Disneyland Paris on a Budget

applepudding · 2009-05-03T13:24:12+00:00

We are going to Disneyland Paris for a couple of days at May half term. We are taking our car over and staying in a chalet which we understand is about a mile from the Park. We have a two day pass to the Park, then plan to spend a day in Paris. Any tips please? Particularly with regard to timings of visiting the park, what to do when, and how not to spend too much money!! We were planning on taking food over with us, and taking a picnic in a backpack, but I hear that you are not allowed to do that. Do they search you at the gates? Also, tips please on making the most of our one day in Paris with 7 year old, when we are probably all feeling rather tired. We are planning to take a train in from the nearest station although have not looked in to this yet.

scienceteacher · 03/05/2009 14:27

ISTR a picnic area when we were in DP (ten years ago) - which would imply you could take your own food.

Things might have changed, however.

Leslaki · 03/05/2009 19:53

applepudding [wave] I'll be there too!!! We're staying in acmpaite near DLP and driving in! Fully intend to take picnic as I have been twice and have always 'smuggled' food in. Just say DCs are on special diet or something. Worst case, they take it off you and you have to buy something! As I say I've done it for 8 days in the past (2 x 4 day visits) and NEVER been searched. Think everyone does it. Just don't be too obvious tho! Re timings, you'll get an info leaflet when you go to the park on your first day - think it's about 1000 but do use fast pass as it does help on popular rides - and trake waterproofs with you as it means you can go on water rides even when weather isn't too hot!

We are also planning a quick trip into Paris - basically to look at Eiffel Tower and that's it!!! Took the DCs to venice last year and they moaned so not gonna stress about an educational visit!!

Leslaki · 03/05/2009 19:53

applepudding [wave] I'll be there too!!! We're staying in acmpaite near DLP and driving in! Fully intend to take picnic as I have been twice and have always 'smuggled' food in. Just say DCs are on special diet or something. Worst case, they take it off you and you have to buy something! As I say I've done it for 8 days in the past (2 x 4 day visits) and NEVER been searched. Think everyone does it. Just don't be too obvious tho! Re timings, you'll get an info leaflet when you go to the park on your first day - think it's about 1000 but do use fast pass as it does help on popular rides - and trake waterproofs with you as it means you can go on water rides even when weather isn't too hot!

We are also planning a quick trip into Paris - basically to look at Eiffel Tower and that's it!!! Took the DCs to venice last year and they moaned so not gonna stress about an educational visit!!

Ohforfoxsake · 03/05/2009 20:03

Where are you staying? In a Disneyland hotel (make lunch from the breakfast buffet). Take snacks, fill water bottles up from the hotel. Look out for child eats free with an adult meal offers (although the food is crap, and you start thinking £40 to feed two of you is a bargain!) Take healthy snacks, but don't go over-board. Food is fuel there, and that's all. We took a backpack every day, they did have a look, but it wasn't a problem. Be respectful and discreet. Some people were carrying armfuls of food from breakfast and filling up drinks bottles.

We managed for 4 days on breakfast buffet lunch, homemade muffins, fruit snaffled from the dinner buffet (we were at the Santa Fe). We gave each child 10 euros which they could spend on the last day.

Restaurants in the Disney Village were more expensive, although the childs meal deal in the Rainforest Cafe wasn't too bad (10 euros I think).

We went with our 4 children so were really watching our money.

I'm sure your 7 yo will love the Studios, which is a bit less full-on, and lots of things are included (such as the tram ride, stunt show, some shows, Honey I shrunk the Audience was a big hit). If you are going for two days, you can easily spend one full day in the part and one in he Studios. We thought we'd do a day in Paris, but Disney sucked us in and we didn't want to leave.

Leslaki · 03/05/2009 21:47

oh, I'm staying on a campsite!!! type

Original poster

applepudding · 03/05/2009 23:23

We aren't actually staying in a Disney hotel - we have booked a chalet (the info says its a hotel but the picture shows it to be like little chalets/lodges in the ground with a kitchen area) and it is about a mile from the DLP site.

Leslaki - do you actually drive your car from the campsite and park it on the DLP site each day? We were assuming parking would be difficult and we'd have to get a shuttle bus or something.

Yes I think our Paris trip will amount to a quick look at the Eifel Tower - and maybe a nice lunch somewhere! DH has ideas about the Louvre - I think probably not!

OP posts:

MaryMotherOfCheeses · 03/05/2009 23:25

There's been a few threads on this, and I'm getting three separate sandwich boxes instead of our normal family one so that we can pretend we have no snacks on us at all.

Nope, no lunch here.

SlightlyMadSwineFlu · 03/05/2009 23:30

We went last summer. Didn't see any evidence to prevent you taking food in - BUT you cannot eat inside the main parks. There is however a designated picnic area just before the main entrance. You could - if you were worried leave food in teh car - but depening on where you park it could be a bit of a hike to fetch it.

