Is it the weather? Compared to the American parks, looking at videos this is, it seems characters are barely out and when they are it's controlled with a line and a certain place. Looking at the American parks, especially California, it seems the characters roam a lot more freely and are always out! I feel like this is what Disneyland is about so it's a shame this is rare in Paris! I always here people feeling disappointed as the character experience is always far different to what the Disney adverts make you believe. This will be a very controversial topic and I am looking forward to hearing what people have to say! Everything seems a bit more authentic and "from the heart" in California and almost mass market in Paris. Disney World too feels mass market compared to Cali. I think it might be the fact Walt built that park and has stepped foot in it. I of course have only been to Paris so I can't judge really but I speak from various reviews and YouTube videos. I still love Paris and would never pass up a trip there!
I'm not an expert on the character meet n' greets, but in the past I got the impression from some unhappy fans and their trip reports that meeting the characters could turn into a scrum with pushing and shoving, Disneyland Paris has now opted for more organised meet n' greet areas, like the Princess Pavilion and the Mickey Mouse Theatre and more controlled queuing lines, instead of people pushing in front to meet a character and spoiling it for others.
Having been to Disneyland in California and Walt Disney World I wouldn't agree that those parks are more authentic and from the heart than Disneyland Paris, but they are bigger and well established, in the case of Disneyland for nearly sixty years.
When we first visited DLRP in 2002 there where loads more charactors walking around or driving about. When we went last year, we didnt see any walking about at all but it was during the change over to 20th. Fingers crossed there are a few more this year, but I do agree it isnt so enjoyable when everyone is pushing you out the way. The meet n greets are great but would be nice to get more princesses per seriously long waiting time and charactors such as alice / mary poppings and Tinkerbell.
Once again I'm no expert on this, but DLP seem to offer more character meals now like in Cinderella's Inn and at the Disneyland Hotel for example.
I got back from DLP on Friday and I was quite shocked at how many characters I did see walking around or on unscheduled meet and greets, although they were all in Fantasyland in Disneyland Park or next to Cinémagique in the Studios. We saw Mickey, Minnie, Pluto and Goofy all out at once in the studios and then later we saw Ariel walking around there too, and as for the main park we saw Peter Pan, Wendy, Captain Hook, Alice, the Mad Hatter, the Queen of Hearts, both Tweedles, Suzy and Perla, Rabbit, Eeyore and Minnie and Daisy together all in Fantasyland at various times.
There was quite a lot out, but I do agree with the scrums and mobs. Each time a character was out the attendant had to constantly tell people to move back and stop putting their autograph books in the characters' faces, which must be really annoying for them. I found that some characters were better than others at handling this as they would pick the children who were waiting patiently or signal them to move backwards.
It would be nice if more were out, but sometimes it can just be if you're in the right place at the right time!
I think its a case of finding them. After visiting so often (21st year this year) I realised there are certain places the characters come out of at specific time so if you REALLY want to meet characters its best to hang around that area and wait. The gates to the right of Its A Small World is the best place. All kinds of characters come from there, from villains to classic characters to Princesses! One time all the Princesses came out of there each with their prince all walking in a long line. It was pretty spectacular!
Lozzie is right with the gates by its a small world - we happened to come across the queen of hearts, tweedle dum and dee, the mad hatter, belle and Tiana all at the same time!
My daughter would of LOVED to of seen all the princesses with their princes!
When we went in March 2012, we were there for 5 days and only bumped into Jafar, Sully, King Louie and Baloo....
I will definitely keep the gates by IASW in mind for next time we go! :)
Maybe the lack of characters was due to the 20th just about to start a few weeks after we were there... But still.....
I've been to both Disney World and Disneyland Paris, and I have to say, the Meet and Greet experience at Disney World is far better than the one at Disneyland Paris. Everyone at Disneyland Paris just pushes and shoves to get to see the characters, and I've even had people ask me a few times if they can step in front of me to take a picture of the character, even if it's not their family with the character. The experience I had at Disney World was so much more better! Everyone stood patiently in line for the Characters, and no one ever tried to push in front of me or my family. Judt thought I'd share what I know as I saw people talking about it above :)
Quote from: "TigerLily"Lozzie is right with the gates by its a small world - we happened to come across the queen of hearts, tweedle dum and dee, the mad hatter, belle and Tiana all at the same time!
