Is DLP Paris worth it for an American?

[chelynnah]

Right now, and through early 2017 there are a lot of maintenance closures to get rides refurbed and ready for the 25th anniversary. BTMRR will be down the better part of a year. So if going is something your thinking about I would suggest 2017 where they are going to be pulling out all the stops for the 25th anniversary.

DLP (nor any other Disney Park) cannot ever come close to WDW, but it has a charm all its own. If you are thinking of doing it I would make it a part of a larger Paris trip. 3-4 days max is plenty to see and do everything, and then spend the rest of the trip doing Paris.

I'm originally Canadian and grew up doing WDW. When I first moved to the UK I made DH take me to DLP partly because I wanted to experience it and partly because I wanted to know if he'd enjoy it enough to then do WDW. He loved it. It has its own special charm, and having done both of course WDW is bigger and grander, but I am still looking forward to our trip to DLP in September for the half marathon for DH and hopefully another next year for the anniversary.

(Edited for typos and autocorrect errors)

 

[swooshbear]

We have to every Disney park in the world, just crossed Hong Kong off our list in December. I enjoyed Paris, particularly the Ratatouille ride and area, it's very well done.

We spent three days at DLP and ended up getting an annual pass since it wasn't that much more expensive than a 3 day ticket. We ended up going again before they expired so it worked out well.

I like how easy it is to get to the resort area from CDG airport, just a quick 10 minute TGV train ride. Getting to central Paris is a bit of haul riding the normal trains, but similar to the amount of time it takes from central Tokyo to TDL.

The one downside to DLP is the smoking, it's everywhere but that's just Europe in general. Also, the graffiti and rundown bits of the park was a little disappointing.

 

[pa. dad]

We have to every Disney park in the world, just crossed Hong Kong off our list in December. I enjoyed Paris, particularly the Ratatouille ride and area, it's very well done.

We spent three days at DLP and ended up getting an annual pass since it wasn't that much more expensive than a 3 day ticket. We ended up going again before they expired so it worked out well.

I like how easy it is to get to the resort area from CDG airport, just a quick 10 minute TGV train ride. Getting to central Paris is a bit of haul riding the normal trains, but similar to the amount of time it takes from central Tokyo to TDL.

The one downside to DLP is the smoking, it's everywhere but that's just Europe in general. Also, the graffiti and rundown bits of the park was a little disappointing.

So there are rundown areas of the park and there's graffiti inside the park?

 

[BadPinkTink]

So there are rundown areas of the park and there's graffiti inside the park?

Incorrect I was in DLP end of February 2016. DLP at the moment is going though a huge refub program and there are alot of closures and boarded up areas. Disney have tried to "theme" the hoardings as much as they can.

Since the park opened, it has had huge financial problems. This has had a knock on effect and the money has not been there for the same level of maintenance and refub as in the American. HOWEVER in my 3 visits to DLP I have NOT seen any graffiti. Yes there are areas which look a little tired, yes there are boarded up sections but its most definitely a Disney Park not a rundown ghetto.

I describe Disneyland Paris as an American style theme park with the cultural and social aspects and behaviour of Central Europe.

 

[DLPDreams]

Have to say in all my visits to DLRP, I've never seen graffitti in the parks. Yes, some areas can be a bit run down if due a refurb but as mentioned above, they are pulling out the stops to upgrade most areas (including Star Tours which someone mentioned above as being the old one - it will be bang up to date when it opens again). Many visitors to WDW and DLRP think that DLRP has charm and is beautiful. Personally, I thought WDW MK was clean and tidy, but I didn't think it had the beauty that DLRP does - the Castle is beautiful at DLRP.

I really think we shouldn't compare parks though - they all offer different aspects. DLRP is a European Disney in my eyes and we love it. And if pushed, I'd say we prefer it to WDW but then it is our 'home' Disney.

OP, I personally wouldn't visit before May onwards next year due to the refurbs (we plan a visit end May). But after April when the 25th celebrations start, most of the park will be spruced up and looking as lovely as it has in the past.

I think you can take onboard various views on here, but honestly, I think you just have to go if you want to and take it as a Disney park in it's own right - it's not trying to copy WDW or DL or any other Disney park, it's trying to be itself, in my mind anyway. If they were all exact carbon copies why visit another once you've been to one?

