jodyb
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Oct 15, 1999
- Messages
- 788
Trip Report
Disneyland Paris
Jan. 26 through Feb. 2 2004
Cast:
Liav (12)
Hannah (aka Jody or vice versa - Liav's mother and old enough to be that!)
Liav and I are Disney fanatics and we've visited WDW in Orlando every year since she was 8, for about a week each time. She knows every Disney film by heart, and adores the characters. Almost everyone we know thinks we are nuts. Most people seem to go to one of the Disney parks for a day or so and then say they've had enough to last them a lifetime. We think THEY are nuts! Anyway, this year a trip to Florida was out of the question, since Liav started 7th grade, and I won't go to the States for less than two weeks because of the cost and the jet-lag factor... and she can't miss that much school. (I don't EVER go to Disney during anyone's school holidays or during the summer since I am totally allergic to crowds!) Anyway, around last September I was Disney Dreaming and suddenly "remembered" that since we live in the Middle East we are much closer to Disneyland Paris! From the moment I pulled up their website I was hooked. I knew we had to make it happen. Within a couple of days I had the plane reservations for January 26th and starting planning in earnest!!
Warning: This is bound to get a bit long, since I'm writing it up for my own memoirs as well as for the forum, so feel free to skip the boring parts such as the beginning which will be all about the journey.
Sunday, Jan. 25.
Thank goodness I had the foresight to take this day off work, even though we did not leave until the wee hours of Monday. Liav went to school, but for me it was a crazy day, running around getting everything in the house organized. For the first time the entire family would be abroad. My two sons (23 and 21) left for the states last week, and now we'll be in Paris! By around 6 PM I had us packed up and everything ready. Big Sigh. Can't believe the day I've been waiting for is finally here!
The airport shuttle was ordered for 1:30 AM, and we actually both got a couple of hours of sleep before that! We live in Haifa, which is normally about a 2 hour drive from the Tel Aviv airport. The shuttle arrived on time, and by 2:45 we were at the terminal! Since there was no traffic in the middle of the night and the driver drove like a bat out of hell, we made incredible time. Liav even got a bit more sleep in the cab. Check-in for the KLM flight to Amsterdam went smoothly. The lines were relatively short for security, and weather was good so things were going on time. We took off at 5:40 AM and the 5 hour flight to Amsterdam was fine, until we got to Amsterdam airspace! Then they announced that due to bad weather we would have to circle and could not land for another 90 minutes! (I think it turned out to be more like 2 hours) Well, that made us miss our connection to Paris! I decided since there was nothing at all I could do about it I should just relax and try to remember I am on vacation and nothing really matters. We'll get there eventually...
Well, when we finally landed at Schiphol, we went to the Crown Lounge (we were not traveling business class, but I had some passes to the lounge) and when I gave the person there our tickets and told her we'd missed our flight to Paris, she looked in the computer and said we had not missed it - our connecting flight was also running more than two hours late and was boarding at that moment! We grabbed a quick coke in the lounge and then ran for the gate. Well, that running was not necessary. We got on the plane, and then...another delay! We could not take off for over an hour! They also did not let us off the plane since "any minute" it could be our turn for take-off. We were on the plane for more than 2 hours for a 45 minute flight. Oh well. We finally did make it to CDG, even if it was a lot later than expected. We picked up our luggage without incident. Here I must comment on CDG terminal 1. HORRID!! I don't know about the other terminals but this airport was filthy, ugly, and run-down...what a shame! Our first taste of what is supposed to be the most beautiful city in the world was so awful, I was really incredulous! Anyway, we went down to gate 32 to meet the Disney shuttle, and waited about 20 minutes (the bus was there but left according to a prearranged time) in a dingy, dirty, and smelly area. When we finally left the airport (we were the only passengers) the weather was gray and foggy, and even if it was a nice drive, we couldn't see anything. But never mind. We were on our way to Disneyland! The driver was a nice fellow and I relaxed into the ride, knowing the journey was finally almost over. About 45 minutes later we pulled up at the Sequoia Lodge!!!! Hurrah! We are finally here!!!!
First impression of the hotel: very nice atmosphere, homey and comfortable.
