Wasn’t able to find an “other” area - so popped it in here.
Need some advise on Disneyland Paris. We will probably be doing it for a single day (perhaps two but that is going to be pushing it. It seems to make WDW cheap by comparison but perhaps it is because I don’t fully understand what is being offered.
What are people’s thoughts on the Partner hotels - I am unsure if we will have a car or not (probably will) but what do people suggest. We are not going to France to go to WDW - but want to make it fun for the kids (and I wouldn’t mind checking it off my list) - but what are suggestions on doing a QUICK trip to it. I am really open to anything at this point. This would be JUNE of next year.
We’ve done DLP twice in the last 2 years
We travelled from the uk via Eurostar and it’s so easy
We Stayed at different hotels
The Sequire lodge and the flag ship hotel the Disneyland hotel the latter is the most expensive but it’s right on the door step and u literally walk straight into the park ( felt it was worth the money )
Food is very expensive and the fast pass do not work the same as Florida
You have to go to each attraction and get a return time ticket
There are many other hotels on the doorstep of DLP and cater for all budgets
You will struggle to do both Parks in one day and would say do one or the other or if you can stay for 2 nights
Any questions feel free to ask
Paris is easy to get to via the train and worth a trip
We are 7 days away from our trip to Florida staying at the Animal Kingdom Lodge and Hard Rock
Thank you. You will love both of those resorts. We stayed at Portafino and HR was right next door. the Express Pass is fantastic - did NO planning at US - however got to HP first. As you are going mid / late august - crowds should be a bit more manageable. Have a great time.
We were just in London in June (LOVED IT) and found the public / train transportation exceptionally easy to use. We were originally contemplating going to Paris for a few days but found more than enough to do in UK for sure. Depending on airfare it may be cheaper to fly into Heathrow - Eurostar to DLP and then get into Paris etc. We will see. I don’t mind splurging for a nicer hotel at all - just starting to throw things together. I THOUGH 1 day would be pushing it - so good to know. We will have to see what everyone wants to do. The kids are really good about doing “grown up” activities - but we want them to look forward to things as well.
Any other suggestions for France / Paris is certainly welcome. We plan to do Paris for a few days (Eiffel tower, Louve, a few other “must do” and then head to Provence.
I think you need an overnight stay whilst at disneyland. Give yourselves the best part of two days there. You’ve got 2 parks to fit in (although they are next to each other). Hollywood studios and MK.
When we went many years ago now we stayed at disneyland hotel and paid extra to stay on the club level which back then meant your room key was an unlimited fast pass for every ride.
I think that may not apply now but back then was a godsend to our family.
Thinks you may have to book a suite now for unlimited fast pass.
Disneyland Hotel is way more convenient for the parks
If budgets work stay there is my advice. It also means you can enjoy the boardwalk in the evening as it’s on your doorstep plus it used to have its own hotel turnstile into the park
Paris - Must go to www.musee-orsay.fr/en/home the Louvre is massive and busy. You could stay in paris and train to the park. It has its own stop right outside the park. We’ve also stayed at Newport Bay - 15 minute walk. Nice hotel and just been refurbished. As for the parks - the tickets cover both (at least used to) so its more about the age of your dustbin lids and what they want to do. Don’t miss the Disneyland Park the ought - its Disney’s most beautiful. Parades and food are poor though. They are losing money hand over fist so live entertainment and food are easy targets. Rides are good quality and generally better than USA as they are newer. If you can get there for rope drop and tour wisely you could do it in a day but you’d need to be really on task. Signature rides: Studios - RNR, ToT & RAT & Crush (Its in the dark and quite challenging!). They also have the Backlot Tour still. ToT is like Disneyland in Cali and not quite as good as WDW owing to the smaller footprint. Disneyland Park - Star Tours, SM, BTMRR and Indiana Jones. Haunted Mansion and Pirates. Pirates is good here. Do 2 days if you can.
S’il vous plaît!!! We can use all the help we can get. @Stu007 - yes the orsay along with a bounty of other museums is on our list. My wife has been a few times but it has been a bit. But any suggestions - especially something that is off the path is always welcomed. We were in London in June and just loved walking around our neighborhood in Kensington. So pulling together ideas. We may use DLP as a jumping off point for the balance of our trip or we may take the Eurostar in from London (all depends on where we land into / take off). ANY suggestions anyone has - is certainly welcome.
I do keep a budget - but we do splurge - I truly believe that time is money on vacation and I don’t mind paying for convenience.
Highly recommend it. We drove from the UK taking three hours from the channel. We stayed at the New York hotel on property. Parking was free and we didn’t use the car once until we left. We walked to the parks which is at least 15 mins but through the shops and bars. One day visit only I’d suggest just to do the main park and leave the studios. We loved the park. We used dining reservations Moroccan restaurant in park was great and general buffet
A good friend of mine lives in Paris… I think the number one thing I would do is just wander around the outlying areas, checking out the architecture, particularly Champagne Ardenne. Gorgeous countryside, gorgeous buildings.
Auto-correct changed checking out the architecture to annoying the architecture!
If you’re looking for a day out of Paris, I would strongly suggest Versailles. It is stunning, and the gardens are amazing. It is, from a very distant memory, easy to get to from Paris, essentially a suburb.