My daughter would of LOVED to of seen all the princesses with their princes!
So would we! Princessess and princes dosn`t happen to often! at the Auberge is usually a couple, but otherwise, really seldom.
When I first went into the Park in 1996 I remember meeting most of the core characters (Mickey, Donald, Goofy, etc) near the Photo shop on Main St, and meeting Belle and Beast by the sword in the stone in Fantasyland.
The last time I went (March) I only saw characters near Cinemagique. It would be nice to see more out and about, but the lack of basic queues probably doesnt help./
Quote from: "TheTuskerHouse"I've been to both Disney World and Disneyland Paris, and I have to say, the Meet and Greet experience at Disney World is far better than the one at Disneyland Paris. Everyone at Disneyland Paris just pushes and shoves to get to see the characters, and I've even had people ask me a few times if they can step in front of me to take a picture of the character, even if it's not their family with the character. The experience I had at Disney World was so much more better! Everyone stood patiently in line for the Characters, and no one ever tried to push in front of me or my family. Judt thought I'd share what I know as I saw people talking about it above :)
Wow, now I really want to go to Disney World. We have been putting it off till our daughter turns 10 (so another 5 yrs) as people keep saying she is to young. Yet from what you have said, now I think there wrong as we dont go for the big thrills, its all about the Charactors for us. :)
Quote from: "TheTuskerHouse"I've been to both Disney World and Disneyland Paris, and I have to say, the Meet and Greet experience at Disney World is far better than the one at Disneyland Paris. Everyone at Disneyland Paris just pushes and shoves to get to see the characters, and I've even had people ask me a few times if they can step in front of me to take a picture of the character, even if it's not their family with the character. The experience I had at Disney World was so much more better! Everyone stood patiently in line for the Characters, and no one ever tried to push in front of me or my family. Judt thought I'd share what I know as I saw people talking about it above :)
This is what a lot of people say. And I agree with the situation in Paris (as I've never been to Disney World :( ... yet). I'm waiting for the day when people stop the parade just to get an autograph and a picture with their children :D .
But it makes me think, what the management could do diffrently, to avoid such situations with people getting rude and stuff... Because in my oppinion it's the fault of the rude people, not the cast members. The solution on Disneyland Paris' side was to install more controlled meet and greets where you have to wait in line, which, i admit, is the easy way out, and takes away a lot of the magic. But how can you appeal to such troublemaking guests without getting rude or harsh yourself. Of course you can tell them over and over again to be patient and to wait until it's their turn, but in my experience 5 minutes later they'll push and shove again.
If I were the boss :P i would try something... Maybe it's drastic, but I'm curious on how it would work out:
I would cancel all meet and greet's which take place on special times and locations... only the character meals and the two character attractions would remain... then i would let the characters pop up around the park on various times and places... somehow unpredictable, but also a lot of them. So that you have at least 1 character wandering around in each park at any given time. This would take off the preassure of things, because only the people who are actually there at that time would be informed. I would let the characters appear in less crowded places, and if it gets too crowded i would let them go backstage again... But of course I don't know if that's possible in any way, and maybe it takes a lot more. But then again "It's kind of fun to do the impossible" isn't it? ;) .
I would love to see more characters walking around in DLP! I saw more this year than I did last year but still not as many as I would like. I do appreciate there are probably difficulties surrounding having lots of characters out simultaneously/frequently but for me, seeing the princesses wandering around Fantasyland or even just cowboys in Frontierland is what makes Disney seem 'real'. ;)
I agree with what has been said; it`s not the CM fault that people are pushing and beeing rude! But they are the ones in charge for the character! I would love to see more of them telling the people that the "line" (at unscheduled meets) goes from the right to the left, or the other way around! For example, the train comes more then once a day! So no one needss to see all the characters at the same stop!
And I too wish people would behave a liitle less aggressive as some of them.
Nice idea, TVtaughtMeHowToFeel!!
Quote from: "Aurora1"I agree with what has been said; it`s not the CM fault that people are pushing and beeing rude! But they are the ones in charge for the character! I would love to see more of them telling the people that the "line" (at unscheduled meets) goes from the right to the left, or the other way around! For example, the train comes more then once a day! So no one needss to see all the characters at the same stop!
And I too wish people would behave a liitle less aggressive as some of them.