 

[BadPinkTink]

I think what happens and I include myself in this, as I am a regular visitor to Disneyland California, is that the American parks are held as the Disney Standard. As there are 2 American parks, which are wholly owned by Disney and generally have the same standard or maintenance and upgrades, people expect ALL Disney parks to be the same as the American Parks.

There are huge cultural and social differences between Americans and Europeans and this is reflected in the different parks.

People associate Disney with America and America with Disney. American culture and social behaviour are associated with Disney Parks, the smiley happy CM's, the "have a nice day" customer service, things people take for granted in America.

People expect WDW to be scooped up, made a bit smaller and planted in France, but thats not the reality.

Europeans LIKE Disneyland Paris because its been adapted for European tastes and culture and behaviour.

Americans LIKE Florida and California because these parks are based in their culture and tastes and behaviour.

Peoples perceptions of the parks become negative when they experience different cultures, tastes and behaviours to what they are used to.

 

[chelynnah]

I think what happens and I include myself in this, as I am a regular visitor to Disneyland California, is that the American parks are held as the Disney Standard. As there are 2 American parks, which are wholly owned by Disney and generally have the same standard or maintenance and upgrades, people expect ALL Disney parks to be the same as the American Parks.

There are huge cultural and social differences between Americans and Europeans and this is reflected in the different parks.

People associate Disney with America and America with Disney. American culture and social behaviour are associated with Disney Parks, the smiley happy CM's, the "have a nice day" customer service, things people take for granted in America.

People expect WDW to be scooped up, made a bit smaller and planted in France, but thats not the reality.

Europeans LIKE Disneyland Paris because its been adapted for European tastes and culture and behaviour.

Americans LIKE Florida and California because these parks are based in their culture and tastes and behaviour.

Peoples perceptions of the parks become negative when they experience different cultures, tastes and behaviours to what they are used to.

I think this is a fair summation, but it makes me sad because it really is such a beautiful park.

I think I said before I grew up going to WDW a few times from childhood through my 20's and loved it. When I moved to the UK I was eager to check out DLP. I knew it was done on a MUCH smaller scale, so I went with very few expectations other than to enjoy myself and introduce my non-
Disneyfied hubby (he loved the movies, but hated any theme park due to dislike of coasters). He loved it and it was perfect as his first introduction, and more to the point I fell in love with it too, for its own sake.

We took his parents a few years later. His mum was keen, his dad not so much, but went for the family holiday part of it. They had an awesome time and it completely changed his dad's perception of what Disney parks are all about.

This September will be out first time back in 8 years. I know things will be closed, but there have been a fair number of new things opened since we were last there and I can't wait, this is coming off our absolute best WDW trip last November. I'm just as excited for this short break as I am over out next WDW trip.

 

[Vaninou]

Hi,
I am Swiss and I'm living in Switzerland, and I've been many times to WDW, DL and DLP
What I can say is that I never felt the Disney Magic in Paris unfortunately...
Some rides are great, it's true. But what I really dislike is the people there.
When waiting in lines, everybody is pushing, trying to pass by... The worst part is when there is a character.
People there don't even respect small children.
I went with my son when he was 3 and I was shocked about visitors' behaviour.
The CMs are not as professional as american CMs, and even if DLP is "close" to my home I prefer to go to Orlando to feel the Magic!
Hope it helps

 

[pa. dad]

Hi,
I am Swiss and I'm living in Switzerland, and I've been many times to WDW, DL and DLP
What I can say is that I never felt the Disney Magic in Paris unfortunately...
Some rides are great, it's true. But what I really dislike is the people there.
When waiting in lines, everybody is pushing, trying to pass by... The worst part is when there is a character.
People there don't even respect small children.
I went with my son when he was 3 and I was shocked about visitors' behaviour.
The CMs are not as professional as american CMs, and even if DLP is "close" to my home I prefer to go to Orlando to feel the Magic!
Hope it helps

We went to Switzerland a few years ago as part of our Italy trip and were very impressed. We stopped in Lucerne and stayed in Zurich for a few days and thought it was beautiful and the people were very friendly to us. You guys sure can speak many languages.
We did a tiny sliver of France on that trip also- Nice and Cannes- and did notice that the people seemed many times to be less friendly than the Italians and the swiss. Very few were really rude or anything like that but they were less friendly sometimes. More professional might be a good word.
So your report is not shocking then.

