Once in a lifetime birthday trip to DLP... Please help! :)

[InNeverlandWithPan]

Hello everyone,

My DH and I have the opportunity to take a trip to DLP at the beginning of May, and I just want to make sure we make it the very best trip we can!

Backstory: My DH's cousin (whom he is extremely close with) is getting married on April 29th in Tuscany. Since DH is supposed to be a groomsman, his cousins family is paying for our flights and entire stay in Tuscany (about a week long). Since we will be so close to DLP, I have talked DH into extending our trip so we could visit the parks. I have no idea if we will ever have another opportunity to make it over there, so I would kick myself if we didn't do it now!

So, we would be in Tuscany area from April 24th - 30th, then go to DLP on May 1st and stay til May 6th (5 nights).

And the best part... my birthday is on April 30th! And it's my 30th birthday! What a way to leave my 20s with a bang.

So far my favorite choice for a hotel is the Sequoia Lodge. Is this a good choice hotel for a couple?

Since we will be in Paris area, and people would think we are nuts if we didn't even see the city, we are planning to do the "Paris Essentials" trip that you can book through the DLP site. Is this something you would recommend?

That would leave us with 3 full days for the parks, plus maybe a few partial days. Is this enough time to really get most of the stuff in?

Last questions for now. What is the weather typically like at the beginning of May? Also, how are the crowds at the parks during this time?

Thank you in advance for any advice/suggestions you may have. I am so excited to get this all planned out and be able to check DLP off the bucket list.

 

[torsie24]

3 full days (and any extra you can get in) is plenty. It's quite similar in size to DLR so should give you an idea.

SL is a great hotel. Only a short walk to the parks and recently refurbished. I'd recommend staying in the main building if you can. (Montana room)

I can't help with the tour I'm afraid as not visited paris from DLRP just gone separately.

 

[InNeverlandWithPan]

3 full days (and any extra you can get in) is plenty. It's quite similar in size to DLR so should give you an idea.

SL is a great hotel. Only a short walk to the parks and recently refurbished. I'd recommend staying in the main building if you can. (Montana room)

I can't help with the tour I'm afraid as not visited paris from DLRP just gone separately.

Thank you so much for your response! I notice the Montana rooms are quite a bit cheaper than the Golden Forrest rooms, so glad to hear you would suggest those. Is there much of a difference between to the two that you know of? I read that the GF rooms have a separate place for eating breakfast and a lounge of some sorts, but not sure we really feel the need for that.

 

[dhidra]

What a wonderful way to celebrate!
The golden forest rooms give access to a separate breakfast room, as you mentioned, which is quieter. There is also a lounge where you can get drinks for free all day, and pastries/cakes in the afternoon.
You can phone ahead and order a birthday cake for yourself for one of your meals. If it's in a character restaurant, a character will bring it to your table. I did this at Inventions for my 29th birthday

 

[ShellB8585]

Hello everyone,

So, we would be in Tuscany area from April 24th - 30th, then go to DLP on May 1st and stay til May 6th (5 nights).

And the best part... my birthday is on April 30th! And it's my 30th birthday! What a way to leave my 20s with a bang.

So far my favorite choice for a hotel is the Sequoia Lodge. Is this a good choice hotel for a couple?

Since we will be in Paris area, and people would think we are nuts if we didn't even see the city, we are planning to do the "Paris Essentials" trip that you can book through the DLP site. Is this something you would recommend?

That would leave us with 3 full days for the parks, plus maybe a few partial days. Is this enough time to really get most of the stuff in?

Last questions for now. What is the weather typically like at the beginning of May? Also, how are the crowds at the parks during this time?

Thank you in advance for any advice/suggestions you may have. I am so excited to get this all planned out and be able to check DLP off the bucket list.

Hello!!

We are going to be at DLRP 5th-10th May to celebrate my 30th on the 8th so happy 30th fellow Taurean!! . I can't comment on Sequoia Lodge as we have not stayed there, but I have heard very good things. We chose Cheyenne as family are coming with us so I had to keep costs down.

3 days will most likely be enough time, the Walt Disney Studios Park is very small compared to parks in the states!

