It’s not how you expect a child to
react to the Disney experience. ‘Mum! Get me out of here,’ 10-year-old
Harriet hissed urgently, pushing her face into my side. Mind you, we were
in pitch darkness, maniacal laughter and screeching was coming from
somewhere much too close and we were crammed into a small, shuddering room
shoulder to shoulder with strangers whose faces we could picture even
though we couldn’t actually see them because we had had 45 minutes to
study them in the queue for spooky Phantom Manor.
‘It’s fine,’ I said firmly. ‘It’s fun.’ A disbelieving snort came from the
depths of my jacket. I just had time to wonder if this had been a good
choice for our first Disneyland Paris ride when the doors were flung open
and we were ushered into cars to set off through the haunted house.
And it was amazing. When we finally emerged, we were
total converts to the power of Disney. Our main reason for going to the
park was to experience Christmas Disney-style and we had already submitted
completely to the illusion it was the festive season – despite its being
only the middle of November in the outside world.
And that’s what Disneyland Paris is – another world. If
you took the Eurostar from Waterloo straight to the park itself – which is
an option – it would be easy not to realise you were in France. (All the
staff smile and smile and smile. There was one exception; a woman who
served us ice cream with the sullen rudeness only ever achieved by French
shop assistants. And quite honestly, it was refreshing to see that Disney
has not completely broken the local spirit.) Harriet and I travelled by
Eurostar to Paris and then got a coach to the Hotel New York, where we
were staying for a couple of nights, just five minutes’ walk from the
park. The hotel, with its Art Deco bedrooms, was very comfortable and
bedecked with Christmas trees. Icicles hung from the ceiling of a silvery
snow tunnel which served as the entrance to a huge dining room that had
been turned into a winter wonderland for our dinner and a show that
evening.
Imagination, illusion and – there’s no denying it –
magic is everywhere at Disneyland, especially if you’re with a child. We
dumped our bags and raced for the park. It was late afternoon and, as dusk
fell, the myriad lights across the park, down Main Street USA and round
the Sleeping Beauty’s castle twinkled and shimmered. We wandered into
Adventureland with its Arabian Nights and tropical islands theme. Most
visitors had left and we climbed high up into the Swiss Family Robinson’s
tree house and then delved down into the caves of Davy Jones’s locker with
a real sense of adventure and mystery.
Next day, with a frosty sun gleaming, we wandered back
to the park, past the skaters on the rink outside the hotel. Disneyland is
a wonderful experience if you suspend all disbelief. Everywhere is pretty,
colourful and clean, everything is impressive or amazing or cute or
spectacular. There is nothing grim or drab or grey. As we headed across
the main square of the perfect fantasy small American town that makes up
the principal shopping area, Harriet said: ‘Do you think the music will
drive us mad?’ I had my doubts but was determined to approach the Disney
experience with an unjaded mind. And, indeed, soon it was impossible to
imagine life without merry or sweet music floating up from the drain
covers. It was completely cocooning.
Harriet, in any case, was so thrilled with the Disney characters
wandering around and with the rides that she had lost all critical sense
within a couple of hours. But you’d have to be a complete curmudgeon to go
to Disneyland at Christmas and not feel festive.
The Christmas parade is a terrific spectacle based on the Nutcracker
theme with huge floats and dancers in amazing costumes making their way up
Main Street. We got there early enough to get places right on the pavement
and it was well worth the wait as the parade takes a good while to pass
by. The same principle applies to the rides; the queues are long enough
for you not to want to commit to more than about three a day, but they are
always worth the wait.
Later we attended the lighting of the huge Christmas tree in the main
square. Twilight came and the illuminations down Main Street glowed and
sparkled. Father Christmas arrived in a sleigh drawn by real reindeer. A
child picked from the crowd threw golden pixie dust up at the tree (it was
actually only small shreds of golden paper as you could see afterwards
when it lay on the ground, but as it rose through the sky it seemed to
multiply and shimmer in a way that made the crowd gasp. That’s the magic
of Disney.) Then the tree lights began to snap on and on in a crescendo of
light and excitement.
If there’d been a star, I’d have wished upon it. That’s Disney for you.
The feeling lasted all the way back to the cab queue at Waterloo.
‘Mum was so scared she lost her 3-D glasses’
Disneyland Paris has four lands, each with a theme and full of rides.
Adventureland has a sort of Caribbean theme. Discoveryland has a space-age
theme. Frontierland has a Wild West theme and Fantasyland is full of rides
for smaller children. Disneyland Paris also has Main Street USA, which is
full of souvenir shops. And Disney Village is a sort of Los Angeles in
France and has clubs, bars, restaurants and shops.
There are five hotels and a lake, eight car parks and a train that goes
all round the park.
I ate at Times Square restaurant in Hotel New York (the food was very
good) and at the Steak House in Disney Village, which also had very good
food. At Times Square there was special Christmas entertainment and Disney
characters.
Each land has loads of rides. I went on three. Phantom Manor was a very
scary ride in an old house haunted by 999 ghosts, spirits, demons and
skeletons. It would scare younger children as it scared me a lot. The
queue was about 45 minutes and the ride about 15 minutes. Pirates of the
Caribbean was a funny and exciting ride on water that takes you through
villages and caves belonging to pirates. In Honey I Shrunk the Audience
you get ‘shrunk’ sitting in an auditorium. If you are scared of mice and
snakes, I would recommend that you do not do this experience. Mum jumped
so much she knocked her 3-D glasses off and spent ages looking for them on
the floor.
Get the most out of your stay
1) You can beat the queues by going to the park as soon as it opens at
9am. This is really worth it. You will get straight on to the ride of your
choice.
2) Stay as late as you can in the evening. The queues get shorter as
the crowds thin.
3) Disney has introduced Fastpass on the most popular rides. You can
choose to put your park ticket into a special turnstile to be given a
return time. You can then go and do something else in the meantime before
going straight on to the ride. You can do this at only one ride at a time.
4) Try not to eat between noon and 2pm. The queues are huge.
5) Get to the parades in Main Street a good half hour beforehand to be
sure of a good view – especially if you have children with you.
6) Wrap up well. Be prepared for rain. Wear comfy shoes.
Getting there
