American (DVC member, frequent WDW visitor) back from 4 days in DLP - I have a lot of thoughts :)

[bks9581]

Just back after a three week trip that included Paris, Brussels, many cities in Germany, Strasbourg, Reims and ended with Disneyland Paris. For some background, we are DVC members and go to WDW about three times a year and have been to DL in California as well. One of our family’s bucket list items is to visit each Disney park in the world. After this trip we are 3/6 to our goal.

As mentioned, we recently visited Disneyland Paris. We stayed at the Hotel New York - Art of Marvel for three nights and visited the parks over four days.
Here are my not-so-organized thoughts on Disneyland Paris. In short, I’m glad we went, but it’s a one and done for me.

Restaurants/Dining

• Looooong wait to check in at restaurants. In some cases this was just to check in, not even be seated. Why they haven’t adapted app check in yet is beyond me, but it was often a frustrating and long wait.Longer than many ride queues.
• The food was below mediocre, sometimes inedible (looking at you Captain Jack’s). Walt’s and PYM were ok and what lacked in food, was made up for by the environment.
• If I did it again, I would not eat so many table service meals. The food isn’t good enough to justify the prices or time spent waiting in line to check in.
• Chez Remy’s…I wanted to like this place so much! Cute environment/idea, but terrible execution. This was the most bizarre, worst overall dining experience we had while there.
  • We waited in line for 25 minutes to be able to check in at the host stand. Then we waited another 45 to be seated. In a tiny room with loads of other people also waiting. You couldn’t get back outside to wait because of the long line of people cramming through the door and also because the person calling names spoke in barely a whisper.
    • People were getting angry and frustrated. I witnessed another lady engage with a CM about their long wait only to be waved away dismissively.
  • I get the impression that this was not the norm for this restaurant and that they were having a particularly bad night because at one point a CM came out and announced it would be a long wait and the manager said they would be giving 25% off the bill. Which created mass confusion and questions from those that have MagicPass and from what I could gather, already get a discount on food. It was just chaotic and poor communication all around.
  • After being seated, we sat for about 15 min with no server coming by. We eventually flagged a CM down and he was very nice and took our order and ended up taking care of us for the entire meal despite it not being his table. He was the one bright spot of the restaurant.
  • The food was bland, had a limited menu, nothing memorable or really enjoyable at all.
  • The environment is really well themed and cute. I wish they would have brought it to Epcot and done justice to it.
  • For the bizarre part, we finished our meal around 9:35pm and headed to the door. We were stopped by a CM who told us that the park closed at 9pm and we couldn’t leave on our own. We mentioned that we were heading to the Marvel area (it currently stays open till 10:30pm), but were still told we couldn’t go on our own and a CM needed to walk with us, but that we would have to wait till there was a larger group to leave (the restaurant was still completely full at the time.) So we waited some more until we finally could be chaperoned out of the area. It was strange for us coming from WDW where you often find people wandering around well after closing. This place was deserted 30 short minutes after closing! They did have occasional CMs blocking entrances to other areas so I’m still not sure why we had to be walked out. Anyway, we were eventually released in the Marvel area, but by that time we didn’t have a lot of time till that closed.
• Several of the dining options are buffets. We observed that people don’t have the same rules of etiquette at buffets as they do in the US. It was a bit of a free for all and every man for themself.

Bathrooms

• Not as many bathrooms as Disney world- not as many stalls - not as clean -perpetually smell like urine.
• The one thing I thought was better than US parks was the toilet paper. It was still low quality, but the dispenser was easier to use than the giant roll things that rip as soon as you touch the paper that we have in the US. These were more like a tissue dispenser where you could grab sheet after sheet.
• One of the worst bathrooms for waits and cleanliness was in DL park by the Pinnochio ride. Walk the extra distance to go to another. This one always had a line out the door because they don’t have enough stalls, especially in such a busy area of the park.

