1000's of Questions on travelling to and being at DLP

[CarolynU]

My DD's boyfriend very kindly booked her a surprise 2 night stay at DLP this June. It is the first weekend in June. Now they are not seasoned independent travellers. They always come with us to Florida, so they need much help and guidance.
1. Apparently they have to change trains at Lille. Is this easy for non French speakers?
2. They are staying in the Santa Fe, and have breakfast included. Does this need to be booked in advance, and if so how?
3.They have a 2 day pass, but are only at the resort for about 1 and a half days. Should they try to spend the first whole day at The Studios as this is new, and only the remaining half at the MK as this may be similar to Florida, or the other way around?
4. Is it easy to park hop? What is the transportation like? Or do you walk?
5.Is fast pass available at both, one or neither park?
6. They will be on a tight budget. Any eating suggestions please?
7.What are must do's and perhaps only do's if you have time? They love thrill rides.
All other info would be greatfully received, as this has cost John £600, and it seems a lot of money for not much time, so I am looking to Dissers for help. Thank you. Carolyn

 

[keith&carol]

Hi Carolyn,
We went to DLP last Sept for a short break via Eurostar & had a great time. We didn't have to change at Lille but everything was so easy I'm sure they won't have a problem. There will be lots of other people heading for the same place .
We stayed at the Newport Bay but imagine the system is similar for all the Disney Hotels. When we had checked in there was another desk for breakfast reservations. They gave us a ticket for a time slot of our choosing then you just queue the next morning for the first available table. The train Station & both Parks are so close together it is amazing and makes things very easy to just move from one to the other.
We haven't been to the new Park yet although it was almost ready when we were there . As I understand it the Studios are not big yet so would probably be good for the first half-day.
Magic Kingdom is probably a bit bigger than Orlando. The Indiana Jones ride is not to be missed if you are a thrill seeker.
There are loads of places selling fast food, baguettes, baked goods etc both in the Parks and the Village so eating out need not cost a fortune.
Hope this helps a bit. I'm sure Rob will be able to give you more info as he is a DLP expert,
Regards,
Carol

 

[rob@rar.org.uk]

Changing trains at Lille is very straightforward, when we did it we got off one train and crossed the other side of the platform to get on our next train. There are indicator boards on the platform which will tell the train's destination.

You can reserve a time for breakfast at the Santa Fe - you do this when you arrive at the hotel. As soon as your DD checks in she should go to the concierge desk and reserve a time for each day at the hotel (not just the next day).

In terms of time allocation the Disneyland park (it's not called the Magic Kingdom at Paris) should take up most time. Its far bigger, with more attractions. Fastpass tickets are available on attractions at both of the parks.

Parking hopping is easy: the entrances to the two parks are about 400 yards apart! There is shuttle bus from the Santa Fe to the parks, but it is only about 15 minutes easy walk through Disney village and past some of the other hotels.

Thrill ride must do's are Space Mountain, Indiana Jones and Big Thunder in the Disneyland park, and Rock n Roller Coaster in the Walt Disney Studios. Your DD should also make sure that she sees the stunt show in the Studios - it's brilliant. I think that many of the rides in the Disneyland park are an improvement on their counterparts in Orlando, although sadly the Walt Disney Studios is only a pale reflection of the Disney/MGM Studios (for the time being at least).

Foodwise I think that Anette's Diner in Disney Village is a good bet for lunch. It's one step up from typical fastfood, and prices are reasonable. Best to eat early or late as queues can get bad. This applies to most of the restaurants around the resort. For an unusual burger try Buzz Lightyear's Pizza restaurant - it does a pizzaburger where a pizza base is used instead of a sesame bun. Yummy, at least in my opinion.

Regards

Rob

 

[Truly]

The food in the park and the Disney Village is pretty basic "fast" food, but is not too expensive, (or appetising!). The food in the hotels is more..er.."French" and expensive! For sweeties, crisps and drinks, I would recommend using the shop at the filling station by the Santa Fe.
The parks are nowhere near the scale of WDW. I think Disneyland, Paris is smaller than Alton Towers...(Rob will be able to put me right on this one!). It's just a short ten minute tap dance from the Santa Fe to the parks (I walk faster than Rob!).

 

[louisel]

We have just come back from a three night stay at the santa fe. The walk to the parks from the hotel is very quick, staightforward and pleasant. We "did" everything in the new studios park in less than one day and spent the rest of the time in the disneyland park which has more than a days worth of entertainment.

Just a tip, but I would recommend that you try to book into one of the other hotels. I didn't have any experience of the hotels and found the santa fe looked a bit like like a south london social housing project. On the walk to the park we walked past the other hotels and we would certainly have stayed in one of these had we known (we live in the east end of london and appreciate a bit of greenary!!!) how much nicer their grounds and buildings looked. Saying that, if you don't mind where you lay your head and are planning to be busy all the time then the santa fe is fine, clean and fairly efficient.


Louisel

 

[CarolynU]

A big thank you to everyone who replied, and we now have the much needed information upon which to base the planning. I am sure that they will have a wonderful time, and I feel more re-assured that they will actually reach their destination rather than being stranded at Lille, which John thought was pronounced Lilly bless him!! Carolyn

 

[rob@rar.org.uk]

A good website to browse through is http://www.dlp-guidebook.de/index_e.htm

Regards

Rob

 

[CarolynU]

Rob. thank you very much. My word that DLP website will keep them out of mischief for a while. I should think that there is every bit of information that they will need. Carolyn

 

[KayleeUK]

We stayed at the Santa Fe and just to let you know if was great for what we needed

Kaylee

 

[CarolynU]

Thanks Kaylee, John was a little bit concerned that maybe he had made the wrong choice of hotel, but it was the most that he could afford, so this will reassure him. Carolyn