Visiting Disneyland Paris with Physical Disability and Autism

[shaggyrogersmademedoit]

I am a huge Disney fan and want nothing more than to one day go to Disneyland Paris. As an adult living with autism, there are already some challenges I will face when visiting somewhere as popular as this - huge crowds are overwhelming, sudden loud noises can make me anxious, and overstimulation will have to be countered with frequent breaks. Despite these difficulties, it's still something I want to do. Does anyone have any advice on the best time of year to visit Disneyland Paris so that it is the least busy time of year? I also find that rollercoasters with long drops or upsidedown sections are not suitable for me with my autism - will there be enough rides I can go on if I skip these kinds of rides?
Second of all, this last year has been very difficult for me with my mobility as I have developed knee pain that is bad enough to require crutches for inside the house and a wheelchair for out of the house. Will this add further limits to the kinds of rides I can go on, or is Disneyland Paris still accessable in many ways? My concern is that I save up for a ticket for myself (and also pay for a carer to come too) and then I don't get to go on many rides or enjoy many attractions, therefore wasting my money on entry tickets and plane tickets too.
Any advice would be appreciated, especially from people with (or family/friends of people with) physical disabilities and/or learning disabilities. Thank you all!

 

[lanejudy]

to the DISboards!

You may want to cross-post on the DIsneyland Planning forum. We don’t get many posts here about the foreign parks.

https://www.disboards.com/forums/disneyland-paris-trip-planning-community-board.77/

 

[shaggyrogersmademedoit]

Hi lanejudy,
I appreciate the welcome! Thank you for letting me know, I have now posted it in other forum as well so I will maximize how many people may respond. Thanks for your help lanejudy!
All the best,
shaggyrogersmademedoit

 

[SueM in MN]

Disneyland Paris has some links on their website that should be helpful to you.
Link to Disneyland Paris Accessibility page - scroll to the bottom to see information about their Access/Priority Passes.

That page has links to several special resources, but I added direct links to some of the more helpful ones.
DisneyLand Paris Accessibility Brochure - this covers pretty much everything about Disneyland Paris from getting around with a wheelchair/mobility device to their Access Passes (different levels and how to apply).

Disneyland Paris Blue Brochure for Guests with Autism and Cognitive Disabilities - this includes a table that gives information about attractions and restaurant. The table includes information like noise level, duration of ride, darkness, evacuation.
I had trouble getting that one to load past the 2nd page; it worked best to tap the page icon on the bottom menu (marked with red arrow on screenshot).


Doing that brought up this page view, where I was able to choose an individual page, then scroll on from there.

 

[shaggyrogersmademedoit]

Oh wow, that's absolutely fantastic, thank you very much indeed! Who would have thought that they'd have a brochure specifically for autism and cognitive disabilities, I'm very impressed, not many places are so accommodating. I will save those links on my laptop, I appreciate the screenshots too because having a visual reference is very helpful for me when knowing where to navigate through a website. I'm very grateful for your help!

 

[Sakurachaek]

Apparently midweek, January and March is the quietest time, but it might be very cold (possibly snowing), so unless you want that, try midweek springtime, outside of school holidays.

It’s been a while since I went to Disneyland Paris (DP) (I have physical disabilities + neurodivergency).

You’ll be fine with regard to upside down rides, I don’t think they’re are any at DP. Rides with drops are: Large drops: Splash Mountain, Tower of Terror RC Racer and Toy Story Parachute Drop. Fast rides with medium drops are: Thunder Mountain, Star Wars HyperSpace Mountain and Indiana Jones. Possibly Crush’s Coaster as well, but I haven’t been on it so not sure. There are some jerky rides, idk if you would like that? Can tell you more if you like.
Also crutches/wheelchair access won’t be a problem at all.

 

[shaggyrogersmademedoit]

Hi sakurachaek,

Thank you for all the information! I'm lucky that I can go outside of UK holiday seasons, because I don't have work commitments, so fortunately I can take advantage of these quieter times of year, and including the spring when it's a bit warmer too.