Cast Members

• Cast members are not very helpful/friendly. Mostly we would walk by CMs to get in line, etc. and they wouldn’t even greet you or stop conversing with another CM to say Bonjour, etc.
• We definitely encountered some friendly ones, but often they would be very uninformed - One CM I struck up a conversation with while in line to buy something was nicely offering advice to go to the Marvel area late in the evening. I said, "yeah I think it closes at 10:30 instead of 9 like the other areas." He said he didn't think it was open that late and I should look at the app. Tiny thing, but just different from WDW where they walk around with daily notes for reference in case they are asked something. This was also in the Marvel store so you would at least expect those folks to be informed. And it was open till 10:30...
• They also do not put up with guest’s complaints. I never complained to a CM, but witnessed others attempting to voice their frustrations and the CM would literally wave their hand at them and look away, ending the “discussion.”

General Notes/Thoughts

• Really glad we did Paris first before DLP or some things might have been an even bigger shock/disappointment.
• Signage is lacking. They really could use some better signs to point you around the parks.
• Wait times were often inaccurate (longer than posted) but overall wait times are lower there than in WDW.
• Drone show was better than expected (We are all still singing the song..lol). I’m excited to hear the rumor that they may bring a drone show to WDW. It was just a fun element to see for a few minutes.
• Illuminations night time show is not fireworks heavy - they are smaller fireworks similar to what is done at the daytime castle show at WDW.
• No bags are given for what you purchase unless you buy them - 2 euros for a small bag (keep one with you unless you want to carry your souvenirs in your hands or have to keep buying bags.)
• Parks empty out in the evening - easy to see nighttime shows at the last minute - not packed
• Very few scooters and less strollers too. Makes it a bit easier to move around in the parks.
• Not using much tech - photos aren’t available on the app, some people have printed paper tickets still. The variation of tickets could cause quite a backup at the entry points.
  • Ride loading is often done with a whiteboard. It seems they would have brought over their processes from the US parks, but maybe it’s just taking time.
  • Makes for a less organized environment in general.
• Staff speak English but not always fluently. Sometimes we had to point to menus or just abandon our question. Not really a complaint, I know we are in France where they speak french, but it was a bit surprising given the huge amount of international guests.
• If possible, come on weekdays - seems to be a big weekend destination and was way more crowded on Friday afternoon/Saturday than Wednesday and Thursday.
• Characters are very handsy and spend a lot of time talking to you. Shaking hands, etc. They aren’t afraid to grab your kid’s shoulders and steer them, etc. Not rough, just aren’t timid about being hands on. It also seems to be acceptable to grab the characters while they are out and about. We witnessed someone basically put Pluto in a headlock to take a selfie…lol. I don’t think that would fly with the WDW character handlers!
• Parks looked worn. The areas that aren’t newer (Marvel, Ratatouille) are in serious need of TLC. Faded paint/words, peeling railings, etc. etc. The park needs some major renovations.
  • Disney Village is even sadder. It feels like you are visiting in the 90’s. I imagine they will refresh that area over time.
• Hotel New York - Art of Marvel was really nice, new and modern. We were glad we stayed here as we went to some of the other resorts and they looked very worn and had long lines in the lobbies. Hotel New York seems to be using a similar approach to WDW hotels with CMs walking around with iPads to assist people. The luggage CMs were amazing and always helpful. We stored our bags on arrival and when we went to our room later in the day, they were already waiting for us without having to call for them.
• Did not like Phantom Manor. Story line didn't make sense and then there are randomly what look like zombies at the end graveyard scene. Just felt weird and we weren't fans. There was rarely a wait for this ride.

Edited to add some additional positives that we experienced. Hopefully it balances out some of the negativity in my original post.

