We just got back from a short weekend trip to DLP. It has been a wonderful trip and I thought it would be a nice idea to share some of our experiences with you guys.

First I must let you know that sharing the magic actually means multiplying it. This trip we took our 11-year-old cousin and my 17-year-old stepsister with us. Oh, I know this doubles the costs, but believe me, it’s been worth every cent of it. Just seeing the parks through the eyes of our guests made it a very special and exciting experience. The character interaction is wonderful and although we love the parks I can honestly say that our love is nothing compared with theirs. What a great time we’ve had.

Cafe Mickey is the best place we’ve ever been to for dinner at DLP. Nice food for Disney standards and lot’s of characters spending their time with you. Also the waiters were very friendly and funny with our guests. If you’ll ever be going to DLP with kids I’d definitely recommend this place.

The Disneyland Park was really crowded, but the fastpass system was a big pro. If you’re short in time please be aware that the Lion King show is a big hit. We stood in lines for over an hour (getting soaked by the only rain shower of the day). The show itself was very, very good, but if we had known that it was also visible from the restaurant above I’m sure we wouldn’t have waited this long. Instead we would have ordered some drinks and watched the show from the restaurant.

The Studios Park has been discussed a lot from the first day it opened it’s doors. I know that my boyfriend and I love this park too. It does have some great rides and it’s not as bad as some people think. On the other hand I must admit that the admission price is a little high (the Disneyland Park costs the same), for what you get. This park can be seen in about 5 hours. Visiting this park with an 11-year-old made us aware of the fact that most rides are not as child friendly as we thought. He loved the parade, Animagique, the moteurs action stunt show and the studio tram tour, but for the rest of the rides he was almost crying out of fear. For example we found 2 fastpass tickets for the rock ‘n roller coaster and gave them to my stepsister and our cousin so they could ride it first. Afterwards I’m sorry we did this. My stepsister really loved the ride, but our cousin ended up crying. My stepsister told us that a CM shouted at her for taking him on this ride because he must have looked terrified. She was really upset, because he really wanted to go on this ride, we didn’t force him on this attraction. He also burst out in tears on Armageddon. This didn’t spoil our day, but I think it’s good to know that a child can get really scared.

The 6 initial Disney hotels are still the best in offering a complete Disney experience. I’m definitely aware of the fact that these hotels are not up to date anymore. It’s really sad to see these hotels loosing a little more of it’s magic every year we get back. Still do we love these hotels above the 4 new ones. Don’t ask me why, because the new hotels are in much better shape. The big difference between these new hotels and the initial Disney hotels is the price. It’s easy to book one of the new hotels on the Internet. Believe me it will make a big difference for your budget. This trip we booked a family room at the Holiday Inn for only 80,00 Euro. This hotel also has a swimming pool and very nice rooms (although the size of the family rooms is a little small).

The food at the parks is the worst food I can imagine. We always try to have dinner at one of the hotels or at the Disney Village. The best price we paid at Annete’s dinner at the Disney Village (65,00 Euro for the four of us).

One last thought: Character interaction. After entering the parks we walked into several characters, a big hit with our guests. We didn’t expect our cousin to be so excited. I’m sure he scared the hell out of some of these characters by following them, shouting at them, tapping on their bags and even following Balou into the security room. Normally he’s very shy and we thought he wouldn’t behave this bad. I’m sorry for his behavior, but I guess it’s entirely our fault. We forgot to tell him about how to behave when seeing a character. After some very embarrassing moments (us running after him and telling him to behave, he always running away from us, not listening at all) we finally were able to talk to him. We told him that his behavior scared the characters and that he had to be aware of the fact there were more children willing to see them. From that moment he behaved perfectly right.

Sorry guys, for this long episode, but I just wanted to share some of our experiences as first time surrogate parents. What a great experience this has been.

Thank you for the interesting report Saskia!
I agree with most of your statements, however about the parks food, I don't agree completely. I think there is a huge difference between counter service restaurants and full service restaurants.
Counter service restaurants serve McDonalds-ish food, sometimes even lower quality. I must admit I go to these restaurants for the theming and décorations (absolutely beautiful), not for the food.
Table service restaurants are REALLY better. Everything is better (it's more expensive), reception and of course food quality is best.
Glad you had a great time! ;)

Olivier, you’re absolutely right. I’m only talking about counter service restaurants. Of course the table service restaurants at the Park are much better. I forgot to write that down because we only had one table service dinner in the Park. I guess I forgot about that. :confused: Thank you for your response.

Thank you for a very informative thread - I enjoyed reading it. It is always nice to see somewhere from others perspectives and taking others in your family helped you do just that. I do have to say you were luckier than us at catching the characters, we always managed to arrive just as they were waving goodbye. I cant wait to see the Lion King show when we visit this November and will remember your tip about the restaurant. We were there earlier this year when they were rehearsing and the singing was very good. We tried to peek behind the curtains but were shooed away in a friendly but firm manner. That will teach us to be nosey!