DLP Musings

Random musings, guides, opinions, and tips for Disneyland Resort Paris. I am 100% unassociated with Disney in any way.

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Disney’s PhotoPass

Though nothing compares to the magic of being onsite at the parks, having photographs lets you bring back those memories time after time when you get back home, and share them with your nearest and dearest, or indeed all the world through social media. And whilst just about everyone carries a camera on their phone, image quality can be mediocre, plus with the ban on selfie sticks in the parks it isn't always straightforward to get someone else to take a good photo of your entire party with Mickey. Plus, it's more than a little tricky to capture your reaction as you accelerate from 0 to very fast indeed in 3 seconds on Rock & Roller Coaster avec Aerosmith or your game face as you get to the end of Buzz Lightyear's Laser Blast.

That's where Disney comes to the rescue. 

On a selection of rides, your photo will be taken at a key point (details below), and at selected character meet & greets, as well as the Princess for a Day experience, brown-jacketed cast members with the latest Nikon technology will capture the moment for you, so you go home with beautiful, well-lit, and memorable pictures.

Options and pricing PhotoPass+ The PhotoPass+ allows you to collect your photos in the same way as the PhotoPass, but as an extra benefit, allows you to download all of the photographs as high-resolution digital images, via the www.disneyphotopass.eu website, or the Disney PhotoPass app.

PhotoPass+ costs €59.99. It’s valid to load photos for up to 10 days, and they’ll be available to download for a full year. The pack contains a card on a lanyard, and two further smaller cards with barcodes. All three cards have the same barcode and can be shared to other friends or family members as you wish.

If you’ve purchased PhotoPass+ with your booking, this is the version you will get. You’ll receive a voucher in your welcome pack at your hotel which you take to a PhotoPass store (list below) and trade for the pass proper. It is not possible to “set it up before you go”.

PhotoPass+ Annual This works exactly the same as a standard PhotoPass+ with the following exceptions: - Only sold to Annual Passport holders - Valid for an entire year - Only a single card is issued, without a lanyard - Only sold in Ribbons & Bows, Constellations, New Century Notions/Flora’s Unique Boutique, Walt Disney Studios Store, and World of Disney - Cost is €47.99 for Dream Annual Passport or €53.99 for a Fantasy or Classic/Francilien Annual Passport

Pay as you go

You can choose to collect photos on a thick paper card, which you'll be given by the photographer at your first meet & greet. By taking this card to a PhotoPass store, you can purchase prints, downloads, frames, etc. Once you leave the resort, you can no longer access the photos. In particular, you cannot get them online on this option.

The following prices apply for character meet photos:

3 Photo pack – 15x20cm prints with frames and electronic download €35.99

15x20cm framed print €19.99

20x30cm framed print €31.99

15x20cm print with electronic download €19.99

Individual print 15x20cm: €15.99 for the first, and €5 for extra copies in the same transaction

Individual print 20x30cm: €19.99 for the first, and €9.99 for extra copies in the same transaction

Individual download: €15.99 for the first, and €4 for each subsequent photo in the same transaction

Individual frames: €4 small or €16.99 large

(15x20cm = 6x8 inches; 20x30cm = 8x12 inches)

Character meet photos can also be purchased right away as you exit Princess Pavilion and Meet Mickey Mouse.

Downloads are issued on a paper PhotoPass Download card and accessed via www.disneyphotopass.eu.

How does it work – rides The following rides currently take photos, and you can view and purchase the photos at their associated shops. If you want to be cheeky and find out where the cameras are, scroll to the very end of the document.

Buzz Lightyear's Laser Blast – Star Command Photography Space Mountain: Mission 2 – Light Speed Photography Pirates of the Caribbean – Le Coffret du Capitaine Big Thunder Mountain – Big Thunder Photographers Rock & Roller Coaster avec Aerosmith – Rock Around the Shop The Twilight Zone: Tower of Terror – Tower Hotel Gifts

On your way out after you ride, you will pass by a bank of monitors which display the photos recently taken. You might need to wait a short while for yours to appear. Find yourself and note the number.

