stupid newbie questions

[disneyholic family]

DS just expressed an interest in going back to DLP (we were there about 5 or 6 years ago, before the studios opened)...

he would like to go to london for a few days to tour around (he's never been) and then take the eurostar from waterloo station to DLP...(and then back again to london - we would fly into and out of london - none of us has any interest in seeing any part of france again, other than DLP)

that's as much as we have so far....
so a few questions..

1. any tips on using eurostar to DLP - booking etc.

2. best time of year to go to DLP as far as crowds, etc. I know that i prefer London any time other than the summer (too many tourists)....perhaps we might aim for early spring...

3. best hotel in your opinion at DLP

4. how many days you think we'd need at DLP (i would like at least 3 for us in london)...

anything else you can think of would be vastly appreciated!!

 

[DLPdaft]

Hi,

I don't really know enough to answer any of your other questions, but I'd say you'd want to be at DLP for no less than 3 days. I take DD on a 2-night, 3 day stay when we go, and we do see everything we want to, with time left over for doing our favourites all over again.

Elaine

 

[hildasmuriel]

Using London as a base I would highly recommend Eurostar as a means to travel to DLRP. It is even quicker than flying, when you take into account how long the check in time is and the travel from CDG to DLRP.
The only problem I have found is getting a seat! I have never been able to book a seat direct or via Expedia - because I have to travel in school holidays and the seats ALL seem to be booked before they go on sale . I have only been able to get a seat when I have booked a whole package with a travel agent (oh the expense!) I believe that it is easier to get a seat if you are travelling outside of British school holidays though.

 

[Ware Bears]

Eurostar is such an easy way to travel to DLRP, I definitely recommend it, especially if you are staying in London.

Don't know how old your DS is but if you can avoid school holidays you will also avoid price hikes on the Eurostar and crowds at DLRP. I think May would be a lovely time to visit (apart from week commencing 26th May as it's UK half-term) especially if you can avoid weekends which always seem busy.

There is a link to the Eurostar website in the Very Useful Info sticky, you can book to go to DLRP 6 months in advance.

 

[jillrobinson]

Definately recommend Eurostar as the way to travel from London to DLRP, it's very, very easy and convenient. Just in case there's any confusion when you look at the website, the Eurostar is moving from Waterloo to St. Pancras in the very near future.
Enjoy planning your trip.

 

[kevankiki]

There is a link to the Eurostar website in the Very Useful Info sticky, you can book to go to DLRP 6 months in advance.

Another vote for travelling by Eurostar here too!

If you phone them up you can register an interest for particular dates and they will call you back when tickets go on sale, this would be in advance of the 6 months. I did this and when I checked tickets recently (now that you can buy them on-line for the dates we are going) I found I hadn't paid any more for my tickets, in fact I think I paid slightly less.

The other advantage is you end up in one of the first few coaches, ready to do the Disney Express Baggage Check-in Dash, if you have opted for that

 

[Ware Bears]

If you phone them up you can register an interest for particular dates and they will call you back when tickets go on sale, this would be in advance of the 6 months.

I didn't realise you could do this, thanks for pointing this out.

 

[disneyholic family]

wow thanks for all the info!!
you guys are great!!!

my son is actually very old (20 - i think we were last at DLP when he was 13)...
he suggested that we fly to london, tour around london, then take the eurostar (he's one of those boys/men infatuated with trains) direct to DLP and then back to london..

so early may is ok in terms of UK school holidays? that's good to know..
and it's probably in advance of the rush of travelers to london as well...
so maybe we'll do a long weekend in london and then 3 nights/4 days mid-week at DLP..

any opinions on the DLP hotels?....any pros/cons of the various on-property hotels?

 

[bom_noite]

Hi, I work in the Netherlands - just made my first visit to DLRP. I have taken Eurostar many times. It is quick, easy, but also expensive. My personal choice would be to fly and take a car.

Expensive / Convenient Way:

British Airways or Air France from London City Airport (LCA). LCA is on the tube line - extremely quick and convenient.

Cheap Way: Fly Ryan Air from London Stansted to Brussels South (Charleroi). It is a 3 hour car ride from there - but - you can also get the train.

