I never expected in my lifetime I would have the opportunity to visit a Disney park outside the US. But when my husband, Mike, and I planned a 25 year anniversary trip to the UK, I noticed that Disneyland Paris was just a short, 2.5 hour train ride from London. Once I had that in my mind, I knew I had to make it happen.
I couldn’t help but compare every detail of Disneyland Paris to the parks I know and love: DCA and Disneyland. In France, there are also two parks: Disneyland Park and Walt Disney Studios Park. Each has can’t miss attractions so it’s worth visiting both parks.
I found a ticket deal through the Disneyland Paris website which allowed us to get an adult one-day park hopper for $86 a ticket (a one day Park Hopper ticket at Disneyland costs between $154-$199). There were some minor catches- tickets could not be purchased same day and had to be printed out.
As it turns out, Disney makes it really easy to get there by train. Eurostar travels between London and Disneyland resort frequently and tickets are pretty affordable. Our were $78, one way (with better planning I might have been able to get round trip tickets for the same price). The Disneyland station is literally right at the entrance of the parks. It was comparable to walking between Disneyland and DCA. There was security between the station and the entrance, but rather than manual bag checks, they use airport style machines which moves things along quickly.
On a practical level, visiting Disneyland Paris felt like a time warp- back to the days when park tickets were kind of affordable, restaurant and hotel reservations were only available by phone, and we relied exclusively on paper fastpasses. While there were designated smoking sections, my experience is that was more of a guideline than a rule. The Paris Parks feel more spacious, with wide walkways and each land connecting easily. There were lots of areas for little kids to run around. But I missed the way our Disneyland goes all out for holidays. I only saw one Halloween decoration and it was kind of tucked away.
During our visit, Disneyland Park was open 10:00am - 9:00pm and Walt Disney Studios Park was open 10:00am - 6:00 pm. That meant we needed a wish list and a plan in order to hit every ride on our list.
Over the next few weeks I'll share our ride experiences, particularly the rides that are unique to Disneyland Paris. I'll also let you know what I ate and give you the full scoop on my dream dinner at Bistrot Chez Remy.