Nice idea, TVtaughtMeHowToFeel!!
Thanks!!! :)
I Have To disagree im afraid. The last time I was in dlp (March 2012 it seems way too long) there were many characters roaming around. Chip and Dale were in main street . Geppetto , Pinnochio , Smee and Captain Hook were in Adventureland and much to my nieces delight Peter Pan and Wendy were outside of the peter pans flight ride in fantasyland. :) I love the variety of characters that pop up around the parks especially in The Studios.
At my last visit there was Goofy at Studios in the tower of terror bellhop uniform, I've never seen that before so off I went to get a photo ;D
I was lucky there was no scrum no pushing, I have witnessed it in the main park and for small children it must be so scary.
Whenever I have been I have always seen plenty of characters walking round, however it is always a bit of a scrum to meet them. This may sound a bit harsh, but why do parents insist on just pushing their kids towards the characters? I dont have kids but I would still like to meet n greet with the characters but I am made to feel like I shouldnt by many parents as they feel because they have kids they should get priority. Many times I have walked away disappointed and upset as I have not had a chance to meet my favourite character. Give adults a chance too. Disney isnt just for kids! I like the areas where I can queue to see them but also like to be able to have the spontaneuos meetings too! I shouldnt miss out just because I'm an adult!!! :( :'( >:(
Ok, rant over. x :-X
You`re totally right!
I never went alone. Always with my daughter. Now she is 12 years old, almost 13, so to speak she is tall. we expierienced it this time, people think they can shove the smaller kids in front of her! Good thing the CM wre, mostly, really attentive. They made clear it`s going from one side to another.
Main problem at DLRP is that it is not in the culture of many continental European countries to queue. They don't queue in general at home so why would they suddenly do so at DLRP? Therefore a scrum ensures and the CMs either don't care enough to step in or don't have enough training. In the end if you don't actively move your child forward they just don't get seen. Most CMs don't look out for the polite patient child and let then have a turn. At WDW people are used to queuing and automatically wait their turn which makes it much easier for the CM to manage.
Also at WDW there are many, many, many more organised M&G so it doesn't feel so 'vital' to meet the 'unscheduled' characters for many people.
Last time at DLRP we were there for 7 days and found it impossible to meet Rapunzel, who is a much sought after character. We did the Princess Pavillion numerous times every day to no avail and found the CMs extremely unhelpful in helping us to meet my DD favourite character.
The past poster who is waiting till their daughter is 10 before going to WDW, I say, why wait? The experience is so much richer and pleasant there. Why wait till your daughter is getting too old for the character magic to visit especially if your family is not that fussed with thrill rides?
Everything is on a bigger scale at WDW if we're going to compare it to DLP. WDW has four theme parks and therefore more rides and shows. It has Water parks, and no doubt more characters roaming the parks because it's the most popular theme Park destination in the world. DLP is on a smaller scale so you pay your money and take your choice. :)
Especially at the Studio's they are learning ... last summer there, more and more characters where the CM's created a line.
Also at Halloween, some were brave enough to tell people to stand in line, instead of acting like a pack of wolves towards some fresh meat ::)
Other guests simply don't listen to the CM when they say "from the left to the right", they heard them alright, they just choose not to listen *sigh*.
I should say that we don't go to DLP to meet and greet the characters, we have met a few but we've never queued up for them. But i don't get this with the Princess Pavilion, guests queue up to have their picture taken with a Disney princess, Disney don't say in advance which one, it's not the Rapunzel Pavilion or the Little Mermaid Pavilion.
Some DLP fans think that there is too much emphasis put on meeting and greeting the characters and not enough on shows or other entertainment.
I was never into it myself, untill last year Halloween, lol, it's just nice to get a hug and such :P
I don't know what it's like with the princesses, I don't quite care for those :-[
I've heard many stories about it, depending on the CM, some do tell who it is and arrange for you to see the one you want, some won't bed and say nothing. It's so weird hearing both stories, doesn't make it fair for everyone else I guess?
When i was a child, if my father had taken me to Disneyland for an expensive holiday, and had queued up with me to have my picture taken with a Disney Character and i had come away all upset and disappointed, i don't think he would ever have queued up with me for anything again :'( . Not that either of us liked queues. ::)
Good thing we are all different, hehe.
