Wendy

Our family will be in Europe this coming summer and I'd appreciate any thoughts on visiting Eurodisney, including costs. Many thanks!

Art

Hi Wendy, In my humble opinion, I couldn't imagine spending my valuable time visiting a DisneyWorld when in France or any foreign country. There is just so much to see and do that you can't do or see here. Tempered with this is the fact that I live in So Cal and Disney land is at my door step. <BR>I wish you a great trip. <BR>

cecille

Hello Wendy, <BR> <BR>I went to visit euro disney last august and i was very disapponted. If you have been to the disneys in USA, I suggest to spend your time somewhere else. It is very small in size and "corny." It did not give me the "lift" when I was there. There is no magic at all. <BR>sorry to disappoint you. I suggest to visit castles and explore Paris, I think you'll enjoy it the most. Get a Lonely Planet travel guide. <BR>

mast

Hi Wendy, <BR> <BR>If you are travelling with children and never been to any disneyland before, then I think it is still worth visiting Eurodisney, of course provided you have cover all other more interesting sights. But for kids, disney might be more interesting than palace or castle. Though the size is much more smaller, but i think it is just nice for a day trip, after all we can hardly try all the rides in disneyland. <BR> <BR>if you do decide to go, don't miss the grand parade, which is the highlight of the day event. <BR> <BR>mast

Ed

Please don't take this personally Wendy. It's just that yours is the "nth" that has come along. <BR> <BR>There's no American (or North American) living farther from a DisneyWorld/Land than 2,500 miles. The majority live within 1,500 miles. Please, don't go to Europe, 3,500 or more miles away on what, for many, will be a once in a lifetime trip and visit a NorthAmerican 'attraction'. <BR> <BR>Ever wonder why Europeans consider so many North American travelers boors? <BR> <BR>A visit to Eurodisney is certainly not required because there's so little to do in Europe. A continent as large as the United States, and with tons more history has more than enough of interest to fill travelers' time for months and months. <BR> <BR>Concerned the kids might need a break from so much art and history? Take them to a &gt;&gt;European&lt;&lt; theme park. Doesn't France have a park or two built around the Asterix theme? There seem to be Legolands everywhere. <BR> <BR>Many countries have the equivalent of Switzerland's Swissminiatur or Ballenberg Outdoor Museum. There are lots of &gt;&gt;European&lt;&lt; things to do in Europe. <BR> <BR>North America has much of interest and value for tourists. Let's see it ... in North America! When we have the time and money to travel farther afield to Europe, let's spend our time visiting things that help us understand Europe and Europeans better. <BR> <BR>Ed

Jane

We've travelled in Europe with our son and, to reward him for tolerating a lot of sightseeing that is more adult oriented, we try and take him to at least one foreign amusement park (if our visit is long enough). Actually, it always turns out to be quite interesting. In Cornwall, we went to an amusement park that had a bomber plane from WWII that you could get into and sit in the pilot seat - work the pedals etc. And a very old-fashioned wooden slide like the ones they used to have at Coney Island. Very scary - our son loved it. <BR> <BR>Amusement parks in other countries are quite different, actually. If you have kids (and the time) I recommend you try one. But I wouldn't bother with an American clone - I agree with the others. Don't waste your precious time abroad.

nomail

It might be amusing to see the French version of Disneyland. I've never been to any of them so I'm just speculating. I'm sure everyone on this board will disagree with me, but so what if she wants to go to Eurodisney? I don't think it's fair to call her a bore! <BR>Wendy, have you and your family been to Europe before? Do you have a special attraction for amusement parks? Are your kids pushing to go to Eurodisney? If you tell the Fodors crowd that you don't plan on eating at McDonalds everyday, maybe they'll cut you some slack.

Ed

Dear nomail: <BR> <BR>(Oh my, another of those who stand behind their opinion in anonymity ... usually with good reason.) <BR> <BR>Who called Wendy a bore? <BR> <BR>I suggested many Europeans consider Americans boors. (I've no information about how they feel about Wendy.) <BR> <BR>A boor is a person of little refinement; a peasant. For example, someone who can't read or has no vocabulary. <BR> <BR>Ed

ilisa

Well Ed, aren't you the snob? When did not being able to read and boorish behavior become synonymous?

elvira

Nomail, Wendy said she would "appreciate any thoughts on visiting Eurodisney" and that's what people posted. Would you prefer we all thought the same way, and produced something like "oh yes Eurodisney is a great idea; stay at the Disney hotel, and spend at least 3 days at this lovely theme park to truly appreciate it. Sorry, no idea on costs as we've not had the wonderful opportunity to spend our European vacation at this fantastic resort"? Maybe posters need to clarify what they want "post only positive comments" or "EVERY response is appreciated". That way, no one would be hurt.

Will The

Is that the real Ed or the nasty Ed impersonator talking? If this is the real Ed, he isn't very nice. Real Ed, if that's really you, you are getting mighty pompous. But I suspect it's just the Ed impersonator, and I'll give the real Ed the benefit of the doubt.

Ed

In the middle of a month-long whirlwind "If this is Tuesday, it must be Belgium" European tour in 1992, we spent a day at EuroDisney. It may have changed in the last 8 years, but it was small and mostly empty on the December day when we went. So there were no or minimal lines for the rides. It was a small replica of the Disneyland / world in the States. For students studying abroad and away from home for a year, it was a fun piece of Americana. I might someday take my kids to Eurodisney, only because it's hard to imagine spending a week of precious vacation time in Orlando.

Simi

I find it amusing that so many people see Disney as "American"-- Disney is loved around the world. I have family in France and a trip to Eurodisney was always part of a birthday celebration-- taking the child and a few friends out for the day. The same goes for the Disney Store on the Champs D'Elysses. Its just fun-- lighten up.

