Tips and Tricks to Survive Disneyland Resort Paris [A Comprehensive Guide]

Disneyland Resort Paris is known as the largest amusement park in Europe. This enchanted place in France is not only the natural habitat of the children but also a place that recall all the most beautiful moments of our childhood. Disneyland Resort Paris rides and attractions are crowded throughout the year and I won’t hide my astonishment when the gates opened and I saw people running here and there in order to get to their favourite attractions. I confess that I also competed in the first row but, unlike so many others, I was well equipped. I will reveal tips and tricks for living a wonderful day at Disneyland Resort Paris with no stress. YES! I was able to access the main Disneyland Paris rides and attractions and visit both parks in 1 day. I chose my favourite attractions before to get to the park. Do you know what the downside of this adventure was? My feet! They really hurt after 16 hours walking through the park! If you want to be more relaxed I recommend to visit the park in 2 days. In this way you won’t do things in too much of a hurry.

Where to buy Disneyland Resort Paris tickets

Tickets can be purchased on the official website of the park, where you will often find the best deals, or at the Disney Store on the Champs- Elysées in Paris. I found the best deal on an Italian website. The cost depends on how many parks you want to visit and the days you want to stay.

Super Magic Ticket. Ticket 1 day / 2 parks: Adults €84 – Child (3-11) €77. This kind of ticket is valid every day of the year. There is also the possibility to choose tickets which are valid only in periods of the year. You can save €10.

Disneyland Paris Express Ticket. Ticket 1 day / 2 parks: Adults €99 – Child (3-11) 80€. This ticket includes transport from Paris. It is good if you are visiting Paris.

Here are all the tickets prices.

TIP: before leaving check out the calendar on the official site to look at the opening hours.

How to get to the Park

Disneyland Resort Paris is located about 30 kilometers from Paris, in Marne-la- Vallee. You can get to the amusement park by car or by RER A, a railway line that connects the center to the outskirts of Paris. I recommend to get there by subway from one of the RER A stations. The closest station is the Nation. You will be at Disneyland Paris in 30 minutes, the round-trip ticket is €15.20. Children under 4 years don’t pay while children aged 4 to 11 years pay €7.60 (round-trip ticket).

Since my itinerary included a tour of France I chose a hotel with free shuttle service to Disneyland Resort Paris. The hotel is the Kyriad Hotel. If you have chosen a tour, this is the best solution especially if you decide to stay at least 2 days.

Tips and tricks for surviving Disneyland Resort Paris rides and attractions

Disneyland Resort Paris is divided into 2 theme parks :
– Disneyland ® Park or Disneyland
– Walt Disney Studios

Disneyland Resort Paris is at the right of Marne-la-Vallee. At the entrance of Disneyland you will find a map of the park. The map of the Studios is at the Disneyland City Hall or at the information point on Main Street USA. Ask for the brochure with the scheduled events.

It is divided into 5 main areas :

1. MAIN STREET. It is the main street inspired by a town in Missouri. Here is the wonderful Sleeping Beauty Castle. Take a look inside of it and you will be enchanted by the hotel and the beautiful stained glass windows, just like in a real castle. You will find many shops on Main Street. But resist the temptation… there’s time to go shopping!

2. FANTASYLAND. It is the country where the stories take shape. It includes attractions for children such as:

– Alice’s Curious Labyrinth;

– Mad Hatter’s Tea Cup (you can avoid it);

– Taniere Du Dragon;

Enjoy 3 dark ride attractions which include:

– Pinocchio’s Fantasic Journey (in my opinion it is the worst ride because the system is too fast and it does not allow you to fully enjoy the story);

– Snow White ‘s Scary Adventures (too fast system);

– Peter Pan’s Flight (you climb aboard a pirate ship. It is very nice and you might find queues. Use FastPass);

Then there are other attractions such as:

– Dumbo the Flying Elephant;

– Petite Train Du Cirque;

– Le Pays des Contes de Fees (where you can take a boat cruise through the thumbnails of scenes from Disney fairy tales);

– Le Carrousel de Lancelot;

– Sleeping Beauty Castle, which is at the centre of the park. It is so magical at night!

– It’s a Small World (wonderful, you will discover the world aboard small boats accompanied by beautiful background music with scenes cartoon bait and dolls moving).

DO NOT MISS: IT’S A SMALL WORLD, PETER PAN ‘S FLIGHT, SLEEPING BEAUTY CASTLE

3. ADVENTURELAND.  It is the land of adventure par excellence. Here are the attractions you will find in this world:

– Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril (I do not think it is suitable for children. This ride performs 360° turn and you can have neck pain);

– La Cabane Des Robinson (a splendid reconstruction of the house of Crusoe);

– Adventure isle (a labyrinth of lagoons, creeks, caves, bridges and hidden places. This attraction is divided into three parts: Skull Rock, Le Ventre de la Terre and the Tresor Eau);

– Pirates of the Caribbean (where you can live for a while pirates’ life);

– Captain Hook’s Pirate Ship (nice to take a photo, not a great attraction);

– Le Passage Enchante d’Aladdin.

