England & France: Cities of Knights & Lights (London & Paris) Meets Thread

[acndis]

We are still coming off of the excitement of our fabulous Cowboys and Canyons trip in July but it's time to get ready for Knights and Lights in December. I have a couple of questions for the wonderful folks giving advice on this board:

1. On Day 2, I got Phantom tickets through seetickets. Hooray! I am picking them up at the box office (the post scares me). Did anyone else do this? How did it go? Did you eat dinner before or after the show?
2. When did folks do the London Eye? How long did it take? My son will not want to miss this!
3. Our free night in Paris is New Year's Eve! Crazy! What time did you get back from Versailles? We are trying to reserve Taillevent and had planned for 8 pm. Will that work?
4. What time was the Arc De Triomphe climb?
5. On the post days, we are heading to DLP. What time did you arrive at the park?
6. We had so many optional things in Arizona/Utah more than any other ABD we've had! I loved it but was wondering if there's any of these type of activities on this trip. I don't want to make too many extra plans as my son does not want to spend one minute away from the guides/Junior Adventurers.

Any other advice for us? We can't wait. It's my son's first time in both London and Paris and our 5th ABD.

 

[sayhello]

We are still coming off of the excitement of our fabulous Cowboys and Canyons trip in July but it's time to get ready for Knights and Lights in December. I have a couple of questions for the wonderful folks giving advice on this board:

1. On Day 2, I got Phantom tickets through seetickets. Hooray! I am picking them up at the box office (the post scares me). Did anyone else do this? How did it go? Did you eat dinner before or after the show?
2. When did folks do the London Eye? How long did it take? My son will not want to miss this!
3. Our free night in Paris is New Year's Eve! Crazy! What time did you get back from Versailles? We are trying to reserve Taillevent and had planned for 8 pm. Will that work?
4. What time was the Arc De Triomphe climb?
5. On the post days, we are heading to DLP. What time did you arrive at the park?
6. We had so many optional things in Arizona/Utah more than any other ABD we've had! I loved it but was wondering if there's any of these type of activities on this trip. I don't want to make too many extra plans as my son does not want to spend one minute away from the guides/Junior Adventurers.

Any other advice for us? We can't wait. It's my son's first time in both London and Paris and our 5th ABD.

Ah! I wish I could help you, but every single thing you asked has changed since I took K & L in 2011. They've added/changed things, and re-structured the days. I'm sure you'll get folks posting who have taken the trip since they re-structured it.

ENJOY! It's a wonderful trip.

Sayhello

 

[acndis]

Ah! I wish I could help you, but every single thing you asked has changed since I took K & L in 2011. They've added/changed things, and re-structured the days. I'm sure you'll get folks posting who have taken the trip since they re-structured it.

ENJOY! It's a wonderful trip.

Sayhello

Thanks anyway, sayhello! I know we will get it figured out. We can't wait for this trip but I sometimes think it's a disadvantage knowing a lot about the destination before you get there. We didn't plan anything in advance for Greece and I did not worry a bit! Here, I think I know too much and am too concerned about squeezing it all in!

 

[sayhello]

Thanks anyway, sayhello! I know we will get it figured out. We can't wait for this trip but I sometimes think it's a disadvantage knowing a lot about the destination before you get there. We didn't plan anything in advance for Greece and I did not worry a bit! Here, I think I know too much and am too concerned about squeezing it all in!

I know. I read up on Spinalonga, and Greek Mythology, but didn't plan anything. And did great! I'm trying not to plan too much for Scotland, either.

But that's what pre-days are for! I'm doing 4 pre-days in London, and am really having to work to not over-plan those days. Same with the 2 pre-days in Edinburgh. Maybe ignorance really is bliss?

