Paris and DLP 2024

[Rac20]

Pre-trip

We (Myself, DH and DS15) booked our trip about 14 months ago I think and paid just under £1000 for a 3 night stay at Sequoia Lodge through Magic Breaks. We also got Disney + free for 12 months.

Since booking, we have upgraded to half board plus and so the total cost is just over £1500.

That is for 2adults and DS15.

We have also booked one night at the Ibis Budget in Val D’Europe before we begin our Disney stay.

We are travelling via Eurotunnel and I used Tesco club card to buy a return trip to Calais.

The plan is as follows:
Travel via Eurotunnel to Calais and drive to Val D’Europe, leave the car there and catch the train into Paris. Spend the afternoon seeing as many sights as possible. As long as we see the Eiffel Tower, DS15 will be happy.

On day 2, we are checking in to Sequoia Lodge. We have Chuck Wagon Cafe booked for the first evening meal. We have also got Chez Rémy and the Downtown restaurant booked.

We are spending 3 nights and four days in the Disney bubble before returning home on Friday.

[Rac20]

Pre-Travel Day

DH and I were wide awake at 6 and so went for an early walk, making most of the sunshine which has most certainly been a rarity lately.

Upon arriving back home, we had a quick breakfast of cinnamon porridge (no sugar) before spending an hour playing chase the cat. 🤦🏼

Poor Mittens (seen here in happier times)

was not impressed at the thought of going on his own holiday and did all he could to avoid going in his car carrier. I’m still feeling mummy guilt.

An hour later than scheduled, we were on our way - driving from West Yorkshire to Ashford, Kent.

We arrived at the designer outlet at almost 4pm and due to it being Sunday, it was quite a whistle stop tour.

DS15 wanted some new boxer shorts and that was all we purchased. There didn’t seem to be many good bargains - not that we wanted anything specific. We were just browsing to pass the time.

After, we checked into the Premier Inn at Ashford central. Not the best Premier Inn but not as bad as some of the reviews suggest.

We then went in search of something for tea and stumbled upon Wetherspoons.

Florida diet is on hold for a week and I had a veggie burger with chips and onion rings, DH had a chicken burger and DS15 had fish and chips. With two Pepsis and a red wine, it came to £33. Forgot to take photos. 🤦🏼

Tomorrow, we need to be up very early to catch the train to Calais.

[stefinscotland]

What a lovely first day

[Rac20]

Travel Day/Day 1

I managed to fall asleep last night at about 22:00 but woke at 1 and couldn’t get back to sleep. Possibly due to someone’s Snapchat buzzing away continuously. Mo wonder DS15 is always complaining of having no power. 😂

At 2:00, I checked our route to see how long it would take to get to the Eurotunnel from the Premier Inn at Ashford and it said the M20 was closed with no alternative route available. Queue mild panic until DH calmly said, we can go on the A20.👍🏻

By 3:30, we were ready to leave.
I wore an appropriate outfit for the trip.

It took about 25 minutes to arrive at the Eurotunnel depot. DS15 was absolutely over the moon to see a real life owl swoop in front of the car. We do actually have a barn owl near where we live but DS has probably never seen it as he doesn’t wander around at night.

We went into the departure terminal and of course at 4am, there wasn’t much open. We did manage to get breakfast for £24 (approx).

Plus two teas and a cappuccino.

After applying our UK badge to the car and the funny little light deflectors, it was time to board.

Passport control and boarding was no issue at all. I was surprised by the lack of security checks - thought they might check the car?

DH was a little nervous about driving in France. He has driven on the right in Florida and in Helsinki plenty but he’s always in a hire car with the driver at the other side. He did really well though.

We arrived at Val D’Europe mid morning and left the car in the hotel car park before heading to the train station which is situated directly opposite.

It was chaos when we arrived at the station. Two machines were not working and the queue was out of the door. Eventually, we found another machine which was working and it cost €15 euros for the three of us for tickets into Paris. The machine did not like my Halifax clarity card and kept declining - something to note if you rely on that card.

We didn’t really have a plan for what we were doing other than DS15 wanted to see the Eiffel Tower. We headed in the direction of the Louvre first. We didn’t go in as the queues to buy tickets would rival the longest queue at Disney. DS15 was just happy to look around the architecture.

By now, DS15 was feeling hungry and I was pretty keen to feed him before he became grumpy and complaining of being tired.

We eventually found a boulangerie and DH and I shared a Brie sandwich and DS15 got some kind of ham/pastrami (not really sure). With two drinks, it came to about €21.

