jodyb
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Oct 15, 1999
Trip Report
Disneyland Paris
Jan. 26 through Feb. 2 2004
Cast:
Liav (12)
Jody (Liav's mother and old enough to be that!)
Day 5. Saturday, Jan. 31
Woke up early, and as usual opened the curtains so our great big SL windows could let in the sunrise, which was beautiful. It looked like it would be a beautiful day! I was so tired of the SL breakfast by this time, I decided to splurge and purchase the hot breakfast. Glad I did... it was a huge portion with plenty for both of us with just one order, and in addition we still had the croissants and cereal from the buffet.
By the time we left breakfast it was pouring rain outside! What happened to that blue sky I saw at sunrise?? Oh well, we went to the park anyway, along with lots of other brave souls. This was Saturday, and WHAT a difference! People had come out of the woodwork! It wasn't exactly crowded in the park, but it was far more alive than it had been all week, and that's even with the rain. I guess people who come for a weekend break come to the park regardless of weathe. They aren't going to waste their break sitting in the hotel...
We decided that in this weather the most sensible thing to do was to catch the shows, since we hadn't seen them yet anyway. First we went to Mickey's Showtime in Discoveryland. Very cute 1/2 hour show. I enjoyed it, but I'm a sucker for young people dancing and singing and having a good time. My daughter thought it was hokey, or at least that's what she says now... during the show I could have sworn she was really enjoying herself. There was a decent crowd in the theatre so I guess everyone had the same idea - a good place to get out of the rain. After the show we ran over to Space Mountain which is right nearby. A little bouncier than last time, but still a lot smoother than the one in WDW. We rode twice (it was a walk -on) and then out into the rain again.
I decided that today was a good day to take refuge in a full service restaurant, so we headed to Auberge de Cendrillon. Reservations were not necessary and we were seated right away, but the restaurant was fairly full. Very lovely room and good service, but food was disappointing, nothing special at all. I had a steak, and it was good, but no frills, just some fries, and Liav ordered a kids' meal which turned out to be a dry hamburger patty with fries. We ordered Cinderella's slipper for dessert. The shoe itself is made of white chocolate, and it's filled with chocolate mousse. The mousse was not fresh and it was overly chilled and hard. Liav enjoyed eating the shoe. I remembered my 20% off voucher from the Annual Passport, and used it now. I asked them to give us the cokes we had free (as they had done at Annette's and at Hunter's Grill, but here they said that the "aperitif" given free to AP holders was a specific alcoholic "before dinner" drink and did not apply to other drinks. They offered to give it to me after dinner, but I declined.) All in all I felt the food at Auberge was not at all worth the price, but it was a pleasant experience, and just what we needed on a cold, rainy afternoon.
When we emerged from the restaurant it was still raining and pretty cold. We thought about what to do that would be indoors and decided on Pirates. Good choice. Rode that twice.
It was still dark and rainy after that so we decided to head back to the hotel for a rest and hope that it would be clear enough for Fantillusion later! On the way out we realized people were lining up for the Princess Parade, so we stayed and watched it. Even though there was a light rain falling, it was not canceled. Right after the parade the sky opened up a downpour and the wind picked up to something fierce. We ran for the yellow bus, and waited...and waited...in the freezing cold rain and wind! This was the first time the bus had not come almost immediately our entire trip. After waiting a long time (20 minutes?) I really wondered if the bus had broken down.. (is there only one?) and we decided to walk back to SL through the village. (we'd have been in the hotel room 15 minutes ago if we'd done that in the first place!)
Anyway, we got back, and as per our usual routine, Liav watched Disney channel and I went down to the lounge for my Tennessee Coffee. This time it came in a huge tumbler, making the drink about 4 times larger than it had been all week! (I guess the weekend bartender is more generous!)
At 6:30 PM it didn't seem to be raining so I thought it a good bet that Fanillusion would be on. We decided to take the bus back to the park and grab a spot at the end of Main Street. We stood almost in front of Gibson Girls Ice Cream. Liav thought it seemed to be the place where the transformation (that we could not see last night) had taken place. People were several deep by 7:15 - a lot different than the rest of the week! This spot turned out to be better than the one we'd had last night and we saw the Ursula float do its thing and I forgot what else. There was a second transformation, but it's not in my notes and I have a short memory, sorry. We enjoyed the parade just as much, if not more the second time, and Liav let me follow it around until it got in front of the castle!