• Drone show - already mentioned, but we really enjoyed getting to see this. It was very unique and entertaining.
• Marvel character experiences - both in the Studios park and Hotel New York
  • Hotel New York has a room setup where you can pose as different Marvel characters…Spiderman, (room is upside down to make it look like you are clinging to the wall), Iron Man’s boots, Thor’s hammer, etc. We met Black Panther, but also saw Loki doing meets.
  • At the Studious park, it’s a virtual queue and you have to choose either Spiderman or Iron Man. We did Spiderman and he spends a lot of time with kids.
• The Mickey and the Magician show at Studios was well done. Good effects, just long enough without feeling too long.
• We enjoyed Space Mountain Hyperspace. Despite it being fairly old, it was a pretty smooth ride and I liked the restraints a lot. I don’t think the star wars overlay fits well though. I think they should have just left it alone.
• Pirates is so much better than WDW. I think this is the same as Disneyland California, but either way, much longer and better than WDW.
• Big Thunder Mountain looks really cool being on its own island. Unfortunately, it and Small World were closed while we were there so we didn’t get to ride it.
• Crush’s Coaster! It actually reminded me of Guardian’s of the Galaxy Cosmic Rewind. We loved this ride.
• The castle is really pretty inside and the dragon is a really neat feature.
• Hardly anyone uses the premier access so if you do purchase it for a ride, you walk right on. We only did this for Crush’s Coaster since it always had a long wait. I think it was worth the purchase. Not sure any other ride would be (right now, premier access is not offered for the Marvel rides.)
• The Marvel area was neat to see, though I wish they would have done more with it. I know it’s basically a replica of Disneyland California so it’s not really any complaint of DLP, I just hope they add more in the future. My kids loved Webslingers, but I was wishing it did more. Toy Story Mania is a better “ride” experience, IMO.

I tried to keep a running list of notes during the trip, but I’m sure I missed something or maybe had a different experience than others. Hopefully my notes will be helpful to someone as far as setting expectations or give you tips on what to do/not do. Happy to answer any questions for those planning trips from the US. We had done Paris at the start of our three week trip and had a rental car that we drove to DLP, but we dropped it off at the train station on property as soon as we arrived.

 

[SuperMuscleMan]

Just back after a three week trip that included Paris, Brussels, many cities in Germany, Strasbourg, Reims and ended with Disneyland Paris. For some background, we are DVC members and go to WDW about three times a year and have been to DL in California as well. One of our family’s bucket list items is to visit each Disney park in the world. After this trip we are 3/6 to our goal.

As mentioned, we recently visited Disneyland Paris. We stayed at the Hotel New York - Art of Marvel for three nights and visited the parks over four days.
Here are my not-so-organized thoughts on Disneyland Paris. In short, I’m glad we went, but it’s a one and done for me.

Restaurants/Dining

• Looooong wait to check in at restaurants. In some cases this was just to check in, not even be seated. Why they haven’t adapted app check in yet is beyond me, but it was often a frustrating and long wait.Longer than many ride queues.
• The food was below mediocre, sometimes inedible (looking at you Captain Jack’s). Walt’s and PYM were ok and what lacked in food, was made up for by the environment.
• If I did it again, I would not eat so many table service meals. The food isn’t good enough to justify the prices or time spent waiting in line to check in.
• Chez Remy’s…I wanted to like this place so much! Cute environment/idea, but terrible execution. This was the most bizarre, worst overall dining experience we had while there.
  • We waited in line for 25 minutes to be able to check in at the host stand. Then we waited another 45 to be seated. In a tiny room with loads of other people also waiting. You couldn’t get back outside to wait because of the long line of people cramming through the door and also because the person calling names spoke in barely a whisper.
    • People were getting angry and frustrated. I witnessed another lady engage with a CM about their long wait only to be waved away dismissively.
  • I get the impression that this was not the norm for this restaurant and that they were having a particularly bad night because at one point a CM came out and announced it would be a long wait and the manager said they would be giving 25% off the bill. Which created mass confusion and questions from those that have MagicPass and from what I could gather, already get a discount on food. It was just chaotic and poor communication all around.
  • After being seated, we sat for about 15 min with no server coming by. We eventually flagged a CM down and he was very nice and took our order and ended up taking care of us for the entire meal despite it not being his table. He was the one bright spot of the restaurant.
  • The food was bland, had a limited menu, nothing memorable or really enjoyable at all.
  • The environment is really well themed and cute. I wish they would have brought it to Epcot and done justice to it.
  • For the bizarre part, we finished our meal around 9:35pm and headed to the door. We were stopped by a CM who told us that the park closed at 9pm and we couldn’t leave on our own. We mentioned that we were heading to the Marvel area (it currently stays open till 10:30pm), but were still told we couldn’t go on our own and a CM needed to walk with us, but that we would have to wait till there was a larger group to leave (the restaurant was still completely full at the time.) So we waited some more until we finally could be chaperoned out of the area. It was strange for us coming from WDW where you often find people wandering around well after closing. This place was deserted 30 short minutes after closing! They did have occasional CMs blocking entrances to other areas so I’m still not sure why we had to be walked out. Anyway, we were eventually released in the Marvel area, but by that time we didn’t have a lot of time till that closed.
• Several of the dining options are buffets. We observed that people don’t have the same rules of etiquette at buffets as they do in the US. It was a bit of a free for all and every man for themself.

