Day trip to Disneyland Paris

[DisneyDayOut]

Just hoping for some tips from the Disneyland Paris experts on here!

We have a week's holiday in France this August and happen to be staying about 30mins drive of Disneyland Paris so it seems like a good opportunity to give the kids (9, 7, 5) the experience without making a whole holiday out of it.

So, any words of advice? Are we just going to have to get day tickets on the gate? Obviously we know it will be very busy at that time of year and that a day is no time at all so I'm imagining we just go to the park (and not the studios), bring food so we don't waste time queuing for that, maybe don't focus on rides but rather wander around and get the 'experience'??

Disclaimer: I actually worked a summer season in the park at DLP about 20 years ago so I have some experience of it both as a guest and a cast member, but not recent and not necessarily all positive so any help on how to embrace the magic would be great!

Thanks :)

Despite a posted opening time of 10AM, it is sort of an open secret that Disneyland Park opens at 9:30.
Disneyland Paris Fastpass is a free program that allows you to avoid lines at select attractions by getting a ticket that assigns you a 30-minute window to come back and skip the line (or at least most of it).
At Disneyland Park, the Fastpass rides are:

• Big Thunder Mountain
• Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril
• Peter Pan's Flight
• Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast
• Star Tours: The Adventure Continues
• Star Wars Hyperspace Mountain Go to the ride to get your Fastpass ticket. Get in line for the Fastpass machines. This line can get quite long for some rides (Big Thunder Mountain), but will usually be short or non-existent. Scan your park ticket at the machine and get your Fastpass ticket. The Fastpass is issued for a 30-minute window indicated above the machines. The window moves forward in 5-minute increments as tickets are retrieved. You cannot get a specific 30-minute window other than by using the machines when that window is available. This means you may need to wait to get a Fastpass to ensure your ride window doesn't conflict with something else you had scheduled (like a show). Return to the ride to use your Fastpass. There is a separate Fastpass queue at each ride with a Cast Member taking tickets. Give the Cast Member your ticket and you'll be sent through the Fastpass queue and onto the ride. You can have more than one Disneyland Paris Fastpass at a time (despite what the Disneyland Paris website says), but there are significant restrictions. Once you get a Fastpass, you cannot get another one until the earlier of: (A) two hours from when you got the Fastpass or (B) the start of your 30-minute window for your Fastpass.

If you can get to Big Thunder Mountain right at 9:30 to avoid using a Fastpass for it, that's ideal. If you can't, know that Big Thunder Mountain often runs out of Fastpass tickets by 11AM. Indiana Jones often is still giving Fastpass tickets into the afternoon, but plan for the other rides to be out by mid-afternoon.

Great tips, thanks!

It is busy but you will still get on rides, get everyone to prioritise one each and then fit any extras around it. There are some which always have huge queues; Peter Pan, big thunder mountain, space mountain (wouldn’t bother with kids your age it’s not worth the queue) but equally there are rides which have generally quite short queues; small world, tea cups, pirates of the Caribbean (unmissable). Bare in mind the park doesn’t close until 11pm so you’ll get loads done.

If you eat at an odd time of day (3pm?) then the queues won’t be that bad. I wouldn’t fancy carrying loads of food round in the heat.

Definitely don’t bother with Studios if you are only there a day.

That's reassuring thanks! We haven't even mentioned this plan to the kids yet and none of them are hugely into rides so maybe we will just pick a couple :)

Just had a flashback to the days I spent 7 hours selling icecreams outside Its a Small World and hearing that music all day long

Look at the DLP website and download a map before you go, to plan your day a bit. There are 'walk-through' exhibits in each zone - like the Aladdin one, or the Nautilus/Capt Nemo ones which can be interesting.

There will be queues for the rides, it's like any theme park for that and DLP is extremely popular so lots of people! You may be able to get a ticket in advance, when we've been in the magic hours there is a rope and people stopping anyone who is not permitted early from getting in - not all the rides are open in the magic hours either.

On the DLP website you should also be able to check the daily programme of events nearer the time, so if there is a show you want to see (usually in the Studios) or a character you want to meet, that will have the details. The parade is good too and the late night show, although fabulous, might not be a good option as it is really late!

Oh i forgot, biggest tip is go during the week, not at the weekend. There’s a huge difference in crowds

You can buy tickets in advance either through the DLP website or from other places e.g. Attractiontix (often cheaper) but make sure you buy the right level of ticket for the day you visit- mid August is peak time so it will likely be the most expensive one.

A day ticket will allow you through the main gates from 9.30 but only to access Main street and the castle plaza. The 'lands will be roped off until 10am, but you can wait here for rope drop and race to be first in line for a ride if you wish!
I'd agree with PP to just pick one thing (ride/show/parade/meet) each to focus on doing, then anything else is a bonus. This is achievable especially if you use the Fastpass system.

If you are interested in extending your Disney experience for another day, Disney Village is free to enter and has shops,bars, restaurants, a cinema and a wild west show. There is also the lake at the far end with a hot air balloon ride and you can even have a nosy round the hotel lobbies (they used to do character meets here in the mornings but not sure that happens anymore) without needing to be a guest there.

Ah that's interesting, is Attractiontix legit then? I had never heard of it before so was a bit unsure of booking through there. Yes we would be going midweek but the week of the most expensive tickets.

Looking at a map beforehand and having a plan is a great idea.

From looking at the internet, they don't let you bring loads of food in, just snacks. Is that true?

I’ve used attractiontix before with the problems. It’s much better to buy in advance rather than wasting time in queues for tickets

Thanks tryingtocatchthewind; was that with no problems? Or with problems??