With the number in your head, go to the nearby counter where the cast member will bring up your photo for a second look. They have the capability to centre or pan the photo if you are off to one side, or to zoom in on you and your friends (particularly useful on The Twilight Zone: Tower of Terror or Pirates of the Caribbean where there might be 20 guests in the image). Then once you're happy, select your preferred photo product from the range and pay, or hand over your PhotoPass for scanning, and you're done.

If you have a PhotoPass+, you can also type the photo’s reference number into the Disney PhotoPass app, or scan the QR code displayed next to the photo using the app.

How does it work – Meet & Greet Some character meet & greet locations have an assigned PhotoPass photographer. Wearing a brown jacket and fully equipped with a trusty Nikon, they are skilled in capturing your best moments with Disney characters. The location of photographers varies, but as a guide, there’s always a photographer at:

Princess Pavilion (both sides)

Meet Mickey Mouse

Meet Spider-Man

There’s usually a photographer at:

Meet Tiana or Friends (seasonal)

Meet Buzz Lightyear

Meet Jack Skellington (seasonal)

All meet & greets during Extra Magic Hours 8-10am

Anywhere else, it’s a bit hit and miss.

As you reach the top of the queue, hand over your PhotoPass or PhotoPass+ to the photographer if you have one. He/she will often snap away as you interact and some of the best photos come from this interaction in my opinion. You'll also pose for pictures, after which the photographer will scan your card or issue you a temporary one and hand it to you.

Within an hour or two you'll be able to review our pictures at the various PhotoPass stores throughout the parks.

There is generally another cast member in a red costume who will be pleased to help by taking photos of you on your own phone or camera, if you like.

How does it work - Princess for a Day Simply give the PhotoPass+ to your photographer before the photo shoot starts.

Reviewing photos and buying prints By presenting your card at any PhotoPass store, you can review all the photos you've loaded to it. Cast members at those stores will offer you the option of purchasing prints, downloads, frames, and all manner of other products.

Downloading If you've purchased a PhotoPass+, or a download card, you can enter the characters under the barcode at www.disneyphotopass.eu when you've registered for a free account there. This will allow you to download the photos – make sure to choose the "download album" option to obtain these in highest resolution, particularly attraction photos.

You can also download the iOS or Android Disney PhotoPass app and your photos will appear there, ready to be added to your camera roll.

Handy hints The standard PhotoPass+ comes with one big card on a lanyard and two smaller cards, all with the same barcode. All three cards use the same account and you can use any card to access photos taken on any other card.

If you're not sure whether the PhotoPass+ is a good purchase for you, feel free to collect your character and ride photos during your stay on a temporary PhotoPass. You can review the pictures at any PhotoPass shop and should you later decide you'd like to purchase the PhotoPass+ download package; simply hand over the PhotoPass at the point of purchase and the cast member will be very pleased to transfer the photos from one card to the other.

Some booking agents will allow you to purchase PhotoPass+ with your Disney hotel reservation. You'll be issued a voucher at check-in to take to any PhotoPass store and redeem for your card. In many cases this is at a small discount to the price in the park.

Whilst it used to be the case that loading your ride photos through the app would only give you low resolution images, the large images will now be deposited in your online account.

Don't have your PhotoPass and can't get on the app, but still want your ride picture? Just note down the number and you can key it into the app later on the same day to download it.

What are the PhotoPass stores? In Main Street USA - New Century Notions/Flora’s Unique Boutique - Ribbons & Bows In Discoveryland - Constellations - Star Command Photographers - Light Speed Photography In Adventureland - Le Coffre du Capitaine In Fantasyland - Meet Mickey Mouse - Princess Pavilion In Frontierland - Big Thunder Photographers (closed until 2017) In Parc Walt Disney Studios - Studio Photo - Walt Disney Studios Store - Rock Around the Shop (closed until 17/6/16) - Tower Hotel Gifts In Disney Village - World of Disney In Disney’s Hotels - Galerie Mickey - New York Boutique - Bay Boutique (closed for refurbishment until August 2016) - Northwest Passage - General Store - Trading Post In Davy Crockett Ranch - Alamo Trading Post

FAQs Q: Are there any photographers to take pictures in front of Sleeping Beauty’s Castle?

