Confused about Disney Hotels

[akicks]

My sister and I are wedging in a quick first-time trip to DLP. We are flying to Europe from the US primarily to visit family but we are sneaking to Paris briefly at the end of our trip. Our times and days are not negotiable; they are what they are and we are going to make the best of it.

First question: Expedia and other sites I might normally use say sold out for all of the Disney hotels for September 17-19. Is this normal? Do other sites besides the Disney site ever have Disney hotels, and if they do are they ever cheaper than the Disney site? Am I looking too early? Too late?

Second question: The only way to book a hotel on the Disneyland Paris site appears to be a package with park tickets. Is this correct? We will need to catch a plane early on the 19th so we wouldn't be able to use a ticket that day. If we book a hotel for two nights, it appears that it comes with 3 days of tickets. Is it possible to save money by either getting a refund for the last day's tickets or can they issue a package with one less day at the parks at less cost if I call them?

Thanks!

 

[caspdex]

It appears that DLP have stopped selling hotels through third party bookers, why I don't know. If you stay in a Disney hotel you can't get a refund on unused days on your ticket. Some of the offsite hotels are equally convenient for transfers' then just buy a two day ticket.

 

[DLPdaft]

DLP doesn't sell its room only through anyone except themselves (by phone to them) in September - it does at other times of the year, typically from November through to March.

You can call Disney to book 2 nights and 2 days onsite, but to be honest I doubt it would be much, if any, less of a price, compared to the 2 nights and 3 days you get as standard on a DLP onsite hotel package.

 

[Suzanne1979]

Maybe going to a non-Disney hotel (no park tickets included) would be the better option for your trip. For instance, the partner hotels (Dream Castle, Kyriad Disney etc.) are really close by (10 mins by shuttle bus) and you can book these via third party agents. I think you'll be able to get a good deal for the 2nd half of September.
Still, you'll have to buy separate park tickets then - and they don't come cheap. A 2 day ticket bought in advance (via Disney site) is 139 euros, and they have a special offer "3 days for the price of 2". But this is of course no help to you.
In low season, I have always found it cheaper to book a hotel with park tickets included (whether Disney or partner hotel) than hotel and tickets separately - even with "non used day park tickets" taken into account.

Good luck with your search, and have fun

 

[DLPdaft]

Don't forget also, regardless of which country you reside in, you can book any country's offer for DLP (check UK and France l'autre regions). Change the country on the homepage of the DLP site to check prices (bottom left of the page).

 

[akicks]

It appears that DLP have stopped selling hotels through third party bookers, why I don't know. If you stay in a Disney hotel you can't get a refund on unused days on your ticket. Some of the offsite hotels are equally convenient for transfers' then just buy a two day ticket.

Thank you, I appreciate it. Since our time is so limited, it is worth a premium to get early entry. We'll just have to decide how much of a premium it is worth to us.

 

[squeaker]

Slightly leftfield suggestion/question but I noticed for an upcoming trip where getting in early was a deciding factor, the price difference between a disney hotel package for two nights and an ok hotel further along the train line was much more than the cost of a Fantasy or even Dream Annual pass per person. Since those also allow you early access (and the RER train runs earlier and more regularly than the official partner hotels' shuttle buses), that's what we're considering this time. Any real potential pitfalls (apart from the blackout dates for the fantasy, which we've checked)?

 

[akicks]

Slightly leftfield suggestion/question but I noticed for an upcoming trip where getting in early was a deciding factor, the price difference between a disney hotel package for two nights and an ok hotel further along the train line was much more than the cost of a Fantasy or even Dream Annual pass per person.

I love leftfield suggestions! I'm off to do that math now. Thanks!

 

[DLPdaft]

I think it depends when your trip is planned - I believe Fantasy APs are going back to no access to EMH when staying offsite after 1st July this year - I'm sure I read that somewhere but maybe I dreamed it .

Historically Dream APs have always given you access to EMH when staying offsite, so you'd be safe buying those instead of Fantasy APs.

 

[cdsmiler81]

I think it depends when your trip is planned - I believe Fantasy APs are going back to no access to EMH when staying offsite after 1st July this year - I'm sure I read that somewhere but maybe I dreamed it .

Historically Dream APs have always given you access to EMH when staying offsite, so you'd be safe buying those instead of Fantasy APs.

Oh I hadn't heard that about the Fantasy APs! Interesting!

C x

 

[Jonjo]

Oh I hadn't heard that about the Fantasy APs! Interesting!

C x

DLRP Magic have a very informative page about Annual Passports, tells you everything you need to know.

http://www.dlrpmagic.com/planning/booking/annual-passports/.

The offical page on the DLP website is in French and can be found here:
http://www.disneylandparis.com/fr/passeport_annuel/adh/hp.htm.

I've also heared that only the Dream pass will give you access to EMH from 1st July when the prices go up.

 

[cdsmiler81]

Well it will be interesting to find out about the Fantasy EMH issue after the 1st July then - might influence our plans a bit!

C x

 

[DLPdaft]

Well it will be interesting to find out about the Fantasy EMH issue after the 1st July then - might influence our plans a bit!

C x

do you have Fantasy APs now? Wherever I saw the stuff about no EMH for Fantasy APs after 1st of July when staying offsite, I think I also saw that for current Fantasy APs, bought and validated before 1st of July, you still get EMH when offsite, until your Fantasy AP expires.

 

[cdsmiler81]

do you have Fantasy APs now? Wherever I saw the stuff about no EMH for Fantasy APs after 1st of July when staying offsite, I think I also saw that for current Fantasy APs, bought and validated before 1st of July, you still get EMH when offsite, until your Fantasy AP expires.

No, we have Dream. But we were looking at buying two Francillien ones for my brother and his girlfriend for our visit in October. Long story short, but this was going to be the cheapest way for them to have tickets, bought by post, but if the Fantasy passes are going to have EHU taken from them, I'd assume the Francillien ones will do too. MIGHT make a difference to what we end up doing.

Thanks though!

C x

 

[squeaker]

I should have added that my calculations include the Shareholder's discount for the Dream APs, but even without that it would have made sense in our case, especially considering we'll also be having lunch etc on both days and ergo will be getting the AP discounts on that. It all adds up.

The Francillien ones (as far as I know) do not currently allow extra hours. The official DLP website only shows Fantasy and Dream having those privileges.

 

[cdsmiler81]

The Francillien ones (as far as I know) do not currently allow extra hours. The official DLP website only shows Fantasy and Dream having those privileges.

Ah, interesting, thanks!!

C x

 

[addverbaan]

Just to add that the partner hotel shuttles start from 6.30am so plenty early enough for emh

 

[AndyMaga]

great!!

 

[squeaker]

Just to add that the partner hotel shuttles start from 6.30am so plenty early enough for emh

Are you sure this applies to all partner hotels? When I asked the concierge at the Radisson a few months ago, he told me their first morning shuttle wasn't until around 9am, I think due to the fact that guests don't usually have EMH privileges. That's why I looked at hotels near the train line instead as that runs early (most of the DLP hotel domestic staff seem to be on the very early trains).

 

[Ware Bears]

Not for the Radisson then but it does for the closest four, the Explorers, Kyriad, Magic Circus and Dream Castle.