Advice on DLP

[Gurgi]

Ok heres some advice and personal opinions.

I would def stay in a DLP hotel. Make sure that if u can afford it and want the experience to be better that you stay at the New York, Sequioa, Newport or Disneyland htel. The other two are not really exciting hotels and to be honest can be a bit dispting.

NewPort is Huge so make sure that you get a room closest to the reception area.....they may stik u in one of the wings miles and miles of walking through hotel corridors. I stayed at the Newport and my room was close enough to the sequoia that I could saved some money and stayed at the Seq. Same thing with the seq. Make sure u stay in the main building and not one of their miles and miles away room close to the cheaper hotels. Sounds stupid but when u get there ull c what I mean.

The New York and Disneyland are the only two hotels I havent stayed in as im saving the best for last. I usually go to eat at the Park side Dinner in the NEW YORK. Good food and great service.

Ok with regards to the parks.......you can do the studios in half a day if busy.....half a day......I wont spoil anything but all I can say is forget any ideas of MGM STudios. The front court is absolutely beautiful. Awsome colors and nice structure but go into studio 1 and the illusion dissapears. Let us know what u think anyways. The PARTNERS statue was placed in this park....why I have no idea but anyways. Wont say anything else abot the park as I didnt like it and would like u to get ur own experience.

Disneyland really is beautiful. In summertime it should be nicer. Rides are more up to date ie Space Mountain is amazinggggggg, Pirates and Phantom manor are cool too. The outside of rides like in Fantasyland are very very nice.

Bad bits in my opinion.............

-Service is pretty bad dont expect the usual smile
-The park may look diteriorated at times, specially in areas that they feel "dont matter" ie Skull Rock....when u go to the top it smells as if people have been using it for the toilet.
- Merchandise is the same everywhere u go even the studios. I c this as a positive though as I end up not buying 100 things

Paris however is an amazing Place. beautiful exciting it really is an experience. I was most impressed seeing the actual places that inspired Disney Films.

The nicest piece of the park is the Castle. It really is beautiful.

Most sit down rest have been turned into fast fod but some good ones to enjoy are..... Blue Lagoon placed inside the ride like in DL. The SIlver Spur has some kikass steaks and the desserts are nice too. Ofcourse theres Park Side DInner iw york. If you like seafood youll get plenty there as the newport and sequ serve mostly seafod. Oh yeah u MUST have a meal at WALTS on main street. Although not serviced as it shuould be the decor inside and upstairs is amazing.ill leave you guessing with the theme! Its not just about WALT

One thing id suggest is keep your eyes closed as you go through "downtown Disney foremally known as "Festival Disney" This is where they failed... I think. ts a bad version of Pleasure ISland and im not a huge fan of Pleasure island. Annettes Dinner is there and that is quite nice to eat.

Well I hope in some ways this helps ya. Im from Florida but have lived in Europe for a couple of years now so i tend to retreat to DLP whenever possible to meet up wth CM friends however unfortunately ive become quite negative of this park as I was spoiled back home.

C it for what it is.. try not to compare and enjoy Le Chateau de la belle au bois dormant!

Theres an awsome statue in front of disneyland Hotel called legends....t really is a beautiful statue.

ENJOY!

ps let me know if theres any more advice or help i can give ya

 

[stagestar]

just a short note: there is only ONE table service restaurant that has been turned into a fast food place: the Explorer's Club which became Colonel Hathi's Pizza.

If you want to go for a great lunch or dinner in a table service restaurant don't forget to make reservations in advance. Even on low season days the restaurants are usually fully booked. This is especially true for the Blue Lagoon.

Besides those restaurants already mentioned there is also the "Auberge de Cendrillon" in Fantasyland, which is a wonderful place with great, more or less French style, food, including Cinderella's Slipper as the siugnature dessert. Really recommended!

The studios don't feature a single table service restaurant. Your best option (and quiet worth hopping over from Disneyland on bussy days) is the "Cafeteria de Stars". A counter service restaurant with a rather wide choice of rather good food at a reasonable price. Usually not too crowded (except after a Stunt Show performance ended) and no reservation necessary.