A: No, this isn’t offered in Paris.

Q: Can I get “Magic Shots” where a character will be digitally edited into my photo if I stand a certain way?

A: No, this isn’t offered in Paris.

Q: Are there characters/photographers in the hotels at breakfast time?

A: This is completely and utterly random and changes at Disney’s whim. Sometimes there are, then they get removed because guests are coming in who aren’t staying at the hotels, and then they get put back by popular demand.

Q: Are there photographers at [insert name of character]’s meet & greet?

A: Check the relevant entry in the daily programme; if the green and black PhotoPass symbol is there, then there will be a photographer. Otherwise, there may or may not be.

SPOILER: Where are the ride cameras?

SPOILER

Pirates of the Caribbean: On the second drop Big Thunder Mountain: About two-thirds of the way through, just as you go into the water splash Space Mountain Mission 2: At the very start of the ride, after you leave the station and before you load into the Columbiad Cannon Buzz Lightyear's Laser Blast: After the star tunnel Rock & Roller Coaster avec Aerosmith: During the launch, immediately after the 3-2-1 countdown The Twilight Zone: Tower of Terror: The first time the lift opens at the top of the shaft and bobs up and down – several fake flashes just to psyche you out, followed by the real one

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Princess Pavilion

If you or your family want to get some face time with a Disney Princess, but don’t fancy shelling out for Auberge de Cendrillon, then one way of doing it is by attending the Princess Pavilion in Fantasyland. You’ll get a chance to chat with a Princess and get some nice photos taken by Disney’s photographers. It’s a very popular experience year-round and, other than the cost of the park admission, is completely free of charge.

Getting into the Princess Pavilion is, however, a bit involved. It’s a hugely popular attraction.

Disneyland has two different queueing methods for the Princess Pavilion, and it changes back and forth from time to time. Sometimes, you simply queue up and wait; other times you need to use a multi-step process in order to get in there. To find out which method is applicable, check the park guide – if it’s using the “just queue up” process it will simply mention the opening hours, whereas if it’s using the ticketed process it will say “reservations available from [time]”. The rest of this article assumes the ticketing system is in use.

You need to show up in the morning to get a ticket, which, not unlike a FastPass, allows you and your party access to the pavilion itself during a half-hour slot later in the day.

Queueing begins as soon as the park opens at 08:00 each morning for Extra Magic Hours, so guests who are staying at on-site hotels or holders of annual passports can get ahead of the rest by joining the queue early on. In my experience you’re usually fine to join by 9:30 at off-peak times, but if the park is busy then you may find you're out of luck.

Only one person needs to queue up for the party, but that person must have the park tickets of the entire party. I also think (but am not 100% certain) that the park tickets must have been scanned to enter Disneyland Park that day, just like a FastPass.

The time that the machines which give out the tickets are switched on is published in the weekly programme but is usually either 10:15 or 10:30, so guests without access to Extra Magic Hours have the chance to queue up as well. However, if there are so many people in the queue that the cast members (who will be counting everyone in) think they’ll give out all available tickets, they will switch the machines on there and then rather than make people wait.

The machine gives you a few choices of when you’d like to come back and will print a ticket. You then bring the ticket back at your allotted time. There’s no point coming early and you definitely don’t want to be late – whilst Cast Members at rides normally turn a blind eye to guests turning up a while after their allotted FastPass times, this isn’t likely to wash at the Princess Pavilion due to the high demand.

When you go in, you’ve got some more time to wait in a queue. In my experience this is 20-30 minutes. There are some nice decorations on the walls so it’s not completely boring. At the top of the queue, a Cast Member will ask you which princesses you’ve met in the past, and if it’s possible, he/she will direct you to someone you haven’t met.

You’ll get a few minutes to talk with the princess, and then she’ll invite you to pose for photographs. The photographers in the Princess Pavilion have particularly good cameras and lighting, and if you’ve got kids interacting with the princesses they’ll click away to capture the moments for you. As always, give your PhotoPass+ to the photographer to scan if you’ve got one and they’ll load your pictures on for you.

