Is Disney possible on a budget? (1 Viewer)

elizabethh7802

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I would love to visit Disneyland Paris this year but having priced up the ferry, Disney tickets etc, it seems to be quite an expensive venture. There is just me, hubby and 4 year old. Unfortuately finances are pretty tight as hubby is a builder and things have been really slow for the last few months, I was made redundant myself and am presently applying for jobs left right and centre to hopefully enable us to carry on with our motorhome hobby.
I would quite like to stay for 5 days so we can visit the two parks and perhaps stay on a campsite outside of Disney that has a bus transfer to Disney as part of the deal.

Advice on the cheapest way to do this would be very much appreciated.
Thank you x
 

Jim

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It is expensive, and you'll need packed lunches as food inside the park is rdiculous. But if you really want to go, you should, our kids loved it sooo much. But.... I would consider waiting a year or two, at 4 years old so much of Disney will be wasted at 6 or 7 they will enjoy it so much more. :thumb:
 

Chris

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I agree with Jim.

I also think Alton Towers is 10x better.

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SUGGY

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I agree with Jim , we went some years ago , Kids need to be older as there is a hight restriction on a lot of rides ,

I would give it another 5 or 6 few years yet , then include a tour down to Brittany go for a few weeks ,

If you get a Tesco Credit card and use it for fuel for the MH , you could save up your vouchers for Euro tunnel and I think you can get Disney Vouchers ? as well .

Also I think there is an ACIS at or near Disney , it Will be a lot cheaper for you . :thumb:
 

magicsurfbus

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You can park your MH overnight in Disneyland Paris's car park if you want, but the price has rocketed in recent years - I think it's something like 20+ Euros a night now. You pay for each night at the main entrance barrier nearby. When we were there we had access to the coach driver's pavilion with washroom and showers, but there's no electrical hookups in the parking area if you don't have a solar panel. Obviously it's very convenient for getting in early and finishing late, and you're not paying for a shuttle bus service. Disadvantage is that it's a car park, and you get woken up by cleaning vehicles whizzing around in the wee small hours.

Before we had the MH and had an old VW we stopped at a campsite just down the road (name forgotten) about 15-20 minutes' drive away and commuted each day. We had a multi day pass so we only paid for parking once.

I'd second the advice to take your own food and water into the park, or park your MH in the car park and eat there. To get your money's worth make sensible use of fast track passes so you don't waste too much time queueing. At the start of the day walk down to the far end of the park and work your way back towards the entrance to avoid the early rush. Also take advantage of the reduced ride queues when the Main Street parade is on.

I would add that if your child is only 4 years old you probably won't need to spend 5 days there, as the Disney/MGM park is aimed at older kids and many of the rides will be height restricted. We've taken our kids as littlies and as teens and have never needed more than 3 days there.
 
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Vlad The Impaler

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Got to agree with Jim on the age issue not a lot for kids that young to do .
I took my two girls last year on a deal through the sun,we took the girls out of school for a couple of days in January had great weather and Disney was quiet you could get off space mountain run round and get on the next run.
We stayed at the davey Crockett ranch with pool etc it was great.Believe it or not its a lot smaller than I thought and in 2 days we did both parks waliking between each and going on the best rides more than once and at our leisure.
I could imagine that in peak season you'd need 5 days and still miss bits.I think the key is to go off season and if you do take the van buy a season ticket which is a lot cheaper than you may think and gives unlimited access for a year ( cheaper than 3 days park entrance if I remember correctly) you can for around 30 euro use their car park and camp ,I don't think they have hook up though



Regards Vlad.

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scousebird

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We have been several times since the park opened (Alan & I even went for our 25th wedding anniversary!) and loved it every time but it is expensive. We have never been there for as long as 5 days, didn't need it. If you go early in the year it is cheaper and quieter, especially if you go mid-week, and I agree with the others, it may be better to wait a year or 2 so your little one appreciates it more.
 

Snowbird

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The cheapest and easiest way is drive up to the barrier. Pay for one nights parking which is next to the moving walkway that takes you into Disney. Get an Annual pass which allows you to enter FREE of charge for a YEAR as many times as you like. It also gives you FREE parking on the motorhome designated carpark where there is water and showers but no hookup. The Fantasy pass is the one you want. I have had one for years and use it on a regular basis. If you renew, the second year you get 18 months for the price of 12. I think the Fantasy pass is around 130 euros and is good for 335 days of the year. It also gets you 10% off all purchases when inside.
 
Jul 28, 2010
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I would love to visit Disneyland Paris this year but having priced up the ferry, Disney tickets etc, it seems to be quite an expensive venture. There is just me, hubby and 4 year old. Unfortuately finances are pretty tight as hubby is a builder and things have been really slow for the last few months, I was made redundant myself and am presently applying for jobs left right and centre to hopefully enable us to carry on with our motorhome hobby.
I would quite like to stay for 5 days so we can visit the two parks and perhaps stay on a campsite outside of Disney that has a bus transfer to Disney as part of the deal.