Bathrooms

• Not as many bathrooms as Disney world- not as many stalls - not as clean -perpetually smell like urine.
• The one thing I thought was better than US parks was the toilet paper. It was still low quality, but the dispenser was easier to use than the giant roll things that rip as soon as you touch the paper that we have in the US. These were more like a tissue dispenser where you could grab sheet after sheet.
• One of the worst bathrooms for waits and cleanliness was in DL park by the Pinnochio ride. Walk the extra distance to go to another. This one always had a line out the door because they don’t have enough stalls, especially in such a busy area of the park.

Cast Members

• Cast members are not very helpful/friendly. Mostly we would walk by CMs to get in line, etc. and they wouldn’t even greet you or stop conversing with another CM to say Bonjour, etc.
• We definitely encountered some friendly ones, but often they would be very uninformed - One CM I struck up a conversation with while in line to buy something was nicely offering advice to go to the Marvel area late in the evening. I said, "yeah I think it closes at 10:30 instead of 9 like the other areas." He said he didn't think it was open that late and I should look at the app. Tiny thing, but just different from WDW where they walk around with daily notes for reference in case they are asked something. This was also in the Marvel store so you would at least expect those folks to be informed. And it was open till 10:30...
• They also do not put up with guest’s complaints. I never complained to a CM, but witnessed others attempting to voice their frustrations and the CM would literally wave their hand at them and look away, ending the “discussion.”

General Notes/Thoughts

• Really glad we did Paris first before DLP or some things might have been an even bigger shock/disappointment.
• Signage is lacking. They really could use some better signs to point you around the parks.
• Wait times were often inaccurate (longer than posted) but overall wait times are lower there than in WDW.
• Drone show was better than expected (We are all still singing the song..lol). I’m excited to hear the rumor that they may bring a drone show to WDW. It was just a fun element to see for a few minutes.
• Illuminations night time show is not fireworks heavy - they are smaller fireworks similar to what is done at the daytime castle show at WDW.
• No bags are given for what you purchase unless you buy them - 2 euros for a small bag (keep one with you unless you want to carry your souvenirs in your hands or have to keep buying bags.)
• Parks empty out in the evening - easy to see nighttime shows at the last minute - not packed
• Very few scooters and less strollers too. Makes it a bit easier to move around in the parks.
• Not using much tech - photos aren’t available on the app, some people have printed paper tickets still. The variation of tickets could cause quite a backup at the entry points.
  • Ride loading is often done with a whiteboard. It seems they would have brought over their processes from the US parks, but maybe it’s just taking time.
  • Makes for a less organized environment in general.
• Staff speak English but not always fluently. Sometimes we had to point to menus or just abandon our question. Not really a complaint, I know we are in France where they speak french, but it was a bit surprising given the huge amount of international guests.
• If possible, come on weekdays - seems to be a big weekend destination and was way more crowded on Friday afternoon/Saturday than Wednesday and Thursday.
• Characters are very handsy and spend a lot of time talking to you. Shaking hands, etc. They aren’t afraid to grab your kid’s shoulders and steer them, etc. Not rough, just aren’t timid about being hands on. It also seems to be acceptable to grab the characters while they are out and about. We witnessed someone basically put Pluto in a headlock to take a selfie…lol. I don’t think that would fly with the WDW character handlers!
• Parks looked worn. The areas that aren’t newer (Marvel, Ratatouille) are in serious need of TLC. Faded paint/words, peeling railings, etc. etc. The park needs some major renovations.
  • Disney Village is even sadder. It feels like you are visiting in the 90’s. I imagine they will refresh that area over time.
• Hotel New York - Art of Marvel was really nice, new and modern. We were glad we stayed here as we went to some of the other resorts and they looked very worn and had long lines in the lobbies. Hotel New York seems to be using a similar approach to WDW hotels with CMs walking around with iPads to assist people. The luggage CMs were amazing and always helpful. We stored our bags on arrival and when we went to our room later in the day, they were already waiting for us without having to call for them.

