Nettie

My family and I are off to Disneyland Paris next week. Will arrive Monday lunchtime and leave Thursday afternoon. Any ideas on planning our stay so we don't do everything all in one go and get exhausted?!!! We are staying at Newport Bay. We have two children, 8 and 13 with plenty of energy. Many thanks for any ideas.

kerouac

If your plan is to stay in the area of Disneyland the whole time (rather than visiting Paris), you can probably keep busy quite a bit of the time at the 2 parks and also the entertainment zone (Disney Village). One RER stop away is the gigantic Val d'Europe shopping mall (+ attached designer outlet mall) -- it also has a giant aquarium to visit.
If you have visited the U.S. parks, you will find the French parks much, much smaller but also more modern (since they are more recent). Disney Studios can easily be done in less than one day (although the kids will probably want to do the Aerosmith roller coaster at least six times). There is a new attraction (something about saving Buzz Lightyear) opening to coincide with the French school holidays around Easter, but it looks like you will miss it by a week.

Woody

We have stayed at the Newport Bay.

If your package includes breakfast, eat an early breakfast (but leave some time for photos with the Disney characters in the hotel lobby in the mornings), and take an early tram so you will be at the park before it opens. The lines for rides and attractions will be very short during the first hour or two.

You can avoid lines during the day by getting a Fastpass for Peter Pan, Big Thunder Mountain, Indiana Jones, Space Mountain, and Star Tours (there might be others).

Depending on time of year, the parks can get crowded in the afternoon, and that is a good time to return to the hotel for a rest, nap or swim.

If you are planning any table service meals at the parks or Disney Village, ask the hotel if they can make a reservation for you. In the park, Walt’s, Blue Lagoon Restaurant, Lucky Nugget Saloon, and Auberge de Cendrillon take reservations.

Be sure to see the live action stunt car show at the Disney Studios.

Woody

AnthonyGA

Plan on spending the majority of your time in the Disneyland theme park. Walt Disney Studios has a number of interesting attractions and it is less crowded than Disneyland, and sometimes it's less crowded for eating. Unfortunately, the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror won't be finished for a while. The one roller-coaster at the studios is good (if you like thrill rides), the stunt show is excellent, the cafeteria is good.

In the Disneyland park, try to eat once at the Blue Lagoon at least. There's enough to see for a good two days, depending on crowds and your endurance. The stage shows are quite good. All the major attractions are worth seeing, and the minor ones, too, if you have time. Don't forget the little-known places like the upper floors of Sleeping Beauty's castle, the fort at Frontierland, the huge dragon in the dungeon under the castle, the Nautilus, Casey Junior's train, the spooking tunnels and rickety bridges on Adventure Island and the Swiss Family Robinson's tree, etc.

Don't miss Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. You get a cowboy dinner and a live rodeo show, mostly in English, and kids absolutely adore it. There are real cattle and bison in the arena (and real cowboys and indians).

The Rainforest Café is a cool place to eat in Disney Village.

The Newport Bay is very nice, with two great swimming pools and a pleasing atmosphere. Balcony rooms overlooking Lake Buena Vista are especially pleasant. You can easily walk to and from the park each day.

Overall you should have great fun. The resort isolates you from the real world so it's very relaxing, and there's enough to keep kids amused for the entire stay.

Nettie

Thank you everyone for your help, your tips are most useful. Will print them off and take them with me ! Much appreciated.