I appreciate you saying that you also have physical disabilities and neurodivergency because this means that you're talking from personal experience which is always helpful. It's a relief for me to be able to take note of any rides which are really not compatible with me. Jerky rides shouldn't be a problem, I can handle them, just not the ones that drop because this just sends me into a panicked frenzy. So the advice really is extremely helpful.

It's also good to hear that crutches and wheelchair access will definitely be fine, so thank you for confirming that for me.

Thanks for all the help sakurachaek

 

[Sakurachaek]

Hi sakurachaek,

Thank you for all the information! I'm lucky that I can go outside of UK holiday seasons, because I don't have work commitments, so fortunately I can take advantage of these quieter times of year, and including the spring when it's a bit warmer too.

I appreciate you saying that you also have physical disabilities and neurodivergency because this means that you're talking from personal experience which is always helpful. It's a relief for me to be able to take note of any rides which are really not compatible with me. Jerky rides shouldn't be a problem, I can handle them, just not the ones that drop because this just sends me into a panicked frenzy. So the advice really is extremely helpful.

It's also good to hear that crutches and wheelchair access will definitely be fine, so thank you for confirming that for me.

Thanks for all the help sakurachaek

Np! If you wanna know anything else feel free to PM me.

 

[Starwind]

I haven't visited Disneyland Paris, so can't give direct assistance there, but have visited WDW multiple times. One thing that has helped me with my visits there is to watch videos/vlogs that others have taken and read trip reports/blogs from others about their experiences. They can give some good tips and perspectives -- and I have found them sometimes to be informative for me in helping decide "that is something I definitely want to do" or "that is something I will skip".

Some of the vloggers I follow have done some vlogs of their trips to DLP, so I did a quick search on youtube...

If you search youtube for day in disneyland paris you will find quite a few videos of people's trips there. Some of them include video taken while on rides. You can probably do some other searching to find some specific ride videos which would show you the entire length of a ride. While this would "spoil" the newness of the ride, it would give you a good perspective on what to expect and whether you think you would be ok with a ride or it would be outside your comfort zone. Of course it won't tell you everything, but it at least gives you some additional information -- and from the safety of your home !

 

[Moliphino]

Apparently midweek, January and March is the quietest time, but it might be very cold (possibly snowing), so unless you want that, try midweek springtime, outside of school holidays.

It’s been a while since I went to Disneyland Paris (DP) (I have physical disabilities + neurodivergency).

You’ll be fine with regard to upside down rides, I don’t think they’re are any at DP. Rides with drops are: Large drops: Splash Mountain, Tower of Terror RC Racer and Toy Story Parachute Drop. Fast rides with medium drops are: Thunder Mountain, Star Wars HyperSpace Mountain and Indiana Jones. Possibly Crush’s Coaster as well, but I haven’t been on it so not sure. There are some jerky rides, idk if you would like that? Can tell you more if you like.
Also crutches/wheelchair access won’t be a problem at all.

Hyperspace Mountain does go upside down (Wiki says 3 inversions total).

 

[Sakurachaek]

Hyperspace Mountain does go upside down (Wiki says 3 inversions total).

Thank you

 

[livbeatles]

FYI, DLP is updating their accessibility programme. It was already quite different to access than the US park programmes, but they've adjusted some of the documentation/qualification requirements further. I've bookmarked this page for the next time my dad visits me and we go to the park: https://www.ed92.org/en/new-accessibility-and-disability-programme-at-disneyland-paris/

 

[shaggyrogersmademedoit]

Thank you very much for the added info everyone! Extremely helpful and I appreciate everybody taking the time to assist me in planning this trip. I am making notes of all of these pointers and writing down the links you've all provided me with. Such a thoughtful community on this site!

 

[fabfemmeboy]

Hyperspace Mountain does go upside down (Wiki says 3 inversions total).

Also their Indiana Jones ride - it's not like the one in Anaheim or Tokyo, it's a roller coaster with at least one loop.