DH and I stayed somewhere near Montmartre, which is great for wandering around. You can also book a dinner package to one of the famous shows. In the end we didn’t do it, but we had a choice of just a seat, seat plus champagne or dinner plus show.
The Louvre is huge. Strongly endorse the idea of the Musee D’Orsay instead, but I guess it depends what you like. You can take a highlights tour of the Louvre, guided or self guided I think. You get a map which shows a path to see certain things. But wow, the crowds gathered round the Mona Lisa were huge. We also visited the Rodin Museum which was gorgeous. Small with a lovely garden,with sculptures inside and out. I think it’s fairly near the Eiffel Tower…?
Thank you!!. We always enjoy the “lesser” known areas and just walking around and exploring. One of my favorite memories of Italy was being forced into a shop during a rain shower in Siena. We love just meandering and enjoying. All the items you have provided are on our list for sure - so thank you for further emphasizing them,
We will probably spend some time in Normandy and may get to Provance - my wife’s great aunt was a painter and her home has been turned into a museum - so may try to get to it.
Killing me - SO SO SO many choices. We are starting to put together our wish list. Well we will just have to go back a few times!!! Love the suggestions!
Here’s a slightly left-field suggestion: La Défense. It’s at the end of a Metro line. It has a huge square arch that lines up with the Arc de Triomphe and you can take a lift up to the top of it – great views, and an art gallery.
Oh My Gosh - I have wanted to see La Defense since I was a kid. I have a huge interest in post modern architecture - on of the big to do for us in London was the Shard - unfortunately due to a few events we weren’t able to get to it. But I have wanted to see this building for years - EXCELLENT - keep the left-field suggestions coming.
I’ve only been once. I was on a business trip, and took a day to visit DLP. I was staying in Paris, and the train ride was easy, and direct. Took about an hour from central Paris. There were 3 of us on the trip. My son (who lives in London, and a work friend (who’s arm needed to be twisted to take a day away from Paris to go to DLP) We started early, but missed rope drop by 30 minutes. We managed to see the basics of both parks walking quickly. I was in awe from the time I entered the park. The gardens are just as spectacular as DL, and WDW, just different. DLP is a Northern climate. I’m sure a much bigger challenge to garden year round. The other thing that struck me immediately was the crowds. It was a Sunday, so I shouldn’t have been surprised, but the park was jammed full. I’ve heard so many stories about how DLP is losing money that I thought we’d have a lighter park experience. Not so. The line-ups even 30 minutes after RD were long.
It’s not a park that can be completely enjoyed in a single day. Ideally you need two full days or more if you can. I personally wouldn’t go for longer than two. Only because I really didn’t like the food. I’m a huge foodie. I love WDW almost as much for the food now as anything else. DLP doesn’t come close to WDW for the food. Granted, I didn’t do any sit down restaurants. We walked into Walt’s just to see it, but didn’t eat there. Because we only had limited time, I didn’t want to spend any of it sitting at a TS restaurant. The menu looked good, but was very expensive.
Space Mountain was incredible! My favourite version of that ride by far!! I also enjoyed Pirates of the Caribbean, and the simple walk through ride of the Nautilus. (I turned instantly into a 10 yr old boy walking through the Nautilus! It’s a Small World was charming as usual (loved it), Haunted Mansion was interesting. Walking up to it - I was losing my mind - it’s really the best one from the outside. It’s my favourite ride at WDW, so I could hardly wait to go on it! It was hard to wrap my head around it (being half French) but I enjoyed it - just walked away thinking it fell short… Big Thunder Mountain was under construction when I was there. (almost completed) It looked incredible!! Another huge highlight was walking through the castle. Wow!! It really is the best castle experience I’ve ever had at any park! Worth taking the time to walk around to take it all in.
The cast members were really nice everywhere we went. Strangely enough I didn’t seen many Character greetings. It was raining slightly when we were there. That was likely the reason.
Overall it was a good experience. I’m glad that I went. I’ll go back again if I’m ever there on business again. My wife wouldn’t want to spend anytime away from Paris to go to DLP. No chance.
Afaik, It’s a common misconception that DLP is losing money. It isn’t, it turns a profit - kind of. It’s the debt they started off with that’s the millstone. The actual turnover is fine, they do a LOT of advertising here in the UK but I think it gets the visitor numbers etc. Just that massive bank loan means the park is considered to be a “failure”. Maybe the fact that Disney now owns it outright means they can do something about that.
I went so long ago, in the days “BC” - before children. It was meant to be a romantic week in Paris, only we didn’t reckon on me getting pregnant the minute we started trying! So there was I, 8 weeks pregnant, exhausted and sick each morning. Not quite what we had in mind lol! So I never rode SM, Indy (mind you I don’t do loops so no chance), not even Pirates.
Thanks guys!! I loved the descriptions you gave @Disneydaddio - made me feel like I was there. For me - I can’t wait to see Paris - but I think some of the interesting aspects of going abroad is their interpretation of American culture. I live in Philly and our sandwich is the Cheesesteak. When we were in London - the first restaurant we went to had a “Philly Cheese Steak” on the menu - I asked for a description - quite interesting. To the point though - I think it is fun to see how the rest of the world interprets American Culture - so this would be very interesting to me. I do like the steampunk theme that Tomorrowland has in Paris.
