Disneyland Paris/EuroDisney - Questions & Answers

jeffo489

Hi.

Can someone give me some advice about Disney Land Paris.

We are a family of 4. Daughter (8), Son(7), Mum & Dad.
I have booked Seqoia Lodge for 31st July for 3 nights/4 days.
I have decided to drive from Merseyside and travel via Folkstone.

After Disney we are staying in France until the following Sunday, and (probably) camping somewhere for 5 nights. I haven't arranged anything yet.

While in Disney I want everything to be as stress free as possible. I know the environment is going to be busy, and I am very apprehensive. I have booked premium half board option to try and alleviate some pressure.

Please advise...
...Where are the best places to eat using the premium half board?
...What are the best shows (Buffalo Bill? Woodies Roundup?)
...What character meals (breakfast/lunch/dinner) should I book and are they extra?
...How do I get the best ride time (fasttags, etc)?
...What are the best times to go into the park?
...What is the best way to blag a room upgrade? is it even possible?

One thing I am considering is having breakfast and packing some extra for lunch snacks. We are not big eaters so often have breakfast, small lunch, and dinner anyway. We are driving so will have the benefit of our car being available if we need it.

Can anyone make any suggestions?
Can anyone suggest where we should go for 5 days AFTER DLP?


THanks

balletshoes

jeffo489 wrote: »

Hi.

Please advise...
...Where are the best places to eat using the premium half board?

to get the most out of your experience, with the ages of your children, I'd say Cafe Mickey, Inventions, Buffalo Bills, and the Princess Meal at the Auberge. You will have 3 premium dinner vouchers each to use on your trip, and each of these restaurants are fully covered by your vouchers. You can however do Cafe Mickey on a lot less than the cost of your premium vouchers, if you prefer. The other restaurants are all more expensive than Cafe Mickey, but all are character restaurants (where the characters come around each table and give you individual time for pics/autographs etc), and Buffalo Bills has characters in too now.

...What are the best shows (Buffalo Bill? Woodies Roundup?)

there are very few shows now in DLP sadly - Buffalo Bills is worth it if you have premium dinner vouchers, Woodys Roundup is a character meet n greet, no show. There are shows in the Studios park, which are great - try to see them all - Cinemaqique, Animagique, Moteurs Stunt show, Stitch Live, Cars n Stars Parade. In the main park there is the tribute to Captain EO show, a New Generation show in the open near the castle, and the Once Upon a Dream Parade. Again, worth seeing all of these during your trip. You'll have the evening Fantillusion parade and fireworks too, definitely worth staying up late for !

...What character meals (breakfast/lunch/dinner) should I book and are they extra?

see my first reply - no, no extra charge for the ones I've mentioned if you're paying with your dinner vouchers. If one main meal a day suits you, dinner is your best bet I think, especially with the late opening hours in the parks.

...How do I get the best ride time (fasttags, etc)?

for the rides with fastpass, get to them early and get your fastpasses - by noon they will possibly be all gone.

...What are the best times to go into the park?

early as you can, and pace yourself in the afternoon (you will have park hopper tickets in your package, so if you find the main park getting stupidly busy, hop over to the Studios and do the shows there then). After 6/7pm ish the parks will start to empty a bit, and you'll be able to do rides etc from then until the parks close, seeing Fantillusion and the fireworks too.

...What is the best way to blag a room upgrade? is it even possible?

in my opinion, upgrades are a nice surprise - but if you're celebrating a special event while you're on your trip, you could always call your hotel a few days before you go and let them know, and ask for a nice room. I personally wouldn't ask outright for an upgrade, the way I see it you've paid for your choice of room.



THanks

hope this helps,

Myron_Bolitar

Hi Folks - I have never been to DLP or even looked into it. I have just started to plan a break in Sep, for myself, my wife and my 3 year old Daughter. I am trying to work out th best way of booking, so far I have found the following package

Newport Bay hotel for 3 nights with Park tickets and Eurostar £1046

Alternatively I have found the following prices doing everything seperately

Euro Star total for all 3 of us £288
Park Tickets £329
3 Nights at Dream Castle Hotel = £344
Total = £961

Not sure which to go for. I'm pretty sure the hotel deal is a steal, but not sure whether I can do better on park tickets and Eurostar or if we will be missing out on anything by staying at Dream Castle as oppose to Newport Bay

Any advice greatly appreciated

Thanks

loulou123

Myron_Bolitar wrote: »

Hi Folks - I have never been to DLP or even looked into it. I have just started to plan a break in Sep, for myself, my wife and my 3 year old Daughter. I am trying to work out th best way of booking, so far I have found the following package

Newport Bay hotel for 3 nights with Park tickets and Eurostar £1046

Alternatively I have found the following prices doing everything seperately

Euro Star total for all 3 of us £288
Park Tickets £329
3 Nights at Dream Castle Hotel = £344
Total = £961

Not sure which to go for. I'm pretty sure the hotel deal is a steal, but not sure whether I can do better on park tickets and Eurostar or if we will be missing out on anything by staying at Dream Castle as oppose to Newport Bay

Any advice greatly appreciated

Thanks

Personally if it's your 1st time and with a little one too, i'd be inclined to stay in one of the hotels on site (such as the Newport Bay.) Whoever the Newport Bay is one of the more costly disney Hotels and whilst its lovely, is not particually child orientated, its also HUGE, when i went we had a room that was 10 minutes walk from the pool and nearly that from our room to breakfast. How about looking at prices at one of the cheaper hotels such as the Sequoia (better than the newport in my opinion) or even the Cheyenne, as unless you get a suite the rooms in all the hotels are quite similar (just slightly bigger in the more expensive ones.)

I've been in September (2007) and it was pretty quiet, but surprisingly cold, so be sure to pack some warm clothes, as we were all adults but shivering on some days.

Cheapest place to book packages tends to be eurostar site/expedia or through disney direct.

Children under 4 dont pay on Eurostar as long as they can sit on an adults lap (if your not happy with this, then they have to pay childs fares.)

I did a quick search on the eurostar page and found this (obviously this may not be the dates you were planning to go) with your child on your lap, in the sequoia lodge with all park tickets :




Trip details Total:£585.24Avg/person:£195.08[SIZE=-2]Included:

• Items selected, taxes & service fees.

[/SIZE]Train: 2 roundtrip tickets + 1 child in lap

06:20 Depart London St Pancras

Arrive Disneyland Resort 11:08 Mon 27-Sep
Duration: 3hr 48mn Eurostar / double decker TGV 1 connection


19:37 Depart Disneyland Resort
Arrive London St Pancras 21:12 Thu 30-Sep
Duration: 2hr 35mn Eurostar Direct
Hotel: 1 room for 3 nights Disney's Sequoia Lodge [SIZE=-2]Marne-la-Vallee, France[/SIZE]This large modern hotel inspired by America’s vast national parks is a 5-minute shuttle bus ride from the Disney Parks and Disney Village.Traveler Opinion
4.1 out of 5
20+ reviews



Check-in: Mon 27-Sep-10Check-out: Thu 30-Sep-10 Room options Price [SIZE=-2]Montana Room-All Stay Parks' tickets..[/SIZE] [SIZE=-2]Sale![/SIZE] [SIZE=-2]Includes: Continental Breakfast, Free Parking[/SIZE][SIZE=-2] Included[/SIZE]



Travel insuranceTotal:£585.24Avg/person:£195.08[SIZE=-2]Included:

• Items selected, taxes & service fee

[/SIZE]now personally i think this is a pretty good price, only downside being the eurostar out is not a direct service, but im sure if you fiddle about with dates etc you will find something similar.

