Does Disneyland Paris or the Asian Disney Parks make up for the language barrier?

[Walt Disney1955]

Okay, honest question. I have had relatives that have been to Hong Kong and Paris. They have said it is still great parks to visit and the fact that DLP is mostly in French isn't a big factor. The magic is still there in their minds. I have seen videos online. Tokyo Disneyland is the only other park outside of WDW to have the Country Bear Jamboree. It is entirely in Japanese(?) in the video I have seen.

To the people that have been to any of these non-American parks, how much does it affect you that the parks are mostly not in English?

 

[Minnie Mum]

We've been to the Paris parks several times, and Tokyo once. For us what small language barriers there were didn't impact us at all. Signage and menus are bilingual or multilingual and most CMs spoke at least a little English. Fluency seemed better in Paris than in Tokyo, but we expected that before getting there.

As for cultural differences, yes of course they exist. I don't go to France expecting the French to respond as their American counterparts might. The French don't plaster a phony smile on their faces and act like you're their new best friend. They tend to be more reserved, and, while polite, tend to focus on the job at hand rather than caring whether or not you're having a magical day. The Japanese CMS are always scrupulously polite, as this is a major tenet of their society. But they are also rule followers. While the Japanese have a hard time saying an outright no to anyone, don't expect them to bend the rules for you. They will however go out of their way to help you, as long as you are polite in return.

In Paris most of the rides are in French, with some English on a few rides, but it honestly didn't impact our enjoyment in the least. Some of the shows will have showings in English, and will have signs outside with the times.

In Tokyo the rides are narrated in Japanese but many will have songs sung in English. The characters on Pirates speak in English. 2 or 3 of the shows had hand held translation screens, and a couple of rides in Disney Sea have handouts in English ( I'm thinking of TOT and Sinbad). Again, the lack spoken English didn't impact us at all. Being familiar with the American versions, we were happy to sit back and enjoy the differences with the Japanese versions.

 

[Cmdr_Crimson]

What's surprising is that WDW has the "Ears To the World Disney Show Translator" I'm sure they have them at other international parks but, it's closest thing to hearing the shows and attractions to what you can understand...
Image from Flickr

 

[Walt Disney1955]

Okay, fair enough. Yeah, my cousin said Disneyland Paris was still great despite the language issue. We are Canadian, you figure we know a bit more French than the average person and we do, but I've lost a lot of that over the years.

I do agree that customer service is done in the states about as good as anywhere in the world. When I travel to the States, and I mean even just crossing the border, we notice right away how different the restaurants are with the waitresses. Maybe there is just more of a commitment to customer service or maybe they rely on tips a lot more than in Canada but the service is always better, even at a local Cracker Barrel or Friendly's.

I figured the Asian Disneys would have similar customer service as well. Wasn't sure about France either as Europe is different than North America.

 

[larryz]

It's like being in Disneyland if Disneyland was in a foreign country. It's still Disneyland, but you can't understand most of what the people around you are saying.

I guess it's a lot like international guests visiting WDW...

 

[TP2000]

I travel to Japan every few years for fun, and always include a couple days at Tokyo Disneyland. I have passable Japanese that gets me through basic service situations, with a wink and a smile for extra measure that always delivers gracious responses from Japanese folks. That said, the Tokyo parks are still wonderful for non-Japanese speakers. Part of the charm is watching the Country Bear Jamboree where the dialogue is in Japanese but the songs are in English. It's hysterical!

When you go to a sit-down restaurant or cocktail lounge in Tokyo Disneyland Resort they will always replace the waitress with an English speaking one. They do this silently and smoothly, so it's hard to notice, but if you're paying attention you can see what they're doing. And they present you with an English language menu, instead of a Kanji menu. Admittedly, I am an older tall blue eyed white man generally wearing slacks and a sport coat when I travel abroad, so I probably stand out immediately as "AMERICAN!" in Tokyo. But I always get excellent service, and Tokyo Disneyland is expert at getting an English speaking CM in front of me if it requires more than basic communication.

 

[marni1971]

Okay, fair enough. Yeah, my cousin said Disneyland Paris was still great despite the language issue..

It certainly is. The “language barrier” is so much not a barrier that we’re going back again next spring.

 

[duder]

We've been two both Paris and Tokyo in the last year, and they were the best Disney experiences we have had in years. The language barrier doesnt really exist, and I enjoyed not being able to understand everyone. It was oddly peaceful and there was no threat of being sucked into other peoples conversations.

We are returning to both again next year, and I'm pretty sure that Tokyo disney will now be our home park, as it can be cheaper than WDW if you are flexible with travel dates.