After the parade we slowly walked out along Main Street. I thought maybe the stores would stay open a bit longer since it was Saturday night, but the park emptied quickly and everything closed up. We did manage to stop in at the bakery and pick up those little lemon pies that we liked so much, to take back to the room and eat in front of TV. We were getting a pretty cold by then as we walked through the village to the hotel We didn't even try to wait for the bus, and anyway we wanted to go to McDonalds (for the 3rd time that week!).
Sigh...Tomorrow will be our last full day :-( so it's back to the Studios! Stay tuned.
Comments:
We received 5 free fast passes each with our Annual passports, but for some reason (why?) they are good only for the first 3 months of the pass. We had absolutely no need of them this trip, since we came during a time of such low attendance. ALL of the rides were walk-ons, every day, every time. I hope we'll be able to make use of the AP's by making another trip next winter (hopefully during the Christmas season) before the year is up and I will ask them then if they will exchange our unused fast passes, assuming they would come in handy then. I don't really understand the rationale concerning the 3 month limit...anyone know?
I don't think I've mentioned this yet: We had no problem whatever because of our lack of French. I had been a little concerned about this, but as it turned out there was NO cause for worry. Everyone we spoke to seemed to not only know English but to be glad to speak it!
Which brings me to another comment: The CM's, in my experience, at DLP were VERY FRIENDLY, smiling, happy, helpful, and in every way what I would want and expect from Disney staff. I had read comments to the contrary, but my experience was completely positive in this regard.
Last comment for today: money. I found that DLP is not over-priced, especially in comparison with WDW and with amusement parks in Israel. The only places I felt the merchandise was not worth the price was in the full service restaurants, and remember I only ate in two (well, 3 if you count Annette's diner, where actually I thought it was reasonable). At the other two I felt the food was only mediocre and the prices too high. But souvenirs, counter service food, etc. I did not find to be over-priced. Also the fact that breakfast is included in the price of the hotel can save a family 40 euro a day or more..(depending on the number of people of course). At WDW breakfast took a chunk out of my daily budget (although on the other hand I did get a decent breakfast there!
)
That's it for today!
Jody
Disneyland Paris
Jan. 26 through Feb. 2 2004
Cast:
Liav (12)
Jody (Liav's mother and old enough to be that!)
Day 5. Saturday, Jan. 31
Woke up early, and as usual opened the curtains so our great big SL windows could let in the sunrise, which was beautiful. It looked like it would be a beautiful day! I was so tired of the SL breakfast by this time, I decided to splurge and purchase the hot breakfast. Glad I did... it was a huge portion with plenty for both of us with just one order, and in addition we still had the croissants and cereal from the buffet.
By the time we left breakfast it was pouring rain outside! What happened to that blue sky I saw at sunrise?? Oh well, we went to the park anyway, along with lots of other brave souls. This was Saturday, and WHAT a difference! People had come out of the woodwork! It wasn't exactly crowded in the park, but it was far more alive than it had been all week, and that's even with the rain. I guess people who come for a weekend break come to the park regardless of weathe. They aren't going to waste their break sitting in the hotel...
We decided that in this weather the most sensible thing to do was to catch the shows, since we hadn't seen them yet anyway. First we went to Mickey's Showtime in Discoveryland. Very cute 1/2 hour show. I enjoyed it, but I'm a sucker for young people dancing and singing and having a good time. My daughter thought it was hokey, or at least that's what she says now... during the show I could have sworn she was really enjoying herself. There was a decent crowd in the theatre so I guess everyone had the same idea - a good place to get out of the rain. After the show we ran over to Space Mountain which is right nearby. A little bouncier than last time, but still a lot smoother than the one in WDW. We rode twice (it was a walk -on) and then out into the rain again.
I decided that today was a good day to take refuge in a full service restaurant, so we headed to Auberge de Cendrillon. Reservations were not necessary and we were seated right away, but the restaurant was fairly full. Very lovely room and good service, but food was disappointing, nothing special at all. I had a steak, and it was good, but no frills, just some fries, and Liav ordered a kids' meal which turned out to be a dry hamburger patty with fries. We ordered Cinderella's slipper for dessert. The shoe itself is made of white chocolate, and it's filled with chocolate mousse. The mousse was not fresh and it was overly chilled and hard. Liav enjoyed eating the shoe. I remembered my 20% off voucher from the Annual Passport, and used it now. I asked them to give us the cokes we had free (as they had done at Annette's and at Hunter's Grill, but here they said that the "aperitif" given free to AP holders was a specific alcoholic "before dinner" drink and did not apply to other drinks. They offered to give it to me after dinner, but I declined.) All in all I felt the food at Auberge was not at all worth the price, but it was a pleasant experience, and just what we needed on a cold, rainy afternoon.