 

[swooshbear]

So there are rundown areas of the park and there's graffiti inside the park?

I've only been there twice, but these were pretty recent trips, Nov 2014 and Nov 2015. I took this picture inside Sleeping Beauty Castle, it's the spiral staircase that takes you outside of the turrets. I also saw similar markings in the Peter Pan queue. I'm hoping they have fixed this or will fix this soon. It's sad to see in such a beautiful park.

 

[DLPDreams]

Actually swooshbear - I take my comment back and apologise as I do recall seeing some 'scratchings' of initials in Peter Pan in the queue too. I think the misunderstanding came because to us in the UK, graffiti is more of a drawing done with something like spray can and is very dramatic. That is what came to mind when you said it. I have also seen terrible weeds in the flower beds outside of PP too on one or two visits. I tend to overlook that sort of thing to an extent though - it's not good at all, but it's a tiny proportion of the area when you consider everything else going on around you .

 

[bookgirl]

I'm sorry to hear of recent trips that didn't seem very Disney.

I will be in London in September, as it will probably be my only trip to London I decided to tack on a day or two and go to Paris/DLP. This being said I know there will be closures. I'm only doing one day and will get a PH so that I can go see the Studios as well. I wish there would be more open but I figure it's one of those things I really will regret not experiencing if I skip it because of closures or that it is not 'as' Disney as I'm used too. So I'm going to go in with a Disney attitude and take Paris for what it is. I learned after trips to the west and east coast Disney's that you really can't compare parks they are all their own little bubble.

I will say however that this trip is my 50th Birthday present to myself and I'm a little sad that they don't do Birthday Buttons.

 

[pa. dad]

I've only been there twice, but these were pretty recent trips, Nov 2014 and Nov 2015. I took this picture inside Sleeping Beauty Castle, it's the spiral staircase that takes you outside of the turrets. I also saw similar markings in the Peter Pan queue. I'm hoping they have fixed this or will fix this soon. It's sad to see in such a beautiful park.

View attachment 162138

Yes i'd call that grafitti too. To be fair, not as big as some we see here but still a lot more than what we'd expect to see.

 

[Rommie]

Let's take our wishing glasses off for a moment: It's not Disney in America, I never was and (sadly) won't ever be. Yes it's a pretty place and you can feel a bit of the Disney magic there, but nothing compares to the grandeur of american Disney parks. If you happen to dislike HS and call it a half day park, like most americans do, you may aswell call the Disney studios in Paris a half morning park, and that is pushing it. Most of the key Disney signature attractions are missing from the european park, and you can make up any excuse you want, in the end, it's all about cutting costs, or not having the money to begin with. It does feature a few great attractions, worth experiencing for the Disney maniac, not seen anywhere around the world (Crush coaster, Ratattouile), and that was a step towards the right direction, but not enough to pixie dust you from head to toes. I'm grateful that DLP exists, I really am, but I would never, ever trade a trip to WDW for one at DLP. It doesn't even come close.

 

[chelynnah]

Let's take our wishing glasses off for a moment: It's not Disney in America, I never was and (sadly) won't ever be. Yes it's a pretty place and you can feel a bit of the Disney magic there, but nothing compares to the grandeur of american Disney parks. If you happen to dislike HS and call it a half day park, like most americans do, you may aswell call the Disney studios in Paris a half morning park, and that is pushing it. Most of the key Disney signature attractions are missing from the european park, and you can make up any excuse you want, in the end, it's all about cutting costs, or not having the money to begin with. It does feature a few great attractions, worth experiencing for the Disney maniac, not seen anywhere around the world (Crush coaster, Ratattouile), and that was a step towards the right direction, but not enough to pixie dust you from head to toes. I'm grateful that DLP exists, I really am, but I would never, ever trade a trip to WDW for one at DLP. It doesn't even come close.

I'm not sure where some of this has come from?

Nowhere has anyone on this thread said it compares to WDW or that they would trade it for WDW. Everyone has gone out of their way to say it's not. It's smaller, it's got a magic of its own, it's a 2-3 day experience or less (as are all non WDW parks), and if you were travelling 'just' for that then no. But if it's something you're including on a trip to Europe (which is something most Americans don't do every day) and you love Disney, then yes, it very well could be worth a 2-3 day detour to experience it.

