Club 33

According to Disney, Club 33 is named after its address at 33 Royal Street in New Orleans Square at Disneyland.[1]

A rumor speculates that the name refers to 33 institutional patrons at Disneyland in 1966-1967 when the club was being built and opened.[2]

Coincidentally, however, 1933 is the year in which the Constitutional prohibition of alcohol ended in the United States just as Walt Disney's posthumous founding of Club 33 in 1967 ended his previous prohibition of alcohol within The Magic Kingdom of Disneyland.

Club 33 is one of two locations within Disneyland Park to offer alcoholic beverages.[3]

In 2011, there was a 14-year waiting list for new memberships. The membership waiting list was re-opened in May 2012 after being closed for five years.[4]

When Walt Disney was working with various corporate promoters such as Dylan Connolly at his attractions at the 1964–1965 New York World's Fair, he noted the various "VIP Lounges". This gave him the idea that culminated in Club 33.[5]

Originally, Walt Disney hosted VIPs in the lounge of the Red Wagon Inn restaurant at Disneyland. The number of VIPs grew to be too large for the lounge.[6] When New Orleans Square was planned, this area for corporate sponsors and VIPs was included. Disney asked artist Dorothea Redmond to paint renderings and hired Hollywood set director Emile Kuri to decorate the facility. While Club 33 was originally intended for use by Disneyland's corporate sponsors, when it opened on June 15, 1967, six months after Disney's death, individual memberships were also offered.[5]

Tokyo Disneyland began operations of the second location in 1983. Shanghai Disneyland's Club 33 location opened along with the park in the summer of 2016.[6]

In January 2014, the Disneyland location was closed for renovation which included a doubling in size and a change in entrance location. It was reopened in mid-July 2014.[1]

An additional set of Club 33 locations opened at Walt Disney World. A Club 33 location will be located in each of the four parks within the entertainment complex. Originally confirmed to the Orlando Sentinel on April 13, 2017, the locations were set to open in Fall 2017. The first club opened in Hollywood Studios in March 2018, followed by Epcot and Magic Kingdom.[7]

Club 33 is located above the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction and next to Walt Disney's former apartment. The entrance of the club was formerly located next to the Blue Bayou Restaurant at "33 Royal Street" with the entrance recognizable by an ornate address plate with the number 33 engraved on it. Following a major remodeling in January 2014, the entrance was relocated to the Court of Angels with the La Mascarade d'Orleans holiday decoration shop converted into a reception foyer. Executive chef at the Carthay Circle and Napa Rose restaurants at the Disneyland resort, Andrew Sutton, was placed in charge of the club's kitchen.[1]

Interior

The original foyer where members waited to be seated prior to the 2014 remodel.

The front door is opened into a vestibule that used to be a small shop. Check-in occurs in this vestibule and beyond there is an open-air courtyard. At the top of the stairs, there are two rooms: Le Grand Salon and Le Salon Nouveau. Le Salon Nouveau contains the original antique-style glass lift which was used prior to the 2014 remodel to take guests to the second level.[1]

The walls are adorned with butterflies pinned under glass and hand-painted animation cels from the original Fantasia film. Walt Disney handpicked much of the Victorian bric-a-brac in New Orleans antique stores.[8][9]

The original Main dining room prior to the 2014 remodel. Today The Grand Salon is located here.

The original lounge alley prior to the 2014 remodel.

The second level has two rooms. One room (Le Salon Nouveau) is entered by passing through an area paneled in dark wood and lined with refrigerated wine cases; the other room (Le Grand Salon) is more formal. [8]

• Le Grand Salon is the main dining room and is a New Orleans theme based on designs by Disney Imagineer Kim Irvine. Prior to 2014 remodel, the style was Napoleon-era First Empire. This dining room is a la carte service for lunch only, while before the reconstruction was buffet only.[1]

• Salon Nouveau lounge is a new area above the French Market restaurant and adjoining shops and is jazz club themed from Tiana's art nouveau restaurant in The Princess and the Frog.[1]

• Kitchen was moved and expanded in 2014 by taking over the Trophy Room, a secondary dining area.[1]

The club is also furnished with a few props from Disney films. There is a functional dark wood telephone booth with leaded glass, just off the restroom balcony. An ornate walnut table with white marble top was used in Mary Poppins. A video capture from the film on display atop the table shows actors Karen Dotrice, Matthew Garber and David Tomlinson standing immediately to its left.[10][8][9]

A harpsichord which was rumored to have been an antique was in fact custom-built for Lillian Disney specifically for use in Club 33. The underside of the lid features a Renaissance-style art piece that was hand-painted by Disney artists.[8]

Walt Disney wanted to make use of Audio-Animatronic technology within Club 33. Microphones in overhead lighting fixtures would pick up the sounds of normal conversation while an operator would respond via the characters. Though the system was never fully implemented, it was partially installed and remains so. An Audio-Animatronic vulture is perched in atop a grandfather clock in the club's upstairs lobby. The microphones were visible at the bottom of each of the old Trophy Room's lighting fixtures.[8][9]

Club 33 (Tokyo Disneyland)

Location	Urayasu, Chiba, Japan
Owner	Oriental Land Company
Type	Private club
Opened	1983

Club 33 (Shanghai Disney Resort)

Location	Pudong, Shanghai, China
Type	Private club
Opened	2016

A second Club 33 is located in Tokyo Disneyland. Rather than being located in New Orleans Square, it is located on Center Street of World Bazaar, the park's version of Main Street, U.S.A..

The Shanghai location opened at the same time as the Shanghai Disney Resort opened. Like the Tokyo location, it is located at the park's version of Main Street, U.S.A., Mickey Avenue.[11][12]

Club 33 (Walt Disney World)

Location	Bay Lake, Florida, U.S.
Type	Private club
Opened	2018

• Media related to Club 33 at Wikimedia Commons