DLP on a budget

[Neesymouse]

I haven’t been to DLP for 25 years but would love to treat my daughter to a couple of days after a hard year (cancer diagnosis and 1 year scan coming up).

What’s the best way to do it on a budget? Fly or train from Scotland (driving is not an option)?

Presumably staying off-site - which hotels have shuttles?

Is a 2 day trip enough - 1 day for each park?

Thanks in advance.

[waiting4disney]

We are staying in an Airbnb just by the train station. Then it’s 5 mins on the train to the parks.

[Bondy007]

Val D’Europe is just 1 train stop to DLP with many hotel options. Not sure on prices but is definitely a budget option compared to onsite. Also with the benefit of not having to get on a crowded shuttle. Just hop on and off a train.

[Gill H]

I would say 2 full days plus your travel days. You won't need a full day for Studios but there is lots to enjoy in Disneyland Park, including several shows. You will want to be able to stay for Illuminations one night, which isn't until 11pm. So you want to be able to take your time and go back for a rest if needed (we always do, even offsite).

It is worth pricing up an onsite stay at one of the cheaper hotels - Santa Fe or Cheyenne. They include your tickets for the whole time so essentially you will get a half day, two full days and however much of your travel home day you can spare.

Bear in mind that breakfast is not included these days. You can pay for the full buffet breakfast, but I would only do this if you intend to eat a lot, probably enough to skip lunch. Otherwise, there are options such as Starbucks, Earl of Sandwich or New York Style Sandwiches, or you can take porridge pots or breakfast bars with you to keep costs down.

Price up a midweek stay, cheaper and quieter. And look at the websites from other countries - some people have found bargains on the Irish and Dutch sites recently. You would have to pay in Euros (so would need a card that doesn't charge for foreign transactions) and all your info would be in that language, but Google Translate is a useful thing!

If onsite is no go, there are plenty of inexpensite offsite options. Aparthotel Adagio (formerly Hipark) is a 15 minute walk from the parks. It has a kitchenette so you can self-cater. I haven't stayed there myself but there are videos on YouTube.

There is a huge supermarket right nearby and plenty of less expensive places to eat outside the parks.

We have stayed recently at the Ibis Val d'Europe (not the Ibis Budget which is cheaper again, and not the Ibis Marne la Vallee which is further away).

The Ibis tends to come in at a couple of hundred pounds for 3 nights. It's basic - no fridge, no kettle, small bathroom, but very comfy beds, lovely staff and surprisingly good buffet breakfast for about 8 Euros.

It's right opposite the Val d'Europe RER train station, so you can take a train one stop. From your hotel room to the park entrance will take you about 15 minutes.

If you did this option you would probably only want to buy tickets for 2 or 3 days though (depending on when your flights home are).

Don't forget to factor in the transfer from the airport. We tend to use RS Transports who come out cheaper and quicker than either the train or the coach, and will take you door to door.

If you are flying in to Charles de Gaulle which is the nearest airport, the transfer will take about 40 minutes.

Last time we flew into Orly as it was the only option from our airport (Cardiff) and the transfer took about an hour.

Avoid Beauvais if you can, it is a long, long way out.

Hope this is helpful.

[Neesymouse]

Lots of great info, thank you so much. I didn’t realise on-site included park tickets so I’m off to check out prices again. Thanks x

[Neesymouse]

Ahh see I thought shuttle would be preferable but you’re right train would be less stress. Thanks x

[Neesymouse]

I’ll check out Air B&B as well thanks x

[Bondy007]

Even Sequoia Lodge could be an option for onsite - it’s often one of the cheaper on site hotels. Obviously more than Santa Fe and Cheyenne, but if it falls somewhere around your budget then worth a look.
But definitely price up onsite versus some of the offsite options that Gill mentioned. You never know, you might be pleasantly surprised 😀

[Frecklamy]

Might be worth looking to see which off site hotels have kitchen facilities too - we ended up at Davy Crockett (you'd have to drive for this), but there seemed a few apartment hotels for a good price and near supermarkets/public transport. Depending on the price difference between them + Disney hotels once you factor in tickets, you could save yourself money by making breakfast at home/making up stuff to take in with you? Though of course you understandably may not want to spend time cooking if you're on holiday and only there for two days!

[Neesymouse]

Unfortunately onsite prices are out with our budget, even the EU prices (but thanks for the tip - a good bit cheaper than the UK price) and hotels that were not available to UK guests (Santa Fe for my dates).

I’ve found Hotel B&B £466 for 3 nights and £483 for 3 days park tickets. Hopefully I could get flights for under £300 so total £1249 - still seems a lot for 1 adult and 1 child for 3 days but that’s Disney I suppose!