 

[Robbiem]

Hong Kong is probably best for English speakers as most of the park is in English (its an official language for HK) and even things like jungle cruise have lines for english and cantonese etc. Cast members all speak english too and are really friendly as most hong kongers are. The only problems we found were from mainlanders who dont have the same manners as the more western hong kongers

tokyo is great for English speakers. The cast members are great and while most attractions are in Japanese you can follow the action fine, if youve ridden similar rides stateside or know the movie plot then it can be fun seeing the differences. Personally i love the Japanese jungle cruise as the skippers are so great and hearing davy crocket sung in Japanese is a blast. Some shows are also in English like big band beat

Paris is a bit more variable- the ride experience is about the same but cast members are a little bit more variable and the other guests are no where near as polite as the Japanese

 

[Jonathan Dalecki]

I can only answer for Paris as I have not been to any of the other Non-American parks.

For me Disneyland Paris has a certain charm. The first park I went to was Magic Kingdom in WDW and that will always be my home, and I was worried that DLP would not compare. It doesn't in my eyes but it has its own feel and magic.

For me however the only let down is the fact it is in France. The weather is not great most of the year, and for me this is a bigger factor than the language issue. They should have built the park in Spain (or at least south of France) where the weather is better.

Specifically to your question, there are times when the language issue can become a problem (especially during shows etc) but not always. There is also a culture issue for me here (and this is a personal view), whilst generally the people working in DLP are friendly they don't seem to be able to do the customer service and the attitude quite like its done in America.

Generally though, I forget that there is a language barrier as most CMs do speak both French and English and most of the time they try to work around the guests as much as possible.

Blame Michael Eisner for the location of the former EuroDisney. Every one and their mother on the deciding committee was pushing for Spain or South France for it's better year round weather and the fact that tourists already visited them for rest and relaxation (as opposed to cultural tourism like Paris). But Eisner insisted on Paris for its cultural relevance and basically overruled everyone else (CEO privileges). The book DisneyWar has a ton of info on the decision making and construction of the park.

 

[marni1971]

Blame Michael Eisner for the location of the former EuroDisney. Every one and their mother on the deciding committee was pushing for Spain or South France for it's better year round weather and the fact that tourists already visited them for rest and relaxation (as opposed to cultural tourism like Paris). But Eisner insisted on Paris for its cultural relevance and basically overruled everyone else (CEO privileges). The book DisneyWar has a ton of info on the decision making and construction of the park.

And also the French government incentives like rezoning the land for agriculture. And building the TGV. And building the RER. And building the A4 link.

And having the most land available, unlike Spain.

And having the most suitable land for building on unlike Spain.

And being near Central Europe unlike Spain.

And having a rail gauge shared with most of Western Europe, unlike Spain.

It wasn’t just Eisner.

 

[DCLcruiser]

DLP had just about every sign in english, plus the map guide is in a lot of languages. My wife can read French, and I can understand a little from classes, but we never had an issue at DLP or in Paris itself. A lot of the locals speak English, so just use some French phrases (good-day, good-evening, good-night, where is, I would like, please, etc) and they will happily switch to English and feel like you were respectful.

 

[DCLcruiser]

Another thing, I actually thought some rides at DLP were reimagined or better than DLR or WDW...Space Mt, Pirates, Indiana Jones coaster, etc.

 

[Sir_Cliff]

And also the French government incentives like rezoning the land for agriculture. And building the TGV. And building the RER. And building the A4 link.

And having the most land available, unlike Spain.

And having the most suitable land for building on unlike Spain.

And being near Central Europe unlike Spain.

And having a rail gauge shared with most of Western Europe, unlike Spain.

It wasn’t just Eisner.

Yeah, I have to say that I wonder if Euro Disney would have been a bigger success if it were built in Spain regardless of the weather.

Paris is just so ideally located in terms of transportation, with quickly and convenient rail links to the UK, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, and elsewhere. I live in the Netherlands and there are now two daily trains that go right to the gates of DLP everyday from Amsterdam in less than 4 hours with stops in Rotterdam, Antwerp, and Brussels. Also, Paris also provides a massive population and tourist centre in and of itself.

Back on topic, I have never found language to be an issue at all in DLP. It adds to the charm, particularly when they find solutions such as having one character speak in French and the other in English during things such as the fireworks show. I've also honestly never experienced any rude CMs in DLP. Perhaps they're not as perky as the US CMs, but I've always found them helpful and polite. In particular, I've also been impressed at how easily they switch between English, French, and Spanish. Even people working on the register at stores or quick service places seem to all be multilingual.

