Smoking in the Park

[dollarmite]

I'm considering a visit to DLP later this year, but very negative reviews on various sites have me concerned about one issue in particular (plus a secondary one).

According to the official site, smoking is restricted to a few areas around the park, but it seems these are ignored and smoking is rampant everywhere, including lines and staff refuse to do anything about it. I'm reconsidering the trip based on this alone. Just how bad is this? It's not something I will tolerate.

Do the onsite hotels have the same smoking problem?

The second biggest complaint I've seen is regarding lack of characters in the parks. It seems hit and miss. I'm used to seeing them everywhere at DLR and WDW, so am interested in a comparison.

 

[Carrie_Cat]

If smoking affects you that much you will have a hard time not just at DLP but in France in general. People smoke a lot here and since the indoor smoking ban (restaurants, work places, stations etc etc) you notice it more - if you don't like smoke you have to sit inside to drink or eat on a nice day for example.

Yes people smoke at DLP - all nationalites don't really respect the smoking areas - I've never known seen anyone smoking in a indoor queue that I remember but while walking about, waiting for parades etc yes. Doesn't bother me really as it's the same as been in the high street anywhere in Europe and walking behind smokers

People no doubt also do smoke in their hotel rooms like anywhere in the world even where they aren't supposed too but it's not widespread and I haven't read many reports of people having to change rooms. There are still a few dedicated smoking rooms in the hotels as allowed by law.

The cms are reluctant to request that people stop smoking as they have no legal powers to do so, only the police do, and it's not worth getting a load of abuse when they can't do anything further.

Characters do meet and greets but you don't get them just walking about as such.

 

[markpsych]

Not a character man myself, so can't comment on that....but personally I think the smoking concerns are overhyped.

As Carrie said, you will come across smokers in the park, but the majority of the time it'll just be in passing.

I'm from the UK, and even with the stricter no smoking ban that you have in place here you still tend to find smokers everywhere that you're not indoors.

We've visited about 30 times over the years, and I think we had a hotel room that smelt a little smoky once on one of our early trips. If you're not happy with any aspect of your room you can always ask for a change anyway.

 

[Danauk]

Whilst I do notice smoking in the parks, I don't think it is as bad as some make out. For me it is no different to smoking in English theme parks. As for characters, there are meet and greets just like in the US parks. Each trip I have seen characters wandering around the parks, but I guess they are on their way to a meet and greet location as they do not stop, just keep on walking and waving. I would not say I have seen less characters than in the US parks. The recent issues are that people are unhappy with the characters being taken out of the hotels in the mornings, something that was never a feature in the US Disney hotels.

 

[HFJohnson]

I notice smoking in the parks from time to time but it's not something I've found to be a huge problem personally. I've never come across smoking in ride queues but then I tend to avoid lengthy queues anyway.

I've never come across it in the hotels.

 

[DLPdaft]

as has already been said, people smoke at DLP - I haven't seen anyone smoking in indoor queue lines at all, but outdoors, while walking around, waiting for the parades, in the outside seating areas, yep, people smoke. I'm a non-smoker, have never noticed any smoke smells in any of the hotel rooms I've stayed in at DLP, and as most of the time you're passing by smokers instead of being stuck beside them, I can't say smoking has bothered me at DLP.

as to characters - we don't go looking for them the way we used to when my DD was younger, however there has been a shift over the last couple of years at DLP to have organised meet n greets instead of random "scrum" ones. There are always several of these noted on the park programme, for both parks at DLP. And in December when we were there last, we did see the Wonderland characters out for random meets.

 

[Anemone]

Smoking bothers me quite a lot (mainly because I'm an ex smoker!) so I do notice it in the park. I have always just moved away from it except for once when we were in the disabled area for Dreams. Then I asked the smoker to please not smoke beside my disabled sister and when he argued I asked a CM to deal with it which they did.

 

[dollarmite]

Thank you for all the replies. It's definitely given me something to think about.

I live in a country where smoking is banned in just about all (or definitely all?) public indoor spaces and many outdoor ones as well, including the main outdoor shopping mall. Also, after visiting the American theme parks, where smoking is banned - and enforced - in most areas, it's a bit of a shock to discover that it's not the case at DLP as well. It hadn't occurred to me that it'd be otherwise until I started reading the reviews and so many people cited it as a problem.

 

[tennisfan]

As others have said I don't notice more smokers then normal in the parks. As Carrie stated its just like walking outside anywhere in Europe people smoke. I have seen one person smoking in a queue in all of my visits and a CM told them to leave the queue or put it out which they did.

I'm not a smoker but it doesn't bother me in an outside environment, inside is different but have never had a hotel room that someone smoked in either.

 

[Ware Bears]

I'm a non-smoker, maybe I've been lucky but it's never bothered me - I see far more people smoking in the queue outside the school gates than I have at DLP!

Years ago we were given a room in the Explorers where someone (previous guest? housekeeper? ) had obviously been smoking ..... it wasn't nice at all. Our initial reaction was to ask for a different room but when I looked out the window we had such a fab view of the lake that I was really reluctant to move rooms, it was early evening when we'd arrived so knowing our luck we'd end up overlooking the car park! Anyhow we opened the window wide whilst we unpacked, went off to have something to eat, and when we got back it had cleared.

Don't let these negative reviews put you off booking a trip - sometimes I do think small niggles get over magnified.

 

[tennisfan]

I'm a non-smoker, maybe I've been lucky but it's never bothered me - I see far more people smoking in the queue outside the school gates than I have at DLP!

Years ago we were given a room in the Explorers where someone (previous guest? housekeeper? ) had obviously been smoking ..... it wasn't nice at all. Our initial reaction was to ask for a different room but when I looked out the window we had such a fab view of the lake that I was really reluctant to move rooms, it was early evening when we'd arrived so knowing our luck we'd end up overlooking the car park! Anyhow we opened the window wide whilst we unpacked, went off to have something to eat, and when we got back it had cleared.

Don't let these negative reviews put you off booking a trip - sometimes I do think small niggles get over magnified.

This

 

[OldSchoolReasons]

I'm a non-smoker and while people do smoke, I've never seen anyone smoking in queues, just walking past you in the streets.

As others have said, it's a nationwide thing, despite the smoking ban most people choose to ignore it where they can.

Unless you choose to focus on it you probably won't notice it except in passing and it definitely shouldn't put you off visiting.