Disneyland Paris – lots of tips for your trip with little children

• Early entry / parking fees If you are eligible to early entry (8 am instead of 10 am) it’s well worth getting there early. It is my understanding that you get this ‘VIP’ entry if you book your tickets together with one of the Disney accommodations. A package deal like this should also include your parking fee (normally 15€ per day)
• Fast pass option The park offers a fast pass option for the attractions (not sure if this is an option for all or just some of them). The passes don’t cost extra money; you simply get fast passes with your entry tickets at the attraction and your fast pass will tell you at what time to come back to cut down waiting time to a maximum of about 15 min. It might well be worth first going around to get your fast passes for the attractions you definitely want to do and then come back at the specified times. I would recommend to definitely use this for ‘Meet Mickey’ (we waited for an hour without the fast pass)
• Attractions
  • Here are the attractions that we enjoyed most (our children being nearly 5 and 15 months)
    • It’s a small world (on Tristan’s request we did this twice and he wanted to go again)
    • Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast
    • Meet Mickey Mouse (this was Tristan’s reason for wanting to go to Disneyland)
    • Peter Pan’s Flight
    • Disney Parade (7pm)
    • Animagique (Walt Disney Studios Park)
    • Playhouse Disney live on stage (Walt Disney Studios Park) – it’s very hot in there and small children cannot see so well as everyone just sits on the floor but for any child who is a fan of the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse films this will be a hit

• Attractions we think can be missed if you don’t have enough time
  • Snow White and the 7 dwarfs (Tristan found this a little scary)
  • Les Voyages de Pinocchio (can also be experienced as a little scary)
  • Sleeping Beauty Castle
  • Pirates of the Caribbean (small boats that go downhill very fast 2 or 3 times which Tristan did not like at all)

• Strollers/carriers
  • You can rent a stroller, I’m not sure they are suitable for children who still nap as I don’t know if they recline. I would recommend renting a stroller even if you don’t need it for your child(ren) it’s very handy for any extra jackets, bags, lunch, etc.
  • As you need to leave strollers at the entrance of every attraction make sure you have a small bag you can carry with you at all times for wallet, camera and possibly something to drink as you might be waiting for a long time before you get back to your stroller.
  • If you take your own stroller, take a lightweight cover to help your little one go to sleep. There is so much to see that the curious children might find it difficult to nod off otherwise
  • A good baby carrier can also be very helpful for when you are waiting in line at an attraction

• Baby corner There is at least one baby corner which is about the only place that is a little quiet. It has a microwave, small tables and chairs, a family toilet and lots of nappy changing space.
• General
  • If you are like me and you like your kids to have clean hands when they eat, definitely take some baby wipes even if you don’t have a baby anymore.
  • Remember to take sun cream at hats when it’s sunny.
  • In case of rain I’m not actually sure what the best thing to do would be. I’m thinking of light weight rain coats (the kind that fold up into a small pouch) but when it rains all of the outside attractions will be wet too; there are rides that are completely covered though.
  • If you have a daughter who likes to wear princess dresses or might want one when she sees one; I recommend you take a dress from home and have her wear it to the park. If you don’t have one you could even make it a surprise. This will avoid your daughter begging you for one of the dresses sold in the park which no doubt are as overpriced as everything else. You do see a few boys dressed up too and they generally wear pirate costumes.

Food/meals

If you want to maximize your time at the park, you will want to minimize your time on shopping/preparing food. Of course there are plenty of options at the park that serve food. All of these places are highly overpriced though and can easily add an unexpected amount to your spending. So here are my tips:

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