CM's at check-in very friendly. We were given room 5226, South wing, main building. The 5th floor was VERY shabby and run-down. Wallpaper was peeling in the halls and in the rooms, wood trim all scuffed and in need of paint. It depressed me a little every time we got off the elevator on the 5th floor to see that dirty and peeling wallpaper, but everything worked and was very clean, and we found the room very comfortable, other than the mattresses being very old, soft and in need of replacement. After being on planes for a total of 10 hours and shlepping through airports, riding in cabs and busses for the past 20 hours, we were exhausted. We could have slept well on rocks!
We received a nice gift that was waiting on the table in our room: Mickey glass with some candies all wrapped up very nicely, and a note from the manager wishing us a good stay. I am not sure if this is standard or if it's because we were going to be there for 7 nights, which is probably unusual? Either way it was a nice touch and we appreciated it, since it was the first touch of Disney "magic" we had felt since the journey began.
Exhausted as we were and as bad as the weather was (raining and cold) we decided to go to the park and sort out our Annual Passport Dream. The Concierge at the Sequoia told us that we should go to guest services at the entrance to the park to do this. This turned out to be wrong, but more on that later.
We bundled up in lots of layers against the cold and went out to meet the yellow bus to the park. We knew the park was closing in just a few minutes but thought we'd at least get a look. The bus pulled up promptly, and in just a couple of minutes we were at the train station, and followed the few people who were out toward the park entrance. But by this time the rain was coming down harder and it was very windy. We made a quick decision to turn the other way toward the village and ran through the rain up to the security checkers at the entrance to the Village. (Question: Why is there a security check only at this end of the Village? If you enter from the other end, as from the hotels, there is no check. And also, why no security when entering the parks?) It was raining quite hard now, and there were very few people about. We ran for the nearest door which turned out to be Annette's diner. The CM's in the restaurant were very friendly and we took off our wet outer coats and sat down to a nice dinner. I enjoyed the bacon cheeseburger and Liav had the foot long hot dog. When the bill came I showed my (still temporary) Dream Passport and they gave me 10% off on the meal and also made the cokes free.
By the time we left the diner the park was closed, and the weather was worse, so we headed back to the bus, and the hotel. We barely had energy for a shower before collapsing. So far, not too magical.. but don't go away! It gets much better!
Disneyland Paris
Jan. 26 through Feb. 2 2004
Cast:
Liav (12)
Hannah (aka Jody or vice versa - Liav's mother and old enough to be that!)
Liav and I are Disney fanatics and we've visited WDW in Orlando every year since she was 8, for about a week each time. She knows every Disney film by heart, and adores the characters. Almost everyone we know thinks we are nuts. Most people seem to go to one of the Disney parks for a day or so and then say they've had enough to last them a lifetime. We think THEY are nuts! Anyway, this year a trip to Florida was out of the question, since Liav started 7th grade, and I won't go to the States for less than two weeks because of the cost and the jet-lag factor... and she can't miss that much school. (I don't EVER go to Disney during anyone's school holidays or during the summer since I am totally allergic to crowds!) Anyway, around last September I was Disney Dreaming and suddenly "remembered" that since we live in the Middle East we are much closer to Disneyland Paris! From the moment I pulled up their website I was hooked. I knew we had to make it happen. Within a couple of days I had the plane reservations for January 26th and starting planning in earnest!!
Warning: This is bound to get a bit long, since I'm writing it up for my own memoirs as well as for the forum, so feel free to skip the boring parts such as the beginning which will be all about the journey.
Sunday, Jan. 25.
Thank goodness I had the foresight to take this day off work, even though we did not leave until the wee hours of Monday. Liav went to school, but for me it was a crazy day, running around getting everything in the house organized. For the first time the entire family would be abroad. My two sons (23 and 21) left for the states last week, and now we'll be in Paris! By around 6 PM I had us packed up and everything ready. Big Sigh. Can't believe the day I've been waiting for is finally here!