Sue

To answer your question, Cadogan guide says high season adult fare is 210FF, 170 for kids 3-11. Take RER A4 Marne-la-Vallee/Chessy. (And I think it is now called Disneyland) The park is 1/5 the size of Paris. On a student trip to Paris, one science teacher and her friend went and enjoyed it a lot. Steves says to avoid Sat, Sun, Wed, and school holidays. "My kids went ducky over it." <BR> <BR>Cadogan recommends, especially for older kids, Parc Asterix with mockups from the cartoon characters and rides (esp.rollercoaster) scarier than "Eurodisney" (I guess Cadogan can't decide on the name), linked by shuttle bus Courriers Isle-de-France from Charles de Gaulle 1 Airport; 210 FF, 170 FF. <BR> <BR>There is also Cite des Sciences et de l'Industrie at la Villette on the north edge of Paris (cl. Mon) 45FF (Metro La Villette) with all kinds of gizmos & hyperactive exhibits, working model of the bathyscape, experiments with sight, sound & photography you can do, ecological exhibits where you can foul up the environment yourself, talking robots, Planetarium shows, Lumiere cinema, etc. <BR> <BR>Hope this helps.

nancy

About time that Wendy got a helpful reply to her posting (thanks to Sue) <BR>I agree with "Will the REal Ed..." <BR>I certainly hope this was the "nasty" ED, and not the real person who posts such helpful replies. <BR>Maybe Eurodisney is not for everyone, and maybe one may even think it is a colossal waste of time, but <BR>1-we are all entitled to choose our own places of recreation ,or as my mother always said"To each is own" <BR>2- One should be able to disagree *without* resorting to making personal /snide comments . <BR>3- I agree with the poster, if one wants to go to a "Disney" type park and one is close by, why not go? <BR>Rather than waste travel time by going to Orlando. <BR>We took the children to Florida 4 yrs. ago to visit my parents. <BR>Because we were only 2 hrs drive away, we went to Orlando, but chose to go to SeaWorld,( rather than Disney) <BR>I certainly would not have gone to Florida (from Vermont) for the specific purpose of seeing an amusement park, but being so close.... <BR>Wendy, have fun on your trip this summer! <BR>nancy <BR>

christina

This place is called Disneyland Paris, not Eurodisney, has been for years, and has its own web site coincidentally at www.disneylandparis.com (!!!) where you can find out fees, etc. Personally, my thoughts are the only worse idea is that of Ed's to visit Legoland instead as I think manufactured corporate food, characters, shopping, etc, is not a good use of one's time in Europe, US or any country. They don't have a Legoland in France, anyway, and Legoland is not superior to Disneyland. I think Disneyland is easier to get to than Parc Asterix which is based on a really lame French cartoon character (really, you should see it) that your kids probably will not much like, but if all you want is scary rides, Parc Asterix is supposed to have them. I think you can get there by a bus at the CDG RER stop, but I am not sure. I'll tell you, there is a local French kiddie park (called Jardins d'Acclimation?)near the Les Sablons metro stop on the west side of Paris (Neuilly suburb) that might be fun and more of a foreign cultural experience if your kids are younger. The plus is that there is an excellent French history/folklore musem right next to it, which is very interesting (historical artifacts of typical French life, rooms set up of typical homes in various regions, French historic costumes, etc, it is very interesting)--so you can have the playground entertainment and combine it with a cultural experience. That museum is much more interesting in terms of French history and culture than the Carnavalet IMO, and kids will probably like it more than most fine arts museums. It's not hard to get to, a short walk from the Les Sablons stop south, as I recall (about 1/4 mile). Actually, although I don't go for themepark stuff at all (my sister dragged me to Disneyland once when I lived in Los Angeles and she made me go with her when she visited, I would not even go to these places as a child), I would kind of like to go to the French audiovisual themepark in Poitiers and think I might next summer (to SW of Paris). It looks more interesting than Disneyland (more thoughts, since yoiu asked, are that I hate that entire company and everything it stands for since Walt died; they are not very nice employers, either, I will tell you, as I've known people who worked for them at the corporate headquarters and parents with kids on their shows, mouseketeers or whatever they are called, who are really taken advantage of) -- anyway, I digress, check out Futuroscope as a French theme park, it is further and may cost a bit if you don't have a railpass, although you can get to Poitiers by TGV in 2 hrs---www.futuroscope.com

Nasty Ed

I'm the nasty ed, and it wasn't me who posted that message. I thought we had gotten rid of the "real Ed", which was my goal when I started this whole campaign regarding ed's website promos. Ed's straightened up in regards to his ruthless website marketing, but he apparently is suffering withdrawls and is in a bad mood.

I went

Halfway through our honeymoon in Paris several years ago, we went to Disneyland Paris. It was a nice break from foreign culture - and we're seasoned adult travelers. It was good to order a cheesburger. I think American kids would greatly enjoy something American after being subjected to strange food,language, museums,etc. Don't get me wrong - I think foreign travel is great for children, but I also realize their limits are somewhat less than that of adults. Are there better things to do in Paris with your time? That depends on you - not on what other posters think. We chose Disneyland Paris over Versailles! On subsequent trips, we've never gone to Versailles - but I imagine we'll get there someday. We enjoyed our day at Disney. We brought back t-shirts for my niece and nephew and step-kids. They all thought it was so cool. POSTERS - keep in mind that a child's perception of what's great differs greatly from what adults enjoy. If it's a family vacation, do things that everyone can enjoy. We had fun enjoying the "same" Disney stuff we all know from Florida and California but with a French twist. Sorry - I don't remember costs.

browser

Check out "Just returned from 8 days in Paris" for more info on kids & parks.