As you leave, you can see your photos on the monitors and they can be bought straight away. They will come with the princess’s signature, and the usual array of frames, accessories, and what-not are available there.

In summary, the Princess Pavilion is one of the best character meet & greets in the park – but it’s essentially random which princess you’ll meet and you spend an awfully long time queueing for a very short experience.

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Frozen Summer Fun

From early June and until mid-September, the back end of Frontierland including the Chaparral Theatre will be taken over for the Frozen Summer Fun season. Aside from the general theming, the four main features of the area are Frozen Sing-Along, Frozen Treats, Princess for a Day, and Wandering Oaken’s Trading Post.

Frozen Summer Fun is scheduled to last until mid-September, and it’s rumoured the stage show will make a return for the Christmas season from mid-November.

Wandering Oaken’s Trading Post is a stand with a series of Frozen merchandise. Frozen Treats are various themed snacks. So far, so normal.

Princess for a Day is similar to the experience offered in the Disneyland Hotel – for €55 young girls get make-up, photos, and suchlike. For €120 the same plus an Anna or Elsa dress.

Frozen Sing-Along is a really rather good stage show. Guests are invited to take part as the choir for Elsa’s winter festival by singing along, because the choir have turned up missing or something. The show run time is 17 minutes. Latecomers are not admitted and leaving early is difficult as the show takes place on the ground in the seating area as well as on-stage.

Songs featured are:

Do You Wanna Build a Snowman?

In Summer

Love is an Open Door

Let it Go

The theatre has a capacity of around 1,000. Queueing starts a period of time before the show, but it rarely fills up. Those in the centre seating block beware: you might be filmed and shown on screen during the show! Also, while most of the lyrics are shown on the big screens, you will need to learn off the words of the final chorus of Let it Go. Actually, who am I kidding. You already know it, right? :D

On peak days (daily during July and August, weekends otherwise) there are twelve shows a day. Off-peak, it’s six a day. The first show is at 10:30am peak/12:45 off-peak and they alternate between French and English over the course of the day. The language of the show determines what language the songs will be sung in by the characters on stage – most of the dialogue is in both French and English, and subtitles for the songs are displayed in English, French, and Spanish.

Limited amounts of the songs are sung live; it is primarily clips from the film.

A secret for the Frozen Sing-Along is that girls wearing Frozen dresses will be invited by cast members (with their families) to sit in a special area in the centre, with more comfortable chairs and the best view. 

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Dining at Disneyland Paris

Disneyland Paris dining is much more than burgers, chicken, hotdogs and chips. France is the home of fine dining, and Disneyland Resort Paris offers a whole range of great options for those interested.

I’m going to write a separate page about dining plans later.

Character Dining

Three restaurants offer the opportunity to meet Disney characters while you dine. These are:

Inventions in the Disneyland Hotel – Buffet service

Auberge de Cendrillon in Fantasyland – Table service

Café Mickey in Disney Village – Table service

At the character dining restaurants, various characters will make their way around the restaurant and will call at tables in rotation. Characters work on a 30 minutes on, 30 minutes off basis. Full-costume characters are accompanied by a chaperone to show them where to go, and this (or indeed any) cast member will only be too happy to take photographs for you with the character.

The details of which character will be at which restaurant are not officially published, but Café Mickey and Inventions tend to have the core characters such as Mickey, Minnie, Donald, and Goofy plus a couple of others in rotation, while Auberge de Cendrillon tends to have the mice Suzy and Perla plus one or two princesses and their corresponding princes.

Table Service

Table service restaurants are the top of the pile. In many cases, you will want to have a reservation in order to dine at your preferred time. This is particularly true for character dining.