We haven't done a tour through Disney but we have caught the train from the Disneyland station (right by Disney Village) into central Paris. It's about an hour train journey to get to the Arc de Triomphe and from there you can walk to everything - louvre, Notre Dame, Eiffel Tour. The metro tickets are fairly reasonable if you want to go to Moulin Rouge / Montmartre / Sacre Couer. I was really worried the first time we did it as neither of us speak French but it is so easy and straight forward I would recommend it over a tour - you get more time to see and do the things important to you rather than predetermined by someone else. You can buy the train and metro tickets from a kiosk at the station. Oh a boat trip down the seine at dusk is beautiful.

WRT weather I am expecting it to be fairly warm but not hot - it's the end of spring and I believe school holidays are earlier in April for Easter then later in May. There is a bank holiday here in the UK Mon 4th so there may be an increase of long weekenders. Have a great trip!!

 

[Carrie_Cat]

The 1st of May is May Day in France - It's the workers holiday so the park will be packed as it is every year

As said by the pp you will also have a lot of extra English guests as they have the 4th off as May day so it gives them a long weekend.

Paris is very easy to do on your own from the park and the transport is safe and regular, there are trains every 10-15 minutes going to and from Paris. A day pass for the RER, Metro and Bus will cost 16.60€ pp and you have unlimited travel with that.

 

[ShellB8585]

Carrie_Cat - you may be able to help me a little actually. I have bought the RER & Metro tickets before but my French is very very rusty and there is always a little difficulty explaining. How is it best to ask for those tickets please? you may save me about half an hour of annoying the person selling me the tickets.

Thank you very much in advance - this may help OP too

 

[Carrie_Cat]

The all day unlimited ticket is the Mobilis zones 1-5 (Central Paris is zone 1 and MLV is zone 5).

You buy them from the machines more and more nowadays. There is still a couple of manned ticket counters but they have huge queues in general

The machines are very easy to use and you have those that take cards as well as money.

When you have your ticket you write your name and the date you are using it on, on the ticket. This must be done when you first start using it as if you are controlled while on the train the inspector could give you an on the spot fine.

Here's a bit about them in French and you see what it looks like

http://www.ratp.fr/en/ratp/c_21148/mobilis/

You also have Parisbytrain which explains how to use the RER.

http://parisbytrain.com/rer-train-paris-to-euro-disney/

Don't buy the more expensive Paris Visite card at 23.50€ for the day as it's not worth it even with the "reductions" you can get when you are only doing a daytrip and staying at DLP the rest of the time.

 

[ShellB8585]

The all day unlimited ticket is the Mobilis zones 1-5 (Central Paris is zone 1 and MLV is zone 5).

You buy them from the machines more and more nowadays. There is still a couple of manned ticket counters but they have huge queues in general

The machines are very easy to use and you have those that take cards as well as money.

When you have your ticket you write your name and the date you are using it on, on the ticket. This must be done when you first start using it as if you are controlled while on the train the inspector could give you an on the spot fine.

Here's a bit about them in French and you see what it looks like

http://www.ratp.fr/en/ratp/c_21148/mobilis/

You also have Parisbytrain which explains how to use the RER.

http://parisbytrain.com/rer-train-paris-to-euro-disney/

Don't buy the more expensive Paris Visite card at 23.50€ for the day as it's not worth it even with the "reductions" you can get when you are only doing a daytrip and staying at DLP the rest of the time.

Thank you so much!!!

 

[giuly09]

So, we would be in Tuscany area from April 24th - 30th, then go to DLP on May 1st and stay til May 6th (5 nights).

Whereabout in Tuscany will you be? I am in Siena

 

[InNeverlandWithPan]

Thank you for all the great responses! This is really helping me figure out what would be best for us.

Whereabout in Tuscany will you be? I am in Siena

The wedding is actually in Siena! We have been thinking Tuscany the whole time (since that's what the mother of the groom told us) but just looked at the wedding website and it's in Siena. Guessing they are pretty close together?

 

[giuly09]

The wedding is actually in Siena! We have been thinking Tuscany the whole time (since that's what the mother of the groom told us) but just looked at the wedding website and it's in Siena. Guessing they are pretty close together?

Tuscany is the region

and Siena (my home town ) is one of the cities in this region, the most beautiful one i can tell LOL

I think the wedding must be in one of the little places around Siena anyway, do you know the name of the location? If you don't mind saying of course

 

[InNeverlandWithPan]

Tuscany is the region

and Siena (my home town ) is one of the cities in this region, the most beautiful one i can tell LOL

I think the wedding must be in one of the little places around Siena anyway, do you know the name of the location? If you don't mind saying of course

Wow! It looks absolutely BEAUTIFUL!

Just checked the wedding website and they are getting married at the Abbazia di San Galgano, and then the reception is at Podernovo di Monticiano. I have no idea what either of those places are, but maybe you are familiar?

My husband's aunt got a huge villa for a bunch of us to stay in. Not sure if it is right in Siena or not, but I am so excited to get to see that area! Will be my first time going overseas.

 

[InNeverlandWithPan]

I have come up with another question about staying at Paris Disney/Sequoia Lodge. I think I saw somewhere that they do have rooms with King beds instead of the two doubles/queens. What would be the best way to request we get a king room? Since I am in the US, I don't really have an easy way to call. Is there a way to email them or anything?

Thanks!

 

[Proud Cheapskate]

I'm an American who has been to DLP twice. I've stayed at SL and enjoyed it. I feel that bang for your buck, it is probably the best choice at DLP. Just keep in mind, despite the pics you see on-line, it is not WL or even close really but it is nice enough and a short walk to the parks. I also stayed at Newport Bay which I didn't enjoy at all. 5 nights seems like a bit much, as others have said 3 is really enough although since you will be there over a holiday weekend you may need the extra time. I've also noticed the packages are often the same price whether you book 3, 4 or 5 nights so you get the most value with the longer stay. Of course you will still eat and buy souvenirs so it makes sense from a DLP standpoint as well. Also make sure you price packages on the UK site as well as the US site because they target deals to UK residents just about 365 days a year while they never have deals targeted to Americans.

I didn't particularly enjoy either trip I made to DLP but we're planning (long range) a trip to Europe in Summer 2016 and I'm sure we'll end up at DLP for a couple of days. It's like the siren's song.

 

[giuly09]

Ohhh San Galgano is just AMAZING, they have started allowing weddings there not long ago, it's a location for concerts and operas too

Vialla Podernovo is another lovely location for weddings receptions

http://www.villapodernovo.it/

I am pretty sure you will like it here, anything you need please let me know as i am in this area

 

[InNeverlandWithPan]

IT IS OFFICIALLY OFFICIAL NOW!

We have all our flights booked, so I can now breathe again and know that this trip is really happening!

This is our trip itinerary:

April 22 - 10:30pm flight from Los Angeles
April 23 - Arrive in London at 4:50pm - we will stay the night at my husband's aunt's flat.
April 24 - Take a 7am train to Liverpool - I am a HUGE Beatles fan and it has been a dream of mine since I was a kid to go to Liverpool. We will be staying overnight at the Hard Day's Night hotel, taking the 2 hr Magical Mystery Tour, visit the Beatles Story museum, plus I will probably cry a million tears of happiness. lol
April 25 - 1pm train back to London - stay another night at the flat
April 26 - 2:30 flight from London to Pisa - will either be picked up or take a train to Florence from the airport.
April 26 - May 1 - Staying at a villa in Florence/Siena area. The wedding we are attending is on the 29th, and my 30th birthday is on the 30th. Sometime during those days we will also be doing a wine tasting excursion and taking a cooking class. So excited!
May 1 - 2:30 flight from Bologna to Paris (ORY) - we will then catch the Disney shuttle and check into the Sequoia Lodge.
May 1 - May 5 - DLP!!!!!!
May 5 - Leave DLP and go into Paris
May 7 - 10:30am flight home

Never in my life did I think I would be able to take a trip like this. I am so beyond excited.

I do have a question for the DLP vets.... I did not book the Disney shuttle from the airport when I booked our room. Can we purchase a ticket for it when we arrive at ORY? That is one of the last things I am slightly stressing about.

Thanks!

 

[ShellB8585]

Sounds like a fantastic adventure!!! We will be there around the same time (a day trip into Paris is planned for the 6th May) Sorry I can't help you with airport transfers as I have only ever driven from the UK.

Have a fantastic trip