 

[SplashJacket]

The language barrier in Hong Kong Disneyland is nearly nonexistent, not something to worry about, however, visiting Hong Kong for the main reason of going to the park is in my personal opinion, not the best idea. Supplementing a trip to the city with a day at the park is good simply for the new experience.

The Cast Members at Shanghai Disneyland spoke an incredible amount of English. Nearly everyone we came across spoke English to the point I would describe it as fluent. I was immensely impressed by how easy it was to navigate the park with English. I went into Shanghai expecting the least amount of English and was shocked by how wrong my misconception was. I say this because I'm not sure if my view of Shanghai was biased, so take this with a grain of salt. I personally really enjoyed Shanghai and rank it at one of the higher spots compared to many other people who enjoyed it. However, once again, take this with a grain of salt. I visited when the park was getting hit by a typhoon and despite the weather, the park stayed open. The park was deserted. A couple of days later the crowds had returned and I still enjoyed the park. It has an atmosphere like no other park across the globe.

As for Tokyo Disneyland... My expectation of Tokyo was the exact opposite, lots of English speakers. However, we noticed that most of the Cast Members did not speak English, and those that did spoke very broken English. Tokyo's customer service is top-notch, and we never faced a true problem with the language barrier. However, I can add to what @Minnie Mum said about the rule-following. It is entirely true. They will be very friendly about it, however, do not expect to be able to slide your way through most things like you could in WDW. All that being said, Tokyo was a tremendous experience and highly recommend it to all hardcore Disney fans given they have the opportunity. DisneySea truly is the greatest park in the world and it will continue to expand in the future.

Disneyland Paris is just behind Hong Kong in terms of the language barrier. Once again, not a problem. Once again as @Minnie Mum stated, the Cast Members do not follow the constant smile regiment of American culture, which is perfectly fine as French culture is different and it is nice to appreciate differences. Disneyland Park is great, an expansion is warranted but all in all still a fun experience. As for the Walt Disney Studios named by many, including myself, as the worst Disney Park around the world. That does not mean enjoyment cannot be had from it, but do not expect the world from it. On the bright side, it is going to go under an enormous transformation which will greatly improve the resort's offerings.

The language barrier is not a problem at any of the parks around the world in my personal experience. While saying that it is nonexistent at the international parks is false, and expecting it to be nonexistent is also wrong, but I do not personally feel that any barrier detracts from the experience. Instead, I feel as though it adds to it. The individual languages and culture of the parks around the world add charm and make each of the parks special. After returning from the Asian parks I was sad in a way that I could understand everyone. As @duder has previously stated, it is very peaceful and freeing being unable to understand anything.

 

[marni1971]

The food is meh..

I’d disagree on that one. We found it to be as good as ever (although it was a big dodgy circa 2002). Half board was the way to go to try things we might not have done usually. Or was it an Americans take on European food (genuine, not a criticism or dig)? It’s certainly not Orlando food!

 

[SplashJacket]

As for the food, I am going to have to say my favorite was in Tokyo, then Shanghai. Also felt as though they were the most affordable as well.

 

[duder]

We found the food in Paris to be better than we had been led to believe. We ate at Captain Cooks and the experience and food was definitely better than Blue Bayou. We were only there a day, so I can only speak to that one restaurant and a handful of snacks.

Tokyo wins the food department hands down. Magellan's is the best Disney dining we've experience behind only V&A. What sets Tokyo apart, is the snacks. If you are a somewhat adventurous eater, the snacks and QS meals were awesome, but that is also a reflection of Japan itself.

 

["El Gran Magnifico"]

Yeah, I have to say that I wonder if Euro Disney would have been a bigger success if it were built in Spain regardless of the weather.

The park wouldn't have opened til 8pm.

 

[justintheharris]

Okay, honest question. I have had relatives that have been to Hong Kong and Paris. They have said it is still great parks to visit and the fact that DLP is mostly in French isn't a big factor. The magic is still there in their minds. I have seen videos online. Tokyo Disneyland is the only other park outside of WDW to have the Country Bear Jamboree. It is entirely in Japanese(?) in the video I have seen.

To the people that have been to any of these non-American parks, how much does it affect you that the parks are mostly not in English?

So I didn’t like Tokyo Disneyland the way many people do. The language barrier might’ve played a role. But in Paris and Hong Kong, usually in rides, the major characters speak English and the minor ones respond in French/Cantonese.

Also on the note of Tokyo Disney, Disney Sea is very nice but I still like both Disneyland California parks better and Tokyo Disneyland... what was so good about it? All the rides were carbon copies of Disneyland’s or Magic Kingdom’s version except Pooh’s Honey Hunt (which was very cool to the resort’s credit) and Monsters Inc Ride and Go Seek (which I felt was incredibly overrated).