Sayhello

 

[xwewhisper]

1. On Day 2, I got Phantom tickets through seetickets. Hooray! I am picking them up at the box office (the post scares me). Did anyone else do this? How did it go? Did you eat dinner before or after the show?
- I have no idea what this is, sorry

2. When did folks do the London Eye? How long did it take? My son will not want to miss this!
- We did it day of arrival, the tickets you receive when you get to the hotel will be good for day 1 or day 2, a lot of our travel companions did it day 2 because you finish near there, but we had no problem hopping on the Tube over ourselves. Prepare for a LONG line. We waited about an hour.

3. Our free night in Paris is New Year's Eve! Crazy! What time did you get back from Versailles? We are trying to reserve Taillevent and had planned for 8 pm. Will that work?
-I think we got back around 4 or 5. We had dinner at Jules Verne at 7 and had time to get ready, rest, change, and get a cab over. so I think you will be good for 8!

4. What time was the Arc De Triomphe climb?
- on your own on Paris free evening, walking distance from your Paris hotel. We didn't actually go because we didn't have THAT much free time before dinner.

5. On the post days, we are heading to DLP. What time did you arrive at the park?
- We were able to choose our departure time to get to DLP, but we didn't book the hotel stay with ABD. We chose 10:30 and were there shortly after 11am.

6. We had so many optional things in Arizona/Utah more than any other ABD we've had! I loved it but was wondering if there's any of these type of activities on this trip. I don't want to make too many extra plans as my son does not want to spend one minute away from the guides/Junior Adventurers.
- We skipped Notre Dame because if you go on a Sunday you don't get to go to the bell tower tour, which was kind of the purpose for me since I'd already been. It was kind of optional but I don't think many skipped. Nothing else was deemed "optional" by our tour guides

Any other advice for us? We can't wait. It's my son's first time in both London and Paris and our 5th ABD.

Take my advice and timing with a grain of salt because if you're there over the holidays things might be adjusted or added, not sure!

Enjoy! I was just there last month please feel free to let me know if you have any other questions.

 

[acndis]

Take my advice and timing with a grain of salt because if you're there over the holidays things might be adjusted or added, not sure!

Enjoy! I was just there last month please feel free to let me know if you have any other questions.

This is perfect! Exactly what I needed to know. Thank you! This is our 5th ABD. We are really looking forward to it.

 

[Rapunzellover]

We are still coming off of the excitement of our fabulous Cowboys and Canyons trip in July but it's time to get ready for Knights and Lights in December. I have a couple of questions for the wonderful folks giving advice on this board:

1. On Day 2, I got Phantom tickets through seetickets. Hooray! I am picking them up at the box office (the post scares me). Did anyone else do this? How did it go? Did you eat dinner before or after the show?
2. When did folks do the London Eye? How long did it take? My son will not want to miss this!
3. Our free night in Paris is New Year's Eve! Crazy! What time did you get back from Versailles? We are trying to reserve Taillevent and had planned for 8 pm. Will that work?
4. What time was the Arc De Triomphe climb?
5. On the post days, we are heading to DLP. What time did you arrive at the park?
6. We had so many optional things in Arizona/Utah more than any other ABD we've had! I loved it but was wondering if there's any of these type of activities on this trip. I don't want to make too many extra plans as my son does not want to spend one minute away from the guides/Junior Adventurers.

Any other advice for us? We can't wait. It's my son's first time in both London and Paris and our 5th ABD.

Some things have changed since I went, but.....
1. I had theater tixs the 2nd day too, and yes I had time for dinner before hand.

2. The london eye tixs were simply handed out and people did them during their free time on day 2. It's about 30 minutes, but the lines are long, so expect to wait about 30mins to 1hr and 30mins. Fortunately, you can go into the tix office and upgrade your free tix to a fast pass which will allow you to skip lines. That's what I did. It's about 15pounds though-- not cheap.

