A Brief History of Disneyland Paris
Disneyland Paris, originally called Euro Disney Resort, opened in 1992 and was the first Disney Park in a new continent. Its castle is a main feature, as it is in many other Disney parks: Sleeping Beauty’s Castle or in French, Le Château de la Belle au Bois Dormant. While this castle is shared with the original Disneyland in California, this one is a lot bigger as it did not have height restrictions meant to avoid impeding the nearby skyline. This park being in Europe means it is needed to be able to cater to a variety of audiences from diverse cultures and countries who speak different languages; this is why they need their cast members to speak different languages, including but not limited to French, Spanish, English, and German. This park, however, is different to others as this castle is the most beautiful. See for yourself.
Different Experience to Other Parks
In this park, given it is French, most rides with voice animatronics or soundscapes will be in French, such as part of Tower of Terror, part of Disney Stars on Parade, Ratatouille: L'Aventure Totalement Toquée de Rémy and many more rides. It is a unique experience as they hold a lot more events that are not seen at the other Disney parks and resorts around the world. For example, this summer when I went to Disneyland Paris for the first time, it was the Disney Music Festival; this was a celebration of all the music by Disney that feature in all their films and Pixar films as well. This event offered new food, merchandise, and experiences. They even created a theme song for the festival called "Viva La Musique” which had a French and English version! This greeted the guests to the park each morning when they entered, whether they were staying in a Disney hotel and had access to Magic Hour, this is where Disney Hotel Guests have the opportunity to get in the parks an hour earlier than people who aren’t staying in one of the hotels, or if they were entering at 9am.
Rides and Attractions
There are a wide variety of rides and attractions at Disneyland Paris that let you experience a wild ride depending on the attraction. Some excellent for thrill seekers include Tower of Terror, Big Thunder Mountain, Hyperspace Mountain, and Avengers Flight Force! But if you like a more leisurely ride then “It’s a Small World” or Cars Road Trip may more be your thing. These rides are great fun but make sure you ride some of the Must-See Attractions which are listed on the Disneyland Paris website. If rides are not your thing, then there are still plenty of attractions. Go inside the castle and see La Galerie de la Belle au Bois Dormant and explore the story of Sleeping Beauty told through beautiful tapestries and stained-glass windows. Or delve into the depths under the castle and see La Tanière du Dragon; discover the dragon that hides here and who does not like to be disturbed otherwise it will roar and growl at you! There are also many shows across the two parks which create all sorts of family fun, some of these include Mickey and the Magician or The Lion King: Rhythms of the Pride Lands; you could even experience the musical magic of Mickey’s PhilharMagic.
These shows take place indoors and last anywhere from 30 minutes to 75 minutes: it is fun for lovers of different characters from a variety of films.
Restaurants and Dining in the Parks
In Disneyland Paris, there are many opportunities to have tasty food and immerse yourself in the atmosphere of different films and locations. Bistrot Chez Remy, Silver Spur Steakhouse, PYM Kitchen, Stark Factory just to name a few. These restaurants transport you to different stories such as Ratatouille where you become rat-sized and enjoy food while being surrounded by giant plates and cookbooks. Or go to PYM Kitchen and see how the latest technology uses PYM particles to supersize food and create a scientific experience in this buffet style restaurant. A lot of restaurants require a booking since they can be busy with or without one: a varied experience occurs throughout the different restaurants both with the food and atmosphere. However, if you are looking for something with faster quicker service then try one of the food trucks or head into Disney Village and go to McDonald’s, Five Guys or Annette’s. Bear in mind these places can be expensive, so budget accordingly. If you wish to experience character dining, then you will also need to book in advance but also consider that these experiences may not be included in a meal plan if you have one booked. In the Disney hotels, if you have paid for a meal plan, breakfast is included, if not then it is available to be paid for on the day. It is varied with continental breakfast and cooked. It includes a range of pastries, bacon, sausages, beans, and scrambled eggs. This is well worth the money as this is the most important meal of the day, especially if you are wanting to get on a ride as quick as possible such as Big Thunder Mountain which can have waiting times of up to 3 hours.