DO NOT MISS: PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN, INDIANA JONES, LA CABANE DES ROBINSON

4. FRONTIERLAND. It is inspired by the 1800s American Wild West. There are colonial houses which recall the Far West. It has got attractions for children such as:

– The Legend of the Wild West (and a fort of the old Wild West to visit on foot );

– the famous Big Thunder Mountain (for a better view try to sit on the n. 2 or n.3 wagon because the first wagon is in front of the locomotive and you don’t have a great view form there). It is located right in the center and it is a roller coaster for families, but not only;

– Pocahontas Indian Village;

– Rustler Roundup Shootin Gallery;

– Haunted Mansion “Phantom Manor” (the story of a young girl’s ghost trapped forever on the day of his wedding. Amazing! I loved special effects!);

– the largest boat Thunder Mesa Riverboat Landing that runs around the whole Frontierland.

DO NOT MISS: BIG THUNDER MOUNTAIN, PHANTOM MANOR

5. DISCOVERYLAND. It is the land of science fiction in old fashion style. There are “futuristic” attractions , such as

– Autopia (cars that go on the rails without the possibility of manipulating it. Not a great attraction.),

– Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast;

– Videopolis;

– Star Tours (virtual Gaming in 3D);

– Du les mysteres Nautilus (the submarine Nautilus Captain Nemo) and

– Space Mountain Mission 2 (an indoor roller coaster which is in the dark! Fabulous!).

DO NOT MISS: SPACE MOUNTAIN MISSION, 2 BUZZ LIGHTYEAR LASER BLAST

The Walt Disney Studios Park is divided into:
– Front Lot (functional area of a film studio that takes the structure of classic Hollywood movie studios in the 30’s);
– Toon Studio (part of the study where Disney characters go to work);
– Backlot (dedicated to cinema that creates special effects action movie);
– Production Courtyard (the roadside palm trees)

You can meet Disney characters in Walt Disney Studio park! I felt like a child!

Here you cannot miss:

– Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster avec Aeorosmith (in Backlot zone). It is a roller coaster set to tour de force records (I could not test it personally);

– Armageddon special effects (in Backlot zone). I seriously took the risk to burn myself and you’ll understand why when you visit it… But it is a harmless attraction at the end);

– Moteurs … Action ! (in Backlot zone). Stunt men show. It is fab. It takes 35 minutes but I recommend to arrive at least 15 minutes before the beginning;

– The twilight zone tower of terror. It is a production court yard very crowded in the afternoon;

– Crush’s coaster inspired by Nemo. It is a roller coaster that rotates 360 degrees in the corners;

– Production CinéMagique court yard. It is a show that is a tribute to the history of cinema with amazing special effects. There are not queues, the theater hosts 110 seats.

NOTE: some attractions have FastPass which is a queue management that will allow you to shorten the waiting time. You can take advantage of the time to devote to another attraction. You cannot make another FastPass before the time indicated in your ticket has passed. You can do all the FastPass you want. You could have two FastPasses at the same time only if the return time of the first one is after more than two hours from the time of issue. In this case you can take a second FastPass after two hours of the first issue. For instance, if you take a FastPass at 9 in the morning and you rtime to return is 16 you can get another FastPass at 11. The attractions served by FastPass are: Big Thunder Mountain, Buzz Lightyears Laser Blast, Indiana Jones, Peter Pan ‘s Flight, Space Mountain: Mission 2, Star Tours.

The first attraction I recommend to do when you arrive at the park is the Big Thunder Mountain (Frontierland). It is one of the busiest attractions together with Indiana Jones (Adventureland) and Space Mountain Mission 2 (Discoveryland). Big Thunder Mountain is a roller coaster ride through the mountains of the far west. It is really impressive. Use the FastPass for Big Thunder Mountain, then choose Indiana Jones and take the pass to Space Mountain Mission 2. Use FastPass to save time and do it  in the early hours of the morning.

There are many queues at lunchtime. Choose to take a walk during these times. When the park is going to close many attractions and rides are empty and shops are full of people. If you didn’t manage to enjoy an attraction you can do it now. Bring something to drink and some snacks.

BEST ATTRACTIONS FOR ME:
BIG THUNDER MOUNTAIN
SPACE MOUNTAIN
IT’S A SMALL WORLD
PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN
INDIANA JONES

TO DO:
PHANTOM MANOR
PETER PAN’S FLIGHT
BUZZ LIGHTYEAR LASER BLAST
SNOW WHITE AND 7 DWARFS
LES VOYAGES DE PINOCCHIO

ATTRACTIONS YOU CAN AVOID:
STAR TOURS
MAD HATTER’S TEA CUP
LA CABANE DES ROBINSON
ALADDIN’S ENCHANTED PASSAGE
ALICE ‘S CURIOUS LABYRINTH

Now you can really enjoy the park.

Don’t miss the evening parade in summer. There are 17 floats and all Disney characters! At the end of the parade Mickey Mouse will do his triumphal entry!

Disneyland Resort Paris is a place I never tire of visiting. It is a toyland and we often need to awake our inner child. This is the right place to do it!

Have you ever visited Disneyland Resort Paris? What’s your favourite ride or attraction?