DLP have a downtown disney type area?

[scrapbooksellman]

Hi, I am going to Paris in Early April. I am wondering if Disney Paris has an area similar to downtown disney in Orlando. Maybe an area to shop and that you don't need park tickets to visit.
We decided park tickets are too much to go for one day. But if they had an area to get a disney fix that would be great.
Thanks for any info.
Any general Paris info appreciated as well. My hubby and DD 11 and DS 8 will be going with me.
Sandy

 

[tennisfan]

There is the Disney Village which has shops, bars & restaurants including Earl of Sandwich.

 

[Carrie_Cat]

It's an hours journey from Paris so bear that in mind and it will cost you 14,20€ per adult and your dd and half price for your ds.

Depending on your dates there could be some cheaper park tickets on sale and you'd get to see the new Disney Dreams show and all the 20th anniversary celebrations.

Plus with the extended hours you could be in the parks from 10.00 to late evening

 

[scrapbooksellman]

That cost would be for a train to DLP? We are in Paris from April 3- 6th. I have hunted the internet and haven't found an tickets deals, keeping in mind everything will cost us US dollars with the exchange rate not in our favor.

 

[Carrie_Cat]

That cost would be for a train to DLP? We are in Paris from April 3- 6th. I have hunted the internet and haven't found an tickets deals, keeping in mind everything will cost us US dollars with the exchange rate not in our favor.

That's how much the train (RER) costs from Paris to DLP return - It's roughly 20 miles out

I'll have a look for you for cheap tickets tomorrow

 

[zavandor]

There is the Disney Village which has shops, bars & restaurants including Earl of Sandwich.

The DIsney Village is very similar to Downtown Disney, except the size. It's about 1/3 of Downtown Disney (maybe less). I would not say it's worth the travel from Paris on it's own, above all if you are used to Orlando.
The park, instead, is beautiful.

 

[JohnnySharp2]

Sorry to be so blunt, but I don't think it's worth the visit unless you are visiting the parks too.
The Disney Village is not in the same league as Downtown Disney, I don't actually feel they are that similar either.

DV to me is more like parts of Universal's Citywalk.

DV & DTD have the same purpose in that they are dining/shopping and entertainment complex's to compliment the theme parks, but they aren't similar in the way they are laid out at all.

The new Disney Store , will definitely add something that is lacking, but I wouldn't consider making a special visit until that opens.
I actually think the shops as they are aren't that good. Like I say sorry for being so honest.

 

[torsie24]

I agree with Johnny.

Disney Village is nowhere close to being as good as DTD and I think you'd be dissappointed if you travelled an hou each way to visit.

If you can find cheap day tickets though I can't recommend a trip to the main park enough, especially with the late opening hours and new Dreams show. You could certainly get your money's worth!

 

[zavandor]

You can try to buy a Francilien ticket:

http://www.billetfrancilien.com/

It's 35 € for one day/ one park. I'm not sure if you must be legal resident of the Ile the France region, but to be able to buy it you must select that region on the Disney website.
I've heard that it's available to everyone, but I've never bought it.
However I'm sure that people from Italy bought the Buffalo Bill show tickets for 30€ and it's the same kind of offer (I'm going to do it next May).

 

[sammie1884]

IMO Disney Village is no where near as good as downtown disney. I wouldnt make a special trip just to go there. The parks are great, similar lay outs to Orlando but very different, lots of different things to see. So if I was you i would try and get some cheap park tickets. HTH

 

[Ms Poppins]

I've never been to DTD so cannot compare.

I agree that the shops in Disney Village aren't worth a special trip. But I suppose it depends what you want to do. If you're just looking for a Disney fix, or would like a meal with characters for example you could do that in Cafe Mickey in the Village, and then have a stroll round the lake or have a nosey into the hotels. It would certainly give you a feel for the area and how close everything is together.

The train station is right in the central area between Disney Village and the parks/hotels. You'd be able to have a wander in the Disneyland Hotel, which I think is beautiful . It has a nice shop and bar.

Personally I think it'd be a nice way to spend an evening, without trying to rush around the park if you don't have the time.

 

[scrapbooksellman]

thanks for all the feedback! It sounds like it is not worth the trip without the park. I will check for the cheaper tickets.

