Is dlp worth doing after wow?

[Gill H]

Earl of Sandwich! You know it's calling you. Or Annette's and share a meal?

Personally we never get the dining plan, it's fiddly and restrictive and doesn't save much. I knew about the pause gourmande and thought it sounded a faff.

Check your QS receipts, they used to offer a free drink in
the afternoon but don't know if that is still running.

[BigSkip]

We visited DLP earlier this year, and were both delighted by it, and upset. There are some things that are just not right - Smoking everywhere, Graffiti and rubbish (not much admittedly, but it was there - in the Alice maze).

On the whole it's nice for a short break, but it's not WDW, and if you don't expect WDW, you will not be disappointed.

No WDW for me this year (DW has been :-() - Have done DLP and DLR/DCA.

[Guest]

Originally Posted by Gill H

Earl of Sandwich! You know it's calling you. Or Annette's and share a meal?

Personally we never get the dining plan, it's fiddly and restrictive and doesn't save much. I knew about the pause gourmande and thought it sounded a faff.

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same here, the DP just didnt work out for us, so we never got it


we were really looking forward to Annette's, saved it for our last evening

as a tip, sit downstairs if you want them to rollarskate and serve you ( we were seated upstairs and realised they were walking, i thought they might have had someone to carry the food up and pass it to the server )

youngest wanted a milkshake and oldest wanted a coke float, we ordered food

imagine my surprise when my veggie burger and fries arrived, it was some fries and a pile of Veggies with a bun on top my face was a picture by all accounts, i put the mushroom in the bun and ate that

[BevS97]

Oh, we have been to Earl of Sandwich! And nearly went back yesterday but I don't want to eat there everyday (as hard as that is to believe!)

I'm not really complaining, we had a fabulous meal at Chez Remy, could not fault it. Including a hilarious waiter. We used our dining vouchers to afford that. I would never have booked it if I had to pay full price. We are off to Agrabah cafe in a few minutes. I'm looking forward to that.

We had ice cream for our 'pause gourmand', they were nicer than the donuts. In fact very good, it's just matter of timing as you can't save an ice cream for later.

[Gill H]

I think Red Garter Saloon does bar snacks. Or the NY Sandwich place?

We always eat our main meal in the evening so I am struggling to think of somewhere.

And maybe that's the crux of the problem. The standard answer to 'what does a French person do for entertainment in the evening' is 'sit down to a lavish, 2 hour 3 course meal of course, the same as they did for lunch!'

I'm firmly of the belief that the crazy number of steps in the Paris Metro system is the only reason most Parisians stay so slim. That, and the fact that they don't really snack. Which is why snacks and fast food are a bit of an afterthought in DLP.

[BevS97]

Red garter saloon do have snacks, hot dogs, baguette, pizza or nachos.

[MinnieMermaid]

Originally Posted by matt987106

The worry here is people need to ask what the " disney way " is

Of course the Toyko pre-show of the backlot tour would not feature the Attack on Pearl Harbour, thats just ludicrous to say that

But anyway lets look at some of Walts quotes on disneyland ( which we can read WDW aswell )

“Disneyland is like Alice stepping through the Looking Glass; to step through portals of Disneyland will be like entering another world.” – Walt Disney


“Physically, Disneyland would be a small world in itself- it would encompass the essence of the things that were good and true in American life. It would reflect the faith and challenge of the future, the entertainment, the interest in intelligently presented facts, the stimulation of imagination, the standards of health and achievement, and above all, a sense of strength, contentment, and well-being.

To all who come to this happy place: Welcome. Disneyland is your land. Here, age relives fond memories of the past… and here youth may savor the challenge and promise of the future. Disneyland is dedicated to the ideals, the dreams, and the hard facts that have created America… with the hope that it will be a source of joy and inspiration to all the world.

The idea of Disneyland is a simple one. It will be a place for people to find happiness and knowledge. It will be a place for parents and children to share pleasant times in one another’s company; a place for teachers and pupils to discover greater ways of understanding and education. Here the older generation can recapture the nostalgia of days gone by, and the younger generation can savor the challenge of the future.

Disneyland is a show.

