up to the Dream Suite level and
through a door into the Legacy Hallway (Dream Suite guests will actually enter
through the former Disney Gallery door entrance, below).
The Legacy Hallway is lined with
reproductions of the original Dorothea Redmond artwork Walt Disney commissioned
when he planned to use this space as an apartment where he could entertain
family and guests. These pieces of art are what guided WDI Art Director Kim
Irvine's choices in deciding what would go into the Dream Suite.
As we walked down the hallway (which used to be the area where the Disney
Gallery cast members' office was located) toward a door emblazoned with a big D
(not unlike hidden Mickeys, there are Ds all over the place) Karen explained
that the Dream Suite operates just like any other hotel room.
Though completely
separate from any of the Disney hotels on the property, the Dream Suite
Concierge cast members are there to take care of the guest's every need and it
is in the Legacy Hallway that the Dream Suite Concierge's office is located.
Since they are on duty 24 hours a day when the Suite is occupied, the office is
equipped with a TV and DVD player. As you can imagine, at four in the morning
there probably isn't a whole lot for them to do for the guests. Nevertheless,
they must remain at the ready, so this little amenity keeps them from complete
boredom as they wait to serve.
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