Im a solo traveller who visits
Disneyland California every year and I have done 3 visits to Disneyland Paris.
Many USA visitors under estimate Disneyland Paris in terms of the amount of time to spend. Yes some rides and attractions are in both the USA and Disneyland Paris BUT the Disneyland Paris versions are different VERSIONS. For one, the ride audios are in French and they hace different scenes etc etc.
When I go to Disneyland Paris, I always book a package, stay onsite and have 3 full days in the Parks.
This is the info I always post for first time USA visitors to Disneyland Paris
1. There are 6 onsite hotels, all guests at these hotels have access to the early openings in both parks. Early opening is from 8.30am to 10am. 10am is general opening time
Disneyland Hotel
This is the premium priced deluxe hotel. It is located at the entrance to the main park. It is Victoriana themed
Hotel New York
This would be the premium price moderate hotel. It is located after Disney Village and is the nearest to Disney Village. It is themed as a Manhatten / New York building. It would be a 10 minute walk to the main park entrance OR you can take the free shuttle bus
Hotel Sequoia Lodge
This would be the moderate hotel. It is located after Disney Village, past Hotel New York and half way along Lake Disney. It is themed like a Californian Red Wood Forest, similar to the Grand Californian in Disneyland California. It would be a 15 minute walk to the park entrance OR you can take the free shuttle bus
Hotel NewPort Bay
This would be the moderate hotel. It is located after Disney Village, past Hotel New York and Sequoia Lodge, at the end of Lake Disney. It is themed like a Newport Bay Yacht Club. It would be a 20 minute walk to the park main entrance OR you can take the free shuttle bus
Hotel Cheyenne
This would be the budget hotel. It is located after Disney Village and past Hotel New York. It is themed like Toy Story / Sherriff Woody, The Wild West. It would be a 20 minute walk to the main park entrance OR you can take the free shuttle bus
Hotel Santa Fe
This would be the budget hotel. It is located after Disney Village and past Hotel New York and then past Hotel Sequoia Lodge. It would be a 20 minute walk to the main park entrance OR you can take the free shuttle bus
2. There are 5 partner hotels. These are located at the edge of Disney property and are not walkable to the parks. They have a free shuttle buss. Guests at these hotels do not have access to early open and can oly enter the parks at general opening at 10am
Hotel Kyraid
Magic Circus
Dream Castle
Explorers
B and B Hotel
some things you need to know about Disneyland Paris which are different to the American Parks
- You dont have to book using the website for your country. Disneyland Paris has different deals and offers on the different country websites. Most of us regulars would advise AGAINST booking with the American site as it is by far the most expensive
- The other country websites to check are
- http://www.disneylandparis.ie/
http://www.disneylandparis.co.uk
http://www.disneylandparis.fr
http://www.disneylandparis.de
http://www.disneylandparis.it
http://www.disneylandparis.be
http://www.disneylandparis.nl
- Disneyland Paris does not mail anything in the post. You get a confirmation email which you bring with you to checkin
- When you book direct with Disneyland Paris you are booking a hotel and park hopper tickets package
- Your park tickets are valid for both arrival day and departure day
- You can book direct with Disney through any of the websites. When you book through the website you will pay the full amount at the time of booking
- You can also book direct with Disney by phone. To call Disneyland Paris and not have to pay the international phone charges, just call the regular phone number for Walt Disney World in Florida and ask to be transferred to Disneyland Paris.
- When you book direct with Disney by phone you pay a 15% deposit and the balance is payable 30 or 60 days before arrivial, I cant remember which
- When you have booked you will get a confirmation email with your itinerary, you will need this email to check in
- Once you have your confirmation number you need to go to the website / country you booked with, not the country you live in. You will need to create a new MY DISNEY ACCOUNT on that website
- When you log in to your new My Disney Account you will see your itinerary. If you have a balance to pay you will see an online payment form.
- To pay your balance you can either phone again or pay online
- Restaurant ADR can only be booked over the phone. Just repeat step 8 and ask for Disneyland Paris Dining Reservations.
- Disneyland Paris Restaurant ADR open 60 days from arrival date
- Disneyland Paris does not have Magic Bands or Fatspass ++. The Fastpass are the paper ones which you get on the day at the machines beside the rides.
If you are flying into Charles de Gaulle airport, the best way to get to Disneyland Paris is to take the independent bus shuttle
https://magicalshuttle.co.uk/ which is recommended by Disneyland Paris. This bus has a departure area in a corridor linking Terminal 2F and 2E and drops and picks up at the front door of each of the onsite and partner Disney hotels. I have used this bus multiple times. The journey time from Charles de Gualle to Disney property is approx 1 hour. Tickets are bought in advance online and you get a confirmation email with a bar code. You show this barcode to the driver. It does not matter if your flight is delayed and you miss the bus you booked, you can just get on the next available bus.