If my parents would have done that, I probably would have walked away screaming being scared, haha :P
When I was at DLP at the start of October at the busy Meet and greets the new system was in place with the character picking out the people from the crowd whose turn it was next and the system did work and everyone was happy. Not all the meet and greets were like that for every character while I was there and there were a few free for alls but when it works the new system is perfect.
I may have also been lucky it was quiet and the people there understood about waiting their turn perhaps.
Could having more than one cast member with each character help this? One could stay with the character and the other try and control the mob!
I have seen it when a single cast member tried to take out more than one character and they ended up having to retreat! At least having some fixed meet and greets ensures the more popular characters are protected a bit.
It seems like they are testing a new system, where people queue up for characters without any barriers holding them in place... InsideDLParis posted some pictures on twitter yesterday: https://twitter.com/InsideDLParis
I don't know if it really works, but it seems so. Let's hope they stick with it and nobody gets run over by overly ambitious and rude parents anymore. ;)
The first time I ever went in '01 I didn't see any characters walking about at all, as far as I can remember.
In 2013 I saw loads; peter pan, captain hook, winnie the pooh, mickey and minnie, goofy, pluto, donald and daisy, chip and dale, pinnochio, rapunzel (i fangirled so hard arghhh), aurora (i met her in the PP), snow white, jack sparrow...there were more but I can't exactly remember.
I don't know if it means that DLP realised they need to send more characters out (most of these were wandering around different parts of Disneyland Park) or if I just happened to get lucky. I guess it's more of the latter though, as I went during a quieter period so it is perhaps easier to meet characters from just walking around. I just hope I meet or spot plenty again this year!
hi I so much need to see peter pan around ill have one very upset disabled little girl if not its her wish to see peter pan
Quote from: shaz69 on June 05, 2014, 07:25:36 PM
hi I so much need to see peter pan around ill have one very upset disabled little girl if not its her wish to see peter pan
Peter Pan usually hangs out in Adventureland close to Captain Hooks pirate ship and the entrance for Pirates of the Caribbean. That is where I met him and I have heard from plenty of other people that they also met him in that area.
Also you could go to City Hall to find out if he will be out and about and what time to expect him =)
When I was in the park last week I was really pleasantly surprised by the amount of characters I actually saw. Off the top of my head there was Genie, Baloo and King Louis, Bert and Mary Poppins, Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee, Chip and Dale/Tic and Tac, Minnie, Duffy, Rapunzel, Hook and Smee, and a few others I can't properly remember.
Considering on my last trip, which was Halloween I only saw Jack and Sally it was quite the improvement.,
Quote from: orangarnold on June 16, 2014, 01:50:12 PM
When I was in the park last week I was really pleasantly surprised by the amount of characters I actually saw. Off the top of my head there was Genie, Baloo and King Louis, Bert and Mary Poppins, Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee, Chip and Dale/Tic and Tac, Minnie, Duffy, Rapunzel, Hook and Smee, and a few others I can't properly remember.
Considering on my last trip, which was Halloween I only saw Jack and Sally it was quite the improvement.,
Where did you see Mary Poppins and Bert? Would love to meet them!
Quote from: stormflm595 on June 16, 2014, 03:43:13 PM
Quote from: orangarnold on June 16, 2014, 01:50:12 PM
When I was in the park last week I was really pleasantly surprised by the amount of characters I actually saw. Off the top of my head there was Genie, Baloo and King Louis, Bert and Mary Poppins, Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee, Chip and Dale/Tic and Tac, Minnie, Duffy, Rapunzel, Hook and Smee, and a few others I can't properly remember.
Considering on my last trip, which was Halloween I only saw Jack and Sally it was quite the improvement.,
Where did you see Mary Poppins and Bert? Would love to meet them!
It was by Ribbons and Bows just round the corner where the gates are.
We happened upon Woody by Cowboy Cookout BBQ, met Winnie and Eeyore by Plaza Gardens and saw (but didn't queue for) the Genie by Treasures of Scherrazade and Baloo by Hakuna Matata. We too saw Bert and Mary in the town square, as well as the planned meets for Mickey, Minnie and Rapunzel. We have no complaints :)
Are there any schedules you can work too regarding characters? We intended to eat at Cowboy cookout but if we could time it so Woody was there, my son would go wild, he loves him. Is it just a case of luck as to where and when you see characters?