3. Got back from Versailles with enough time to change and make dinner at 6pm., so 8pm reservations should be fine.

4. On my tour, the arc tixs were handed for people to go whenever they had free time. But the adventure guides scheduled a 9pm climb after the versailles trip, so we could see the eiffel tower light up. I made it back from dinner in time to change and go. They may have changed that though

5. didn't go to DLP.

6. There's very little optional things. On my tour, only the arc and london eye were optional. The bell tower climb was too, but you don't wanna miss that. Stonehenge was too, but I've seen they've changed the tour; it seems like you now go straight to Windsor, so I doubt Stonehenge is optional anymore. But, I'm sure that the adventure guides can help you if you have something else you'd rather do on a certain day.

 

[SingingMom]

I think they changed the "Stonehenge directly to Windsor" because so many of us suggested they add time in Windsor on our feedback! It used to be Stonehenge in the morning, return to Foxhills for lunch (which was delicious lol) and back out to Windsor. DH had a terrible sinus headache that morning so I stayed back with him while DD went to Stonehenge. He rested the day, but I went on the afternoon Windsor visit - one of the highlights of the trip for me! Sorry he had to miss it. I was lucky enough to visit again in my trip to see DD during her London semester. Windsor is lovely!!!

 

[ctclark]

I think they changed the "Stonehenge directly to Windsor" because so many of us suggested they add time in Windsor on our feedback! It used to be Stonehenge in the morning, return to Foxhills for lunch (which was delicious lol) and back out to Windsor. DH had a terrible sinus headache that morning so I stayed back with him while DD went to Stonehenge. He rested the day, but I went on the afternoon Windsor visit - one of the highlights of the trip for me! Sorry he had to miss it. I was lucky enough to visit again in my trip to see DD during her London semester. Windsor is lovely!!!

How is the L'Hotel du Collectioner in Paris? Going there in November on our own since no abd tours then. 2 adults and one child (10)

 

[SingingMom]

How is the L'Hotel du Collectioner in Paris? Going there in November on our own since no abd tours then. 2 adults and one child (10)

We stayed at the Hilton with ABD. It changed names (poor Francesc can't use his "Paris Hilton" joke anymore. ;-) <3. ) but I think it is the same place. I must admit it was my least favorite of all the hotels we've been with ABD. Just a regular hotel with no character. It was fine just not "special".

 

[richflour]

Unfortunately, the policy is that changing the date is considered cancelling your original trip and booking a new one. Here's the wording from their Terms and Conditions: So no, you can't move your trip to another date without losing the deposit (after 14 days). Now, personally, I've never tried to change the date, so I'm not sure how strict they are with that policy. Hopefully someone who has actually tried it will chime in here. And actually, I believe the DVC members getting the opening day prices no matter when they book is an ABD policy for any DVC member booking an ABD. Sayhello

I have change my trip 2 times after the 14 day mark and have not lost my deposit .(separate years)
travel agent said most times disney will allow a 1 time courtesy change.

 

[sayhello]

I have change my trip 2 times after the 14 day mark and have not lost my deposit .(separate years)
travel agent said most times disney will allow a 1 time courtesy change.

That's good to know! I've never tried it, so I was going by what they have on their website.

Sayhello

 

[Rapunzellover]

How is the L'Hotel du Collectioner in Paris? Going there in November on our own since no abd tours then. 2 adults and one child (10)

It's an ok hotel. Within walking distance of the arc and the champs elysee, so decent location. But not as nice as say foxhills or the landmark

 

[xwewhisper]

How is the L'Hotel du Collectioner in Paris? Going there in November on our own since no abd tours then. 2 adults and one child (10)

It was actually my favorite of the three we stayed at. Great location and very happening. The president of France was there while we were! I think it's all on personal preference

 

[sayhello]

It was actually my favorite of the three we stayed at. Great location and very happening. The president of France was there while we were! I think it's all on personal preference

I really liked the hotel, too. The outside was very blah and 70's looking, but the inside was *really* nice. The rooms were spacious and well furnished, and the bathrooms were gorgeous, with lots of dark woods, marble and frosted/etched glass. Very Art Nuveau. The public bathroom in the basement was a total trip! And you really could not beat the location. Easy walking distance to the Champs-Elysee and the Arc de Triomphe.

