fifthdimensiondweller
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jun 21, 2016
Hi All!
I'm in the U.S. looking to finally make the much longed for and pandemic suspended DLP trip, looking at 2025. We (my then 7 year old and I) will we going with my adult friends and their 15 year old twins, along with another adult friend as a group, (although my son and I will likely have our own hotel room). I know obviously things can change, but I have a few questions. Primarily, having gone to WDW and DLR all my life, I'm concerned I'm "Americanizing" my trip and wanting to do things in a way that would make sense at an American park, but might be totally not the way to go about things in a park tailored to a European audience. Any suggestions on either my questions below, tips from other Americans who have gone, or Europeans who have come to the U.S. parks and can state some big differences would be very welcome!
-First, because U.S. schools tend to have long summer breaks, we're looking at going between June and August, since our own children will be out of school. In the States, out of these three months, August is the best time to go, as many of the schools in FL and CA start school at the beginning of August and crowds (and prices, to some extent) die down. Is there a different period in June, July, or August that might be light in Paris that I could be overlooking due to differing school schedules?
-Second, how feasible is a "split stay" at DLP? This is where I'm concerned I might be thinking too much like I'm visiting an American park. In the States, it's pretty common for guests to split their stay between two Disney hotels, either for cost savings or just to experience two different resorts. Disney will typically move your luggage for you (or at least they used to, not sure if that's still a thing post 2020), and the whole process is pretty seamless. Being as this is likely a once, maybe twice in a lifetime trip for us, I'd really love to stay the majority of our days at Santa Fe for the cars theme, then switch to HNY for Marvel for maybe our last two nights. Would this throw a huge wrench in the trip, luggage, etc. ? I likely won't have a vehicle, will Disney move my luggage, or would be have to take Disney transport from one hotel to the other with our bags? Still might do it if so, but it's definitely something I'd want to consider ahead.
-How is dining? Should I plan more or less time to eat than U.S. Parks? What times should I avoid dining that are likely to be busy? I've heard in France meals are generally longer, and I remember years ago when I went to Paris that was sort of the case, but wasn't sure if it was the same in the park atmosphere. Are reservations as cutthroat as they are at WDW or DLR? I definitely plan on making advanced reservations as soon as I can because of the nature of the trip being once in a lifetime and wanting to be sure I can experience as much as possible, but I wasn't sure if I needed to be online right as they are released like you often do in the states. Also, how can Americans book ADRs? Can you do it right on the DLP website or is there a special process we must follow, like calling in?
-Americans who have come form the States, how did you get to DLP? What airport did you fly into, what ground transport did you use to take you to the resort, etc. ? Anything you'd do differently? We'd be flying out of probably JFK, Philly, Boston after connections. Somewhere on the east coast I'd imagine. What do I need to know about customs? Any single parents travel with their child, and if so, was there any documentation you needed from the coparent showing they were aware of and ok with the trip?
-I've always seen people say not speaking much French isn't really a problem at all at DLP. Is that true? We'd be staying in the Disney bubble for all of our DLP days, and just heading off to Paris to do big attractions like the Eiffel tower, maybe see the Mona Lisa... nothing crazy, especially since I can't imagine my 7 year old will be that into the museum/ monument type things, but I think it's important to expose him to it regardless. Does anyone foresee any issues getting to those places without speaking French? Like getting an Uber, etc? That's the only part that makes me a little nervous. I remember years ago it was no issue in the city of Paris as long as you stayed in the big touristy areas, but I was a teenager on a school trip then so our chaperones handled everything.
-Fastpasses? How do they work in DLP? I've seen a lot of people say you can buy them day of, and just for specific rides. This sounds ideal and like a big money saver if it's not a busy day, but is it like Lightening Lanes where there's a good chance they could run out of them if not purchased in advance? Especially for more popular rides?
-Finally, I'm looking at 5-6 nights nights. Probably 4 park days and 1 day in the city. Does that sound good? Do they have a "hopper" option similar to WDW and DLR? I know Walt Disney Studios may not have enough and we may want to dip back to DLP. Then again, I'm not 100% up to speed on what they have planned that might be there by 2025, so maybe we would want more time there than we initially think. Are there any new lands or expansions on the books I should be aware of at either park when considering the length of my stay?
Thank you SO much for taking the time to read my behemoth post. As I'm sure you can tell, I'm a planner and like to have all my ducks in a row.
