Trip Report 14-16 Jan 26 Review

[Dreams&wishes]

Hi all,

I thought I would share our experience from our stay at Disneyland Paris from 14–16 January.

This was our second visit to DLP; the last time was in 2014. We are a family of six with four kids aged between 7 and 14. We’re Italian/Australian and have visited Disney World and Disneyland multiple times, so we have quite a bit of experience with Disney parks.

This time, like our previous trip, we stayed at the Newport Bay Club in a club-level suite. Unfortunately, the room was very dated, had a strong unpleasant smell, and the towels were dirty. I raised the issue with reception and although they promised to address it, nothing was done, which was very disappointing especially for a Disney hotel.

We also didn’t end up using the included afternoon snacks, mainly because the timing made it awkward to go back to the hotel during the day. Breakfast was quite below average, with fairly low-quality products. Again, disappointing overall, although the coffee was good. Unless you can get a great deal, I wouldn’t recommend the club level. I also wouldn’t particularly recommend staying at Newport Bay Club — it definitely doesn’t feel comparable to the Yacht or Beach Club in the U.S. parks. I would still recommend staying on-site, but either at the Disneyland Hotel or possibly Cheyenne or Santa Fe.

I was initially concerned that two nights and three days might not be enough, but it ended up being perfect for us. Because we visited in January after the holiday period, wait times were very manageable. Most rides were under 39 minutes, with the exception of Crush’s Coaster which was around 60 minutes, so we didn’t feel the need to buy FastPass/Premier access.

We did have two encounters with very rude cast members at Crush’s Coaster, and overall the cast member experience didn’t feel particularly magical compared to the U.S. parks.

Food inside the park was mostly average at best. We mainly ate at the stalls outside “It’s a Small World,” where we had excellent raclette and crepes. For dinner we went to Rosalie both nights and the food was pretty good — probably one of the better dining options around DLP.

As for the rides, Big Thunder Mountain was fantastic. However, I do feel the park lacks a few more family coasters. Hyperspace Mountain and the Avengers ride were extremely intense, so we ended up riding Big Thunder Mountain about 10 times since there weren’t many other good options for our kids’ age group. Crush’s Coaster was another option, but because of the longer wait time we only rode it twice.

One issue that really stood out was smoking. I saw multiple instances where people were smoking or vaping outside the designated areas and cast members simply walked past without saying anything. There were quite a lot of people doing this, which was again disappointing.

We also purchased the Premier Pass for the nighttime show viewing area. Unfortunately, it was disappointing because we still had to arrive about 1.5 hours before the show to get a decent spot, and everyone ended up very cramped together. In hindsight, we probably could have saved the money and just waited a little longer in the regular viewing area for a similar experience.

Overall, to be honest, I’m not planning to visit Disneyland Paris again. If I’m going to spend the money, I would rather go to one of the American parks for a more “magical” experience. We only visited this time because we were already in Paris and thought it would be a nice add-on to the trip.

 

[Teamubr]

Thanks for the TR.

Many of your issues (poor food, smoking everywhere, a few CMs with an attitude) are the same I had 3 years. I remind people familiar with WDW, that DLP hotels are not WDW deluxe level "resorts". They are more in the Moderate level and less of a resort. Disappointing about Newport Bay being in need of an upgrade. We stayed at Sequoia Lodge 3 years ago. People said the same about it then. It was OK. It's finally getting the refurb now. We walked through Newport Bay 3 years ago and it was cute. I didn't think it needed too much then

We are staying at the DLH this trip. Not because the others aren't worthy, but it was closed getting remodeled last trip and we wanted to check it out. My son and his friend are staying at Sequoia Lodge again to save some money. They know it will be having work done.

j

 

[Dreams&wishes]

Thanks for the TR.

Many of your issues (poor food, smoking everywhere, a few CMs with an attitude) are the same I had 3 years. I remind people familiar with WDW, that DLP hotels are not WDW deluxe level "resorts". They are more in the Moderate level and less of a resort. Disappointing about Newport Bay being in need of an upgrade. We stayed at Sequoia Lodge 3 years ago. People said the same about it then. It was OK. It's finally getting the refurb now. We walked through Newport Bay 3 years ago and it was cute. I didn't think it needed too much then

We are staying at the DLH this trip. Not because the others aren't worthy, but it was closed getting remodeled last trip and we wanted to check it out. My son and his friend are staying at Sequoia Lodge again to save some money. They know it will be having work done.

j

To be fair the common areas at Newport were nice enough, albeit with only two elevators working. It was just the room, the smell, the dirty towels and most importantly the fact that they didn't do anything about it that is disappointing. Ultimately when you charge a high price people are going to have high expectations and if you don't meet those expectations you are in for disappointment. Had I not paid the high price and the add on for club level I would have probably not said anything.

 

[Teamubr]

Had I not paid the high price and the add on for club level I would have probably not said anything.

I would have said something even if I was in the cheapest room.

Before going for the first time nearly 3 years ago, I had read about many of the differences compared to WDW, so I had lower expectations, but still loved the parks. Enough so that we are going back for 4 days in May. We aren't big foodies and don't get too wound up about CMs not being the friendliest. Smoking is one of those things the French will do. It is their country I'm visiting. If they come to WDW, I would hope they respected our culture while here. I travel quite a bit and try to understand local customs and behavior.

A dirty, smelly room is something else. Their response is sad.

j