If you do have any meals on the park the cheapest places were in teh Disney village area (which is just outside the park too). We got a massive macDonalds meal for not much more than we would have paid in teh UK and it had extra's like yoghurts and stuff automatically (although the £ was slightly stronger then). There are also a couple of other places to eat in the Disney village including an "olde english tavern"

MaryMotherOfCheeses · 03/05/2009 23:31

I'd heard about security staff checking your bags for food as you go in...

SlightlyMadSwineFlu · 03/05/2009 23:31

Oh and take your car to teh park. It wasn't any more expensive than the shuttle bus and you have freedom to leave when you want rather than waiting in a queue for a hideously packed bus.

SlightlyMadSwineFlu · 03/05/2009 23:33

We didn't get searched so can't comment on what they were looking for.

I don't eacall seeing any signs saying you can't take food in - just that you can't eat it in.

MaryMotherOfCheeses · 03/05/2009 23:36

LOL, in that case I will also take an umbrella and eat sandwiches surreptitiously underneath it.

Do you think they'll notice?

MaryMotherOfCheeses · 03/05/2009 23:37

Gawd, so they charge for the car park. It is quite annoying, given the price of the tickets to get in.

SlightlyMadSwineFlu · 03/05/2009 23:41

IIRC it was about 8 Euros for car park - whcih was cheaper than it would have been for 5 on the shuttle bus.

And we travelled by a conveinent route in the comfort of our car and left when we were ready without wrestling with thousands of others to get on bus.

When you get to teh park eneterence there is a garden courtyard thing. Off the garden/courtyard thing is the 2 parks, the village and the picnic area - so it really isn't a hastle to use the picnic area - just swap parks at lunchtime. The only thing you an't do is combineing queing time and eating time.

SlightlyMadSwineFlu · 03/05/2009 23:42

mummypig · 04/05/2009 00:27

We went just before Easter. They do check your bags on the way in but we always took food in (little rolls from the breakfast) and our own water and the bag searchers never said anything. I rather think they are more likely to be looking for bombs than picnics.

We told the ds's that we would buy them stuff on the last day, so we avoided the Disney stores until then and any time they said 'oooh I want one of those' we just asked them to remember it for the last day.

I think I agree with SlightlyMadSwineFlu. Once you are in, if you are aware of the food and souvenir situation then the good thing is you don't have to pay extra for anything else. And the rides are very well designed.

For timings etc take a look at this website before you go. The Guidebook section has a description of each ride, with ratings for different ages, and an idea of wait times. Then you can start to think about which rides/attractions your kids will want to go on and which ones take longest. I found it really useful for drawing up a plan of attack. Before we arrived, I knew which 'lands' we were going to visit first and which rides in each land. There was still room for spontaneity like buying waffles (our only food indulgence) and dp and the boys going on Buzz Lightyear's Laser Blast twice back-to-back! But I felt happy that we wouldn't miss out on anything we really wanted to see.

If you are going to eat at the Disney restaurants I thought Billy Bob's Buffet (in Disney Village) was a good deal. The boys ate loads, so we got our money's worth, and we didn't have to wait for service. A big bonus with three fidgety and hungry children. I loved the salad counter - a big change from the 'fast food' burgers and chips etc. in lots of the other restaurants. And dp loved the chilli and the chicken wings! Iirc it opens at 6.15 pm and we were there pretty soon after that. We thought it was dead, but within another 15 mins it was almost full, mostly with English people. So I would advise to get there early.

Original poster

applepudding · 04/05/2009 00:59

Mummypig - thanks for link - this looks really useful/helpful.

OP posts:

mummypig · 04/05/2009 01:04

Glad to be of assistance

Directskiandsun · 04/05/2009 09:23

We were there last July. As others say, rucksacks etc are checked on the way in, but food and water wasn't commented on (we just had some cereal bars and a couple of pieces of fruit). We ate late lunch in a big ccavernous place (sorry,can't remember the name) and the food was OK but not more than that, and pretty expensive. One thing to think of, if you have a baby or toddler with you, if it's a hot day a it was when we were there, there didn't seem to be much shade and despite high factor sun cream, we were all pretty pink by the end of the day!

lottiejenkins · 04/05/2009 09:32

This is the guide i bought to go to DLP at Christmas!!
www.amazon.co.uk/Brits-Guide-Disneyland-Resort-2008-2009/dp/0572034059/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=124142 5874&sr=8-1

It is excellent!!

lottiejenkins · 04/05/2009 09:36

I forgot to add if you are taking anyone with special needs with you the park is excellent with regard to everything, the carer of the person with special needs goes in for free and on most rides you go to the front of the queue by way of the exit........... The Tower of Terror was terrifying!!!!

SlightlyMadSwineFlu · 04/05/2009 10:51

look carefully at the rides you are going on. There are a couple which we queued for ages for Dumbo's flying elephants was the notable one which we wished we hadn't. It is essentially a flying elephant ride which you can go on in the UK. Unless Dumbo is your DCs best character in the world I would recommend going on some of the rides which you can't do at UK theme parks IYSWIM.

Obviously you don't want to impose too many restrictions on you DCs but it is something to think about - you won't get on everything so be selective.