Advice on the cheapest way to do this would be very much appreciated.
Thank you x

Yes
put 4 year old in to A LARGE ENOUGH BOX
Postage paid to Disney land Paris

with a return paid postage in side

with luck you might get him back in two weeks


cheap as chips

hehehee :ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO:

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Nov 30, 2009
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I would love to visit Disneyland Paris this year but having priced up the ferry, Disney tickets etc, it seems to be quite an expensive venture. There is just me, hubby and 4 year old. Unfortuately finances are pretty tight as hubby is a builder and things have been really slow for the last few months, I was made redundant myself and am presently applying for jobs left right and centre to hopefully enable us to carry on with our motorhome hobby.
I would quite like to stay for 5 days so we can visit the two parks and perhaps stay on a campsite outside of Disney that has a bus transfer to Disney as part of the deal.

Advice on the cheapest way to do this would be very much appreciated.
Thank you x

We've never taken ours to Disney , we must be horrible parents :ROFLMAO: Never appealed to us.
"Rather stick pins in me eyes" :winky:

Given your current work situation and the fact your child is only 4 , I'm with the wait till he/she's older if you really want to go . They would be able to go on more rides and remember it more. Your work situation may have picked up and you'd be able to enjoy it more knowing you could afford to be doing it in the 1st place.
 
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I agree with Jim , we went some years ago , Kids need to be older as there is a hight restriction on a lot of rides ,

I would give it another 5 or 6 few years yet , then include a tour down to Brittany go for a few weeks ,

If you get a Tesco Credit card and use it for fuel for the MH , you could save up your vouchers for Euro tunnel and I think you can get Disney Vouchers ? as well .

Also I think there is an ACIS at or near Disney , it Will be a lot cheaper for you . :thumb:
We have a 3 year and a 5 year old and was thinking of going but i belive this is right, it is a waste on such young ones--i`ll wait and keep my ÂŁ000`s for a while yet :thumb:
We are going to France this year -any tips on similar (cheaper) tourist type of places to park up and visit nearby over there?
Be nice to do x2 days on French theme park attractions and 5 days + to get over it out in the country:thumb:
 

Jaws

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A destination that is often over looked and is easily as good as Disney is Phantasia Land in Germany ( Link Removed

If you feel that is not for you another option is is Plopsaland at ADINKERKE

http://www.plopsa.be/en

Adinkerke is only about 15 miles from the Dunkirque docks, and has a REALLY good campsite at the back of it.. Cost is 11 € a night !

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meanders

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I want to go to Puy du Fou :thumb:

Wyn

Puy du Fou is excellent, also cheaper than Disney. There is an aire at the site which was only 5euros a night when we stayed. If you are there at a weekend there is an extra pageant showing the history of the region, I believe we paid about 30 euros each for that but it was well worth the money
 

ValinFrance

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Definitely agree - Puy de Fou is excellent and the aire nearby meant we saved a lot on buying food. The evening show is only July and August is stunning - a cast of 800 people!! It is a late one - the effects are fab, against the backdrop of a chateau and a lake... starts after the sun sets, around 11pm! Have recommended to many friends, who have all loved it.

More here: Link Removed

Also agree about 4 year olds going to Disney - not at all cheap to eat there and they won't remember it... However we (somehow) managed to cram in the Park and the Studio in one long exhausting day about 8 years ago!

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scousebird

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Bagatelle near Le Touquet was very good for young children, although it is probably 18 years since we went there!

One of the loveliest parks we ever went to was De Efteling in Holland - this has been there for donkeys years and Walt Disney based his parks on it!

For older kids there is Warner Brothers Movie World in Germany, near Essen if I remember correctly - my kids, when teenagers, loved it. Another in Germany is Europa-park - again great for teenagers

Most of these have parking for MHs but not sure about overnight parking (long time since we've been to any of them.
 

Terry

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We took gkids a few yrs ago but got a realy good deal to stop in a Disney hotel and went in the car ::bigsmile:
P
Personally I would save up and go to the park in Florida :thumb: where you would at least be made welcome and nothing would be to much trouble :thumb: the exact opposite to what we found in France :Sad::Smile:
Terry
 
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we were going to go but fund the only way was to sell seven of our fifteen grand children to a slave trader:ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO:
we went to Alton towers instead we only had to sell two:ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO:

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magicsurfbus

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I've done a review of Puy du Fou park and aire Link Removed if anyone's interested, based on a trip in 2010. We'll definitely go back again.

Europa Park (mentioned above) is just inside Germany and is a good detour on the way down to Switzerland or Italy - mainly teen type rides. They have overnight MH parking - one of the few places I've seen where you have to pay to empty your loo.

A personal favourite is Gardaland in Italy, by Lake Garda of course. Also nearby is a lunatic water park called Aqua Paradise which is a huge laugh - expect bruises.

As for Alton Towers - best time to visit is around Halloween: short queues, and evening firework/laser show thrown in for nothing extra. What a pity you can't park overnight there.
 

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