When I visited Disneyland Paris for the first time during the 25th Anniversary celebrations, there were a few things that threw me off. Some of them were completely out of left field that I hadn’t even thought to think about. Some of them I thought I knew because I had been to Walt Disney World, but Paris does it just a little bit differently.
Transportation
You can either drive or take a train to get there. Like Disneyland in California, all of Disneyland Paris is one the same walkable property. You can walk from almost all of the Newport Bay Hotel to either park or Disney Village. And there is a train station right in front!
Security
Much of Europe has a big problem with terrorists unfortunately. In the States, we’re used to having to go through metal detectors and have our bags searched to get into the parks. At Disneyland Paris, you have to go through that just to get to your hotel, too.
If you go anywhere public with a lot of people, like a train station or a trip to the Louvre, you may see people dressed as soldiers patrolling with big guns. I did not see this anywhere on Disney property.
Smoking
Smoking is not allowed in the parks except for designated smoking areas. But it is allowed in all of the outdoor areas outside of the parks. Meaning that during your morning and afternoon walk to and from the parks, there will be smoke around you. Smoking is very much dying out in the States, but is still alive and well in Europe in my experience. I’ve also seen plenty of posts online of guests complaining about all the smoke inside of the parks themselves, although I didn’t encounter that personally.
Medicine
“I have a bit of a headache and didn’t bring any medicine, I’ll just pop down to the shop in the lobby.” Nope! In France, only pharmacies are allowed to sell medicines. There are none of those on property, which means you will have to drive or take a train to the next stop over. I highly recommend bringing a few pain relievers and anything else you think you miiiiiiight need on vacation.
Extra Magic Time
At Walt Disney World, Extra Magic Hours usually means early entrance or a late stay in the park for Disney hotel guests. This is similar at Disneyland Paris except that only parts of the park are open. Not the whole thing. The day that I used Extra Magic Time at Disneyland Park, it was only FantasyLand that was open. Needless to say, I was quite confused because I hadn’t read all of the literature because “I know how this works!”
