I guess theres a sensible school of thought that states you shouldnt compare WDW and DLP, but as a long-time visitor of the Florida venue (28 years since I first went), it was interesting to make my first trip to the French version at the weekend.
Whilst not following what seems to be the boards trip report convention of a blow-by-blow, one day at a time account, hopefully these notes (with football-like scoring) will be of use to others considering whether or not to visit DLP.
Our group
My wife & I, both 30-something, plus our 2 yr old son and 3 month old daughter.
Getting there
Paris wins hands down, even if the Eurostar terminal at Waterloo has all the ambiance of a Bulgarian bus station*, and the French immigration official did his best to mimic the surly nature of his US counterparts! Hopefully the move to St Pancras will improve the facilities, but the fact we did it from a hotel in Southwark to the New York hotel in just a shade over 4 hrs is a clear winner, especially with small kids. DLP 1 0 WDW
* - disclaimer, I have never been to a bus station in Bulgaria but its what Id imagine it to be like.
Getting around
Again, Paris has the edge as its all within walking distance if you want. We favour the EPCOT resort properties as theyre walking distance to half of the parks at WDW, but youve still got transport hassles if you want to get to MK or AK whilst theres no need for buses at all at DLP. DLP 2 - 0 WDW
The weather
We were lucky, but the sun was shining for most of the time. Incredibly foggy about 8am on Sunday, but that cleared in a couple of hours. On this trip alone Id say it was a tie, but on balance Id prefer the certainty of Florida. DLP 2 1 WDW
The park
We only did the Disneyland Park, avoiding the studios altogether owing to limited time and what we felt would be limited attractions for the kids. It was busy busier than Ive ever seen the Magic Kingdom at WDW but I guess the weather, the UK bank holiday and the fact it was the end of the peak season all helped boost attendance. However, it did seem to be bursting at the seams it was so busy as to look cluttered and certain spots (i.e. outside the Buzz Lightyear ride) appeared to be bottlenecks on several occasions some poor planning here I think. I also saw bins overflowing and occasions where queues were so long they snaked out into the general areas of the park. I appreciate it was busy, but think they would have handled things better in Florida. DLP 2 2 WDW
The shopping
Again, a black mark for DLP here. I dont know much about retail and being a typical bloke, I hate shopping! However, if youre selling gift items, Id say theyre predominantly impulse buys. You want to sell that item as fast as possible, not leave people waiting in queues of 10+ to get to a till, which is what we ran into in the park on a couple of occasions.
Also, stock levels this has been mentioned on the board before, but we ran out of nappies so tried to buy some. Babycare centre had no large ones, so they directed us to a shop at the front of the park. Again, they only had small ones, so we went back to the hotel. After some digging around they managed to find a packet, but given the healthy mark-up on these items (EUR11 for about 25 of a brand Id never seen before) and the target audience, I think its inexcusable that places like the babycare centre run out! DLP 2 3 WDW
The food
Ive heard a lot of comments about DLP being expensive. Im not sure what people expect to pay for food in a theme park, but on balance I didnt think it was outrageous, especially when you consider the expectation that youll add a 20% tip to the bill in Florida. I thought Sunday brunch at the Steakhouse was excellent value for money EUR64 all inclusive for 2 people, so just over £20 per head. Thats your drinks, tips, cheese, etc. The fact I believe all the rooms are sold on a B&B basis too shouldnt be overlooked, as this would save a lot of cash over a few days. It certainly isnt cheap, but neither is Florida the $2:£1 rate admittedly helps, but start thinking back to the days of $1.60 or $1.35 to the pound and Id say theres no clear winner here unless you really expect DLP to be a straight implant of the US park. DLP 2 3 WDW
The character interaction
Very long queues to see the few characters out and about in the park, but lots of interaction at the two character meals we had. Also the presence of characters in the hotel was good always someone around in the morning, often with no kids, and on Sunday night we got back at just after 9pm to find the Main Mouse leading a conga line of kids around the reception area. (Those who think the Hotel New York is cold/clinical may need to revise their opinions ) Again, Id say its a close call, but for what our 2 yr old son wanted, I think DLP probably edges in ahead of WDW here. DLP 3 3 WDW