Disneyland is not just another amusement park. It’s unique, and I want it kept that way. Besides, you don’t work for a dollar- you work to create and have fun

Disneyland is often called a magic kingdom because it combines fantasy and history, adventure and learning, together with every variety of recreation and fun designed to appeal to everyone.


can you really say that about DLP ? ? ? no of course you can't, in parts it might flatter and head towards " the disney way " but then you catch sight of a miserable CM or you attempt to purchase a toffee apple for your 7 yr old daughter of a food cart while the person behind the counter ignores you and carry's on talking to his friend ( who is stood next to you ) while your wife is still asking for a toffee apple in french ( she speaks french ) or the way the server throws your plates down at rain forest cafe without saying a word ***

now you can blame that on Cultural difference and say " oh Europeans wouldnt like this of that " which does beg the question what do Europeans travel to WDW ? ? ? afterall they must hate it, right ? ? ?

i fully understand this is the DLP section, thus that means the majority of the " regulars " will love DLP and will not hear a bad word against it, i await the flames


*** the only good service we had, apart from the staff at DLH was when i attempted to buy some espresso cups for my wife, i sneaked off to get some for a Christmas gift, they had all gone from the place we saw them, i asked a CM ( who spoke very little english to go with my very little french ) but we got to a place we knew what they were, she went and found some in the store room, i thanked her in my broken french and she smiled, she really did remind me of the " disney service " i love
the 2nd good service was when my 7 yr old purchased a " wild west rifle " the CM joked about with her and they had a great time, he said the tills were empty and he had nothing for her to " hold up ", i joked a empty till in disney, that doesnt happen, he laughed

I think the above interaction which we thought was few and far between really shows the difference in the parks

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I have to say I completely agree with this.
Disneyland Paris doesn't have the same amount of magic that WDW does - it just feels like a theme park for me and is missing a great number of touches that WDW has mastered so well.

The cast members that we interacted with at DLP this week were a lot less grumpy than they were last time we went but none of them really seemed to want to be there - imagine what you're like on a Monday morning, just like that.
Now I don't expect them to be over the top and in your face like the American CMs but if they are, for example on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride and someone interacts with them like a pirate you would think they would at least stay in character and join in... not roll their eyes and say that they have had a long day
It just felt like we were walking around Tesco in some of the stores but the shop assistants just had fancier uniforms.

I don't know if it is Disney that directly organises the buses and the bus stops but they were absolute carnage after the fireworks. Theres no queuing barriers like at WDW so its every man for themselves, they open all of the doors on the busses so everyone just pushes on. When the first bus arrived whilst we were waiting a small fight erupted because someone had pushed someone else so we decided to get on the next bus.. big mistake! When the next bus arrived, and we had got on it and were waiting for it to leave another fight erupted only this was a full fist fight - in plain view of all the kids on board. The whole bus loading needs to have a massive shake up otherwise someone is going to get hurt.

Me and my partner have decided that we won't be going back after many visits in the past and we will instead just put our money into more WDW holidays - we don't have any children so don't have to worry about school holiday prices rocketing so should be able to visit regularly in the quieter periods.

Massive shame, but I'll leave it to everyone else to visit instead.

[dav220588]

Originally Posted by matt987106

a few good points

It just didnt work in DLP though, i gave a example of the guy ignoring my family and my french speaking wife while he continued to chat to his friend ( stood next to us ), now thats just rude, surely we can agree on that

The servers ( more than once ) just throwing down plates, no " bon appetit ", nothing, we really wanted to embrace DLP, the number of times we said " bonjour " to CM's as we walked into the parks with nothing back, once again, rudeness

we asked a CM if they had a larger Remy ( once again in french ) the CM just shrugged her shoulders and walked of

Your example of the lost girl, we have seen in WDW aswell, of course they dont go over the top, they keep is low key to keep the child calm

As i have said, my 7 yr old asked " why was he / she so grumpy " now we could say that she is used to the happiness of WDW, the CM's high five'ing her as she got of a ride, the fact that in DLP she was met by a surly face just pointing to the exit with not a ounce of happiness or even the chance of cracking a smile

its easy to say " If you want friendly interaction from CMs, you need to initiate it by being friendly to them " but when you see the same sour face after sour face greeting you, it makes you think, it is a lost cause