I'm considering Hong Kong Disney. I don't expect it to be like WDW. They seem to only sell a max 2 day ticket, so that says a lot about the amount of time they feel is required to 'do it all'

I admit I've not been to DLP since 2008, but at no time in my visits to that point (Disney goggles or not) did I feel it was Dianey done cheap, I felt it was Disney done smaller. And since then they've added more. I'm really looking forward to my September trip even though things will be closed. And that's coming from someone who just had the most awesome 2 week WDW trip in November. I accept DLP for what it is in its own right, and have no expectations, so I don't even compare it to WDW. It's not the same league, or even close.

 

[Rommie]

I'm sorry that I felt the need to include in this thread the usual comparisons most people do, and it came out as rude. That comes from my lack of skills in debating in english. Maybe it was uncalled for, but most topics about DLP you can find people arguing it may aswel compete in the same league of DL and WDW. I even remember a parisiense stating he felt no need to include MK park in his itinerary, since it's probably "the same" park, just geographically different. I agree with you, people should really defend DLP for what it is, and again, it does have things going for it: It's close to Paris, an universally beloved city, and it does feature great unique attractions nowadays. Thank God, DLP have been in the limbo for way too long, without expansion plans, or even renovation taking place. The reason I want to bring this argument up so much is that I root for it, there isn't nothing I would like more than having a competitive Disney park located in the continent I live for the last 17 years.

 

[chelynnah]

I'm sorry that I felt the need to include in this thread the usual comparisons most people do, and it came out as rude. That comes from my lack of skills in debating in english. Maybe it was uncalled for, but most topics about DLP you can find people arguing it may aswel compete in the same league of DL and WDW. I even remember a parisiense stating he felt no need to include MK park in his itinerary, since it's probably "the same" park, just geographically different. I agree with you, people should really defend DLP for what it is, and again, it does have things going for it: It's close to Paris, an universally beloved city, and it does feature great unique attractions nowadays. Thank God, DLP have been in the limbo for way too long, without expansion plans, or even renovation taking place. The reason I want to bring this argument up so much is that I root for it, there isn't nothing I would like more than having a competitive Disney park located in the continent I live for the last 17 years.

Ah, no I understand, it wasn't rude at all, nor did I see it that way. I was genuinely confused as it sounded like you thought people were saying to go because it was as good as WDW and your view was that it wasn't. Of course I realise now that it wasn't that at all, but instead just your phrasing as English is not your first language. Your English is excellent, far better than what I can speak or write in any other language.

I agree with you to not go expecting it to be the same. Thank you for explaining better what you meant. I'm sorry I didn't read it that way the first time

 

[Ember]

We lived in LA for a year and are very familiar with the love Disneyland. DRP doesn't come close, unfortunately. We live in London now and have DRP annual passes that we won't be renewing. While the grounds are pretty, it's not worth the money at all, in my opinion. The theming of the rides is below Disney standard, with the ceilings of Pirates and Phantom Manor being obviously bare. (Compared to the artificial sky of Pirates in Disneyland, the difference is glaring and really breaks the illusion.) Restaurants and shops don't open on some days and have limited hours on other days. It's really strange to walk through the park at 8pm and have huge areas of it be closed. Then there's the CMs, who are surly and don't care. Our last visit we saw open and obvious drug use and a man peeing against a wall, in both cases within view of CM's. They did nothing. This is on top of the general level of rudeness of the guests and the constant smoking. It all feels very un-Disney.

 

[Ware Bears]

I will say however that this trip is my 50th Birthday present to myself and I'm a little sad that they don't do Birthday Buttons.

Yes it is a shame but do as I did when I celebrated my 50th birthday at DLP - I wore a birthday badge that my daughters had bought me and was constantly wished Bon Anniversaire.

 

[pa. dad]

A lot of mixed reviews to say the least.
Current thinking is if we do go to Paris and France that it might be a good way to spend a day. As many of the attractions are "duplicates" of US rides, we don;t have to do every attraction then.
We have been to all 6 US parks and the 2 FL waterparks and we have found something to like in all the Disney parks. Our least favorite of the US parks is the Hollywood studios as much is being renovated there now.
In my mind, the Paris parks don;t have to be as good as the US parks- hopefully they'd be different and enjoyable in their own ways.