Sayhello

 

[SingingMom]

I really liked the hotel, too. The outside was very blah and 70's looking, but the inside was *really* nice. The rooms were spacious and well furnished, and the bathrooms were gorgeous, with lots of dark woods, marble and frosted/etched glass. Very Art Nuveau. The public bathroom in the basement was a total trip! And you really could not beat the location. Easy walking distance to the Champs-Elysee and the Arc de Triomphe. Sayhello

Is it the same as the previous Hilton? If so, yes the location was handy but the food was a big disappointment. I would much rather stay on the Champs-Élysées next time I visit Paris!

 

[sayhello]

Is it the same as the previous Hilton? If so, yes the location was handy but the food was a big disappointment. I would much rather stay on the Champs-Élysées next time I visit Paris!

Yes, it was known as the Hilton Arc de Triomphe when we stayed there in 2011. That's funny about the food, because I recall the Welcome to Paris dinner buffet as being quite nice. I don't think we ate any other meals at the hotel, however. Hotels change, that might be why it's no longer a Hilton...

I don't know that I'd want to stay *on* the Champs-Elysees. Too noisy and hectic.

Sayhello

 

[SingingMom]

Yes, it was known as the Hilton Arc de Triomphe when we stayed there in 2011. That's funny about the food, because I recall the Welcome to Paris dinner buffet as being quite nice. I don't think we ate any other meals at the hotel, however. Hotels change, that might be why it's no longer a Hilton... I don't know that I'd want to stay *on* the Champs-Elysees. Too noisy and hectic. Sayhello

We were very disappointed in the buffet and the breakfasts. Also the set up where we couldn't sit together - most of the time we could group together. Loved Chancery Court and Fox Hills much better. And as for noisy & hectic - that's what staying in the "city" is all about! Lol

 

[xwewhisper]

We were very disappointed in the buffet and the breakfasts. Also the set up where we couldn't sit together - most of the time we could group together. Loved Chancery Court and Fox Hills much better. And as for noisy & hectic - that's what staying in the "city" is all about! Lol

They start at the Landmark London now which by far had the most amazing breakfasts! It kind of got progressively worse but I was content with croissants and Nutella lol! They did have the egg station but it was so crowded while we were there.

Our guide said it hasn't changed much except in name FYI for those who stayed while it was still a hilton - for those weary, it didn't feel like a hilton inside to me at all. Definitely has some personality and those restrooms downstairs!!

 

[acndis]

Some things have changed since I went, but.....
1. I had theater tixs the 2nd day too, and yes I had time for dinner before hand.

2. The london eye tixs were simply handed out and people did them during their free time on day 2. It's about 30 minutes, but the lines are long, so expect to wait about 30mins to 1hr and 30mins. Fortunately, you can go into the tix office and upgrade your free tix to a fast pass which will allow you to skip lines. That's what I did. It's about 15pounds though-- not cheap.

3. Got back from Versailles with enough time to change and make dinner at 6pm., so 8pm reservations should be fine.

4. On my tour, the arc tixs were handed for people to go whenever they had free time. But the adventure guides scheduled a 9pm climb after the versailles trip, so we could see the eiffel tower light up. I made it back from dinner in time to change and go. They may have changed that though

5. didn't go to DLP.

6. There's very little optional things. On my tour, only the arc and london eye were optional. The bell tower climb was too, but you don't wanna miss that. Stonehenge was too, but I've seen they've changed the tour; it seems like you now go straight to Windsor, so I doubt Stonehenge is optional anymore. But, I'm sure that the adventure guides can help you if you have something else you'd rather do on a certain day.

Thanks so much! Very helpful...We will definitely get the London Eye fast passes!