It sounds like we had a bad time, we didnt, infact i was asked today if we had been to DLP as a csutomer of mine is going in 2 weeks, i said " yes and it was ok, we had fun " they then asked if it was as good as WDW, i just laughed and said " no, not even close, but you will have fun "

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Just to offer some alternative experiences to this -

- I've been to DLP 5 times in the last 18 months, and every time I entered a park I was greeted with a smile, a bonjour and a bonne journee. They were all completely polite.
- I encountered more rude cast members in the 10 days I spent at WDW 2 years ago than I have at DLP.
- The best server I've had at any Disney restaurant (including multiple trips to signature restaurants in Florida) was at Bistrot Chez Remy in Paris.

[Tink75]

Originally Posted by MinnieMermaid

I have to say I completely agree with this.
Disneyland Paris doesn't have the same amount of magic that WDW does - it just feels like a theme park for me and is missing a great number of touches that WDW has mastered so well.

The cast members that we interacted with at DLP this week were a lot less grumpy than they were last time we went but none of them really seemed to want to be there - imagine what you're like on a Monday morning, just like that.
Now I don't expect them to be over the top and in your face like the American CMs but if they are, for example on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride and someone interacts with them like a pirate you would think they would at least stay in character and join in... not roll their eyes and say that they have had a long day
It just felt like we were walking around Tesco in some of the stores but the shop assistants just had fancier uniforms.

I don't know if it is Disney that directly organises the buses and the bus stops but they were absolute carnage after the fireworks. Theres no queuing barriers like at WDW so its every man for themselves, they open all of the doors on the busses so everyone just pushes on. When the first bus arrived whilst we were waiting a small fight erupted because someone had pushed someone else so we decided to get on the next bus.. big mistake! When the next bus arrived, and we had got on it and were waiting for it to leave another fight erupted only this was a full fist fight - in plain view of all the kids on board. The whole bus loading needs to have a massive shake up otherwise someone is going to get hurt.

Me and my partner have decided that we won't be going back after many visits in the past and we will instead just put our money into more WDW holidays - we don't have any children so don't have to worry about school holiday prices rocketing so should be able to visit regularly in the quieter periods.

Massive shame, but I'll leave it to everyone else to visit instead.

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What a shame. Sorry to hear it didn't live up to your expectations.

Have to say, Pirates is one of the rides we never miss and do multiple times and we always remark how amazing the CMs are on there! We've never had a bad bunch yet?! In fact one time my DDs were made up after doing 'Princess for a Day' one of them sang to my eldest (she was 7 I think at the time) and all the CMs kept calling her Princess - he came up to us at the end of the ride and took her hand to help her off and did a little bow. It wasn't creepy or anything (sounds a bit when I'm reading it), it was amazing! So honestly, we've never had bad interaction on Pirates!

I have never ever used the buses at DLRP for the reason you mention. I have read so many times about fist fights and problems. I have been lucky enough to stay at DLH pretty much every time so no need for a bus, then last time we were on a stricter budget (as were going to WDW) so we stayed at SL and just walked as it really isn't far at all. I certainly wouldn't get a bus at closing time!

I never encountered any problems on the buses at WDW and we used them a lot as didn't have a car for some of our stay. I did find the Monorail a problem though and did witness some nastiness on there with some passengers which surprised me.

We are in a minority that prefer to DLRP though .

[Gill H]

Oh gosh, yes, we never use the buses. You really don't need to unless you're offsite.

Interestingly, tonight I was listening to a podcast about Shanghai Disneyland, and apparently all the same 'local custom' issues are being noticed there. Pushing-in is normal behaviour, people are smoking everywhere, etc etc. And according to the guy on the podcast, 88% of Chinese mothers believe it is acceptable behaviour for a child to urinate wherever they happen to be at the time - so there's been quite a bit of what Brits would find unacceptable. (And we've all read the stories of people changing babies on restaurant tables in WDW!) Thank goodness I've never seen that at DLP!