The other guests
Hmmm. Yes we had some pushing and shoving. The smoking got right up my nose (pun intended) and quite why they feel its a sensible idea to sell plastic swords at every opportunity escapes me. My wife was prodded twice, my 2 yr old son once and we even caught some toe-rag about to stick a sword into my 3 month old daughters car seat (where she was sleeping). To say I lost it at that point would be an understatement. The crowded nature of the place didnt help and I appreciate it was a seasonal matter, but cmon Disney swords, guns and a family environment????? DLP 3 WDW 4
The hotel
We stayed at the Hotel New York, so it was interesting having previously stayed at both the Swan and the Dolphin in WDW. You can see the similarities and I thought it came across as more Disney in the HNY. The suite was great but a concierge lounge would have been a nice extra. Before we left I saw that there had also been complaints about breakfast, but we had no queue on the first morning and only a 2 minute wait on the second whilst parties ahead of us were seated. Bar staff also happy to give us warm milk for my son in the evening (am sure they wouldnt do this in Florida for risk of a law suit!) and we had a meal from room service late one night nice food, nice half bottle of Chablis and not overly expensive. Its difficult to compare like with like in this category having never stayed in a suite at a WDW hotel (Beach Club villas dont count in my book) but I think DLP edges in ahead! I cant award a half point, so thats DLP 4 4 WDW
The cast members
No problems here didnt see anyone being particularly surly, but didnt have much call to speak to many people either. However, my limited French wasnt enough and we ended up struggling on a couple of occasions in the park. Not sure I can really penalise DLP on my ignorance of their language, though!
In summary
The fact its so close obviously makes it cheaper to get to. That makes a shorter trip feasible and at least for us we can spend a little more each day whilst were there. I wouldnt want to fork out what we paid each day for a whole week, but for a long weekend it was great. Would we go back to DLP? Probably. Will we go to WDW again? Definitely!
Whilst not following what seems to be the boards trip report convention of a blow-by-blow, one day at a time account, hopefully these notes (with football-like scoring) will be of use to others considering whether or not to visit DLP.
Our group
My wife & I, both 30-something, plus our 2 yr old son and 3 month old daughter.
Getting there
Paris wins hands down, even if the Eurostar terminal at Waterloo has all the ambiance of a Bulgarian bus station*, and the French immigration official did his best to mimic the surly nature of his US counterparts! Hopefully the move to St Pancras will improve the facilities, but the fact we did it from a hotel in Southwark to the New York hotel in just a shade over 4 hrs is a clear winner, especially with small kids. DLP 1 0 WDW
* - disclaimer, I have never been to a bus station in Bulgaria but its what Id imagine it to be like.
Getting around
Again, Paris has the edge as its all within walking distance if you want. We favour the EPCOT resort properties as theyre walking distance to half of the parks at WDW, but youve still got transport hassles if you want to get to MK or AK whilst theres no need for buses at all at DLP. DLP 2 - 0 WDW
The weather
We were lucky, but the sun was shining for most of the time. Incredibly foggy about 8am on Sunday, but that cleared in a couple of hours. On this trip alone Id say it was a tie, but on balance Id prefer the certainty of Florida. DLP 2 1 WDW
The park
We only did the Disneyland Park, avoiding the studios altogether owing to limited time and what we felt would be limited attractions for the kids. It was busy busier than Ive ever seen the Magic Kingdom at WDW but I guess the weather, the UK bank holiday and the fact it was the end of the peak season all helped boost attendance. However, it did seem to be bursting at the seams it was so busy as to look cluttered and certain spots (i.e. outside the Buzz Lightyear ride) appeared to be bottlenecks on several occasions some poor planning here I think. I also saw bins overflowing and occasions where queues were so long they snaked out into the general areas of the park. I appreciate it was busy, but think they would have handled things better in Florida. DLP 2 2 WDW
The shopping
Again, a black mark for DLP here. I dont know much about retail and being a typical bloke, I hate shopping! However, if youre selling gift items, Id say theyre predominantly impulse buys. You want to sell that item as fast as possible, not leave people waiting in queues of 10+ to get to a till, which is what we ran into in the park on a couple of occasions.