The table service restaurants are:

Disneyland Park

Auberge de Cendrillon in Fantasyland

Blue Lagoon in Adventureland

Walt’s: an American Restaurant in Main Street USA

Silver Spur Steakhouse

Parc Walt Disney Studios

Bistrot Chez Rémy in Toon Studio

Café des Cascadeurs in Backlot

Disney Hotels

California Grill in Disneyland Hotel

Manhattan Restaurant in Hotel New York

Yacht Club in Newport Bay Club

Disney Village

Annette’s Diner

King Ludwig’s Castle

Planet Hollywood

Rainforest Café

The Steakhouse

Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show

In terms of prices, a set menu at the table services in the parks costs roughly €40 per adult and €15 per child, including three courses and a drink. Prices at the table service restaurants in the hotels, other than Disneyland Hotel, are about the same. Exceptions are Café des Cascadeurs (€14 for main courses), Buffalo Bill (€76.90 for adults and €46.90 for children) and Auberge de Cendrillon (€66 per adult/€30 per child). In California Grill you will not have much change out of €100 per adult. In all cases, if you choose à la carte, or want to drink wine or beer, expect to pay substantially more.

Note that in line with French law, menu prices include service charge and taxes. There is no need to tip, although if you feel you have received exceptional service and wish to leave something, it won’t be refused.

Buffet Service

The buffet restaurants are, nowadays, all you can eat affairs. Sometimes you pay when you enter and sometimes you get the bill at the end like a table service restaurant. There is invariably a wide range of foods including starters, salads, main courses, and desserts. Some of the buffets also offer unlimited soft drinks, although rumour has it this will soon be prohibited by French law.

Here are the buffet restaurants.

Disneyland Park

Plaza Gardens in Main Street USA

Café Agrabah in Adventureland

Buzz Lightyear’s Pizza Planet in Discoveryland

Parc Walt Disney Studios

Restaurant des Stars in Production Courtyard

Disney Hotels

Inventions in Disneyland Hotel

Parkside Diner in Hotel New York

Cape Cod in Newport Bay Club

Beaver Creek Tavern and Hunter’s Grill in Sequoia Lodge

La Cantina in Hotel Santa Fe

Chuck Wagon Café in Hotel Cheyenne

Crockett’s Tavern in Davy Crockett Ranch

Disney Village

The Grange at Billy Bob’s

Buffet restaurants are best when you want to have a substantial and quality meal and get on with the rest of your day. They’re not so good if you have kids who are light or fussy eaters, because the cost tends to be around €15 for those 11 and under and you may not consider it good value.

In terms of prices, reckon about €30 for an adult and €15 for a child. Outliers are Buzz Lightyear’s Pizza Planet (€18/€11) and Inventions (€65/€32). Soft drinks are usually included, but sometimes it’s just the first drink and sometimes there are free refills.

Counter Service

The counter service restaurants are primarily fast food style but there are a few hidden gems.

Disneyland Park

Frontierland

Fuente del Oro Restaurante

Lucky Nugget Café

Last Chance Café

Cowboy Cookout Barbecue

Adventureland

Restaurant Hakuna Matata

Colonel Hathi’s Pizza Outpost

Fantasyland

Au Chalet de la Marionette

Pizzeria Bella Notte

Toad Hall Restaurant

Discoveryland

Café Hyperion

Main Street USA

Casey’s Corner

Victoria’s Home Style Restaurant

Market House Deli

Cable Car Bake Shop

Parc Walt Disney Studios

Restaurant en Coulisse in Studio 1

Blockbuster Café in Backlot

Disney Village

Earl of Sandwich

McDonald’s

Annette’s Takeaway Counter

A meal of main course, side order, drink, and sometimes dessert costs about €11-14. Kids meals are around half that. A main on its own is around €7.

Snack service

The restaurants I’ve categorised here are those where you won’t get a square meal but are good for filling the gap between meals or for picking up a drink on the move.

Soft drinks cost around €3.29 for a half-litre bottle or post-mix cup (any given restaurant sells one or the other).

Disneyland Park

Cookie Kitchen in Main Street USA

The Coffee Grinder in Main Street USA

The Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlour in Main Street USA

The Ice Cream Company in Main Street USA

Café de la Brousse in Adventureland

Coolpost in Adventureland

Fantasia Gelati in Fantasyland

L’Arbre Enchanté in Fantasyland

March Hare Refreshments in Fantasyland

The Old Mill in Fantasyland

Cool Station in Discoveryland

Rocket Café in Discoveryland

There are also a few travelling popcorn and drink carts, especially prevalent in warm weather, plus the shop outside Indiana Jones et le Temple du Peril and Light Speed Photography after Space Mountain both sell bottled soft drinks.

Parc Walt Disney Studios

Hollywood & Lime in Production Courtyard

Kool Zone in Production Courtyard

There are also a few roaming drinks carts, and the little shop on the way out of Rock ‘N’ Roller Coaster avec Aerosmith sells bottled soft drinks.

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Why no photos?

So I’ve visited Disneyland Paris a stack of times and taken a lot of photos. You may be forgiven for asking why I haven’t uploaded them.

The main reason is this. It’s illegal. Under French law, you need permission of the builder/architect to take or publish a photograph of a building, unless that person died over 70 years ago. I realise approximately nobody obeys copyright on the internet. That doesn’t make it right for me to do so too. Therefore, I’ve chosen not to add photos where I don’t think I have the right to upload them. I hope you don’t mind.

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Rock ‘N’ Roller Coaster avec Aerosmith

Rock ‘N’ Roller Coaster avec/starring Aerosmith is an indoor steel roller-coaster (duh :)) made by Vekoma.

The theme of the ride is of guests going on a secret tour of an Aerosmith music video using their new vehicle, the Soundtracker.

The ride has a minimum height requirement of 1.2m, the smallest height restriction of the resort’s three coasters with inversions, of which RNRC has three. These are a sea-serpent and a corkscrew. As a result, the Soundtrackers feature rigid over-the-shoulder restraints, with a ratchet system. I recommend you pull them down as far as they can go! There’s plenty of leg room and you can probably get away with having a small bag with you if you keep it secure.

On entering the ride, once the guests and restraints are secure it advances around the corner, before counting down 3-2-1 and launching from 0 to 100km/h in around three seconds. Despite the twists, turns, and loops, I found RNRC to be more comfortable (if that can be an accurate description) than Crush’s Coaster or Indiana Jones et le Temple du Peril. It’s also more exciting. 

The Soundtrackers feature a series of loudspeakers, including two in the headrests, to play the on-ride soundtrack. Each of the five Soundtrackers has a unique soundtrack and light sequence.

An on-ride photograph is taken during the launch, immediately after the 3-2-1 countdown.

Fastpass is available on this attraction.

The launch occasionally features a psyche whereby the Soundtrackers launch on 2 or wait a few seconds after 1.

Immediately after the ride you will find a little shop to buy the on-ride photo or something to drink.

Tip

Avoid riding shortly after the end of Moteurs! Action! Stunt Show Spectaculaire! as guests very frequently come out of the show and head into RNRC.

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RC Racer

RC Racer is found in the back of Toy Story Playland. Its orange horseshoe track can be seen from far away. It is an outdoor shuttle roller coaster manufactured by Intamin.

The minimum height requirement for RC Racer is 1.2m. The single car has five rows each of four seats. Each seat is equipped with rigid over-the-shoulder restraints and a fabric belt between the legs which is plugged into the restraint once brought down. You definitely need them – at the top when facing forwards, you will find only they prevent gravity from taking its course! Cast members will make sure the belt is attached correctly by asking guests to pull the yellow handle at the end.

Loose bags are not allowed on RC Racer. They would be liable to fly off at the tops of the track. Small bags (think lady’s handbag or very small backpack) can be stored in storage bins on the car itself. There is a sizing box at the entrance to the ride which allows you to check whether your bag fits. Cast members will ask guests with larger bags to store them in crates on the platform.

The ride movement can be seen from outside. It travels back and forth on the track, making five visits to the extreme top in total – 25 metres high. Going from the top of one side to the top of the other, the most turbulent movement, is a bit  thrilling, but maybe a bit scary for some. There are plenty of screams heard from nearby! I found it exciting – just short. It gives a good view over the park if you’re prepared to look :)

A single rider line is available. Unlike other rides, you divide into normal and single rider lines halfway up the queue. The single rider line isn’t available for children under 7, who must be accompanied by an adult. It will usually be faster than the main line, but it moves slowly with only one or two guests from the single rider line usually riding each time.