In the "Disney Village" (referred to as Downtown Disney in the post above) besides Annette's Diner, which is great for lunch too if you have the time to hop out of the park, and the usual "Rainforest Cafe" and Planet Hollywood locations (the later unfortunately having the worst service I encountered in any restaurant of this chain, an experience I had repeatedly there!) there is also the Cafe Mickey offering Character Lunch and Dinner, worth only if your (inner) child craves for this. But there is also a great tex-mex-all-you-can-eat-buffet upstairs in Billy Bob's which is often overlooked by first time guests and offers decened food at the best price. Short: the place to go if you are on a tight budget. The Steakhouse in the Village is OK but can feel very crowded on bussy days as the tables sit very close. The food is decent but not up to the price they charge (which also applies to the atmosphere which often feels to cramped). On the other hand I can really recommend King Ludwig's Castle, which offers German style food in a nice themed setting (especially upstairs) and the quickest service anywhere in the resort. The best thing: the food is quiet good too!!


The Sequoia Lodge, the New Port, the New York and the Disneyland each offer two restaurants too. The one I would recommend most here (and which I think is the best choice in the whole resort) is the Manhattan in the New York. With its stylish setting, laid back atmopshere, top notch food but reasonable price it brings the best of the resort together.


Yours
Dirk

 

[marchofthecards]

Disney Village - thumbs down!

There is only one place to stay at DLP, and it is in The Disneyland Hotel. Why? Because you don't have to leave the park as such, and walk through that dreadful Disney Village each nigh and day!!!!

Its horrible - Makes me cringe!!!!
It ruins a perfect day.

"Disney Village - Where Magic Ends!" LOL

Incidently Gurgi, your note about the Partners statue in the studios........how right you are, what a stupid place to put this! How insulting to the sculptor and commisioner. 'Partners' was created with the vision that Walt and Mickey were showing each other the Main St. crowds as they came towards, and how successful they were in their dreams come true, through one another and not just on their own individually. How improper to 'stick' it just there in the studios (and I use the term Studios loosely) and not honouring with its rightful place, the place it was designed and created to be.

DLP has a beautiful park, but unfortunately under the bigger picture of the Eisner regime, this park has taken its toll with little or no maintenance over the years, and lack of investment, mainly due to issues with debt and finance.

But hey, in true continental style, we will get there slowly but surely!!!

Bye

Simes

 

[Grumpy56]

Thanks for all the tips. I'm sure I will enjoy it. I'm interested in the Blue lagoon restaurant. Does anyone know how to make reservations in advance?

 

[stagestar]

Blue Lagoon Reservations

Hey there, Hi there, Ho there,

it should be no problem if you make your reservations once you arrive in the Resort.

On-site advance reservations are possible:

- with the concierge of the Disney Hotels
- at City Hall in the Disneyland Park
- at Studio Services in the Walt Disney Studios
- at the Restaurant Reservation Counter in the Walt Disney Studios
- at the restaurant itself
- through the restaurant reservation hotline from the phone in your room of the Disney Hotel


In my experience it is no problem to make the reservation on the day of your arrival - that is as long as it is not a bussy day and you want the reservation for the same day - that is if you have some flexibility regarding what lunch time / dinner time on a given day you want.

If you still want to reserve prior to arriving in the resort there is a special reservation hotline which takes reservations 2 months in advance. Just call (33) (1) 60 45 60 45 - if you are inside France already replace the (33) with a (0)


Yours
Dirk

 

[Grumpy56]

Thanks, Dirk! What a complete reply! I am really getting excited now. This is thread drift for sure but since you are from Germany I thought'd I'd ask. We will be arriving in Frankfurt from the US and are thinking of spending a few days on the Rhine. I found the Auf Schoenburg Castle Hotel on the net, in Oberwesel. It looks beautiful and I'm considering a stay there. Any thoughts? We will probably also spend a night in Koln before heading to Paris.

Anyway thanks again for all your info on DLP!:sohappy: