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[Anthony]

Can you remember the time before you visited Disneyland Paris (and this message board) religiously? Before you knew the ins and outs of every ride, the secrets of every land?

What kind of picture of the place did you have in your head back then? From reading the brochures, seeing the advertisements, poring over the map for hours on end, what did you expect?

I remember looking at Main Street station on the old 1995-2002 map and just thinking "how is that possible?!" How does the train track go right through the main entrance of the park? Is there a level crossing? Surely that's a nightmare?! I could never have imagined the incredible station there, elevated above the entrance... (brought up on UK theme parks, see)

Now for a funnier one. I thought the parades ran on the tram/trolley tracks. Very confused when they ended and the parade route continued, as the ImagiNations parade rolled by...

What did you imagine, before you stepped through those gates?

[Aveen2008]

Hey

good question!

I remember I didn't look up too much about the place before I went because I wanted to be surprised. I am actually so shocked now that I didn't! :shock:  I was just so excited to be going to 'A' disney park or 'Any' disney park! It was my dream all my life and to be honest I never even thought about the fact there was different ones in different countries etc! I feel kinda stupid now thinking about how much I now know!

All I could think of was that it was disney, a whole park, a whole holiday full of Disney! How amazing that was going to be!! A whole resort dedicated to the thing I am most passionate aboout in my life!

The one thing I always wanted was to stand infront of a disney castle and see the fireworks, so actually that was the one thing I did look up a lot .... I remember sitting at home watching Wishes on youtube and just thinking wow!!! And when I seen it in real life I almost broke into tears!

I had got the dvd that used to be free with the brochure so I had watched that but appart from making me go wow, I guess It doesnt mean the same when you havent been! lol

I think I did expect that there would be more characters walking about and stuff like the adverts portray, whereas I only met 3 the whole time and all of those where in the studios!

I got on every ride praying it wasn't a rollercoaster! I had an idea what space mountain, rock n'rollercoaster was and you can see thunder mountain so I avoided those lol! me and my friends fell in love with Peter pan's flight!

aww the innocent days!

[ford prefect]

My wife (then my girlfriend) and I went to Paris for a short break in August 97 after we had been together 8 or so months.

Sarah had always wanted go to Disneyland but had always believed it to be unattainable.

I had never really been bothered as Disney was tacky, corporate Americana and superficial.  

We had spent the first few days of our holiday doing the usual Paris things, and decided to go to Disney simply because it was nearby and would be something different.

I remember being distinctly uninterested in the planning and had done no preparation at all.

We purchased our tickets at a Metro station and boarded the RER.  I was desperately trying to be cool and sophisticated (after all, I was 24 and too old for Disney).

Then a problem arose.

When I arrived at Fantasia Gardens and looked up at the hotel and walked through the turnstiles I was hooked.

I was 7 years old and in a great place.

Cynicism and coolness left forever!

[Gareth]

I was never intrested in disneyland the first time i went it was just a school trip i was excited and then i went again with parentals and fell in love with it my parents thought it was gunna just be a theme park and were BLOWN away by the fact it was so detailed and now im just a lil bit obsesed  /

[nemo1981]

I was 11 years old when"Euro"- Disney opened and there had been a tv- show called Disney Club,where they showed lots of things about the "new" Disney Resort. I think it aired around 1990 for the first time and they continoued showing reports even from the unfinished Park. And it got me completely hooked...I read Mickey-Mouse Magazines  too, and there was a lot of disneyland in there...

And the opening night of our Magic Kingdom,oohh I still remember begging my parents to allow me to watch it...but they wouldn`t,cause they didn`t care at all about Disney and since we only had one tv they decided to watch something else...
However as the years passed by I read more and more about Disneyland Paris.

And I have to say I had a very clear picture of what to expect,except for Space Mountain. I thought it`s a simulation of a flight into space. That was what all the ads were about:" Between the earth and the moon" I was quite surprised when i first rode Space Mountain, can only say that I couldn`t stop screaming...didn`t expect a roller coaster...:-)

So my first trip finally happend 1997 at the age of sixteen, after years of dreaming of this. And the whole trip through I couldn`t believe it,this is Disneyland ....I´m in Disneyland ...I didn`t know the smell on Main Street before, I didn`t know about the music everywhere,I didn`t know how beautiful everything looks in reality...
I had a wonderful ,wonderful time there and in the end I was even more hooked.....hihi:-)

[davewasbaloo]

Interesting. I think my situation is very different than everyone's on this board. I grew up going to Disneyland since I was a baby. I do not remember a time "not knowing" what it was all about. When I moved to the UK in 1986, I was depressed because I was leaving my beloved Disneyland, a place I have been going to about every two months for my entire life (sometimes more often). My obsession.

