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[SMCD]

Hello,
I'm back from a little trip to DLRP, and apart from some transportation trouble we had great fun.

The trip started on the afternoon July 1st. The plane arrived a little late at Orly, and after hurrying out of the airport with our VEA tickets, we got to see the last bus of the day leave. We decided to take a bus to the nearest metro station, and switch trains until we would arrive at DLRP. However, when we arrived at the station we were told that the trains were on hold due to a strike. So now were even further from DLRP and with no option but to take an expensive taxi ride to the resort. Blah. Anyway, arrived pretty late, so after checking in at Hotel Cheyenne, we ate a late dinner at the Rainforest Café in Disney Village before calling it a night. Rainforest Café was pretty nicely themed, and we enjoyed the burgers. Hotel Cheyenne was also very nice. We got a room in Billy the Kid building, and the view from our room was great - a true old western town.

The next morning we woke up to great weather, and apart from some light showers, the weather stayed like that on our whole trip. We got dressed and walked down to the Disneyland entrance. We got the opportunity to study the resort on our way there. Lake Disney with the Hotels surrounding it was beautiful. I hadn't been to Disney Village on my previous trips, but I have to say it isn't Disney's best work. It looks okay, and got some nice restaurants and shops like the Disney Gallery, but the style of the Village looks kind of like a mish mash of styles and ideas. That can't be said about Disneyland Paris however; it's stunning. It was the first Disney Park I ever visited, and it was the one that made me fall in love with them. After seeing all the other Magic Kingdom style parks except the original in California, I still think this is the most beautiful of them all. Main Street looked terrific, and I love the arcades. It was pretty busy, but not to bad. We walked around the castle, and I love the second floor, the Christmas and glass shop, the dragon cave beneath it, the square shaped trees and the waterfall. It does need some fresh paint some places, however. Fantasyland might also be the best looking of them all. I love all of the little details, like the beanstalk, and not to mention the Old Mill, based on the old Disney cartoon that I love. After some ice cream, we went over to Discoveryland, and it was even better than I remembered. It beats any Tomorrowland in my book. Walked around and looked at all the details. We did the Nautilus walk through, which I hadn't done before, and it was very nice. Would be a perfect queue line for a 20.000 Leagues Under the Sea attraction like the one at DisneySea. The Nautilus "floating" in the pool (even bigger than the one in DisneySea (?)) with the beautiful canon with smoke effects in the background, and the coolest Space Mountain exterior is really a site to behold. We did the Buzz attraction, which was new from my previous visit, and it was the normal deal. It doesn't fit very well into the theme of Discoveryland, but I think it's great fun. While my friend did Star Tours, I studied Videopolis. What a fantastic building! The artwork on the roof inside, the large clock on the wall, and of course the giant airship in the entrance are all spectacular. I also love the details on the exterior – like the moving propellers along the side of the building. I also like the fact that they are showing old school Disney cartoons in the restaurant. Later in the day we saw the Lion King show from the restaurant area in the same building. It was a great show – although I might rank Festival of the Lion King from Hong Kong Disneyland higher. We went over to Adventure Isle – a very nice and unique area, and did Pirates. It's still my favorite version of the attraction. After that we went for some exploration around the isle, and went up the tree house. It seemed very high – is it the highest of them all? We then walked around Adventureland. It is very nice, but a little difficult to compare to the others, as they are very different. This one is partly like Arabian coast at DisneySea, and while the latter may exceed the former in grandness, this one is also very nice. We walked through the Aladdin exhibit, before heading for Frontierland and Phantom Manor. In the queue we had views of the terrific Paris version of Big Thunder Mountain. After that we went up to Boot Hill – I love little things like that to explore, before we headed for Main Street and the daily anniversary parade. It was a good parade, but I think I enjoyed Tokyo's Jubilation even more – the floats were very good, but Jubilation had more performers and fun between the floats. We had dinner at Bella Notte restaurant. The theming was nice, but the pizza was not very good. We ended the day by watching the lighting of the candles ceremony at the castle. It was too bright to see anything, so it wasn't very magical. Nice music, though. I'm sure it looks good when it's dark, and it will certainly be great as the beginning of a fireworks show, as I understand it will become. Unfortunately the park closed at 9 pm, so we didn't get to see the park at all in the dark.

The next day we went to Walt Disney Studios in the morning. As we entered the park we noticed scaffolding on Studio 1. They had just removed the giant Cars billboard covering the entrance. Good choice. We entered studio 1, and I love that place. Great atmosphere. We decided to eat breakfast at the café inside, but first we had to peak out the other side to get a look at the new Hollywood Boulevard. What a difference for the Studios! Now it looks like you really entered a Disney theme park. It works as an outside extension of Studio 1, and although Tower of Terror might be even better suited as a more hidden attraction, looming at the end of a road, I think it was the right choice to make it the centerpiece of the empty studios. After eating in Studio 1, we went over to another new area since my last visit; Toon Studios. It was a pretty nice area. The little Cars attraction was very nicely themed, the Finding Nemo coaster makes a buzz around the area, and the older Aladdin attraction had received some well-needed greenery. A 3D backdrop featuring Toon Town stood in the back. We started the day with watching Animagique. I had skipped that show on my previous visits, so I was eager to see it this time. It was a pretty fun show – aimed at kids, but still enjoyable for adults I think. After that we went over to the new Hollywood Boulevard to see it up close. The illusion breaks a little as you get close, and you realize that the street is actually quite short. Anyway, there are a lot of great details on the exterior of the buildings, inside the windows, and around the boulevard. Very nicely done. Fake palm trees makes the Hollywood feeling complete. Then we decided to see Cinemagique, and it was even better than I remembered. It's great! Wonderful story and cool effects. People in the audience also seemed very satisfied with the show, and I left with a good feeling. The inside theater is also beautiful, so a more elaborate theater exterior would be a welcomed addition I think. Next up we saw the motor stunt show – also very good. After that we decided it was time for Tower of Terror. The tower looks very cool, more simplistic than the one I've done before in DisneySea, but fits well into the Hollywood theme. I featured a completely different story, different rooms, and the drop also seemed a little different – maybe better. It is a great attraction, though. Proper Disney build up, beautiful theming, nice effects, and a good climax. Bought some stuff at the shop, before exiting to the stylish Rose Garden – a nice touch. After that we did the Tram Tour. Catastrophe canyon is cool, but apart from that there are very little to look at. The London set was nice, but nothing happened. Didn't it use to be a fire effect there? Anyway; they should update the attraction I think. Or maybe the London set could be opened for visitors to walk around with a couple of attractions thrown in? I don't know. After the tour we did some shopping before heading over to Disneyland. We did a couple of attractions before eating dinner at Agrabah Café – a pretty expensive buffet restaurant. The food was pretty good, but the theming and atmosphere was terrific. I loved it. It was made to look like you ate in an alley of Agrabah, and it was really well done. Got some exotic tea included. The last day we did Peter Pan, Buzz again, explored different areas of Disneyland some more, and saw the Tarzan show. Hadn't seen it before, and it was very good. The acrobats were very skillful. After the show we ate at Pizza Planet – some lost potential when it comes to theming here I think. We then went to the Village to take Panoramagique – very cool addition that offers some great views. After that we had to head for the airport, but as the person at the reception had told us that the bus drivers were on strike and we had to take the bus from Newport Bay Club, we just picked up our baggage at Cheyenne and walk over to NPBC. However, when we got there we couldn't find the dang entrance. So we went back again to Cheyenne to find a shuttle bus that could take us to the entrance, but as we got back the VEA bus stood there. Weird.

But we had a great time at the resort, and I rediscovered the greatness of Disneyland Paris and Studios are definitely on the right way. There are a couple of things I miss in Paris´ Disneyland, though; Splash Mountain, Toon Town, and a daily fireworks show. But you can't have it all I guess.

I will post some pictures soon.

[Epcot_Boy]

:hello:

Thanks for the trip report.........looking forward to the photos

Epcot_Boy :ears:

[Javey74]

Thanks for the report SMCD, really enjoyed reading it, looking forward to the photos.. :wink:

Much appreciated..

[pussinboots]

It's like we had the exact same vacation. We should have shared a cab.

Thanks for sharing; do post those pictures!

[The Butlin Boy]

Great report SMCD, I really enjoyed reading it. Glad you had a great trip. I look forward to seeing your photos as well

[SMCD]

Thanks for the comments, guys. I was busy some days, but I've finally uploaded the pictures. Some of them might have been uploaded twice. Sorry about that. Anyway, here is the link: //http://www.kodakgallery.com/Slideshow.jsp?Uc=1n0uiypz.4cfudsl3&Uy=c6y6l1&Upost_signin=Slideshow.jsp%3Fmode%3Dfromshare&Ux=0&UV=859032179021_796553189111&mode=fromshare&conn_speed=1

[Clarebelle]

that link doesnt work for me :-( but it could just be my stupid computer! ... and I was soooo looking forward to seeing the photos, i'll have to find the laptop charger now  :lol:

[Epcot_Boy]

//http://www.kodakgallery.com/Slideshow.jsp?Uc=1n0uiypz.4cfudsl3&Uy=c6y6l1&Upost_signin=Slideshow.jsp%3Fmode%3Dfromshare&Ux=0&UV=859032179021_796553189111&mode=fromshare&conn_speed=1

Thats one h**l of a link  :wink:  :lol:

Loved the pics, especially those from Panoramagique.

Epcot_Boy :ears:

[Javey74]

Yeah...Great photos there SMCD... / Such a large amount.... :wink: