A Few Days in Disneyland Paris

by Michael A. Walsh
AllEars® Guest Columnist

Feature Article

This article appeared in the November 10, 2015 Issue #842 of ALL EARS® (ISSN: 1533-0753)

I would consider myself reasonably well-traveled. Before I was 2 years old, I had already visited Mexico, Norway, China, Germany, Italy, Japan, Morocco, France, Great Britain and Canada (props to those who figured out I am referring to Epcot). All joking aside, a rough calculation suggests that I have spent somewhere around 50 weeks of my 20 years of life away from home in Northeast Ohio. The majority of the weeks, of course, have been at Walt Disney World, but these trips also have included cruises (with Disney, and with other lines), other amusement parks, and cities throughout the United States.

In June, I finally was able to add Europe to my list of places visited. Seeing that I am writing this for a Disney-centric newsletter, you can probably guess that my family spent quite a bit of time with the Mouse while in the Old World. The focal point of our trip was a seven-night cruise aboard the Disney Magic to the Baltic, but knowing that this trip would be our only European trip for several years, my family also planned stops in London and at Disneyland Paris. (Do not worry, we made it to Paris, too.) To make the trip work, we had to fight restraints on both our budget and my parents' vacation time. The result can best be described as a barnstorm through Europe, but with only eight days missed of work, and a relatively low cost.

After an overnight flight and a day in London, our excitement for arriving in Paris may have been based more on our fast-approaching night's sleep than on going to Disney. We had decided to use a town car service to travel from Charles De Gaulle Airport to Disneyland, and then from Disneyland to Orly Airport two days later. In the end, the decision was a very good one. Using Inter Service Prestige, we were met by our driver and the company's owner immediately after clearing French immigration, and promptly driven to Disneyland. There was some major construction at Disneyland, so the drive took longer than expected (which made not taking a taxi seem like a very good idea). Our drivers for both trips were polite, were early to pick us up, and spoke English well.

We stayed at the Hotel New York on Disneyland property. This is the second closest hotel to the park entrances, at about a half-mile through Downtown Disney (which, for reference is equal to the walk from the Contemporary to the Magic Kingdom in Orlando or the Disneyland Hotel to Disneyland in Anaheim. Also worth noting — the bag check is before Downtown Disney in Paris, unlike in Anaheim). The hotel room seemed small compared to the Disney Vacation Club rooms my family is used to — we booked the room using DVC points — but was large enough for the two nights we were in it. The hotel, as a whole, was nice, but did not seem to be heavily themed, with the exception of the two main elevator lobbies featuring the logo of either the New York Mets or New York Yankees on the floor. Some aspects of the hotel seemed to be under renovation, so your experience on this may be different. I cannot comment on the other hotels, as we simply did not have enough time to visit them.

A nice perk at Disneyland Paris is that hotel guests get a free breakfast buffet. Both mornings rank as some of the better breakfasts I have had at any Disney resort. Other than those, our meals were somewhat disappointing. Our first full day in Paris was spent largely in the city, which I will touch on in a minute. We ended up in Disneyland Park trying to find quick-service food at about 7 p.m. local time, to find that only two or three places were open in the entire park. I understand that this is a cultural difference, but for a company that thrives on quick eating in the United States, this was a shock. The food we ended up with (pizza) was decent, but not what we were expecting. Lunch the next day was a bit easier to find, and was again decent (barbecue), but I have certainly had better quick-service food at Walt Disney World and Disneyland. We did snack around the parks, and in Downtown Disney, which all seemed to be on par with our experiences in the United States parks (although the Main Street cookies were very different). Remember, food is always subjective, so this represents the opinion of my family alone. Due to timing, we did not get to try any sit-down meals, with the exception of the free breakfast.

Two hours of morning Extra Magic Hours are available at Disneyland Park for hotel guests, but we found the length to be unnecessary, as very few rides (and no rides that later commanded long lines) were open during them. Once the Discoveryland (Paris's Jules Verne themed version of Tomorrowland) renovation is complete, and Space Mountain reopens, the two hours will become more valuable. For us, though, the highest priority ride open was the original version of Star Tours, which was nice to see (especially for my younger brother, who had never seen the original), despite understanding very little of the dialogue. With Space Mountain in renovation, it would have been nice for a different large ride, like Big Thunder Mountain (which, due to wait times and break downs, we did not get to ride), to have opened.

Like Star Tours, Pirates of the Caribbean is still the "original version" from the American parks. This was a cool experience for me, as I had no memory of the ride without Jack Sparrow.

Paris' Disneyland Park, when compared to the Disneyland in Anaheim and the Magic Kingdom, is quite a bit larger. This space creates room for some very unique experiences. The best examples are at Sleeping Beauty's Castle. The walk-through found in Anaheim was made far larger in Paris, and now serves not only as an attraction, but as a scenic overlook of Fantasyland. The overlook is well-deserved because the landscaping in Fantasyland can only be described as beautiful. Under the castle, off a path slightly to the left of the castle entrance, is an animatronic dragon that is used to "heat" the castle above (pictured). It is a very cool, and very uniquely Disney, experience.

The size of the park is worth noting for another reason, though. When we were in Paris, it was rather hot, reaching into the high 80s at times. As these temperatures are unusual, we found very little air conditioning, which made spending all day in the parks difficult. Disneyland Park is so large, my family planned on using the train to get around. This did not work, as they were only running one train at a time. With how long the lines were for the train (there were people lining up for it before the park opened), wait times of over an hour were very common. I am not entirely sure why they were only running one train, and I hope it was an abnormality, but it was, even over the quick-service restaurants closing early, the greatest departure from the American parks.

Disney Studios Park gets a lot of flak from people, but I, in a way, disagree with the criticism. There were certainly parts of the park that seemed barely more themed than a regular amusement park, but even those areas were a lot of fun, and seemed decently well decorated. There were portions of the park that seemed very bland, but it eventually dawned on me that I actually felt like I was walking in a movie studio, a feeling that I have never gotten from Hollywood Studios in Florida, because the bland areas resembled the soundstages and backlots you see on actual Hollywood backlots. Due to the park's limited operating hours (eight hours a day), we did not get to see any shows, and missed quite a few rides, but there were some very notable ones we rode. Crush's Coaster, an indoor roller coaster, was one of the better coasters I have been on at a Disney Park. I expected something like Primeval Whirl, but this was a much smoother, faster, and more disorienting experience. Ratatouille: The Adventure was my first experience with Disney's trackless ride system, and trust me when I say that I cannot wait for one to come to America. Watching a POV video of the ride cannot begin to encompass the experience of the ride (the same goes with Crush's Coaster). Ratatouille: The Adventure ranks today as my favorite Disney attraction.

Disney Studios is also home to Tower of Terror (which is almost exactly the California version), and Rock n' Roller Coaster. The latter has a different theming than in Florida, which seemed to put flashing lights in our eyes for the duration of the ride. Combine that with a seemingly rougher track, and it made for a less fun experience. Sadly, it was the first time both my mother and brother went on a version of Rock n' Roller Coaster, and it will likely be my mother's last.

Tower of Terror was very familiar to me, having most recently ridden the California version. We decided to wait in the regular queue for the ride, which was almost entirely in an open courtyard. The second we reached the line of people, the person in front of us began smoking. There is a different smoking culture in Europe than in many parts of the United States (including Florida, California, and Ohio, which all have similar laws), and as such, in Disneyland Paris, smoking is only prohibited inside, and on attractions. There are no designated smoking areas, and smoking in outdoor lines is allowed. I mention this just to explain that this might be a shock to Americans visiting Disneyland Paris. Except for this one experience, I was never overwhelmed with smoke on our entire trip.

Tower of Terror was also where we came to a conclusion that, based on our experiences, the posted wait times at Disneyland Paris tended to be below the actual wait time (a 30-minute posted time ended up being 45), unlike in the American parks where it is typically above.

While at Disneyland Paris, we did take a trip into the city to see the sights. There is a RER (Paris Metro) station on Disneyland property, from which you can take a train, without changes, to the station under the Arc de Triomphe. We purchased an all-day pass for the transit system, which became important later, and boarded a train. (Go directly to the counters — the workers there spoke English, while the kiosk helpers did not.) Disneyland is the first stop on the route, so we got very good seats on the upper level of the car. After about an hour, we got off (pay attention to where you are, because the announcements are all in French, and not always audible), and began our tour of Paris with the Arc de Triomphe and the Champs-Elysees. After eating a nice lunch, and visiting the Disney Store, we arrived at the Grand Palais, where we planned to cross the river, and turn back toward the Eiffel Tower. While looking at Les Invalides (across the river from the Grand Palais), we realized that the Eiffel Tower was over a mile away, which, after having walked a mile down the Champs-Elysees, and around Disneyland all morning, all in 85-90 degree heat, we were ready to avoid doing. This is where that all-day transit pass became helpful, as there is an RER line that runs along the southern bank of the River Seine, including stops at Les Invalides and the Eiffel Tower. Using that, we stopped, visited the Eiffel Tower, and got back on for the return trip to Disneyland. We did have two transfers to make, though one of those transfers allowed us to see Notre Dame Cathedral. After an hour on a rush-hour train, we arrived back at Disneyland.

Overall, I am very happy to have experienced Disneyland Paris, just as I feel most Disney fans would be. There are noticeable differences (not major, but noticeable) in quality between Paris and the American parks, which may come from the years of well-documented struggles to make a profit. That being said, there were renovations going on throughout the park. I look forward to returning in a few years to see what the park looks like, because it could be really special. It is a beautiful, fun place, and well worth a stop on a European vacation.

Two last pieces of advice: Before we left, we put an old iPhone onto a T-Mobile month-to-month plan that included international talk, text, and data. It served us very well while in Europe, and I highly recommend getting something like it.

The second: Research where you are going before leaving. It will help you immensely.

I end with a few words on Disneyland Paris. This article probably seemed rather critical of the park, and in a way, I meant to be. The fact that you are here, reading an AllEars® newsletter suggests that you have some expectations about Disney. I know very well that I have mine. In this article, I wanted to give a more critical look at Disneyland Paris, from the eyes of someone who has a lot of experience at Walt Disney World. Do not get me wrong, I loved my time at Disneyland Paris, and I want to return. Most of what I commented on were things that I wish I knew before going, and I hope this article helps someone make his or her trip to Disneyland Paris that much better. If you go in expecting the best Disney experience of your life, you are going to be disappointed, because things will happen. That's a fact of going into a different culture. A trip for an American to Disneyland Paris has to be viewed as a cultural experience, because it is truly a place to see, and experience, French, and European, society. Go in expecting this, and you will have an amazing time, and an amazing trip.

= = = = = = = = = = = = =
RELATED LINKS
= = = = = = = = = = = = =

Our guest photographer Jason (disneygeek.com) recently returned from a visit to Disneyland Paris as well. You can see a large selection of Jason's photographs HERE.

Michael's other articles for AllEars®:

The Ultimate Disney Day: Six Parks, Two Coasts

The (Disney) Wonders of Alaska

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Michael A. Walsh, 20, the son of Disney Vacation Club members and a lifelong Disney fanatic, has taken about 50 different Disney-based vacations in his life, ranging from two to over 10 days in length. When not at his second home or writing long trip reviews, he is a third-year Political Science student at The University of Akron in Ohio, with a focus on Homeland Security and American Politics.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Editor's Note: This story/information was accurate when it was published. Please be sure to confirm all current rates, information and other details before planning your trip.