When we emerged from the restaurant it was still raining and pretty cold. We thought about what to do that would be indoors and decided on Pirates. Good choice. Rode that twice.
It was still dark and rainy after that so we decided to head back to the hotel for a rest and hope that it would be clear enough for Fantillusion later! On the way out we realized people were lining up for the Princess Parade, so we stayed and watched it. Even though there was a light rain falling, it was not canceled. Right after the parade the sky opened up a downpour and the wind picked up to something fierce. We ran for the yellow bus, and waited...and waited...in the freezing cold rain and wind! This was the first time the bus had not come almost immediately our entire trip. After waiting a long time (20 minutes?) I really wondered if the bus had broken down.. (is there only one?) and we decided to walk back to SL through the village. (we'd have been in the hotel room 15 minutes ago if we'd done that in the first place!)
Anyway, we got back, and as per our usual routine, Liav watched Disney channel and I went down to the lounge for my Tennessee Coffee. This time it came in a huge tumbler, making the drink about 4 times larger than it had been all week! (I guess the weekend bartender is more generous!)
At 6:30 PM it didn't seem to be raining so I thought it a good bet that Fanillusion would be on. We decided to take the bus back to the park and grab a spot at the end of Main Street. We stood almost in front of Gibson Girls Ice Cream. Liav thought it seemed to be the place where the transformation (that we could not see last night) had taken place. People were several deep by 7:15 - a lot different than the rest of the week! This spot turned out to be better than the one we'd had last night and we saw the Ursula float do its thing and I forgot what else. There was a second transformation, but it's not in my notes and I have a short memory, sorry. We enjoyed the parade just as much, if not more the second time, and Liav let me follow it around until it got in front of the castle!
After the parade we slowly walked out along Main Street. I thought maybe the stores would stay open a bit longer since it was Saturday night, but the park emptied quickly and everything closed up. We did manage to stop in at the bakery and pick up those little lemon pies that we liked so much, to take back to the room and eat in front of TV. We were getting a pretty cold by then as we walked through the village to the hotel We didn't even try to wait for the bus, and anyway we wanted to go to McDonalds (for the 3rd time that week!).
Sigh...Tomorrow will be our last full day :-( so it's back to the Studios! Stay tuned.
Comments:
We received 5 free fast passes each with our Annual passports, but for some reason (why?) they are good only for the first 3 months of the pass. We had absolutely no need of them this trip, since we came during a time of such low attendance. ALL of the rides were walk-ons, every day, every time. I hope we'll be able to make use of the AP's by making another trip next winter (hopefully during the Christmas season) before the year is up and I will ask them then if they will exchange our unused fast passes, assuming they would come in handy then. I don't really understand the rationale concerning the 3 month limit...anyone know?
I don't think I've mentioned this yet: We had no problem whatever because of our lack of French. I had been a little concerned about this, but as it turned out there was NO cause for worry. Everyone we spoke to seemed to not only know English but to be glad to speak it!
Which brings me to another comment: The CM's, in my experience, at DLP were VERY FRIENDLY, smiling, happy, helpful, and in every way what I would want and expect from Disney staff. I had read comments to the contrary, but my experience was completely positive in this regard.
Last comment for today: money. I found that DLP is not over-priced, especially in comparison with WDW and with amusement parks in Israel. The only places I felt the merchandise was not worth the price was in the full service restaurants, and remember I only ate in two (well, 3 if you count Annette's diner, where actually I thought it was reasonable). At the other two I felt the food was only mediocre and the prices too high. But souvenirs, counter service food, etc. I did not find to be over-priced. Also the fact that breakfast is included in the price of the hotel can save a family 40 euro a day or more..(depending on the number of people of course). At WDW breakfast took a chunk out of my daily budget (although on the other hand I did get a decent breakfast there!
)That's it for today!
Jody
