Need help with "reverse" trip planning

[luvgoing2disney]

I'm sure this is not the best thread to post this, but was not sure where else to start, so here goes.

We live in the southeast section of the States so WDW is our "home" park with a couple of trip to Disneyland CA. I have always dreamed of visiting the UK (and watching the Olympics has made it worse) and taking a 2 or 3 day trip to DLP---but have no idea of where to begin planning. If you could offer some advice as to:
Best time of year to visit in relation to weather
Best part of London to stay with access to the usual sights (Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, London Eye, etc.)
How long to plan on visiting DLP
Looking at the Newport Bay Club hotel. Anyone stayed there?
Should I fly into London, visit for a few days, go to DLP then return to London for a departing flight or have the DLP end the visit? I speak NO French so worry about navigating the airport should we fly from Paris.

ANY advice is most welcomed.

 

[chmurf]

Best time of year to visit in relation to weather

Summer

Best part of London to stay with access to the usual sights (Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, London Eye, etc.)

the Tube (subway) is very efficient http://www.tfl.gov.uk/gettingaround/14091.aspx
I'm not from London, so I won't be able to give you advice on a good place to stay, but getting around in London is fairly easy.

How long to plan on visiting DLP

you can do Disneyland ( DLRP's MK) in 1 day, and Studios ( kind of like DHS ) in about half a day. Disney village (kind of DTD) is pretty cheap and won't take you more than a couple hours.
2 days might be enough, but I would tell you stay 2 or 3 nights to accomodate for travel days

Looking at the Newport Bay Club hotel. Anyone stayed there?

Not staying at DLRP's hotel, because I too close the the parks to need a hotel. You can also ask this question on the DLRP planning forum (it's below this forum in the UK trip planning section) and there are reviews of hotels over there

Should I fly into London, visit for a few days, go to DLP then return to London for a departing flight or have the DLP end the visit?

It depends on the price you're quoted for airfares.
Also be aware that there is no direct flight from Paris to Orlando (except for an odd Air France flight 3 times a week)

It might still be a good idea to fly in to London, take the train to DLRP, and the take the plane back to the US, but you need to get quotes for open jaw flights and see what works best, knowing that you'll probably need to fly indirect back to the US. Unless you're going through Miami (you said southern part of the state) then you're ok to fly direct from paris
Now going back to London from Paris to catch your plane might also be bothersome.

I speak NO French so worry about navigating the airport should we fly from Paris.

C'est pas grave, les panneaux sont tous en francais et en anglais à l'aeroport)
(oops sorry, no french you said, lol, the above says : No big deal, signs are in both french and english at the airport.)

 

[Samaya]

I'm sure this is not the best thread to post this, but was not sure where else to start, so here goes.

Best part of London to stay with access to the usual sights (Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, London Eye, etc.)

ANY advice is most welcomed.

Check out http://www.royalcollection.org.uk/ for information on visits to inside Buckingham Palace, opening times this year 30th June - 8th July and 31st July - 8th October.

A ticket gives admission to all three sites at Buckingham Palace - the State Rooms (including the special exhibition Diamonds: A Jubilee Celebration), the Royal Mews and The Queen’s Gallery. All three visits are part of Buckingham Palace, the Royal Day Out will last approximately 3½ to 4 hours.

Also check out www.visitlondon.com/ for more general information and links and for Buckingham Palace click on http://www.visitlondon.com/attractions/detail/427311-buckingham-palace

 

[General Panic]

Usually summer time is best for the weather though maybe not this year

I would say a few nights in London staying in a hotel in the Oxford Street area gives most of London's sights within walking distance. For the other points of intrest the Tube is really easy to naviagte round i've found.

Rather than fly to Paris i would recomend the Eurostar from London which has a direct service to Marne La Valle station which is a few minutes walk from the park entrance and 10 minutes walk or so from the Newport Bay.

I've not stayed in that hotel myself though been through it , if a pool is important for you then this hotel or the Seqouia Lodge fit the bill. We stay at the Cheyene usualy , a few minutes further to walk though there is a bus that connects all hotels to the park if the weathers not great. I like the atmosphere at the Cheyene best.

When they built the resort in Paris they knew for a lot of the year the weather would not be great so there a lot more covered areas in Paris , shopping arcades etc and less outside queueing areas as well.

Flight wise depending on your local airport and airline preference you may get a flight into London and departing from Paris for a good rate , Delta and Air France work together and you can usually combine those for good prices. This would save you a bit of time and effort if you don't have to return to London by train or plane.

Time wise i would say 3 nights would be enough , your entrance is included to both parks from the moment you arrive to the moment you leave so getting there early as poss and departing late gives you a few hours bonus time in the parks.

Good luck with the planning!

 

[disneyholic family]

summer may be best for weather but it's terrible in terms of tourist overload.

I much prefer London in the spring or fall when there are far fewer tourists.

In the summer, you'll get lines a million miles long at every place you visit.

In the spring/fall, there will be lines, but much more manageable.

Hotel location depends on your budget. I prefer staying in mayfair, but it's not cheap. But location is all important to me as i prefer to walk everywhere.
I'm not a tube person

For DLP, take the eurostar straight to DLP and stay onsite.
If you stay at the Disneyland hotel you'll get a few fastpasses when you check in to use in the park. If you stay in a suite, you get unlimited fastpasses for your stay.

Again, it depends on your budget.

 

[LeaversOnTour]

If your interested in saving a bit more cash, then you could consider staying just outside of London.

If you stayed in Ashford or near there this is on the Eurostar Route, plus is only 20 - 30 mins from central London.

Alternatively Essex is about the same distance depending on where abouts you stayed. You would then have access to London and the Coast, same as with above.

Weather is hit or miss - supposedly our Summer is June, July and August. I live in Essex and we have had quite good weather up to about 25 degrees - ish in recent weeks, in between the thunderstorms!

I live in South East essex, and right on the coast - direct links to Tower Bridge and Tower of London, and easy access to the underground (subway) which is really easy to navigate, its all colour coded.

Also we have direct links to stratford, and whilst the Olympics will be finished you would still be able to go and have a look around

Good old Blighty has more to offer than just the usual London sights

 

[bex7583]

oo i love london !! im from the north of england and love taking the train down ( not easy with 3 kids but great fun )

im usually on a budget ( and i mean teeny tiny budget ) and the best thing about london is there is so much to see with out paying !! the national history museum is brilliant ( much busier in uk school holidays) plus lots of other museums that have no charge

we dont use the tube as there is soo much to see you miss it all underground , a good london map will have several walk routes on that are great we love the monoply board game one , it takes you via all the places on the uk monoply board

also the kids love crossing the river and all down near the wheel there are lots of street entertainers

in the past we have stayed in a private 6 bed dormitory at the earls court youth hostel sounds grim but it was suprisingly nice and the beds were clean and comfey and it had a fantastic central , any other accomodation would have been way out of my budget to get a room for 4 people with such good location

the uk weather is unbelievably random i have visited london late october and had days warm enough to have a picnic in the park

the london eye gives a great view of the city , you get a circular guide thats labels and points out everything you can see its about £15 or a adult ticket