MelissaBeckoff

We will be in Paris for 2.5 days in September. We are from the US. IS going to Disneyland a good idea or is it better to pass?
melissa

walkinaround

it's kind of hard for anyone here to answer that for you with the information given.

although i know many french people (and others) who enjoy taking their children there, it is not a top tier paris area attraction. with just 2.5 days in paris, most people would say that it is not worth it.

Photobear

I am a big DISNEY fan, but with only 2.5 days in Paris, I would stay in Paris.

We are going to France for 3 weeks and 2 of the 3 we are staying in Paris and that is the only way I would go to Disneyland Paris.
It takes 2 full days to see the 2 parks and Paris has so much to offer...Only you can make the choice.

fluffnfold

I'm another HUGE Disney parks fan, and I would also say "Pass". If you've been to DisneyWorld in Florida, Paris Disneyland will pale in comparison. On the other hand, if you have only seen Disneyland in California, you may be more satisfied. But I still regret spending the day at Paris Disneyland at the expense of seeing something more uniquely French (our alternate choice for an out-of-the city day trip was Monet's Giverny, so I REALLY regret it). You don't say whether you have children; obviously if you do, that will affect your decision because it will make your children happy. There's also a large (high-end) outlet mall near Paris Disneyland, so if you are a shopper, you could also do that in combination with the park. But I still say forgo that Disney experience.

missypie

Not with only 2.5. days in Paris UNLESS (1) you have been to Paris many times before, OR (2) you are traveling with kids and this is 2.5 days in the middle of a 30 day European trip, OR (3)you are an utter Disney maniac and are trying to visit all of their parks in the world.

We spent 2 days at DLP, but we were in Paris for 8 days.

janisj

Having been to Paris several times I finally made it to DL in March (only because my traveling companion had free passes).

It was fun. But to take a day (it does take a full days since you have to take the train there/back) for DL when you only have a couple of days in Paris - absolutely no way!

You won't even have time to barely scratch the surface of the wonderful sites in Paris - don't even consider DL.

AnthonyGA

Disneyland Paris is a great place to go with kids … but not if you only have 2½ days to visit Paris itself.

Incidentally, Disneyland Paris <i>is</i> a top tier attraction: it gets about as many visitors each year as Paris itself does (25,000,000 people each).

Lily

We went with our two boys on a three week stay in Paris in 2003 and I still wouldn't recommend it. We had been to both the Orlando and Anaheim Disney's and enjoyed both but in Paris it didn't thrill us at all. Maybe because it's smaller but also I think that we were seeing so many fabulous things in Paris that the Disney park could not compare.

walkinaround

anthony...&quot;top tier&quot; was my own opinion (and probably most other people's) that it is not within the &quot;must do&quot; things for a short visit. this is generalising of course and she may be a diehard disney fan who visits all the parks around the world..in that case go.

anyway, your definition of &quot;top tier&quot; being based on the number of visitors makes no sense for this purpose. many beaches that are a quick day out from london or new york city get a huge number of local visitors. this does not make them a top tier attaction for international visitors. i wonder how big an attraction disney is for non-european visitors.

AnthonyGA

From what I've seen, virtually all the visitors to Disneyland Paris are European, with a high percentage of French people. Depending on the time of year, other nationalities may be represented significantly, too (Spanish, Italian, etc.). I presume that people living in Asia would go to Tokyo or Hong Kong Disneyland, and people in the Americas would go to Walt Disney World or Anaheim.

Woody

&lt;&lt; I presume that people living in Asia would go to Tokyo or Hong Kong Disneyland, and people in the Americas would go to Walt Disney World or Anaheim. &gt;&gt;

We live in Los Angeles and have annual passes to Disneyland. We have been to other Disney theme parks, including Disneyland Paris, and enjoy seeing the differences in the rides and attractions.

I suppose it would be like going to different major league ballparks for the different experience.

Woody

AnthonyGA

It has occurred to me that I should probably mention something about hotels here.

Disneyland Paris is twenty miles east of Paris itself. The easiest way to travel between the two locations is by public transport, which takes about an hour. If you are staying in one of the resort's own hotels, plan on two hours of commuting for each day you want to spend in Paris; conversely, if you're in Paris, plan on two hours of commuting for each day you want to spend at Disneyland. And make sure you're on the train back to your hotel before midnight (preferably by 11 PM or so), so that you don't miss the last train(s).

There are hotels scattered around the perimeter of the resort, with free shuttle service into the resort. If you are staying at one of these, plan on <i>four</i> hours of commuting for each day you wish to spend inside Paris, and be sure you leave Paris for your hotel by 10 PM or so, so that you don't miss the last trains and shuttles.

I've been made aware that some of the outlying hotels around the resort advertise themselves as &quot;convenient to Paris.&quot; Well, they are convenient to Paris in the same way that Santa Monica is convenient to Anaheim, so beware. The free shuttles to Disneyland only take about half an hour (waiting included), but getting into Paris is a two-hour trip.

In summary, if you plan on spending most of your time in Paris, get a hotel in Paris, and if you plan on spending most of your time at Disneyland, stay at the resort itself (or in one of the perimeter hotels, if you must). Note that the resort hotels (and to a lesser extent the perimeter hotels) are more kid-friendly than hotels in Paris.

Woody

With 2.5 days, I suggest staying at a hotel in Paris, and making a daytrip to Disneyland Paris.

From Paris, you can take the RER B to the Marne-la-Vallee Chessy station, which is right at the Disneyland main entrance. The train takes about 45-50 minutes.

Woody

AnthonyGA

It's RER A. RER B runs north-south.

Woody

That's right -- it's RER A.

margyb

We enjoyed taking the train out to disneyland paris and just doing some shopping at the outdoor area next to the train station. I wouldn't go to the park unless I had kids with me AND several weeks in Paris. Disneyland and the Florida parks are way better.

AnthonyGA

The outdoor area would be Disney Village, which has a lot of Disney-oriented shops and restaurants.

There is a very nice shopping center at the RER stop just before Disneyland that includes a &quot;village&quot; of factory outlet stores of all types. I think Disney owns it, or at least designed it; it looks very American, and it's air-conditioned.

mamaofmany

I am going to DL paris in July for one day . I have a 12 and 14 year old. I read that after 4p.m. the entrance fee is 18.00 euro. Do you know if it is true in the summer?
Thanks

john127

My wife and I spent a day there in 2000 and we'll be there with our kids next month. It's nice, much smaller that Disney World in FL, but is different and fun none the less. Unless you have kids though, there's now way I would spend 1 day out of my three in Paris to go. We'll be in Paris for a week and are only going because the kids are excited about it.

AnthonyGA

Disneyland Paris has offered evening discounts for some time. The reason they do so is that many of the full-day guests with young kids are leaving by late afternoon because the kids are too tired, and this helps them to bring in more guests. Unfortunately, it's virtually impossible to see much of the park in such a short time, so it's not necessarily a good deal for guests.

Something else to avoid is tickets that let you spend the day in Walt Disney Studios and then let you enter the Magic Kingdom after a certain time in the afternoon. This, too, works to the advantage of Disney but not in the best interest of guests, since the Magic Kingdom is much more interesting than Walt Disney Studios, the latter being only good for an hour or two.