Slowly but surely, H2O+ products are disappearing from Disney hotels.
While guests have the option to stay on or off-site while visiting a Disney resort, many opt to stay on property to enjoy the perks of wholly immersing themselves in the Disney bubble.
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If you’re visiting Walt Disney World Resort, you can enter the parks early thanks to Early Theme Park Entry, which is offered with a stay at all Disney hotels—whether it’s a Disney Value Resort such as Disney’s Art of Animation Resort, a Moderate Resort like Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort, or a more expensive Deluxe Resort, such as Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa or Disney’s Wilderness Lodge.
Those staying at the latter category of hotel can also enjoy Extended Evening Theme Park Hours for select parks on select dates. Unlike Extra Magic Hours, which were once available to guests at all Disney hotels, this is only available to those at a Disney Deluxe Resort, Disney Deluxe Villa Resort, or other select hotels, such as Walt Disney World Swan Hotel and Shades of Green on Walt Disney World Resort.
Of course, the most obvious perk of staying on property is the fact that it doesn’t matter whether you’re in a park or lying in bed ordering room service, you’re still surrounded by the Disney magic.
While there’s been plenty of debate as to whether this magic has been degraded in recent years thanks to Disney eliminating previously free perks such as the Magical Express (RIP, we will avenge you) and complimentary Magic Bands, the crux of the matter is that nothing makes a Disney vacation more Disney than, well, staying at Disney.
It’s the tiny details that make Disney resorts feel like home. That’s why so many people feel pretty passionate about the topic of Disney bath products. Trivial though it may sound (and yes, we know it truly is unimportant in the grand scheme of things), the shower gel, shampoo, and conditioner provided in a Disney hotel has sparked a decent number of debates in the past.
For over 15 years, these were provided by H2O+, a sea salt-scented line of body wash and hair care products. However, in August 2022, the brand revealed that it was closing down for good, posting the following statement on its website.
After 30+ amazing years of innovation, we have made the very difficult decision to retire the brand at the end of the year. Shop your favorites on Amazon while supplies last.
This left many questioning the fate of the brand’s partnership with Disney, which was first formed in 2006. Until this point, H2O+ products could be found at Walt Disney World Resort, Disneyland Resort, Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa, the Disney Cruise Line, and Hong Kong Disneyland.
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Fortunately, in December 2023, it was revealed that Disney had purchased the formula for the product line and would start producing them for its hotels. While the bottles would no longer be branded as H2O+, they would still smell like the ocean (even if they were now bolted to the wall).
As Inside the Magic discovered, in some cases, this meant just plastering new labels on existing H2O+ bottles to generically rebrand them as “sea salt body wash, sea marine revitalizing conditioner, and sea marine revitalization shampoo.” However, some hotels still offer H2O+ products in their original packaging.
This was notably not the case everywhere. When Inside the Magic visited Hong Kong Disneyland in March 2024, the resort’s hotels were still using what was presumably the last of Disney’s supply of H2O+ inventory.
Now, however, that’s changing for good. Hong Kong Disneyland has just unveiled a new partnership for toiletries offered across the resort—and these toiletries won’t benefit from the old H2O+ formula.
Its hotels—Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel, Disney Explorers Lodge, and Disney’s Hollywood Hotel—are now officially partnered with Rituals Cosmetics as of August 20.
Starting today (August 20th), Rituals Cosmetics products will be fully introduced at official hotels.
#HKDL
本日(8/20)よりオフィシャルホテルで「Rituals Cosmetics」製品を本格的に導入されます。#HKDL pic.twitter.com/9c0ua1Eaka
— Emporium HKDL情報🏰✨ (@hk_emporium) August 20, 2024
“At HKDL, we take pride in creating premium experiences for our guests,” said Michael Moriarty, Managing Director, HKDL. “The magic begins right as you enter our resort. We are delighted to join hands with Rituals to introduce their luxury range of products to our resort hotels, which will enhance our guests’ stay and elevate their experience, from the moment they wake up until they go to bed.”
From its inclusion of the World of Frozen and the lack of Frontierland to Mystic Manor, its decidedly ghost-free version of Haunted Mansion, Hong Kong Disneyland—which just delayed the start of its Halloween celebrations for 2024—is different from its American counterparts in many ways.
That means there’s no reason to believe that Walt Disney World Resort or Disneyland Resort will follow suit and ditch the beloved H2O+ scent. However, if you’re booking a trip to Hong Kong Disneyland any time soon, you may want to forget about your post-Disney park sea salt-scented shower.
What’s your favorite thing about staying in a Disney hotel?