The airport shuttle was ordered for 1:30 AM, and we actually both got a couple of hours of sleep before that! We live in Haifa, which is normally about a 2 hour drive from the Tel Aviv airport. The shuttle arrived on time, and by 2:45 we were at the terminal! Since there was no traffic in the middle of the night and the driver drove like a bat out of hell, we made incredible time. Liav even got a bit more sleep in the cab. Check-in for the KLM flight to Amsterdam went smoothly. The lines were relatively short for security, and weather was good so things were going on time. We took off at 5:40 AM and the 5 hour flight to Amsterdam was fine, until we got to Amsterdam airspace! Then they announced that due to bad weather we would have to circle and could not land for another 90 minutes! (I think it turned out to be more like 2 hours) Well, that made us miss our connection to Paris! I decided since there was nothing at all I could do about it I should just relax and try to remember I am on vacation and nothing really matters. We'll get there eventually...
Well, when we finally landed at Schiphol, we went to the Crown Lounge (we were not traveling business class, but I had some passes to the lounge) and when I gave the person there our tickets and told her we'd missed our flight to Paris, she looked in the computer and said we had not missed it - our connecting flight was also running more than two hours late and was boarding at that moment! We grabbed a quick coke in the lounge and then ran for the gate. Well, that running was not necessary. We got on the plane, and then...another delay! We could not take off for over an hour! They also did not let us off the plane since "any minute" it could be our turn for take-off. We were on the plane for more than 2 hours for a 45 minute flight. Oh well. We finally did make it to CDG, even if it was a lot later than expected. We picked up our luggage without incident. Here I must comment on CDG terminal 1. HORRID!! I don't know about the other terminals but this airport was filthy, ugly, and run-down...what a shame! Our first taste of what is supposed to be the most beautiful city in the world was so awful, I was really incredulous! Anyway, we went down to gate 32 to meet the Disney shuttle, and waited about 20 minutes (the bus was there but left according to a prearranged time) in a dingy, dirty, and smelly area. When we finally left the airport (we were the only passengers) the weather was gray and foggy, and even if it was a nice drive, we couldn't see anything. But never mind. We were on our way to Disneyland! The driver was a nice fellow and I relaxed into the ride, knowing the journey was finally almost over. About 45 minutes later we pulled up at the Sequoia Lodge!!!! Hurrah! We are finally here!!!!
First impression of the hotel: very nice atmosphere, homey and comfortable.
CM's at check-in very friendly. We were given room 5226, South wing, main building. The 5th floor was VERY shabby and run-down. Wallpaper was peeling in the halls and in the rooms, wood trim all scuffed and in need of paint. It depressed me a little every time we got off the elevator on the 5th floor to see that dirty and peeling wallpaper, but everything worked and was very clean, and we found the room very comfortable, other than the mattresses being very old, soft and in need of replacement. After being on planes for a total of 10 hours and shlepping through airports, riding in cabs and busses for the past 20 hours, we were exhausted. We could have slept well on rocks!
We received a nice gift that was waiting on the table in our room: Mickey glass with some candies all wrapped up very nicely, and a note from the manager wishing us a good stay. I am not sure if this is standard or if it's because we were going to be there for 7 nights, which is probably unusual? Either way it was a nice touch and we appreciated it, since it was the first touch of Disney "magic" we had felt since the journey began.
Exhausted as we were and as bad as the weather was (raining and cold) we decided to go to the park and sort out our Annual Passport Dream. The Concierge at the Sequoia told us that we should go to guest services at the entrance to the park to do this. This turned out to be wrong, but more on that later.
We bundled up in lots of layers against the cold and went out to meet the yellow bus to the park. We knew the park was closing in just a few minutes but thought we'd at least get a look. The bus pulled up promptly, and in just a couple of minutes we were at the train station, and followed the few people who were out toward the park entrance. But by this time the rain was coming down harder and it was very windy. We made a quick decision to turn the other way toward the village and ran through the rain up to the security checkers at the entrance to the Village. (Question: Why is there a security check only at this end of the Village? If you enter from the other end, as from the hotels, there is no check. And also, why no security when entering the parks?) It was raining quite hard now, and there were very few people about. We ran for the nearest door which turned out to be Annette's diner. The CM's in the restaurant were very friendly and we took off our wet outer coats and sat down to a nice dinner. I enjoyed the bacon cheeseburger and Liav had the foot long hot dog. When the bill came I showed my (still temporary) Dream Passport and they gave me 10% off on the meal and also made the cokes free.
By the time we left the diner the park was closed, and the weather was worse, so we headed back to the bus, and the hotel. We barely had energy for a shower before collapsing. So far, not too magical.. but don't go away! It gets much better!
