Tips for keeping costs down on a Disneyland Paris weekend

[stompinthewoods]

My husband and I and our 3 year old DD are going to Disneyland Paris next month for a long weekend. We managed to get flights, hotel and tickets package that wasn’t as expensive as peak season, but it is still a much more expensive holiday than we would normally go on. We are staying at the Hotel Cheyenne and are board only. Everyone I know who has been with their kids have said they loved it but it was expensive.

I was wondering if anyone has any tips and tricks for keeping costs down while actually at Disneyland. My rough plan so far is to try and find cheaper places to eat (DD isn’t a hugely fussy eater but I think will be happy with pasta/pizza/chicken nuggets for a weekend) and have a budget for spending on DD, as everyone I know who’s been has told me they spent a fortune on buying toys/accessories for their kids.

Does anyone else have any tips for budgeting while at Disneyland?

The last time I went I stayed in same hotel and I took food for breakfast and snacks and that saved a lot. I didnt actually find the quick service restaurants that expensive for meals which is what we did for lunch/dinner. You can buy ears etc from Primark or Etsy etc before you go, bubble wands are mega (ridiculous) price so I refused to buy them but I do know you can buy them before you go. Have a fantastic time!

We took pastries etc for breakfast and packed a snack bag for each day with crackers, crisps, biscuits etc. There are places where you can refill water bottles so juice shots are a good idea. We then bought hotdogs/chips from Casey’s corner and sat eating them waiting for the early evening parade. We did get other treats like crepes/ice creams and some soft drinks but this kept the price down a lot.

There is a big supermarket that is close on the metro, just one stop. It is val d’europe. If you’re trying to keep costs down I’d go and stock up there.

I think you have to be quite disciplined about avoiding the shops if you don’t want to spend too much. I found my kids didn’t want stuff until they went in the shops and then it was a bloody nightmare to get them out. So, don’t just go in for a browse or to have a look if you don’t want to get stuff.

Not quite sure what you mean by "board only". If half board, then plenty at breakfast, and take over some snacks (cereal bars etc, until you get to dinner) if breakfast only, then you have more mealtimes to sort. DLP is very expensive for a "normal meal" at any point, although the village just outside is cheaper (but still v expensive). OP are right about Val D'Europ, it is a huge shopping centre one metro stop from DLP, takes all of 10 mins When we were on a budget, we used to stay in a DLP hotel sometimes, and throw a few bread rolls into the the pushchair, then go the other park (the film one) and get some chips from the MCd dupe there and make chip butties to tide us over until tea time. And, before anyone mentions that I am a thief (which I am, and fully agree with) there were other families making full on piles of sandwiches with no shame. If you have room in your baggage, take a few snacks, empty water bottle etc. Also, as OP have said, you can get "trinkets./costumes/light things" for a fraction of the price here, packed in luggage, same pleasure, a fraction of the cost. Have a brilliant time, we loved it. (4 kids) x

We bought DS new T-shirts, ears and a teddy in the massive Primark at Val d’Europe and just one souvenir in the park.

Eat outside of the parks for breakfast.

Our kids would have soft drinks with meals but otherwise we drink water all day, they have loads of water refill stations in the park so take a couple of reusable bottles. Definitely buy snacks outside the park to tide you over between meals. There is a McDonalds in the Disney village, we nearly always eat at least one dinner there as that is significantly cheaper than eating in the parks. Souvenirs are a ridiculous price, for example ears are £30-£40, I don't advise spending much time in the shops, you could easily spend hundreds of pounds.

I definitely think that Cowboy Cookout is the best value quick-service. They serve massive portions and we can very often share a meal between two.
The adult fish and chips comes with two large pieces of fish and a heap of chips for around €12 and it’s large enough for two adults to share comfortably. Sometimes we get an extra portion of fries if we’re hungry but still works out very cheap.
Also, at some places the kids meals are big enough for an adult. Toad Hall’s kids fish and chips is quite large.
At Earl of Sandwich, you can double up your sandwich for only €4 more. It has to be the same filling, but it’s great value if two of you can agree on what filling to get!
Last time, we stayed at Newport Bay and there wasn’t a kettle in the room. We had packed coffee sachets so asked for a kettle from the concierge. It was brought to us promptly and didn’t require a deposit.

Thank you so much for the suggestions everyone! I didn’t know much about the Disney Village so will definitely be checking that out. Also @avignon1234 thank you for spotting my mistake - I meant room only!

If you’ve got your hotel, tickets and travel paid for then it’s as cheap of expensive as you make it. The food is theme park prices but if you don’t go to the mega pricey restaurants or buy tons of souvenirs it won’t cost you insane amounts.

Loads of people bring packed lunches so don't feel you need a dining plan.

We brought food over with us. Mainly cereal for breakfast, cous cous and soups, mug shots, basicslly things you can heat with a kettle. Then a hot food item in the day if else felt we needed it.

We have just done the same thing - came back last week, also staying at Cheyenne - although our “kids” are 14 and 22 (!) Basically just eat in the village at the fast food places as much as you can - although even these are more expensive than usual, for example a typical McDonald’s for all of us at home comes to around £35-40, in the village it was around £54. Earl of sandwich is good. There’s a pret at the station that has nice breakfast stuff. Take water bottles so you can refill them. We did have a meal at Walt’s and ate at Pyms as a treat which was nice but I felt they were hugely overpriced for the quality of the food - Walt’s came to round £220 for us all.

Also - just keep in mind there is no fridge at Cheyenne and the chances of the ice machine working are very hit and miss so don’t go stocking up on loads of food from the supermarket etc as you won’t have anywhere to keep it if it needs to be chilled.