Charleroi is really not Brussels - it is about 40 miles south.

On the way back stop in Gent, Brugge or Brussels for a fun time.

The train is boring - imho - it is cool you are under ocean, but, you see nothing. If you drive to DLRP via Reims (on the A26 / E17) it is a wonderful and extemely comfortable drive of a wonderful French country-side!

This is all WWI country. As you drive through it you see a number of monuments and can only imagine what the farm country looked like when it had trenches stretching for miles.

 

[disneyholic family]

Hi, I work in the Netherlands - just made my first visit to DLRP. I have taken Eurostar many times. It is quick, easy, but also expensive. My personal choice would be to fly and take a car.

Expensive / Convenient Way:

British Airways or Air France from London City Airport (LCA). LCA is on the tube line - extremely quick and convenient.

Cheap Way: Fly Ryan Air from London Stansted to Brussels South (Charleroi). It is a 3 hour car ride from there - but - you can also get the train.

Charleroi is really not Brussels - it is about 40 miles south.

On the way back stop in Gent, Brugge or Brussels for a fun time.

The train is boring - imho - it is cool you are under ocean, but, you see nothing. If you drive to DLRP via Reims (on the A26 / E17) it is a wonderful and extemely comfortable drive of a wonderful French country-side!

This is all WWI country. As you drive through it you see a number of monuments and can only imagine what the farm country looked like when it had trenches stretching for miles.

at least 30% of the point of this trip is to ride the eurostar - he wants to ride that thing.....as i said, he's like many a boy/man....loves trains....totally and completely in love with them.....so basically he's working a trip around riding it....

and he also very much wants to see london...probably because he's heard me talk at great length about how great london is....incredibly beautiful with so many interesting things to see.....

and we really don't want to have anything to do with france, so taking a train straight into DLP and out again, without really touching france is fine...

the last time we went to DLP we were in paris for 2 weeks...
we took the train from paris to DLP and it was awful (the train from paris to DLP)...
i wouldn't recommend that to anyone...the people on board were unpleasant and downright scary....i wouldn't do it again for all the tea in china or wine in france...

 

[kevankiki]

I didn't realise you could do this, thanks for pointing this out.

I was able to book 8 months in advance by doing this, and I think it was delayed due to waiting for tickets to come on sale with the move to St Pancras.

bom_noite - Flying did not work out cheaper for us, I think it depends where you fly from, we would have to fly from London probably and they tend to be the most expensive to fly from I think. For the time we booked next Easter flights were coming out at £160 for both of us (for times we would not wish to go too!), on top of that you have to factor in transfers at the other end. Eurostar was £215 and so much more convenient

 

[kevankiki]

the last time we went to DLP we were in paris for 2 weeks...
we took the train from paris to DLP and it was awful (the train from paris to DLP)...
i wouldn't recommend that to anyone...the people on board were unpleasant and downright scary....i wouldn't do it again for all the tea in china or wine in france...

Funny you should say that, last time we did not have a direct train back and had to change at Lille, the train from DLP to Lille was not a very nice experience we felt. We had seats booked but people were sitting in them, okay they moved when we showed them our tickets but the American/Canadian (or whatever he was, I'm not good with accents) made us feel very uncomfortable about it! Plus, it increases the journey time by about an hour

 

[Pirata]

any opinions on the DLP hotels?....any pros/cons of the various on-property hotels?

Best hotel is definitely the Disneyland Hotel. It is also the most convenient, as it is located at the Disneyland Park main gates.

For the other hotels, I prefer the Sequoia Lodge. It has a wonderful atmosphere and also the best pool of all Disney hotels. The drawback is that it is a long walk away from the parks. But nevertheless it is fun to cross Disney Village.

Concerning the length of stay, I think 3 nights (4 days) are quite enough to see and enjoy almost everything. Better avoid weekends.

 

[Ware Bears]

at least 30% of the point of this trip is to ride the eurostar - he wants to ride that thing.....as i said, he's like many a boy/man....loves trains....totally and completely in love with them.....so basically he's working a trip around riding it....

In that case I would recommend you travel Leisure Select class where apart from a larger seat you will also be served a meal which is much nicer than airline food.