Into the unknown...Into the unknooowwwnnnn. Please tell me you were singing that too as you were reading it? I haven't even watched Frozen 2 yet but this song is everywhere! Especially in Disneyland. What an expensive place to go to on a budget, but that's where I come in and tell you all about how to go to Disneyland Paris on a budget, from the hotel, to travel, to food and more. As well as the best time of year to go.
Travel
There's 3 ways of getting to Disney, by train, plane or drive. I bet your thinking flying is the best way, but driving is by far the cheapest way, especially by coach. I've been with Harry Shaw twice now and it's the main way I would always go by. This is not sponsored in anyway, but Harry Shaw are one of the best coach companies to go with, not only to Disneyland but all over Europe. If you check out their website here you can check out their deals, but for Disney it works out cheaper to go in a group of 4 as otherwise you have to pay more to go in a 2 or a 3 or even a single. Me and the girls (3 of us) paid around £240 each with breakfast for 2 days which wasn't bad. I'll go into more details about hotel and food later on. Harry Shaw pick up from all over the country so definitely worth checking where your nearest point of pick up is in the UK.
Hotels
Disneyland Paris has so many hotels. I would love to stay in the official hotel but around £300-600 a night, that's a no from me...There are more options though, Hotel Cheyenne, Hotel Sante Fe, Sequioa Lodge and Newport Bay Club Hotel. I've luckily been able to stay at both Hotel Cheyenne which is Toy Story western style and Hotel Sante Fe which is based on the film Cars. If I had to choose between the both I would say Sante Fe was nicer interior wise and filled with such characteristics, the canteen for breakfast was so much bigger as well compared to Hotel Cheyenne. The difference is, Cheyenne is closer to the park than Sante Fe, but it doesn't really matter when there's a free bus that takes you back and forth to the Disney Parks and are quite frequent.
Food
There are SO many food places to eat in Disneyland Paris, but it's finding them, as there's so many different buildings that you don't even expect to be restaurants or eating places. You can get breakfast vouchers with Harry Shaw for your stay, or you can get a full Disney pass ticket thing where it allows you to eat in every Disney restaurant in the Parks which is probably so worth it so you can try all the food, but very expensive at the same time. Hense why I would stick with the hotel breakfast and making my own lunch, then you just have to worry about dinner, which both nights for us was a Five Guys burger and fries which was nice the first time, but the second was a bit much. The restaurants available in the Disney Village are:
- Planet Hollywood - eaten here before and it wasn't nice at all. Over priced and over rated if you ask me.
- McDonald's - Of course they have a McDonald's! The queue was insane though, but they also have a little McCafe inside though that does the nicest macaroons and cute little complementary cookies.
- Cafe Mickey - Such a cute cafe that I wish we tried out!
- Earl Of Sandwich
- Rainforest Cafe
- Annette's Diner
- Wild West Show - You can also get tickets to this as well as it being a food place. So you can eat whilst watching the show!
- King Ludwigs Castle
These two restaurants are just outside of Disney Village though so you will have to go out of the security gate to get to the below restaurants:
- Five Guys
- Vapiano
There's so many more just in the Disney Village! You can go into the Disney Village when the park isn't open as well. If you go with Harry Shaw, depending on how many days you go for, say if you go for 3 nights but only 1 day in the park you'll get one ticket, so don't use that the night before as otherwise you won't get into the park on the day you were supposed to.
Other restaurants in the main Disney Park are:
- Restaurant Hakuna Matata
- Plaza Gardens
- Silver Spur Steakhouse
- Captain Jack's Restaurant - this is the one inside the Pirates Of The Caribbean ride which is such a cool experience!
- Pizzeria Bella Notte
- Cowboy Cookout Barbecue
- The Lucky Nugget Saloon
- Casey's Corner - perfect little fast food spot for nuggets, chips and sitting outside admiring the Disney Castle.
- Victoria's Home-Style Restaurant
- The Ice Cream Company
Once again, there is SO many more restaurants in Disneyland, you just have to find them. But this is where the Disneyland Paris app comes in handy with finding everything.
Extra Disney Tips
There's a Disneyland Paris app that would really help you during your stay in Disneyland. It has a map of the whole 2 parks, Disney village and more. The app also shows you a constant update of how long the wait is for rides. I have a separate blog post for the best rides to go on in Disney coming soon for you to check out also.
The best time of year to go to Disneyland Paris is certainly between January to March, mainly weekdays, as we went Thursday night to Saturday night and Friday was so nice and quiet, then Saturday came and it was SO busy we only went on 3 rides, compared to Friday where we fitted 7 or more in! Also better to go when the kids are in school, so avoid half terms and school holidays where can if you haven't got children.
Make sure your prepared for a lot of walking! I wore my Fila Trainers pretty much the entire time as forget wearing any fancy heels or boots here, especially when you fit in 20,000-25,000 steps in a day during your time in Disney. Also a backpack is also the best bag to take, as any other bag is a no no. This is because all the rides allow you to take bags with you, but of course, some rides go upside down, so make sure you take a bag that closes up tight so nothing falls out. I went in January, so as you can imagine it was COLD so I even took a blanket out with me when the Disney Illuminations were on in the evening.
Don't forget your Disney ears! As the shops in Disneyland Paris are so pricey! Mine cost me around 22 euros, these were the new Frozen themed ones, I also have a bride pair with a veil just because I'm extra AF.
If you ever need to find out the times for the Disney Illuminations and the Disney Parade, make sure you either ask one of the Disney staff or go to the Information building at the start of Main Street, as the times changed daily when I went. Also it's best to get to the parade around 15-20 minutes early so you have a good spot to see the show travel up Main Street. As for the Illuminations, the best spot to see them is as close to the Disney Castle as possible, same again get there early so you can see the show as it's honestly SPECTACULAR!
Take some snacks or a packed lunch with you to save you money during the day. I took full advantage of the breakfast buffet by making a packed lunch, making sandwiches, cubes of cheese, fruit etc. Saves you time in the queues for food in the park and money!
There is high security at Disneyland Paris which is actually a good thing as it shows how safe the park is kept. So be prepared to take your bag and gadgets off and put them through the conveyor belt like in the airport.
I also vlogged whilst I was in Disneyland Paris. Watch my vlog from 2020 here. I also vlogged a few years ago which was my first time at Disneyland Paris, watch my vlog from 2017 here. I did different things each time so that the vlogs hold different clips of the park in them as well.
I hope you found this guide useful and if your planning on going to Disneyland Paris I hope you have the most magical time!
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