I tried to keep a running list of notes during the trip, but I’m sure I missed something or maybe had a different experience than others. Hopefully my notes will be helpful to someone as far as setting expectations or give you tips on what to do/not do. Happy to answer any questions for those planning trips from the US. We had done Paris at the start of our three week trip and had a rental car that we drove to DLP, but we dropped it off at the train station on property as soon as we arrived.

Wow that's depressing! As a DLP AP holder from the UK I am surprised about some of the things you mentioned.

In particular:

The toilets I've always felt were spotless and smelt good.
- The park is worn? Alot of investment has happened within the park and it's been freshened up over the last few years.
- Food service .. yes has always been poor but I think it's hit and miss. I never eat in the sit down restaurants as they are over priced. Service is always slow at everything bar where you can mobile order.
- Signage? I enjoy exploring and it's not difficult to pick up a map and workout where you are. Getting lost in adventure land is part of the magic.
- Disney village is about to be overhauled but it still functions.
- All cast members wear language buttons on name tags. (UK flag for English). Opening a conversation with a "Bonjour" always helps when speaking to the French and instantly they will sus you are not French and converse in English if they can.
- Bags in EU and UK tend NEVER to be free because we both have environment policy's that try and reduce waste. Only small shops can give out plastic bags or they need to be 100% biodegradable.
- Illuminations (the night-time show after fireworks) is a bit more than the WDW stage shows! Yes no large shells are used because of French environment and noise laws done permit large shells every night (specials like NYE and Bastille Day excluded). But they do have a large display and it's also set the fountains.

Paris does have alot of problems and me as a UK visitor can be quite harsh on the French service and some parts of the park but I don't agree with all that you say.

It has some quirks and magical parts! The castle is looking incredible, it has a dragon, and unique additions. It also has some of the best versions of classic rides. It's much bigger than WDW and I think the cast members, shows etc are fantastic. I would say the 30th anniversary shows and add-ons are far superior than WDW! Shine brighter, dream bigger is 100x better than any show at WDW.

It's a shame your trip report found so many faults but hopefully you can look back at the good parts.

 

[bks9581]

Wow that's depressing! As a DLP AP holder from the UK I am surprised about some of the things you mentioned.

In particular:

The toilets I've always felt were spotless and smelt good.
- The park is worn? Alot of investment has happened within the park and it's been freshened up over the last few years.
- Food service .. yes has always been poor but I think it's hit and miss. I never eat in the sit down restaurants as they are over priced. Service is always slow at everything bar where you can mobile order.
- Signage? I enjoy exploring and it's not difficult to pick up a map and workout where you are. Getting lost in adventure land is part of the magic.
- Disney village is about to be overhauled but it still functions.
- All cast members wear language buttons on name tags. (UK flag for English). Opening a conversation with a "Bonjour" always helps when speaking to the French and instantly they will sus you are not French and converse in English if they can.
- Bags in EU and UK tend NEVER to be free because we both have environment policy's that try and reduce waste. Only small shops can give out plastic bags or they need to be 100% biodegradable.
- Illuminations (the night-time show after fireworks) is a bit more than the WDW stage shows! Yes no large shells are used because of French environment and noise laws done permit large shells every night (specials like NYE and Bastille Day excluded). But they do have a large display and it's also set the fountains.

Paris does have alot of problems and me as a UK visitor can be quite harsh on the French service and some parts of the park but I don't agree with all that you say.

It has some quirks and magical parts! The castle is looking incredible, it has a dragon, and unique additions. It also has some of the best versions of classic rides. It's much bigger than WDW and I think the cast members, shows etc are fantastic. I would say the 30th anniversary shows and add-ons are far superior than WDW! Shine brighter, dream bigger is 100x better than any show at WDW.

It's a shame your trip report found so many faults but hopefully you can look back at the good parts.

I think my notes were things that I made a point to write down because they took me by surprise or things I wish I had known before visiting. There were things we enjoyed, but on the whole, it left us with a "glad we did it, but we won't be back" feeling. And I wanted to love it, I'm a huge Disney fan.
I also understand that my experiences may differ from others, but they were my experiences so I'm not sure how someone can disagree with them. They are what they are. (btw, I was not comparing Illuminations to the daytime castle show at WDW, only to give an idea of the size of the fireworks used.)
Maybe they are having a hard time with staffing due to COVID like the rest of the world, and it is affecting the way things are run. I hope Disney continues to invest in the DLP parks, it has the potential to be great and there are a lot of unique things here. Just didn't have the feel of what makes Disney parks so special. It was Disney stuff without the Disney experience.

 

[coronationday]

I'm also trying to visit every Disney Park in the world (4/6, I'm missing Tokyo and Hong Kong). I visited Paris for the first time the last week of July but I only had one day to visit both parks. I did my research beforehand so I knew the major differences, food, attractions and that cast members don't act the same as in the US and that not all speak English, so I was ready for this. Having just one day I decided I wouldn't do any restaurants if I wanted to do a lot of the rides so can't speak to that but I can say that the lines for the bathroom were long and they weren't as clean or nice smelling as the one in the US. I ate quick service which wasn't the best but I was expecting it. I didn't had any problems with cast members or communicating with them through signs or a little bit of English, I actually had a wonderful interaction with three different cast members. I really loved the drone show and Dream and shine brighter (both 30th anniversary songs are part of my playlist now). I really enjoy my day there and I'm actively trying to plan something to go back before the 30th is over. I tried to go with an open mind, knowing things were different and that I had the opportunity to explore two completely new parks to me. I really enjoyed most of the rides in these parks and found that Disneyland Paris is a lovely park that you can get lost in and explore which I love.

 

[bks9581]

Wow that's depressing! As a DLP AP holder from the UK I am surprised about some of the things you mentioned.

In particular:

The toilets I've always felt were spotless and smelt good.
- The park is worn? Alot of investment has happened within the park and it's been freshened up over the last few years.
- Food service .. yes has always been poor but I think it's hit and miss. I never eat in the sit down restaurants as they are over priced. Service is always slow at everything bar where you can mobile order.
- Signage? I enjoy exploring and it's not difficult to pick up a map and workout where you are. Getting lost in adventure land is part of the magic.
- Disney village is about to be overhauled but it still functions.
- All cast members wear language buttons on name tags. (UK flag for English). Opening a conversation with a "Bonjour" always helps when speaking to the French and instantly they will sus you are not French and converse in English if they can.
- Bags in EU and UK tend NEVER to be free because we both have environment policy's that try and reduce waste. Only small shops can give out plastic bags or they need to be 100% biodegradable.
- Illuminations (the night-time show after fireworks) is a bit more than the WDW stage shows! Yes no large shells are used because of French environment and noise laws done permit large shells every night (specials like NYE and Bastille Day excluded). But they do have a large display and it's also set the fountains.

Paris does have alot of problems and me as a UK visitor can be quite harsh on the French service and some parts of the park but I don't agree with all that you say.

It has some quirks and magical parts! The castle is looking incredible, it has a dragon, and unique additions. It also has some of the best versions of classic rides. It's much bigger than WDW and I think the cast members, shows etc are fantastic. I would say the 30th anniversary shows and add-ons are far superior than WDW! Shine brighter, dream bigger is 100x better than any show at WDW.

It's a shame your trip report found so many faults but hopefully you can look back at the good parts.

I went back and edited my post to add some more positive things. Hopefully it balances out the perceived negativity of my original post

 

[Karin1984]

I think some of these things could have been different with a bit more background knowledge. You are absolutely right in certain things, but frequent US-park goers really need to prepare for DLP as it is very different. Especially culturally, and when it concerns castmembers.
Some issues arise:
- For US CMs and especially in WDW, it's a lifelong dream to work for Disney. In Europe Disney didn't really became a thing till the late 80s, early 90s. We didn't grow up here with Uncle Walt on tv. For a lot of people working at Disney is a job like any other. That changes how you go to work.
- Unemployment in France is a big thing. Having a job you do not want is better than no job.
- To Europeans WDW CMs are over the top and can come across as fake. That can make European CMs seem stoic or even rude.

