micksn
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Nov 23, 2010
Got back on Thursday from a 4 night trip to Disneyland Paris. This was our 14th trip so it very much feels like home from home.
We stayed at the B&B hotel for 1 night and the Cheyenne for 3 nights.
Travel
This was our first experience travelling by Eurostar. We live in the North East so we usually fly from Newcastle or Edinburgh and have also driven with family.
We got the train from our local station to Kings Cross, but there was problems with overhead cables between York and Doncaster so we had to transfer trains and were 2 hours late. We had missed our Eurostar connection via Lille.
Eurostar were very good at putting us on the next available train to Paris as there were no more Lille trains that day. They also gave us metro tickets to use to get to DLP. It meant we arrived very late 12.30 am, but I was very impressed with the service we got from Eurostar. Our return was much more straightforward changing at Lille. The Eurostar train was a little more run down and there was no coffee in the buffet car!
I think it will be back to Easyjet next time - just because it's easier from where we live.
Hotels
We were only in the B&B hotel for 7 hours; sleep and breakfast. It was comfortable and clean, but very basic. We walked from the hotel to the Cheyenne in the morning, there were good clear pathways and it took just under half an hour.
We checked in and got our tickets and they allocated our room number and gave us our key fob. We were told it would be activated at 3 pm so no need to go back to reception. This worked perfectly and was really convenient. I has sent an email requesting 2 double beds and a building near to Doc Holliday (where we has stayed last time) Our requests were met and we got a lovely room in Sitting Bull which is convenient for both the walkway to the Parks and the main building, we had booked and paid for a standard room. We loved the new texas rooms, great theming and very comfortable.
Attractions and Parks
The last few trips have been during the refurbishments so it was great to see the Park looking at its best and all the attractions open. I loved Fantasia gardens, the fountains were spectacular and the smell from all the flowers was lovely to walk through. I really appreciated all the 25th anniversary decorations, they've done a good job! Just the sprayed plants in the hub were a bit tacky.
Pirates was amazing, very clever! Loved the music and the new animatronics. Big Thunder Mountain was great, I really missed this when it was down and it was also down in WDW last summer. Didn't get to ride it at night this time as it broke down just after we had joined the queue. It's a shame it breaks down so frequently, but is incredibly popular. We did well at rope drop by queuing at the alley at the top of Liberty arcade. We enjoyed Star Tours, although it wasn't new as it's the same as WDW, just in french.
We had a good morning in the Studios, they let us straight onto Crush at 9.30 so we got lots done in the first hour.
Shows and parades
Forest of Enchantment is my favourite, really great show, last year the Tarzan scene wasn't working properly so it was great to see this and I liked that Merida sang. Mickey and the Magician was a good show, very impressive singing and a worthy update for Animagique (although I miss the theme song!) The parade was exceptional, the new floats are amazing and the music very catchy. We wanted to see it a second time, but it was rained off. We saw Illuminations once and liked it, but missed Dreams. The effects are spectacular, but there didn't seem to be as much to sing along to and it was a bit disjointed. I enjoyed the Mickey show on Castle Stage, it was very relaxed and was the last thing we did before heading out.
Food
We had the half board standard meal plan which now only includes buffets. We tried Agrabah and Billy Bobs and returned to Plaza Gardens. The food quality was very good at all of them and there were enough differences to make different meals each night. The theming was best in Agrabah. I like that you pay before you go in and then can leave when you're ready. We had lunch at Casey's, Earl of Sandwich, Videopolis and Toad Hall.
The breakfast vouchers were odd and we also had use of Salon Mickey so it was difficult to fit them in, amount of food and time! The coffee was horrible in Videopolis!
Salon Mickey was very quiet, not sure if it was because it was summer or because of the Shareholder club changes. One of the Cast members said they would be open till December and then they weren't sure what was happening after that. I'm not sure if she meant September when their management changes - we'll have to wait and see! This will be a big miss if it goes.
We had mixed weather, beautiful on Monday and then showery after that. A summer trip is tiring with late nights and early mornings. I quite like a winter trip when the park closes at 8. We did lots of walking, always choosing to walk to the parks around Lake Disney, I love this walk and it avoids the long lines at bag check from the buses. We visited the Newport Bay, Sequoia Lodge and Disneyland Hotel for a shop and a drink, the NPB is looking great after it's refurbishment. As usual we had a lovely magical time and look forward to our next visit! (Whenever that may be!)
