Despite the bitter cold (gloves, hats and layers essential), there was a wonderfully festive atmosphere, with an enormous Christmas tree, beautiful decorations lining Main Street and of course lots of Christmassy music. Our first ride was Buzz Lightyear’s Laser Blast, where the kids thought it was very funny hearing their favourite characters speaking in French. Then Peter Pan’s Dream Flight - thank goodness for FastPass, there was a long, long queue for that one - before hitting Big Thunder Mountain and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril in quick succession (against my better judgement, but apparently I was the only one who felt sick). We slowed things down a little with It’s A Small World (still my favourite ride) and Snow White, or Blanche-Neige, as she’s known there. It was just too cold for Dumbo the Flying Elephant, I’m afraid.
Then it was on to the fantastic Tower of Terror – the feeling of dropping from a great height made us all giddy with excitement. Lots of screaming and laughter on that one. We queued without complaints for Crush’s Rollercoaster, but just as we were about to board the ride broke down. After all that queuing it seemed silly to leave, and 20 minutes later the ride was fixed. Was it worth it? Well, the kids certainly thought so, but to be honest my head didn’t stop spinning for hours afterwards.
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And when we weren’t on the rides, we still had time to watch the fantastic show starring Mickey, Minnie, Donald and (our fave) Pluto. That’s the great thing about Disneyland Paris - once you’re there, there’s so much to see and do, which makes it brilliant value.
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My only criticism, as ever, is the food. Why, when France has a reputation for some of the finest food in the world, does the food at Disneyland Paris have to be so awful – overpriced and poor quality, with horrendous queues, even for the ‘fast’ food? My advice – if you’re going for the day, take your own. (Maybe it’s time for a panel of mum testers to give you some honest advice, Disney?)
Even the lack of gastronomic delights, though, couldn’t spoil the magic. In fact our visit to Disneyland Paris was the ideal way to get into the Christmas spirit. As we left the park, Sleeping Beauty’s castle was perfectly illuminated against the night sky.
Back on the train all the children slept and let their mummies and daddies have some rest were wide awake and VERY noisy, totally hyped up by their Disney experience. ‘Boys wear pants and girls wear knickers,’ a small boy shouted loudly at one point (nothing to do with us, I hasten to add). It’s a small person’s world, after all.
*Eurostar operates a daily direct service in each direction to Disneyland Resort Paris. Fares are from £44 return (child aged 4-11) and £59 return (adult) and children under 4 travel free (not allocated a seat). For more info on Disneyland Paris, click here