 

[Carrie_Cat]

You can try to buy a Francilien ticket:

http://www.billetfrancilien.com/

It's 35 € for one day/ one park. I'm not sure if you must be legal resident of the Ile the France region, but to be able to buy it you must select that region on the Disney website.
I've heard that it's available to everyone, but I've never bought it.
However I'm sure that people from Italy bought the Buffalo Bill show tickets for 30€ and it's the same kind of offer (I'm going to do it next May).

Anybody can now buy a Francilien ticket (it used to be Ile de France only but changed some time back)

The only condition is that you must purchase it at least 5 days before your visit.

The prices from the 29th of March will be as follows

Francilien tickets

booked at least 5 days in advance for a fixed date

Francilien 1 day 1 park on a weekday - 35 euros
Francilien 1 day 1 park on a weekend,public holiday or school holiday - 41 euros

Francilien 1 day 2 park on a weekday - 45 euros
Francilien 1 day 2 park on a weekend,public holiday or school holiday - 53 euros


The Fnac site is a good place to order them from and either print them at home for an extra 50cts per ticket or drop into any Fnac store (there are several in Paris) and pick them up

 

[scrapbooksellman]

I checked out the site and this is what I found... 140 euros =$185 dollars for 1 day 1 park tickets, 180 euros =$239 1 day 2 park tickets. I have acouple of questions...

1. Is it worth it time and money wise?? We are big Disney fans, been to WDW twice. We don't plan to get back to WDW for 2 years.

2. Should we do 1 park or 2?

3. If I put in the address to the Paris apartment we are staying in do they send mail to that address at any time? I don't want to cause any problems for the people we are renting from.

Thanks for any help!!
Should I start a new thread with these questions?

 

[torsie24]

I wouldn't say you'd need a 2 park ticket. As far as large attractions go your only missing RnRc, ToT and Crush's Coaster.

CC is the only unique ride, and whilst fun its nothing ground-breaking imagineering wise, just a fast spinny coaster with a few Nemo looking touches.

ToT and RnRC aren't as good as their WDW counter parts.

It depends how long you have in Paris. If I was going to be in the city for 4 days or more I think I'd take the time out to visit. And we also won't be returning to WDW for 2 years, so DLRP is a nice enough stopgap.

The main park is very pretty, the DLRP parades are just as good as the WDW ones, and their PotC, BTM, Buzz Astro Blasters and Space Mountain are all much better then the ones at WDW.

Plus you'll get to see Dreams.

 

[Rachie B]

you could pop to the DLH to see the characters in the afternoon ( dont need tickets or be a guest to get in )

then have a wander round the shops in the village and then have a character meal @ cafe mickey

also lots of good shops @ val d'europe ( 1 stop from disney) and restaurants etc
so easy to "make a day of it" in the area

 

[MazdaUK]

I'd compare the DV area to visiting a Lego shop instead of going to Legoland. As others have said though, you can do a lot in one day in one park - its nowhere near as big as WDW (though i think DP may be bigger than MK), the parades are brilliant, there's lovely eating options (we love Walts). My DSis and DBIL did it in 1 day with their 4 kids on the way back from France and you can see most things - there's stuff in the castle (shops and a dragon) which you don't get everywhere

 

[Michael623]

In order to get from most of the Hotels to the parks you need to walk through the Village. If that wasn't the case I would probably have never gone there. The DL park is worth a visit, the Village is not at all. They are building a WOD store but even still, not worth a trip all the way out from Paris just to see.

 

[scrapbooksellman]

Thanks for all the information.
I am going to book from the french site today. I am so excited!
We are going to keep this part of our trip a secret from the kids until we get there.

I was reading a little about pin trading in Paris. They don't seem to make such a big deal out of it as opposed to WDW. We love to pin trade. I have some pins from our last trip. Is it okay to take pins from here or do we need to buy them there to trade?

 

[Michael623]

Cast Members do pin trade but there are far fewer CMs with lanyards than the US parks plus they tend to make up there own trading rules. Some will only only trade LE for LE, others just flat out refuse a trade if you don't have anything they like, and others still claim that these are their own personal pins and they're not for trade. It gets very frustrating. As far as guest trading the only folks I saw last trip had several books of mostly rare and LE pins and came across as very sharky.