Posted on Tuesday, 11 November 2014

Holidays are meant to be relaxed, but when you have a young family as my husband and I do, things can get a little stressful, no matter how tranquil the destination. And when you introduce a three year old, an eight year old and a fourteen year old to Disneyland Paris, the stress levels can go off the scale!

But adults need to preserve their sanity, even on a trip to Europe's most popular theme park. In the long run, everyone benefits from calm parents.

And so after our trip to Disneyland in the summer, we decided to put together a few helpful tips for a stress-free – but fun – Disney adventure.

Disneyland, Paris (luisrsphoto/Bigstock.com)

1. Book accommodation close to the park – it's good to be able to come out and relax in an environment not swarming with cartoon characters –but enabling you to get back to the action fairly quickly (your kids will thank you!).
2. The on-site hotels are expensive, but they do give you access to the park before 10am. This would probably have been a bit of a help to us, but not really worth the additional cost.We stayed at a non-Disney hotel away from the park, but still a walkable distance from the entrance.
3. If you are visiting with kids under five, consider taking a buggy/pushchair– you will do a lot of walking, believe us! Disneyland does rent out large pushchairs, which can be used in both Disneyland and the adjacent Walt Disney Studios (credit/debit card deposit required, but they will only take the money if you don't return the pushchair!). They are easy to push with storage baskets underneath. Our smallest got pretty tired after a while, so this was a god-send.
4. Arrive as early as you can – ideally before the park opens. Go for the most popular rides straight away, as the queues can get very long by mid-morning.
5. Get a map on Main Street when you arrive so you know where you're going (or your hotel may provide one).
6. Take care of your hats and glasses when on the rides. We saw a young lad lose his baseball cap on Thunder Mountain!
7. Eating meals. We considered eating at lunch time, but one glance at the long queues and we suddenly didn't feel so hungry. My husband hates queues! So we decided to wait a little while. At around 4pm it was much quieter.
8. Picnics. We had been told that they weren't allowed, but on the last day we brought our own food and enjoyed a lovely family picnic – no one said anything to us! There are plenty of seats, and it's a lot cheaper than eating in one of the park restaurants. There is a large hypermarket in the shopping centre at Val d'Europe where you can buy cheap provisions. I found the picnic to be a big improvement on the “foot long hotdog” that made our eldest rather sick on the first day!
9. We found that avoiding mid-day by taking a break outside the park was a good idea, although we didn't do this until our second day. Midday is when the park is at its busiest, so we found it to be the ideal period for a little quiet time – although getting our eight year old out proved challenging!
10. Water: There are free water fountains dotted around the park. Take a bottle with you and fill up as necessary; this simple thing could save you a lot of euros!
11. We arrived during the summer holidays so there were quite a few families from the UK with kids. One couple with young children told us that they came once near Christmas time and that it was so busy it became quite stressful – so if you want a relatively quiet park, avoid the festive period. However, a Christmas trip to Disneyland could make you the world's most popular parent(s)!
12. Don't miss the shows. At least try and catch one of them. Check your guide for times and remember that not all of them are in English. They really are beautifully designed and well thought out – and will put a smile on the biggest grump!
13. Have teenagers with you?  You can let them go off by themselves – the park is very safe. You may wish to establish if “park hopping” is allowed, however. Most people buy tickets for both Disneyland Park and Walt Disney Studios, located next door.
14. Walt Disney Studios is better suited to older kids or adults. Our fourteen year boy old loved all the cinematic drama, explosions and noise – and especially the Indiana Jones Temple of Peril ride; that's to say nothing of my husband! But our littlest was a bit scared by some of the rides and shows. The main park, on the other hand, was great for our three and eight year olds.

If, like us, you were a little wary of spending your precious holidays at a theme park, don't be – we were pleasantly surprised by Disneyland Paris. It's very well organised, safe and clean. And fun!

And don't forget, Paris is just a short distance away – ideal if you want to visit a place where the residents don't smile quite as much as in Disneyland!

Mickey Mouse, Disneyland, Paris (Murdocksimages/Bigstock.com)

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