Disneyland Paris questions

[Rob S.]

Here is a question for anyone that has used their points to stay at Disneyland Paris recently. Are park passes included when you book using points? For some reason I thought that they were. Maybe because they are included when you book a package with cash. Also, the UK web site has much better pricing for rooms than the US site. I can not book using the UK site since I live in the US. If I call Paris, can I get the UK rate although I do not live there? I'll be going in July 2013 if that makes a difference.

 

[erionm]

The point charts up thru 2012 said that you had to purchase length of stay passes when reserving at Disneyland Paris. That wording is not on the 2013 Point Chart. I would recommend calling MS to see what the policy is now.

 

[Rob S.]

The point charts up thru 2012 said that you had to purchase length of stay passes when reserving at Disneyland Paris. That wording is not on the 2013 Point Chart. I would recommend calling MS to see what the policy is now.

I called MS this morning and they told me that I would need to purchase park passes (and it was always that way). I've also just confirmed with a friend of mine that went in Sept 2012 (using points) that their park passes were included and they did not have to purchase them. This is why I am confused. I'm hoping someone else has some recent experience with this.

 

[MrShiny]

I know that passes used to be included - I believe that changed in 2008 because that is the year I used points for Hotel New York at DLP and I recall when planning the passes were included but when booking they were not (te pint cost also ent down as a consequence). I believe I did have to purchase passes when booking though. Definitely MS would be the best! It obviously isn't a booking they do a lot. I had to book my Buffalo Bill dinner show tickets through MS, but that worked to my advantage as they undercharged me but said that it was their fault so I didn't owe more.

 

[Rob S.]

After comparing the rates on all the various sites, I decided to book using points. The change this year is that now the purchase of park passes is OPTIONAL. In previous years it was REQUIRED. I purchased a 6 day pass from member services for $198, which seemed like a good price compared to what I've seen online. I chose the Sequoia Lodge at "only" 42 points per night (210 total for 5 nights). I have plenty of points to use so that's not an issue.

I've spend a lot of time trying to get the best deal and it turns out it was using points. Now I just need to find a hotel in Barcelona for our Med Cruise.

 

[Lisa Anne Colling]

Rob
When did you book for? We called this week, hoping for july and the booking window wasn't open yet. Just curious as to your timing. MS said to keep calling back. Did you have any trouble getting what you wanted?

 

[Rob S.]

Rob
When did you book for? We called this week, hoping for july and the booking window wasn't open yet. Just curious as to your timing. MS said to keep calling back. Did you have any trouble getting what you wanted?

I booked July 6th through 11th. I had no problem getting what I wanted.

 

[zavandor]

I purchased a 6 day pass from member services for $198

Have you already paid for it?
Purchasing an Annual passport is quite inexpensive in DLP and gives a lot of discounts.

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

The Fantasy AP costs $211 (today change rates) and gives you 10% off restaurants (also counter service) and 10% off souvenirs. You would end up saving quite a bit of money in 6 days.
Don't worry about blockout dates: if you stay in one of the resort hotels you can use the AP also in a blockout day.

Also, in the DLP planning board you can easily find someone who can sponsorship you giving you a 10% discount on the passport.

The only hassle is that you have to queue to obtain the passport (it can be a long queue in certain days).

BTW, 6 days in DLP is a lot of time. You may want to plan also one or more days in Paris or in the surroundings. Paris can be easily reached by train from a station located inside the resort itself.

 

[Rob S.]

Have you already paid for it?
Purchasing an Annual passport is quite inexpensive in DLP and gives a lot of discounts.

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

The Fantasy AP costs $211 (today change rates) and gives you 10% off restaurants (also counter service) and 10% off souvenirs. You would end up saving quite a bit of money in 6 days.
Don't worry about blockout dates: if you stay in one of the resort hotels you can use the AP also in a blockout day.

Also, in the DLP planning board you can easily find someone who can sponsorship you giving you a 10% discount on the passport.

The only hassle is that you have to queue to obtain the passport (it can be a long queue in certain days).

BTW, 6 days in DLP is a lot of time. You may want to plan also one or more days in Paris or in the surroundings. Paris can be easily reached by train from a station located inside the resort itself.

Thanks for the tips. I did already purchase the 6 day pass from member services . I don't think I'm losing out on too much savings though. We're not big on dining so we won't be spending a lot on food (relatively speaking) and I won't be able to load up on too many souvineers as this is the first leg of a 22 day vacation. I just won't have the room to buy too much stuff.

