Hey guys, how are you doing? I trust you’re all doing okay and if not, here’s a hug from me 🤗.
Can you believe the year is already winding down? Didn’t we exchange new year greetings just a few weeks ago?
It is what it is guys, I hope the year has not been too rough on you…
So hubby and I decided it was time to take the boys to Disney. We had agreed to wait till they were much older so the experience would be pleasant for everybody. I’m so not a fan of travelling with toddlers (read my tips for travelling with toddlers here.) We actually considered visiting the one in California 4 years ago, but we had limited time, so we decided to wait.
Thank God we did. The boys are older now and everyone was relaxed and mature enough to tolerate each other’s excesses.
Now let’s get to the good part…
A whole new world
It was going to be my first time in Paris, so I was more excited about that. I wasn’t too chuffed about Disney, although I was excited for the boys – we were going there because of them after all! Little did I know I was the one being taken to Disney 🤦🏾♀️.
We stayed in one of the hotels at the park. On arrival there, we dropped our stuff at the hotel and immediately set out for the park.
As we were approaching the park, we could see the castle from afar, which got us all excited as we got in the queue.
A few days before the trip, we got the boys to go to the Eurodisney website to check for the rides and activities they were interested in. On getting there, they brought out their list and thus our adventure started.
Our first point of call was the Rocky Mountain ride. The queue was just 30 mins and the whole family could get on it. We joined the queue and the wait was worth it. It was absolutely amazing.
We walked around the park for a little while, just taking everything in (there’s so much to take in) and then decided to get on the boat. They had closed and the boys asked to go back to the Hotel. This made sense as we had been up very early.
The Parade
As we were making our way out of the park, we noticed the staff were clearing the main path and people were gathering in the walkways. Out of curiosity we asked one of the park staff what was happening and were told the Disney Parade would start in 20 mins. The boys were not interested but not me, No, not me!
I was ready to throw a tantrum of great magnitude (think ‘rolling on the floor’🤭) then their dad prevailed upon them to stay for the parade.
It was nothing short of Magical! I loved every minute of it! I did not realise when I drifted from my family, it really brought out the little girl in me. The parade included Mickey Mouse and gang, the Toy Story gang, the Princesses, Finding Nemo and gang, the Frozen gang and a few others.
I was taking it all in, I almost went gaga when I sighted the Princesses! I don’t know where all that excitement came from 😅! Then my family had to call my phone to know where I was 🤦🏾♀️, they were ready to leave.
We finally left, tired and famished, and we got on the coach that drove us back to the hotel. Settled in and relaxed for a few minutes before we set out for dinner.
Holiday Package
We had signed up for a breakfast/dinner package (recommended.) Guests can opt for 1, 2 or even 3 meals a day. We reckoned we would be too busy at the park to have time for lunch, (we were right.)
On getting to the restaurant, we were welcomed by the impressive spread. Dinner was delicious and the walk back to the hotel did us some good after the meal we had. You can choose to have your meals in any of the hotels within the park, it is advisable to book tables before arrival at the park.
The breakfast spread was also impressive, obviously, breakfast was at the hotel we lodged. We were able to fill every available space in our tummy before we hit the road.
We found out that we didn’t need the coach to get to and from the park, it was just a few minute’s walk from the park.
Marvel Avengers Camp
The second day was for the Walt Disney Studios park (there are two parks). The other park – Disneyland Park is the fairytale side (princesses, mickey) whilst the studio park is home to the Marvel Avengers Campus.
The boys were obviously more drawn to this particular park and their dad also caught the bug as theme songs from the Marvel movies were playing around the park.
I didn’t know what to expect and I was strolling around with the boys when we spotted Antman. There was a queue to take pictures with him, and though the boys were happy to see him, they were not keen to get in a queue for that. I was still loafing around taking pictures when my eldest ran towards me ‘ mum, come quickly, Iron man is on the roof’.
His brother and I ran after him quickly and just caught the last sight of Iron man before he disappeared. We were pretty disappointed we didn’t see much of him when I noticed a small crowd trailing a familiar figure. It was Thor! We quickly ran after him, got a picture and then spotted Loki ‘the mischievous one.’ There was just so much going on.
We were still reeling from the excitement when we heard some commotion on the roof of the campus, it was Black-widow! With our gazes fixed on the roof, we were treated to a live-action sequence. Soon, Black Panther appeared, to help out. At this point, the excitement from the crowd was almost tangible.
Just as we thought it was all over, the Amazing one showed up. Spiderman, my littlest could hardly contain his excitement. They all disappeared leaving us quite satisfied but still longing for more.
I forced the boys to go back to the other park – Disneyland Park (I had to see the castle.) We wandered around the castle, and the boys were excited to see the beanstalk. They tried their luck with Excalibur, we spotted Goofy and then Chip and Dale surrounded by their little fans. There was so much to see and do and I could actually go on and on.
The three days we spent there were more than enough to enjoy the experience without getting fed up. We left EuroDisney very happy and we were ready to see what Paris had to offer us.
Paris
I’ve often heard about how beautiful Paris is, but I still wasn’t prepared for it. The buildings are exquisite. All of their tourist attractions were worth going to. I loved seeing the Eiffel Tower, Louvre Museum, and Arc de Triomphe 🤩.
We sailed on River Seine which runs through the middle of town, and enjoyed some good food and gosh, it was just awesome. Our mode of transportation was partly uber, metro and boat so we kind of experienced all their transport system which was fantastic.
In all, Paris was a dream, and I just had to share. I hope you get to visit soon (if you haven’t yet visited.) I will definitely love to go back, sans kids though 😋.
My advise for parents is to wait for children to be a little older before visiting Disney. Apart from the fact that it’s just more enjoyable as you’re not waiting on any toddler, I have heard that younger children forget the experience. So why not wait til they’re older, anything from age 7 is better, the memory will last forever.
Tips for a memorable Eurodisney Experience
- Plan to stay for at least 2 days. A day is not enough to experience all Disney has to offer.
- Stay in one of the Disney hotels. You start experiencing the magic from check-in as the hotels are Disney-themed.
- Add the meal plan to your hotel package. It helps you manage your budget and plan your meals ahead.
- I’ll advise you go with the breakfast and dinner meal plan. Getting away from the park for lunch kind of takes from the adventure. However, if you have toddlers, leaving for lunch could be a good break for everyone.
- Again, if you can, wait till your children are past the toddler stage. Apart from some of the points I touched on above, you also get to go on most of the interesting rides with them. That way, no one is left out.
Thanks for reading, Ă toute Ă l’heure! 😉
Aunty Lulu
Lovely holiday, I enjoyed going back down memory lane with you
Great read. We are waiting for our little ones to be old enough to go too but also started thinking maybe they wouldnât like it at all, as they think âMickey Mouse is for babiesâ. Had no idea about the whole Marvel side of the park though – they would definitely love that!