RC Racer is plagued by long queues. The capacity is 20 guests per ride, and when all guests alight and board promptly it launches about once every three minutes. Maths says that makes 400 guests an hour.

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Crush’s Coaster

Crush’s Coaster is located in Toon Studio in Parc Walt Disney Studios. It is an indoor spinning roller coaster manufactured by Maurer Söhne. The theme of the ride is Finding Nemo.

The ride has a minimum height restriction of 1.07m. But be aware: it is very turbulent. The bit you can see outside where the shells “dive” into the sea is not a representative example. The ride is very fast (over 60 kilometres an hour), the shells spin quite violently, and while there are no inversions, the track tilts up to nearly 90 degrees in places so guests can have their back almost parallel to the ground. I found it disorientating and scary, as well as risking whiplash.

This attraction has consistently long queues even when the park is quiet. This is because it has tiny capacity – at most 4-5 cars can be on the track at a time, and each car seats only 4 guests. The cars move slowly when loading and unloading, but don’t stop.

A single rider line is available. This tends to move only a little faster than the main line, as it is usually only if a group of 3 or an odd single rider turns up in the main line that a guest will be called forward from the single rider line.

A special wifi network is available in the queuing area; general internet access is not available and any use of the network will redirect to a fun game to provide some distraction during the very substantial wait.

Crush’s Coaster is the same model of ride as Alton Towers’ Sonic Spinball and Chessington World of Adventures’ Dragon’s Fury.

In summary, this is in my opinion the most turbulent ride in PWDS. Do not take it lightly. But enjoy it!

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Jargon buster

Here’s some Disneyland Paris (and probably general Disney/theme park) jargon which may help. Some of these are simply designed to preserve the Disney magic.

AP = Annual Passport, a ticket allowing access for most or all of the year

Backstage = Areas that are not normally open to or in view of guests (qv). Opposite of onstage.

Cast Member (CM) = a member of Disney staff. Usually found wearing a Mickey Mouse shaped name badge on the left side of their chest.

DLH = Disneyland Hotel

DLRP = Disneyland Resort Paris

DP = Disneyland Park

DV = Disney Village, the area between the parks and the hotels. Was called Festival Disney a very long time ago.

Festival Disney = Very old name for Disney Village (qv). You may still see Festival or FD on your bank statement for purchases there.

Friends with = Because the characters you see are of course real, it would be impossible for someone to “be inside” Mickey or Tigger or Eeyore, or to “be” Anna or Gaston. If this weren’t true, and Minnie were really a cast member in a Minnie suit, that cast member would be said to be friends with Minnie ;)

Guests = customers, people visiting the park/village/hotel

HNY = Disney’s Hotel New York

HSF = Disney’s Hotel Santa Fe

NPBC = Disney’s Hotel Newport Bay Club

Onstage = any area that is or could be in view of guests (qv). Opposite of backstage.

PWDS = Parc Walt Disney Studios

RNRC = Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster avec Aerosmith

SBNO = Standing but not operating; an attraction that is not open at the moment but has not been taken down

SL = Disney’s Hotel Sequoia Lodge

TOT = The Twilight Zone: Tower of Terror

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Welcome

This is my new Tumblr about Disneyland Paris. I’ve visited a range of times since 1994, and I can never wait to go back. I don’t even know why – but it’s always exciting to walk up Main Street USA!

Up until this year, I wimped out of the thrill rides, after having a bad time on Big Thunder Mountain when I was 10. But I finally manned up enough in June 2015 and have now been on all operating rides, at least until Space Mountain reopens.

I plan to write a list of guides to rides, lands, dining, travel, and Disney Village. I have no idea how long I will take.

I have never been a cast member, and I don’t know anything about casting. But most other things I can probably field. So use that ask box if you like!