Myron_Bolitar

[SIZE=-2]
[/SIZE]
Thanks so much for all your advice, you're a star!!!

inspector_monkfish

Myron_Bolitar wrote: »

Hi Folks - I have never been to DLP or even looked into it. I have just started to plan a break in Sep, for myself, my wife and my 3 year old Daughter. I am trying to work out th best way of booking, so far I have found the following package

Newport Bay hotel for 3 nights with Park tickets and Eurostar £1046

Alternatively I have found the following prices doing everything seperately

Euro Star total for all 3 of us £288
Park Tickets £329
3 Nights at Dream Castle Hotel = £344
Total = £961

Not sure which to go for. I'm pretty sure the hotel deal is a steal, but not sure whether I can do better on park tickets and Eurostar or if we will be missing out on anything by staying at Dream Castle as oppose to Newport Bay

Any advice greatly appreciated

Thanks

IMO, Newport Bay is only worth it if you plan to leave the park in the afternoon and go back and use the facilities (swimming pool etc...) If you dont plan to do that, you are better off in Hotel Cheyenne, which will be cheaper.

oh, and whichever hotel you choose, try and request a room near reception/restaurants - they are all huge, and you end up walking miles to get to your room after checking in !!
youre travel agent will be able to request this for you, but not guarantee it (might be worth phoning the hotel yourself nearer the time)

Myron_Bolitar

Thanks Monkfish.

I'm having a look at the Cheyenne and it has the following options

No Park tickets £0 extra
Buffalo Tickets not included £12 extra
Rio Grand tickets not included £12 extra
All Park tickets included £82 extra
Buffalo -All stay park tickets £94 extra

I presume I want all park tickets, but I don't understand the difference between the last 2 options

...Also got an option for Admiral All stay parks (Newport Bay) - any idea what Admiral part is

Told you I knwo nothing about DLP :-)

Myron_Bolitar

LouLou

I've done the exact same as you, but for 10th-13th Sep and the best I can get is £770 for Newport Bay for same deal which includes a 30% saving for staying 2 nights (Seq hotel not available on my dates) Cheyenne is £830 for same deal (no 30% offer)

Wonder how your search was so much cheaper, for just 2 weeks different

balletshoes

Myron_Bolitar wrote: »

Thanks Monkfish.

I'm having a look at the Cheyenne and it has the following options

No Park tickets £0 extra
Buffalo Tickets not included £12 extra
Rio Grand tickets not included £12 extra
All Park tickets included £82 extra
Buffalo -All stay park tickets £94 extra

I presume I want all park tickets, but I don't understand the difference between the last 2 options

...Also got an option for Admiral All stay parks (Newport Bay) - any idea what Admiral part is

Told you I knwo nothing about DLP :-)

Buffalo is one of the room blocks at the Cheyenne which is closer to reception - so you're paying extra for that location (not worth it in my opinion).

Admirals floor at the Newport Bay is an upgrade, as its in the main block with reception, restaurants etc. You will not be in the long huge wings of the hotel, and with Admirals floor you also have a separate check-in area. The location of the room etc is what you are paying the extra for (if its not much more to upgrade, and you want to stay at the Newport Bay over another hotel, I think Admirals floor would be worth the extra). I've stayed in both hotels, and would choose the Cheyenne over the Newport Bay - mostly because the Newport Bay is so big, and we did get rooms there right at the end of one of the wings - it was easily a 10-minute walk to get there from reception .

balletshoes

Myron_Bolitar wrote: »

LouLou

I've done the exact same as you, but for 10th-13th Sep and the best I can get is £770 for Newport Bay for same deal which includes a 30% saving for staying 2 nights (Seq hotel not available on my dates) Cheyenne is £830 for same deal (no 30% offer)

Wonder how your search was so much cheaper, for just 2 weeks different

Is your Newport Bay price £770 including your Eurostar transport? If it is, I'd say thats a really good price. I had a look for you on the official Disneyland Paris site for hotel/tickets package - the Newport Bay is showing the full 40% discount, £654 total (so add your £288 Eurostar price to this). Sequoia Lodge is still 40% off too, so £577 (add your Eurostar price). The Cheyenne is no longer 40% off, so is more expensive than either the Sequoia Lodge or the Newport Bay.