• Looooong wait to check in at restaurants. In some cases this was just to check in, not even be seated. Why they haven’t adapted app check in yet is beyond me, but it was often a frustrating and long wait.Longer than many ride queues.
• The food was below mediocre, sometimes inedible (looking at you Captain Jack’s). Walt’s and PYM were ok and what lacked in food, was made up for by the environment.
• If I did it again, I would not eat so many table service meals. The food isn’t good enough to justify the prices or time spent waiting in line to check in.

- They have just made online reservations for restaurants available ;-) they need to walk before they need to run. In certain ways, France is less tech savvy than other countries. I worked at a French/Dutch company for a long time and the only reason why we still had a fax number was because the French kept using a fax machine to communicate much longer than other countries. Also a lot of things for the government need to be arranged at city hall, signing forms by hand and sending them via regular post.
- In my opinion the food is perfectly fine themepark food, but it's in no way comparable to WDW. And yes, it's definitely overpriced.
- Other thing, which made the long lines is that the French take their time for dinner. That works through in the check in. If they know you cannot be seated for a longer time, they don't check you in yet. Probably to avoid arguments with people waiting for a table.

The food was bland, had a limited menu, nothing memorable or really enjoyable at all

I believe that a limited menu is a sign of an upscale restaurants. The more items on a menu, the higher the chance that part of the ingredients are premade and frozen.
I once read that in an article by a chef about red flags to determine the good from the bad restaurants. If there are only a few items on the menu, the kitchen can focus on this completely.

One of the worst bathrooms for waits and cleanliness was in DL park by the Pinnochio ride.

True, like in the US, Fantasyland toilets are best to be avoided, and Pinocchio is indeed one of the worst.

We definitely encountered some friendly ones, but often they would be very uninformed - One CM I struck up a conversation with while in line to buy something was nicely offering advice to go to the Marvel area late in the evening. I said, "yeah I think it closes at 10:30 instead of 9 like the other areas." He said he didn't think it was open that late and I should look at the app. Tiny thing, but just different from WDW where they walk around with daily notes for reference in case they are asked something. This was also in the Marvel store so you would at least expect those folks to be informed. And it was open till 10:30...

I think this is one of the biggest complaints nowadays in WDW as well. When I read posts in the WDW sections on DIS boards, this might be related to getting the needed CMs in today's world.

• Illuminations night time show is not fireworks heavy - they are smaller fireworks similar to what is done at the daytime castle show at WDW.
• No bags are given for what you purchase unless you buy them - 2 euros for a small bag (keep one with you unless you want to carry your souvenirs in your hands or have to keep buying bags.)

Environmental laws.

Very few scooters and less strollers too. Makes it a bit easier to move around in the parks.

Health is a priority for the French government. By law they do not allow free re-fills for example to combat obesity.

Not using much tech - photos aren’t available on the app, some people have printed paper tickets still. The variation of tickets could cause quite a backup at the entry points.

• Ride loading is often done with a whiteboard. It seems they would have brought over their processes from the US parks, but maybe it’s just taking time.
• Makes for a less organized environment in general.

As mentioned, there is still a large part of the French who prefer paper.
I have no idea what you mean with a whiteboard. I've never seen a whiteboard. Where was this, and what was going on exactly?

Staff speak English but not always fluently. Sometimes we had to point to menus or just abandon our question. Not really a complaint, I know we are in France where they speak french, but it was a bit surprising given the huge amount of international guests.

Speaking English fluently in France is rare. It's much better than it was 10 years ago. It also can depend on which CM you are talking to. I never encounter problems with CMs in stores, restaurants, hotel receptions anymore. But cleaners for example, who do not necessarily have to interact with guests. Their knowledge of English can be limited.

If possible, come on weekdays - seems to be a big weekend destination and was way more crowded on Friday afternoon/Saturday than Wednesday and Thursday.

Very true. DLP is a park for locals. Most of Paris has an AP, and coming in the weekend for a few hours is a pastime for many.