Character Meet and Greets
Previously, if you wanted to meet with the likes of Mickey Mouse, Stitch, Darth Vader, a Princess or a Marvel superhero then you will have needed a lot of time on your hands, and be willing to queue for an hour or more if you weren’t the first to arrive, as previously the queue system was physical. However, since 18th April 2025, Disneyland Paris began to use a virtual queue system on the official app so you can get a chance to meet your favourite characters and get a picture or two with them. This meant that if you could get on the app for 09:00 AM, or 02:45PM then you could be in with the chance to meet Mickey, a Princess and many more characters. If you have an autograph book that you bought in the parks or brought from home, then be aware that not all characters can sign them as they will not be able to see what they are doing. This we found out with Darth Vader, who was still intimidating all the same. If you do wish to meet a Marvel character however, you will need to make sure you have booked a ticket for both Disneyland and Walt Disney Studios (soon name changing to Disney Adventure
World due to the introduction of a Frozen land and a Lion King land). If you are lucky to get in one of these virtual queues, make sure you grab a Photo Pass or a Photo Pass+ as these will grant you to get pictures taken by the official photographers. This will also allow you to access photos on certain rides as well. Overall, if you can meet a character, do so, it is a very worthwhile experience.
Parades
A daily occurrence when it is not the holiday season at Disneyland Paris is Disney Stars on Parade, where you can see characters from Mickey and his friends Nemo, Crush or even the princesses on their princess float. This is a magical parade where you can wave to your favourite characters and soak up the atmosphere of the parks. However, if you visit during the Christmas season from around the beginning of November to the beginning of January, you will instead experience Mickey’s Dazzling Christmas Parade where you will still be able to see some of your favourite characters in their seasonal outfits like Goofy dressed as Santa. Speaking of which, Santa is also in the parade until the 25th of December.
Hotels
There is a choice of six different Disney hotels on the site of the parks, the furthest of which is a 20-minute walk to reach the gates. These choices are the Disneyland Hotel, Hotel New York – The Art of Marvel, Disney Newport Bay Club, Disney Seqouia Lodge, Disney Hotel Cheyenne, and Disney Hotel Santa Fe. These hotels have different themes. Disney Hotel Santa Fe, experience the world of Cars in Radiator Springs. Disney Newport Bay Club, what if Disney met a boat/marine theme. Disney Hotel Cheyenne, live in the wild west and stay in rooms themed around Toy Story. These all have shops and restaurants on site as well as a desk for guest service needs that relate to your stay. Enjoy your stay with an extra bit of Disney Magic! If it is your birthday during your stay, just ask the cast members what the magic telephone number is and they will give you a number to call where Mickey will wish you a happy birthday. If it is your birthday, make sure you go to Town Hall in the main park and ask for a birthday badge. There is also a free shuttle service from the hotels to the parks in case you do not feel like walking.
Personal Experience
This was my first time going to a Disney Park and I was excited, especially considering it was going to be my birthday whilst I was there which made the trip even more magical. This being the first time in a Disney Park, not just Disneyland Paris, I was determined to try everything that I could. I travelled with my sister, who planned the entire thing. She is amazing. The first thing we did when we arrived in the park itself was walk down Main Street U.S.A. and take pictures in front of the castle before heading off to go on a variety of different rides before watching the Disney Stars on Parade. This was wonderful to see all the different characters. We then went around the rest of the park and rode on a few more different rides around the Magic Kingdom before heading to the Walt Disney Studios. Riding on the Tower of Terror for the first time was one of the scariest experiences of my life. We also went on the Ratatouille ride, going on a few more attractions in the studios we decided to go for our dinner at one of the restaurants within the park before heading back to the main park to get on one more ride before the fireworks show “Disney Tales of Magic.” This ultimate trip was magical with character meets with the likes of Mickey, Mulan, Snow White, Spiderman, and Darth Vader. Going on all the rides, we could at the time because of the intense 40° heat and the red weather warning that surrounded Paris and loomed over a lot of Europe at the height of summer. Disneyland Paris is a worthwhile destination for a family or solo holiday. Be sure to take some time to look around as you can miss some things if you do not look closely. If you do go to Disneyland Paris or any other Disney park, have a wonderful time and enjoy it: it really is the most magical and the happiest place on earth.
Here is a Spotify playlist I made of the different songs used in the Disneyland Paris park throughout the 2024-2025 season.
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