December 2000 – January 2024
LOCATION
Paradise Pier Hotel – The Sand Bar was the Paradise Pier Hotel’s poolside bar. To find it, you’d head to the pool deck. Turn right, and you’d see the small building behind the loungers on the far side of the deck (opposite end from the slide).
EXPERIENCE
After a day spent in the sunshine, a beach-themed hotel has to have a place for refreshments. The Sand Bar offered comfort food, fruity cocktails, and the chance to relax and sit back after all the racing from park to park. For non-drinkers, the bar also included a variety of mocktails, and the whole family could enjoy the snacks and desserts the Sand Bar whipped up.
CLOSURE
This bar closed alongside the rest of the Paradise Pier Hotel in 2023, to make way for the transformation into the Pixar Place Hotel. The new hotel opened in January 2024, with the bar becoming “Small Bytes”.
TRIVIA
My original rating: The Sand Bar makes really tasty tropical drinks, but to be honest, it’s a very mediocre bar compared to neighboring options at the resort. It doesn’t at all have an atmosphere like Trader Sam’s or the Hearthstone Lounge, nor does it offer a varied and tasty menu like Uva Bar. If you’re staying at the hotel, this is a nice spot to grab a drink. But I wouldn’t recommend you go out of your way to seek it out; there are far better options nearby. (★★★☆☆)
Walt Disney World in Orlando also has a Sand Bar, located in the Contemporary Resort.