We stayed at the B&B hotel for 1 night and the Cheyenne for 3 nights.
Travel
This was our first experience travelling by Eurostar. We live in the North East so we usually fly from Newcastle or Edinburgh and have also driven with family.
We got the train from our local station to Kings Cross, but there was problems with overhead cables between York and Doncaster so we had to transfer trains and were 2 hours late. We had missed our Eurostar connection via Lille.
Eurostar were very good at putting us on the next available train to Paris as there were no more Lille trains that day. They also gave us metro tickets to use to get to DLP. It meant we arrived very late 12.30 am, but I was very impressed with the service we got from Eurostar. Our return was much more straightforward changing at Lille. The Eurostar train was a little more run down and there was no coffee in the buffet car!
I think it will be back to Easyjet next time - just because it's easier from where we live.
Hotels
We were only in the B&B hotel for 7 hours; sleep and breakfast. It was comfortable and clean, but very basic. We walked from the hotel to the Cheyenne in the morning, there were good clear pathways and it took just under half an hour.
We checked in and got our tickets and they allocated our room number and gave us our key fob. We were told it would be activated at 3 pm so no need to go back to reception. This worked perfectly and was really convenient. I has sent an email requesting 2 double beds and a building near to Doc Holliday (where we has stayed last time) Our requests were met and we got a lovely room in Sitting Bull which is convenient for both the walkway to the Parks and the main building, we had booked and paid for a standard room. We loved the new texas rooms, great theming and very comfortable.
Attractions and Parks
The last few trips have been during the refurbishments so it was great to see the Park looking at its best and all the attractions open. I loved Fantasia gardens, the fountains were spectacular and the smell from all the flowers was lovely to walk through. I really appreciated all the 25th anniversary decorations, they've done a good job! Just the sprayed plants in the hub were a bit tacky.
Pirates was amazing, very clever! Loved the music and the new animatronics. Big Thunder Mountain was great, I really missed this when it was down and it was also down in WDW last summer. Didn't get to ride it at night this time as it broke down just after we had joined the queue. It's a shame it breaks down so frequently, but is incredibly popular. We did well at rope drop by queuing at the alley at the top of Liberty arcade. We enjoyed Star Tours, although it wasn't new as it's the same as WDW, just in french.
We had a good morning in the Studios, they let us straight onto Crush at 9.30 so we got lots done in the first hour.
Shows and parades
Forest of Enchantment is my favourite, really great show, last year the Tarzan scene wasn't working properly so it was great to see this and I liked that Merida sang. Mickey and the Magician was a good show, very impressive singing and a worthy update for Animagique (although I miss the theme song!) The parade was exceptional, the new floats are amazing and the music very catchy. We wanted to see it a second time, but it was rained off. We saw Illuminations once and liked it, but missed Dreams. The effects are spectacular, but there didn't seem to be as much to sing along to and it was a bit disjointed. I enjoyed the Mickey show on Castle Stage, it was very relaxed and was the last thing we did before heading out.
Food
We had the half board standard meal plan which now only includes buffets. We tried Agrabah and Billy Bobs and returned to Plaza Gardens. The food quality was very good at all of them and there were enough differences to make different meals each night. The theming was best in Agrabah. I like that you pay before you go in and then can leave when you're ready. We had lunch at Casey's, Earl of Sandwich, Videopolis and Toad Hall.
The breakfast vouchers were odd and we also had use of Salon Mickey so it was difficult to fit them in, amount of food and time! The coffee was horrible in Videopolis!
Salon Mickey was very quiet, not sure if it was because it was summer or because of the Shareholder club changes. One of the Cast members said they would be open till December and then they weren't sure what was happening after that. I'm not sure if she meant September when their management changes - we'll have to wait and see! This will be a big miss if it goes.
We had mixed weather, beautiful on Monday and then showery after that. A summer trip is tiring with late nights and early mornings. I quite like a winter trip when the park closes at 8. We did lots of walking, always choosing to walk to the parks around Lake Disney, I love this walk and it avoids the long lines at bag check from the buses. We visited the Newport Bay, Sequoia Lodge and Disneyland Hotel for a shop and a drink, the NPB is looking great after it's refurbishment. As usual we had a lovely magical time and look forward to our next visit! (Whenever that may be!)
