How to do a Disneyland Paris family trip in just one day? Sam Bradley packs up his kids and car to follow a childhood dream. Did it live up to his expectations?
The Bradleys, Disneyland Paris
As a young boy, when The Lion King was running fever pitch and Disney was another word for paradise, my grandparents promised me a ticket to Disneyland, but with one catch: I had to pay the airfare. I never managed to save the money, so now (finally) visiting Disneyland Paris all these years later with my own family feels like a ‘coming of age’ moment.
Little kid, big excitement, Disneyland Paris
First steps into magic on our Disneyland Paris family trip
We approach with trepidation: it’s a bright sunny day in the peak of the August holidays, and the park is at full capacity (30,000 guests). It takes a while to get into the park, our children impatiently hopping from foot to foot in the queue as we wonder why not all the service desks are manned.
But once we’re in, the Disney magic is all encompassing. We’ve stepped onto Main Street USA, complete with traditional storefronts, the sweet scent of candy in the air and the picture-perfect pink spires of the castle gleaming in the distance. The atmosphere is intoxicating and the choices are dazzling; where to begin when there are so many attractions (48 to be exact) beckoning?
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Big Thunder Mountain rollercoaster, Disneyland Paris
Plenty to thrill and chill your wildest of children
Our middle daughter is the stereotypical wild child, up for any adventure and keen to try the biggest, baddest and maddest rides the park has to offer. So she had a day to remember.
We start at Avengers Assemble: Flight Force which launches us from 0 to 57 mph in under 3 seconds, blasting us through a few upside-down and loop-the-loop thrills… all in the dark.
Later in the day we’ll be equally thrilled by adrenaline rides such Star Wars Hyperspace Mountain and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril, emerging from each hoarse-throated and white-knuckled, with windswept hair and big smiles.
Hollywood Tower Hotel, Disneyland Paris family trip
Haunting moments on our Disneyland Paris family trip
Without pausing for breath we move onto our eldest daughter’s top request: The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror.
The spooky Hollywood Tower Hotel setting is a cinematic masterpiece: the queue snakes through the dusty décor and flickering lights of a haunted old hotel, until we enter a creaky old service lift for the ride of our lives. Our elevator slowly ascends, pauses and then drops at breakneck speed, before repeating the journey in a thrilling and unpredictable sequence (a fun fact we learn later is the elevators are actually pulled downward at a speed faster than gravity).
The highlight is having the windows unexpectedly open when we’re right up at the top of the building, with the whole park spread out ant-sized down below.
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Parade, Disneyland Paris
Cute and cuddly attractions draw big smiles from small fry
Our youngest daughter is the complete opposite, and her aim for the day is to avoid anything terrifying.
Proving that Disneyland delivers for all ages and types, we find more than enough cute and cuddly attractions to keep her constantly smiling. Our family tactic for some of the rides is to divide and conquer, so my wife takes her to the immersive world of Ratatouille: The Adventure ride. The report card is good, with the “ratmobile” vehicle, 3D glasses and the delightful chaos of being flung from scene to scene through the kitchen of Gusteau’s restaurant all receiving glowing praise.
Turning a much loved movie into an entire world is what Disney does best, and probably explains why our daughter repeated the ride quite a few times.
Serious snacking, Disneyland Paris
What to eat on your Disneyland Paris family trip
The adrenaline is hunger-inducing and by lunchtime we’re famished. There are many, many restaurants to choose from (79 at last count) but some are expensive and they can get very busy, so our decision to bring in some of our own food paid off (hats off to the park for allowing this: c’est la mode Française).
That said, there were plenty of Disney themed snacks that needed to be tasted, such as the Mickey Mouse shaped ice creams, Nutella crepes, and ‘Croque McQueen’ ham and cheese sandwiches.
It’s a long day with a lot of walking, so the sugar boosts are definitely needed.
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Dazzling end to the day
The fireworks are as fabulous as everyone says
Tummies full and it’s back to the rides. The Disneyland Paris app has a live queue tracker which is very helpful, and we hop between Walt Disney Studios Park and Disneyland Park (right next to each other) a few times during the day.
We discover new rides (spinning around on the Crush’s Coaster ride, and, my favourite, rattling around in a mine cart on Big Thunder Mountain) and revisit our old favourites.
We are also lucky enough to walk down Main Street at the right time for a Mickey Mouse parade, to our youngest child’s delight. In seemingly no time the sun is setting, and before we can blink it’s almost time for the famous fireworks and light parade at closing time.
Crowds congregate en-masse around the castle (this is an event not to be missed) for a final twenty minutes of Disney nostalgia. As the last lights fade I smile to myself: about 30 years later than intended, but I’ve finally enjoyed a day at Disneyland. There’s plenty we haven’t seen, but we’ve ridden as many rides as humanly possible, and had a great time doing it.
A cautionary tale with a fairy tale ending
There is one moment at the end which almost spoils the fairy tale: returning to our car at close to midnight, we realise we’ve left an appliance running and the car battery is deader than dead. The perfect smiles of the Disney staff slip as they rather inform me they can’t help and we should call the AA.
Thankfully a friendly British family rescue us with a jumpstart and our story finishes with a classic Disney happy ending: kids asleep in the backseat as we drive away, filled with memories of a magical family day.
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Make It Happen
How to get there
Direct UK flights to Paris from 1 hour, 10 minutes
Magical Shuttle from Charles de Gaulle Airport to parks from 45 minutes
Eurostar London St. Pancras to Disneyland Paris from 2 hours, 59 minutes
Brittany Ferries Portsmouth to Caen from 6 hours
Caen to Disneyland Paris from 3 hours 13 minutes
Where to stay
Disneyland Paris has seven hotels on-site and all offer guests early park access and free shuttle services.
2-day/1-night stay (2 adults, 2 children) from £143
Find out more about Disneyland Paris hotels
Good to know
Disneyland Paris day tickets from £120 per person for both Walt Disney Studios Park & Disneyland Park.
If you only have time for one park, we recommend Disneyland Park for Cinderella’s Castle and the evening fireworks.