Characters are very handsy and spend a lot of time talking to you. Shaking hands, etc. They aren’t afraid to grab your kid’s shoulders and steer them, etc. Not rough, just aren’t timid about being hands on. It also seems to be acceptable to grab the characters while they are out and about. We witnessed someone basically put Pluto in a headlock to take a selfie…lol. I don’t think that would fly with the WDW character handlers

Probably a cultural thing for the US. In the US it's a thing to sue people for everything. That makes people careful when interacting.
The Pluto-incident is probably an incident. I would assume that French CMs would be even harsher to remove the guest ;-)

Parks looked worn. The areas that aren’t newer (Marvel, Ratatouille) are in serious need of TLC. Faded paint/words, peeling railings, etc. etc. The park needs some major renovations.

• Disney Village is even sadder. It feels like you are visiting in the 90’s. I imagine they will refresh that area over time.

They are working on it. They were able to do a lot during Covid-closures but not everything. Since TWDC got a majority in the shares again things are changing. It takes time.
Disney Village will get a major overhaul next year.

 

[bks9581]

Maybe I should have been more clear...these were observations especially of differences that people may want to prepare for, not necessarily things that I don't understand why they are that way. We spent 2.5 weeks prior to this traveling around Europe. My husband is German so we are pretty knowledgeable of European environmental laws and cultural differences. Others coming to a Disney Park may expect more of a US Disney experience, which is why I listed the things I did. Admittedly, even some things took me by surprise as I expected more of a Disney feel.

Health is a priority for the French government. By law they do not allow free re-fills for example to combat obesity.

This made me chuckle...not sure how much a priority health is when every other person smokes in France.

Probably a cultural thing for the US. In the US it's a thing to sue people for everything.

I definitely noticed this aspect affecting how little safety is enforced in the parks. Kids sitting on ride railings, climbing on things, etc. that wouldn't be allowed in US parks.

I have no idea what you mean with a whiteboard. I've never seen a whiteboard. Where was this, and what was going on exactly?

I saw the whiteboard used a couple times to keep track of what ride was assigned. The one that sticks out was the Toy Story Parachute drop ride. The CMs had a whiteboard clipboard to keep track of things.

I believe that a limited menu is a sign of an upscale restaurants. The more items on a menu, the higher the chance that part of the ingredients are premade and frozen.

Yes, which is why you would expect the table service restaurants to be better. By limited I also meant that I expected more if there are only a few options at each place. Almost every restaurant had some version of roasted chicken and broiled fish. Not much variety.

- Other thing, which made the long lines is that the French take their time for dinner. That works through in the check in. If they know you cannot be seated for a longer time, they don't check you in yet. Probably to avoid arguments with people waiting for a table.

My guess it had more to do with staffing. Aside from Chez Remy's, once you got to the front, they would take you to your table and in almost all cases, there were many empty tables in the restaurant. I think they just don't have the staff they need at the moment.

They are working on it. They were able to do a lot during Covid-closures but not everything. Since TWDC got a majority in the shares again things are changing. It takes time.
Disney Village will get a major overhaul next year.

I figure it will get some much needed attention overtime. Makes you wonder what would have become of it if Disney didn't regain majority ownership.

 

[SuperMuscleMan]

I went back and edited my post to add some more positive things. Hopefully it balances out the perceived negativity of my original post

Fantastic! Glad you had some good points. Maybe as a man my toilet experience is different but my girlfriend never has said anything about the toilets!!

Shame about big thunder it's the best of the lot!

I hope the main park gets another attraction too. Plus here's hoping avengers campus use the stunt show space for another e ticket!

Smoking is a thing in France but I've never really noticed it. Smoking is less of a thing in the rest of Europe. The cast members are getting stricter for those no smoking in the correct areas.

What did you think of the 30th decorations? Or the Halloween ones?

The drone show could be improved but I think it's a stepping stone for the whole of Disney. The show for avengers campus was incredible. (Just one night) but obviously this is a test bed to see if shows can run 365 days a year. Very different to one or two nights. I imagine that's an extra 6 or 7 full time staff when you factor in maintenance, deployment, holidays etc. That's 250+ drones to keep serviced and charged!