I'm in the U.S. looking to finally make the much longed for and pandemic suspended DLP trip, looking at 2025. We (my then 7 year old and I) will we going with my adult friends and their 15 year old twins, along with another adult friend as a group, (although my son and I will likely have our own hotel room). I know obviously things can change, but I have a few questions. Primarily, having gone to WDW and DLR all my life, I'm concerned I'm "Americanizing" my trip and wanting to do things in a way that would make sense at an American park, but might be totally not the way to go about things in a park tailored to a European audience. Any suggestions on either my questions below, tips from other Americans who have gone, or Europeans who have come to the U.S. parks and can state some big differences would be very welcome!
-First, because U.S. schools tend to have long summer breaks, we're looking at going between June and August, since our own children will be out of school. In the States, out of these three months, August is the best time to go, as many of the schools in FL and CA start school at the beginning of August and crowds (and prices, to some extent) die down. Is there a different period in June, July, or August that might be light in Paris that I could be overlooking due to differing school schedules?
-Second, how feasible is a "split stay" at DLP? This is where I'm concerned I might be thinking too much like I'm visiting an American park. In the States, it's pretty common for guests to split their stay between two Disney hotels, either for cost savings or just to experience two different resorts. Disney will typically move your luggage for you (or at least they used to, not sure if that's still a thing post 2020), and the whole process is pretty seamless. Being as this is likely a once, maybe twice in a lifetime trip for us, I'd really love to stay the majority of our days at Santa Fe for the cars theme, then switch to HNY for Marvel for maybe our last two nights. Would this throw a huge wrench in the trip, luggage, etc. ? I likely won't have a vehicle, will Disney move my luggage, or would be have to take Disney transport from one hotel to the other with our bags? Still might do it if so, but it's definitely something I'd want to consider ahead.
-How is dining? Should I plan more or less time to eat than U.S. Parks? What times should I avoid dining that are likely to be busy? I've heard in France meals are generally longer, and I remember years ago when I went to Paris that was sort of the case, but wasn't sure if it was the same in the park atmosphere. Are reservations as cutthroat as they are at WDW or DLR? I definitely plan on making advanced reservations as soon as I can because of the nature of the trip being once in a lifetime and wanting to be sure I can experience as much as possible, but I wasn't sure if I needed to be online right as they are released like you often do in the states. Also, how can Americans book ADRs? Can you do it right on the DLP website or is there a special process we must follow, like calling in?
-Americans who have come form the States, how did you get to DLP? What airport did you fly into, what ground transport did you use to take you to the resort, etc. ? Anything you'd do differently? We'd be flying out of probably JFK, Philly, Boston after connections. Somewhere on the east coast I'd imagine. What do I need to know about customs? Any single parents travel with their child, and if so, was there any documentation you needed from the coparent showing they were aware of and ok with the trip?
-I've always seen people say not speaking much French isn't really a problem at all at DLP. Is that true? We'd be staying in the Disney bubble for all of our DLP days, and just heading off to Paris to do big attractions like the Eiffel tower, maybe see the Mona Lisa... nothing crazy, especially since I can't imagine my 7 year old will be that into the museum/ monument type things, but I think it's important to expose him to it regardless. Does anyone foresee any issues getting to those places without speaking French? Like getting an Uber, etc? That's the only part that makes me a little nervous. I remember years ago it was no issue in the city of Paris as long as you stayed in the big touristy areas, but I was a teenager on a school trip then so our chaperones handled everything.
-Fastpasses? How do they work in DLP? I've seen a lot of people say you can buy them day of, and just for specific rides. This sounds ideal and like a big money saver if it's not a busy day, but is it like Lightening Lanes where there's a good chance they could run out of them if not purchased in advance? Especially for more popular rides?
-Finally, I'm looking at 5-6 nights nights. Probably 4 park days and 1 day in the city. Does that sound good? Do they have a "hopper" option similar to WDW and DLR? I know Walt Disney Studios may not have enough and we may want to dip back to DLP. Then again, I'm not 100% up to speed on what they have planned that might be there by 2025, so maybe we would want more time there than we initially think. Are there any new lands or expansions on the books I should be aware of at either park when considering the length of my stay?
Thank you SO much for taking the time to read my behemoth post. As I'm sure you can tell, I'm a planner and like to have all my ducks in a row.