We walked up the Champs Élysées to the Arc De Triomphe and DH was really keen to go up.
It cost DH and I €16 each. Children up to 18 can go free. They insisted on checking DS15 ID (luckily I had his passport on me). He clearly does not look 18.

A lot of steps to climb.

View from the top.

We then moved on to the Eiffel Tower which really, if you don’t have tickets to go up, is a bit underwhelming. At least, I thought so.

We did share a snack at the bottom of it though.

By now, it was 4pm and we were all beginning to flag and so decided to head back to Val D’Europe. The train was absolutely rammed full as you’d expect travelling at rush hour.

When we arrived back, we checked in to our accommodation for 1 night which is the Ibis Budget. DS15 thought I was kidding when I said he was sleeping in a bunk bed.

This is his, “You weren’t joking face.” 😂

Check in was very easy. We paid €6 tourist tax and €7 for the car park. Once we had checked in, we headed out in search of something to eat.

We wandered across to the shopping centre which is a decent size with some high end stores in plus some lower end stores.

We didn’t buy anything other than something for tea.

Two large pizzas and a garlic bread and three cokes came to €55.
We all agreed by this point that it was definitely time to call it a night.

The best thing about today is spending time with DS15.

Obviously, DH and I are normally working and he is a typical teenager glued to his PlayStation. I was worried that he would find all the walking quite hard work and have a teenage tantrum but he’s just been great fun. He loved seeing the owl, loved the double decker train going into Paris, loved the Arc De Triomphe. He just seems to have really enjoyed himself and I really enjoy spending time with him. ❤️

Tomorrow, it’s Disney!

[Floridadreams]

Sounds like a great first day! Good to know my plan of getting the train from Val d’Europe to Paris will work 😂 looking forward to the rest of your review

[Rac20]

Originally Posted by Floridadreams

Sounds like a great first day! Good to know my plan of getting the train from Val d’Europe to Paris will work 😂 looking forward to the rest of your review

See more...

Really easy (when the machines are working 😂 ). All one line and no switching trains. 👍🏻

[Rac20]

Day 2

Today’s outfit of choice.

That’s it - I’m all out of Paris themed clothing. 😊

Breakfast consisted of pastries in the room and orange juice that we bought last night as we didn’t want to spend time looking for somewhere to have breakfast before heading to Disney.

A quick mention about our hotel last night. I think for one night, it was perfectly fine. It was quiet - didn’t hear any noise and I was awake from 4 (struggling to sleep at the minute). Also perfectly fine if you have a laid back teenager. I imagine for those teenagers that like their own space/privacy, they would struggle. E.g. There was a glass door on the shower.

Back to today! We arrived at Sequoia Lodge just before 8 and were checked in and at the park for 8:30. Perfectly timed. 😊

Check in was very quick and efficient.
Lobby:

DS15 reluctantly posing in front of a window display.

We have never stayed onsite at Disney before. We have stayed at Loews Portofino a couple of times but clearly Sequoia Lodge made more of an impression because he said it felt like he was rich. I suppose the lobby and shops are quite nice in comparison to the Premier Inn and Ibis budget. 😂



After going through quite a long queue for bag check, we headed to Disneyland Park.

First ride - Hyperspace Mountain - wow!

Much better than its Floridian equivalent.
We rode the following:
Hyperspace Mountain
Buzz light year space ranger spin
Big Thunder Mountain
Indiana Jones
Pirates of the Caribbean
It’s a small world (got to be done but DS15 hates it. 😂 )
Madhatters tea party
Autopia
Nautilus
Star Tours

The longest ride time was Star tours which was 35 minutes but felt longer. In Orlando, I rarely have to wait 5 minutes. 😂

A few pictures:

DS15 bought me a present.

And I bought him a little snack to keep him going until tea.

By 2:30, we were very cold and wet and so decided to head back to see if our room was ready.

DS15 wanted to go for a swim and so we headed to the pool. You have to book to use the jacuzzi when you arrive at the pool. We didn’t realise this at first and so by the time we had, it was too long of a wait. The pool is also not very warm and so we only spent about twenty minutes there.

A nice warm shower and then we were back on our way out. Not before DS15 went and asked reception if anyone had handed in a black gilet. I was planning on wearing it and somehow it got lost between the car and the hotel room. Luckily, a kind person handed it in. 🥰

We went to Chuckwagon Cafe at Hotel Cheyenne.

