Hello, so as you may know, I was extremely lucky that I was able to visit Disneyland Paris twice in June. I know, so, so lucky! Also you can catch up on our first Disneyland trip here.
Today, I want to sit down and write about our two experiences as we had a different experience both times, with one trip seeing us stay on site and one offsite.
I wanted to compare the two trips, as I know that booking a DLP trip can be a bit confusing and expensive, so I thought I’d share our thoughts to show the pros and cons of both, which hopefully will help, if you’re thinking of booking a trip soon!
Park Tickets :
So something that didn’t change for either trip was our park tickets as both times these were gifted to us by Attraction Tickets Direct. We worked with ATD on the first trip and they gifted us our accommodation too. We loved working with ATD and would recommend their park tickets to anyone, they’re the best value and you get added extras too such as discounts on places to eat and shop. So if you’re staying on site or off site, get your Disneyland Paris tickets from Attraction Tickets Direct as you won’t find them cheaper, and they were so easy to download and use at the park. 10/10 would recommend.
Accommodation :
On Site :
So let’s start with staying on site, we stayed at Sequoia Lodge for two nights and one night at Newport Bay Club. Now we did love staying on site because boy does it make things convenient. Being a five/ten minute walk from the park is perfect for popping back to the room, however staying on site is more pricey.
Newport Bay Club (gorgeous hotel!)
So here’s the pro’s and con’s of staying on site :
Pro’s
Super close to the park
Gorgeous hotel choices (I’ve also stayed at The Disneyland Hotel before (SO DREAMY) Newport Bay Club (loved it here) and Sequoia Lodge ( it was nice but felt the staff let it down a little, but a great big room and so close to the park.)
Extra magic hours in the park (get into the park an hour earlier than the general public, perfect for taking photos and riding the rides with the biggest queues.)
Easy transportation to park (either walk or get the shuttle bus)
Con’s:
More expensive
Makes eating out quite expensive
Now let’s look at offsite :
So we stayed at an Airbnb in Val D’Europe for our second trip, it was about £70 a night, so a lot cheaper.
It was a couple of minutes walk from the train station which was then a five-minute train ride to Disneyland Paris, which we thought was great!
Pros :
Cheaper
Nearer to more budget friendly places to eat and drink.
If in Val D’Europe still quite close to the park.
Had a kitchen so we could prepare snacks to take to the parks with us.
Cons :
Further away from the park so wouldn’t really want to go backwards and forwards, though still possible as train was only 5 mins away and ¢1.84 per person per journey.
Our Airbnb didn’t have the usual hotel amenities of air con (which we missed during the heat wave!)
Can be a bit busy getting back in the evening after the fireworks.
Final Thoughts :
The hotels we stayed in on site were great, and really lovely, great location but there’s no denying that they are a pricey option. If you’re on a budget I would recommend staying offsite, we were shocked at how close and easy it was to get to Val D’Europe.
If an Airbnb isn’t your bag, there’s an IBIS hotel right by the train station at Val D’ Europe. Also we liked the big shopping centre at Val D’ Europe, so we could go buy snacks for during the day at the parks which saved us some money.
However you do miss out on the extra magic hours which I do think are amazing, and ensured we got lots done when we stayed on site. We definitely didn’t get as many rides done the second time we visited.
Ultimately, I think it depends on your situation, if I had the budget, I’d probably stay on site, and then take a trip to Val D’ Europe to get snacks/food to bring the budget down that way. But I’d also be happy to stay at Val D’ Europe again.
Both are good options 🙂
Food & Drink :
So like I mentioned above, staying on site was more expensive for food, there’s less options and of course when you’re on site everything is quite pricey. You can do a dining plan, which works out quite good value if you’re going to be eating at the Disney restaurants.
Disney Village had more affordable choices, we loved Earl of Sandwich and had vouchers from ATD to get 15% off which was great! These come with every set of DLP tickets from ATD.
However, staying offsite wins this one as it was so much cheaper going to the supermarket at Val D’ Europe and taking lunch with us and snacks. We ate at the McDonald’s at Val D’ Europe before going to the parks which also saved a little bit of money. There’s also lots of bakeries around to grab some breakfast before heading into the parks.
*TOP TIP: take refillable water bottles with you to fill up during the day as there’s water fountains at Disney and will save you a fortune in drinks!*
Travel
When we stayed on site, we got to and from the airport using The Magical Express which is a coach, I think it costs about €35 pp each way, but it was so easy and stress free!
It drops you to the hotel door and to the airport very easily and it’s a nice air conditioned coach, super chilled, but of course a bit more pricey.
The second time we travelled everywhere by train.
So we’d get the RER to Disneyland from Val D ‘ Europe which I said about was a 5 minute journey, and cost about €1.84 pp each way. So super cheap.
The train back to the airport was a bit of a nightmare but that’s cause we got totally confused.
SO you want to take the SCNF train from Disneyland Paris to the airport which only takes 10 mins, you do not want the Metro which takes you back through Paris.
*Top Tip : Book your train tickets in advance from Trainline (so much cheaper) and arrive in plenty of time for your train (I’d arrive at least 1 hour before your train departs)*
The train was so easy though, and cheaper than the magical express, so it depends on your budget/how much you’re going to take and of course if you’re getting the Eurostar it’ll only be a 5 min train to Val D’ Europe if you’re staying offsite.
Over all we had two very different experiences staying on site and offsite but both were magical and we enjoyed them both.
I personally loved both options but do think that if you’re on a budget then staying offsite will probably be better for you.
We were almost surprised how easy and quick it was to get to DLP from Val D’Europe, and how much cheaper it was to get snacks and food offsite. It’s really easy to get around to the park, so don’t be worried about it being confusing / a hassle.
But of course staying on site is lovely and adds a special touch to your trip and there is those extra magic hours!
I hope this post helped though, if you’re trying to decide whether to stay on site or offsite and if you have any other questions at all for me, just leave me a comment or DM me on Instagram and I’ll be happy to answer them 🙂
Have you ever been to Disneyland Paris? Did you stay on site or offsite?
*Disclaimer : Our park tickets were gifted to us by Attraction Tickets Direct for both trips, our stay at Sequoia Lodge and Newport Bay Club was also gifted to us by ATD. However, we weren’t obliged to create any content, and all opinions are 100% honest and genuine.