I was originally planning on about 4 days in Paris to enjoy the parks and tour the city but when it came time to purchase my flights it worked out better to start my vacation 2 days earlier without taking any extra time off work. Now I can tour the parks at a slower pace and still have plenty of time to tour the city of Paris. On the 6th day, we fly to Barcelona and spend 2 nights there before our Med cruise. I still have quite a bit of research to do but I think I have most of the major things taken care of already.

I clicked on the link that you provided and saw an advertisment for the Paris Pass. Would you recommend that?

 

[zavandor]

I clicked on the link that you provided and saw an advertisment for the Paris Pass. Would you recommend that?

I'm sorry but I'm not an expert on this. If you need any tip about the Paris stay you should post on the DLP planning board. There are a lot knowledgeable people there, also some living in Paris that will certanly help you.
I love Paris and I love DLP, I'm sure you'll have a wonderful vacation!

 

[Lisa Anne Colling]

I booked July 6th through 11th. I had no problem getting what I wanted.

Thanks Rob! We are booked! Also enjoying a med cruise! Have a great time and happy planning!

 

[lilpooh108]

Don't get the Paris pass. Get carte musees and by carnets of metro tickets.

 

[teriyaki]

Hi, we were going to book with points Jun 25-28 at DL Hotel at DLP. After the agent checked with 3 other ppl, she told me we could not get EMH unless we bought our length of stay passes thru DVC.

She also said that 4 day passes were $ 202.29/pp.

Does anyone know if DVC offers DLP annual passes, and how much they are, or if they are discounted?

Thanks.

 

[zavandor]

EMH are offered to anyone staying onsite (with any ticket) and to everyone who owns a Dreams Annual Passport. This year they gave EMH also to everyone having a Fantasy passport (not sure if this special promotion for the 20th anniversary will continue when the season will change at the end of March).

 

[Anal Annie]

After comparing the rates on all the various sites, I decided to book using points. The change this year is that now the purchase of park passes is OPTIONAL. In previous years it was REQUIRED. I purchased a 6 day pass from member services for $198, which seemed like a good price compared to what I've seen online. I chose the Sequoia Lodge at "only" 42 points per night (210 total for 5 nights). I have plenty of points to use so that's not an issue.

I've spend a lot of time trying to get the best deal and it turns out it was using points. Now I just need to find a hotel in Barcelona for our Med Cruise.

That does sound like a cheap rate for your park passes. When we went to Paris & Barcelona for the Med cruise in 2011 we ended up booking a cash package at DLP for a couple of reasons (I think we spent $510 for the 1 night and 2 days of park passes for the 3 of us). First, we wanted to go sightseeing in Paris some and at that time, purchasing "length of stay" park tickets was mandatory. That was really a turn-off for me. Even though we would only be spending 4 nights in Paris and leaving bright & EARLY on our last morning (like crack of dawn early) they insisted we'd have to buy 5 days worth of park tickets and we only planned on spending 2 days at the parks!! Between the high point cost and that we felt like we'd really be getting ripped off so we booked 1 night onsite and 2 days of park passes (just at one of their "value" resorts) so we could get the EMH's. Then around 5:00 on our 2nd day we moved into the city to another hotel for 3 nights. It was AMAZING to stay in the city and I'm really glad we moved hotels and didn't try to "commute" for our sightseeing. We reallllly loved Paris and accomplished quite a lot on our own in our remaining 2 days.

As far as hotels in Barcelona there's quite a long thread about hotels in Barcelona on the cruise board. We went a day before the cruise and just stayed in the Hotel Novotel for that 1 night. It was new, modern, slept 4 / room and was perfectly fine for just 1 night. We booked early with a non-refundable rate that included breakfast for about $145 USD (and it was a nice spread for breakfast). It was across the street from a shopping center which had a Carrefours (grocery store) that sold beer so we stocked up and filled a carry-on suitcase with bottled water and beer to bring to the ship. The cruise was INCREDIBLE and we LOVED the entire trip. After the cruise we stayed in Barcelona for 2 more nights at the Hotel Jazz. It was a gorgeous hotel very convenient to Las Ramblas and the metro. It was significantly more expensive than the Hotel Novotel but we just wanted to experience a different part of the city. If you have not yet visited the cruise board for hotel ideas in Barcelona you should go check it out. They have an extensive list already compiled.

HAVE FUN!! I wish we could go again - would LOVE to do the eastern Med next!! Europe is just amazing!! You will love it!! I still have a link in my siggie that goes to my trip report....I should be ashamed tho because I never finished writing up the last 2 days....but you may get a few ideas for your trip if you read some trip reports from previous Med cruisers!! I included a LOT of pictures & as many details as I could in mine.