After dinner, we headed back to Disneyland Park. By this time, it was about 7:30pm. We decided to ride Peter Pan because it was only 25 minutes and I know that it always has significantly higher wait times during the day. At one point today, it was 120 minute. I like it but not enough to queue that long. We then went on BTMR. This is another ride which I think is better than the one in Florida. That took longer than the advertised time and so we missed the electrical parade - though we saw parts of it from the ride. We will need to go back and try watch it properly as it looks amazing.
Finally, we watched the fireworks before heading back to the hotel for bed.
I really hope the weather is better tomorrow. It’s been very cold and wet today.

[CoasterRyder]

Looks like you are having a great time and some great photos. Last time I was in the chuck wagon I ate to much 🙈

[Rac20]

Originally Posted by CoasterRyder

Looks like you are having a great time and some great photos. Last time I was in the chuck wagon I ate to much 🙈

See more...

Thank you. Yes - lots of food! I always struggle to decide what to eat. 😂

[ClaireNJ]

Originally Posted by Rac20

Travel Day/Day 1

I managed to fall asleep last night at about 22:00 but woke at 1 and couldn’t get back to sleep. Possibly due to someone’s Snapchat buzzing away continuously. Mo wonder DS15 is always complaining of having no power. 😂

At 2:00, I checked our route to see how long it would take to get to the Eurotunnel from the Premier Inn at Ashford and it said the M20 was closed with no alternative route available. Queue mild panic until DH calmly said, we can go on the A20.👍🏻

By 3:30, we were ready to leave.
I wore an appropriate outfit for the trip.

It took about 25 minutes to arrive at the Eurotunnel depot. DS15 was absolutely over the moon to see a real life owl swoop in front of the car. We do actually have a barn owl near where we live but DS has probably never seen it as he doesn’t wander around at night.

We went into the departure terminal and of course at 4am, there wasn’t much open. We did manage to get breakfast for £24 (approx).

Plus two teas and a cappuccino.

After applying our UK badge to the car and the funny little light deflectors, it was time to board.

Passport control and boarding was no issue at all. I was surprised by the lack of security checks - thought they might check the car?

DH was a little nervous about driving in France. He has driven on the right in Florida and in Helsinki plenty but he’s always in a hire car with the driver at the other side. He did really well though.

We arrived at Val D’Europe mid morning and left the car in the hotel car park before heading to the train station which is situated directly opposite.

It was chaos when we arrived at the station. Two machines were not working and the queue was out of the door. Eventually, we found another machine which was working and it cost €15 euros for the three of us for tickets into Paris. The machine did not like my Halifax clarity card and kept declining - something to note if you rely on that card.

We didn’t really have a plan for what we were doing other than DS15 wanted to see the Eiffel Tower. We headed in the direction of the Louvre first. We didn’t go in as the queues to buy tickets would rival the longest queue at Disney. DS15 was just happy to look around the architecture.

By now, DS15 was feeling hungry and I was pretty keen to feed him before he became grumpy and complaining of being tired.

We eventually found a boulangerie and DH and I shared a Brie sandwich and DS15 got some kind of ham/pastrami (not really sure). With two drinks, it came to about €21.

We walked up the Champs Élysées to the Arc De Triomphe and DH was really keen to go up.
It cost DH and I €16 each. Children up to 18 can go free. They insisted on checking DS15 ID (luckily I had his passport on me). He clearly does not look 18.

A lot of steps to climb.

View from the top.

We then moved on to the Eiffel Tower which really, if you don’t have tickets to go up, is a bit underwhelming. At least, I thought so.

We did share a snack at the bottom of it though.

By now, it was 4pm and we were all beginning to flag and so decided to head back to Val D’Europe. The train was absolutely rammed full as you’d expect travelling at rush hour.

When we arrived back, we checked in to our accommodation for 1 night which is the Ibis Budget. DS15 thought I was kidding when I said he was sleeping in a bunk bed.

This is his, “You weren’t joking face.” 😂

Check in was very easy. We paid €6 tourist tax and €7 for the car park. Once we had checked in, we headed out in search of something to eat.

We wandered across to the shopping centre which is a decent size with some high end stores in plus some lower end stores.

We didn’t buy anything other than something for tea.

Two large pizzas and a garlic bread and three cokes came to €55.
We all agreed by this point that it was definitely time to call it a night.

The best thing about today is spending time with DS15.

Obviously, DH and I are normally working and he is a typical teenager glued to his PlayStation. I was worried that he would find all the walking quite hard work and have a teenage tantrum but he’s just been great fun. He loved seeing the owl, loved the double decker train going into Paris, loved the Arc De Triomphe. He just seems to have really enjoyed himself and I really enjoy spending time with him. ❤️

Tomorrow, it’s Disney!

See more...

Great pics I love the jumper is that from New Look or Tesco
Pizza for dinner looked very yummy 😋