Also, stock levels this has been mentioned on the board before, but we ran out of nappies so tried to buy some. Babycare centre had no large ones, so they directed us to a shop at the front of the park. Again, they only had small ones, so we went back to the hotel. After some digging around they managed to find a packet, but given the healthy mark-up on these items (EUR11 for about 25 of a brand Id never seen before) and the target audience, I think its inexcusable that places like the babycare centre run out! DLP 2 3 WDW
The food
Ive heard a lot of comments about DLP being expensive. Im not sure what people expect to pay for food in a theme park, but on balance I didnt think it was outrageous, especially when you consider the expectation that youll add a 20% tip to the bill in Florida. I thought Sunday brunch at the Steakhouse was excellent value for money EUR64 all inclusive for 2 people, so just over £20 per head. Thats your drinks, tips, cheese, etc. The fact I believe all the rooms are sold on a B&B basis too shouldnt be overlooked, as this would save a lot of cash over a few days. It certainly isnt cheap, but neither is Florida the $2:£1 rate admittedly helps, but start thinking back to the days of $1.60 or $1.35 to the pound and Id say theres no clear winner here unless you really expect DLP to be a straight implant of the US park. DLP 2 3 WDW
The character interaction
Very long queues to see the few characters out and about in the park, but lots of interaction at the two character meals we had. Also the presence of characters in the hotel was good always someone around in the morning, often with no kids, and on Sunday night we got back at just after 9pm to find the Main Mouse leading a conga line of kids around the reception area. (Those who think the Hotel New York is cold/clinical may need to revise their opinions ) Again, Id say its a close call, but for what our 2 yr old son wanted, I think DLP probably edges in ahead of WDW here. DLP 3 3 WDW
The other guests
Hmmm. Yes we had some pushing and shoving. The smoking got right up my nose (pun intended) and quite why they feel its a sensible idea to sell plastic swords at every opportunity escapes me. My wife was prodded twice, my 2 yr old son once and we even caught some toe-rag about to stick a sword into my 3 month old daughters car seat (where she was sleeping). To say I lost it at that point would be an understatement. The crowded nature of the place didnt help and I appreciate it was a seasonal matter, but cmon Disney swords, guns and a family environment????? DLP 3 WDW 4
The hotel
We stayed at the Hotel New York, so it was interesting having previously stayed at both the Swan and the Dolphin in WDW. You can see the similarities and I thought it came across as more Disney in the HNY. The suite was great but a concierge lounge would have been a nice extra. Before we left I saw that there had also been complaints about breakfast, but we had no queue on the first morning and only a 2 minute wait on the second whilst parties ahead of us were seated. Bar staff also happy to give us warm milk for my son in the evening (am sure they wouldnt do this in Florida for risk of a law suit!) and we had a meal from room service late one night nice food, nice half bottle of Chablis and not overly expensive. Its difficult to compare like with like in this category having never stayed in a suite at a WDW hotel (Beach Club villas dont count in my book) but I think DLP edges in ahead! I cant award a half point, so thats DLP 4 4 WDW
The cast members
No problems here didnt see anyone being particularly surly, but didnt have much call to speak to many people either. However, my limited French wasnt enough and we ended up struggling on a couple of occasions in the park. Not sure I can really penalise DLP on my ignorance of their language, though!
In summary
The fact its so close obviously makes it cheaper to get to. That makes a shorter trip feasible and at least for us we can spend a little more each day whilst were there. I wouldnt want to fork out what we paid each day for a whole week, but for a long weekend it was great. Would we go back to DLP? Probably. Will we go to WDW again? Definitely!
we love Sunday Brunch at the Steakhouse, exellent value. 
as we really 