But I was lucky, I had been in a focus group with Tony Baxter, and had an incling of what was planned. I was able to visit the building site in 1990 and 1991, and saved up to be there opening day. I followed every bit of media I could find (the Sun, Mirror and Renault Owner's club had the best preopening coverage). But I still did not know what it would be like. I knew the attraction count was going to be much smaller than Disneyland or the Magic Kingdom, and it worried me. But to get a park in our part of the world was amazing.

When I got there, my jaw hit the floor. It was the most beautiful park Disney had ever built to that point. The international vibe of EuroDisney was amazing. The quality of the merchandise and the live entertainment. It was better than I could imagine.

I took on 2 more jobs so that I could return that opening year, even on a day trip. It was amazing again. And I was hooked ever since.

But the last 17 and a half years have been a roller coaster ride of awesomeness (Space Mountain opening; Mulan, Tarzan and Lion king shows; WDSP, Crescend'O) and a lot of heart break - cut backs on almost everything including the really dark years of maintenance before the 15th Anniversary.

But even still, I am amazed by the level of detail WDI put into DLP, more than any other MK style park on the planet. And that is why I get grumpy, I want DLP to continue to be the best. But when it comes to ops, it is far from.

[bensmum]

I had no idea what to expect. I had never been to any theme park my nearest experience being Blackpool over 30 years ago :lol:  :lol:  :lol: I was bowled over by the characters and their interactions with my son. Ben had never watched any disney before we went but fell in love with them and the rides instantly. I had read the guides so I "knew" the rides but you havent a clue until you get there. The atmosphere is just so different to anything I have ever experienced(admittedly not a lot) but I just had to go back.
I think it spoilt me a little cos I was totally let down at Alton Towers this summer.It doesn't have the magic and Ben much preferred the waterpark.
I was always a bit of a sceptic before- couldn't see the attraction in a spinning teacup- but its the way its put together that makes it a jouney worth taking. Can't wait to go back!

[Timbo]

I had been to WDW many times before ,so was kind of prepared for what to expect, but followed every bit of press and news prior to the opening ! All the pre opening adverts and info showed parts of WDW so gave no real impression of what it would be like ! We planned a trip a few weeks after opening "to let the huge crowds die down" !!! LOL !Which of course never happened ! Like Davewasbaloo I was so impressed with the park ,the Castle alone was the most beautiful thing I had seen , it left the other parks way behind ! and the attention to detail and overall theming was amazing   I was really suprised and pleased about how well it had been created , a real plus on WDW.
One of the best things was that the park was so incredibly quiet , it was mid week , Main Street and Central Plaza with about 30 other people around ! And every ride and restaurant was open even though no one was there , something we knew we would never see again ; must look for the pictures to post on here !

[satine15]

when I was a little child, I used to watch all the Disney Movies that went out... I remember Lion King was the first movie I ever watched in cinema.
Disney Movies were always something special for me, I got them when I was really ill or have done something very good. There always was this kind of special thing on watching those movies and there was this advertisment of the young girl with curles and propably her granddad in the tea cups. Both were smiling and I wanted to go there so badly, since I was about 6 years or so.
My parents never went with me, since I live in Germany they never took the long driving to Paris.
Two years ago, I booked a trip with a youth group to Disneyland and was so happy to actually go there, that I have read everything about Disneyland what was there. I knew what all the rides were about, where the special things were hidden and so on.
After ten hours of bus driving we finally arrived at Hotel Chayenne and when we got into the yellow bus, I was totally excited.
The first thing I saw was the big pink hotel and then, of course, the beautiful castle. It looked so beautiful and I felt like a little child again. I was a bit angry of myself, cause I knew everything from the beginning, but it helps to see more things, because two days arent so long in Disneyland.
I was absolutly stunned and i think it is so amazing, that I booked the trip for last year and arrived in the halloweenseason... even more stunning! In March I will go again, but the big dream is to go there on Christmas!

[littlemermaid83]

I remember thinking that it was just a cheap and rubbish version of WDW and you would never catch me in that place called Euro Disney   lol  

Oh how times have changed  :lol:

One of my friends even said it was cheap looking version of Alton Towers and that in a day you would get everything done.

What did she know eh?  :roll:  :lol:

[montaguewarner]

And that is why I get grumpy, I want DLP to continue to be the best. But when it comes to ops, it is far from.

But isnt being positive a wonderful thing! Look how far the Resort has come in 18 years, it really is outstanding!
It took Disneyland 45 years to get its 2nd Park. And tokyo Disney took what was it, 15 years to get its own hotel onsite?

[luke85]

I remember watching The Little Mermaid on video, then seeing the preview that followed the film. My parents had already told me and my sisters about Walt Disney World as they had already been. I kind of got the impression from my parents that Euro Disney wouldn't be a "proper" Disneyland. A couple of years later in 1993 my parents took us to WDW, so I kind of forgot about Euro Disney.

I started to become more aware of Euro Disney when friends at school would go and tell me about it, it sounded fun but I still viewed it as a poor imitation of it's American cousins.

I first went in 2004 with my college as part of a choir trip. We stayed at Davy Crocket Ranch and had a lot of fun. We also performed at the Fantasy Festival Stage with our choir which was awesome. We were only there for 4 days though, so I don't feel like I had enough time to explore the resort.

I went back the following year with my friend, and that was when I fell in love with DLP. Now I can't imagine ever thinking of it as a sub-standard Disney park.

p.s... Happy 18th Birthday Disneyland Paris

[stacey-claire]

I came back from disneyland 3 weeks ago after visiting for the first time, to say i was a little sceptical is an understatement, i thought it would be just like any other theme park, how wrong was i lol.
I did alot of research before i went to make sure i was prepared, and loved every second i was there, even my boyfriend, who very rarely smiles at anything enjoyed it, i was so sad to leave, it just takes you back to your childhood.
Going again on the 20th-23rd december and soooooooooooooo cant wait  /

xx

[QTXAdsy]

I remember watching the Space Mountain advert on my Lion King video, which was the first thing that told me about DLP.

My memory is quite vague, but i remember being quite terrified whenever it came on as i would run behind the sofa (Hey, I was 3 years old at the time.) I couldn't get my head round what the attraction was suppose to do, :oops:  but this was the first time I ever heard of DLP.

However my memory is much clearer when WDS opened as the adverts would be on all the time, of course i thought it was a rubbish version of the one in Florida. (I had been to Disney Hollywood Studios in 2000)

I don't really remember much else apart from that, but did anyone else get scared of that Space Mountain ad?

[never2old]

My first memory is when my dad told us that they were going to build a Disney park in Europe. We had recently been to WDW and for me that was the most incredible place: when we walked into Main Street in WDW, the first thing I saw was Snow White saying hello to a little girl. Snow White!! Right in front of me!! Pure magic. So having one closer to us, I couldn't wait!!

I remember when they were discussing whether the park would be in Spain or France (I think I was still living in Spain at the time), and being quite happy once they decided to build it outside Paris since by then I was in Luxembourg so it was a lot more convenient.

I remember impatiently waiting for April 1992, and thinking it would never come... And once, when we were driving from Luxembourg to Spain, my dad told us we would go and check on the progress of the construction, and took us to what I now guess was the information center, but to us at the time was the entrance to the park... I was so excited about seeing that it was all I could think about all the way to Spain (and it was a long drive... we used to get up really early, leave Luxembourg around 3am, and drive all day to Madrid, we got there around 10 in the evening... fun fun fun).

But then, when the park actually opened and my parents took us there (to be honest I can't remember the date, it could have been after the summer in 1992), I hardly remember it  :lol: I remember looking up Main Street towards the Castle and thinking it was the greatest place on earth (I know, I haven't changed much  :roll:  :lol: ). We only went for one day, again leaving from Luxembourg early in the morning and driving back after the park closed, but I was so excited about it, that I don't really remember much about the visit...  :roll: