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[merlin]

Driving from calias is simple 95% motorway but we usually travel  during the night (4 kids) we get off the tunnel about 3am next to nothing on the motorway and you get to disney before paris gets going around  Charles degalle.also if you stay At davey croketts load the car up with loads of food for meals it's saves 100's of euros on food driven 9 times soon to be our tenth wouldn't do it any other way.plus you get there for magic hours on your first day and leave when they kick you out on your last day no half days to and from the airport

[macca1476]

After I saw the french parking styles for the very first time with my own eyes it was out of question every going by my own car to France.

Only ever seen that in the centre of Paris. Parking at Disney or around Val D'Europe is fine. And if you do go into Paris and are worried about it there are car parks that you can use.

[MattR]

After I saw the french parking styles for the very first time with my own eyes it was out of question every going by my own car to France.

Only ever seen that in the centre of Paris. Parking at Disney or around Val D'Europe is fine. And if you do go into Paris and are worried about it there are car parks that you can use.

I know that is not as bad in car parks or on hotel parking lots, but still the chances are much higher in France than nearly everywhere else in europe.

The relationship to their cars (generalisation!) is totally different in France nobody cares about a scratch, here (Germany) they freak out if someone just touches your car.

[dlpowl]

We've done the Eurostar but much prefer to drive.

We live in the north of England but we set off about 6am and get a lunchtime Eurotunnel crossing, arriving in DLP around 4pm THE DAY BEFORE our Disney holiday starts.  We stay at the F1 hotel in Meaux which is only about £40 if you book in advance and it's 15 mins from Disney.  We stay there the fist night, get up early, go to our Disney hotel, check in and get our park tickets and usually get into the park around 9am.   We do the same on the last - have a full day in the park then stay at the cheap F1 for a night so that we are fully rested before starting our journey home the next morning.

We love driving, the roads are great and we've never had a traffic problem.  We like being able to take everything we need including drinks and snacks as that can save you an absolute fortune!  We also like having our own space, inside the car, so that if there's any delays with the tunnel (we've had bad delays on both Eurostar and Eurotunnel) then you've got your own bit of privacy where you can have a nap, play games with the kids, snack etc, without bothering other people or being aggravated by others yourself.  Travel delays in any format can be very stressful but we find it a lot less stressful when we have our own little bubble to relax in!   A 2 hour delay, on the Eurostar, actually inside the red hot tunnel, having to listen to about 100 tired and hungry children cry and whinge (including my own!) whilst having to sit inches from strangers with questionable personal hygiene was so traumatising for us a few years ago that we would never go Eurostar again!!  Hahaaa!  (I can laugh now but I wasn't laughing at the time, I can tell you!)

Our car is very economical and the entire drive only cost about £100 in fuel.  There's some good websites that will calculate the fuel cost for you if you put in some basic info.   Eurotunnel crossing is usually about £130 return.

[Sly_Racoon]

Its an easy drive, done it a few times.

Best tip I have for you is to avoid the rush hour times in France, traffic can get particularly bad.  On one of our return journeys we left DLP around 3pm on Friday afternoon, we arrived in Calais at 9pm!   The Friday afternoon rush hour was particularly bad that day, I think there was a couple of accidents also not helping, just best to plan ahead and avoid the stress of these peak times if you can.

[macca1476]

After I saw the french parking styles for the very first time with my own eyes it was out of question every going by my own car to France.

Only ever seen that in the centre of Paris. Parking at Disney or around Val D'Europe is fine. And if you do go into Paris and are worried about it there are car parks that you can use.

I know that is not as bad in car parks or on hotel parking lots, but still the chances are much higher in France than nearly everywhere else in europe.

The relationship to their cars (generalisation!) is totally different in France nobody cares about a scratch, here (Germany) they freak out if someone just touches your car.

I'm not sure about that, but when the French park on the street in Paris i think generally they accept there may be scratches and dents. If you do park in Paris on the street, you leave the handbrake off so you can be nudged forward.

As I say though, we didn't have any issues parking on streets around Disney or Val d'Europe. I drove over there and stayed for a total of about 8 weeks in the last four years. Would recommend getting the train in from Val d'Europe if you are heading to Paris.

Ultimately if you are really worried about it, the stress from that alone is probably suggesting you don't drive. Last thing you need at the Park is a fear of car damage, wont let you relax at all.

[dlpowl]

Our car is brand new and as this is a rare occurrence for us (to buy a brand new car), I am very particular where I park it!  We were fine at Davy Crockett as you have your own parking space and then at the parks we just parked far away from everyone else and walked that little bit further.  Luckily, it wasn't very busy so we could.

[Mushu_Stitch]

Thanks everyone for all the great input about this, has been really helpful. Driving there definitely sounds like a feasible option and a good way to bring the price down. Now I need to figure out if I could handle the drive (never driven abroad so the idea of being on the wrong side of the road is a little daunting  )

Nonetheless it's all food for thought and definitely an option I will be researching further, especially as it turns out we can get the park tickets before the room is ready. I can't believe I never knew that and might have considered driving sooner if I did 

[dlpowl]

It does feel a bit unnerving the first time you drive abroad but honestly, you'd be surprised at how quickly you adjust.  Also, the drive to DLP is mostly dual carriageway so it would be quite difficult to get on the wrong side of the road!  By the time you come off the dual carriageway, you'll feel more relaxed about it.  The road signs and layouts are very similar to here so although it feels different, it doesn't feel completely alien. 

Also, check that your car insurance covers you fully for driving abroad.  Mine only covered me third party abroad so I had to pay an extra £20 to get it fully comprehensive.  It's also a good idea to have European breakdown cover.

[macca1476]

First time i went i put a post it note with the simple phrase "Keep to Right Side of the Road".. You get used to new roads pretty quickly. So much so that on my third day i went into Paris and took on the magnificently loopy Champs Elysee Roundabout



Certainly would not recommend that in a new car, i was in a decade old zafira at the time

[sleepychap]

Put the sat nav on and you can't go wrong

It keeps you on the right side

[loupenny]

We are complete Kent cheapskates and we always drive!

We get a ferry overnight to Calais, normally at about 12am (it's like £30!) catch an hour of sleep on the ferry then jump in the car and drive down to Disney. If you look online you can get routes that avoid the toll it adds about half an hour but we would rather do that than pay £20 on a toll  .

Last time we got to Disney at just before 6am so we went straight to the check in at Santa Fe and got all of our tickets. Parking was free at the hotel and then there's just enough time for an egg mcmuffin before EMH

However you need to be hardened 'non-sleepers', I get some sleep in the car (though I promise not to  ) and Jay is used to being up for 36+ hours because of work. And the nap at 3pm when you get into your room will be the best nap of your life 

[TinkerGem]

We have driven to Disney a few times, the most recent being April when we stayed at Newport bay and we are going to be driving again when we go in 2017. We live near Manchester so we usually break up the travelling with an overnight stop either in Folkstone or Calais but from Kent you wouldn't need to do that. Its around 3 hours once you are in France and pretty much motorway all the way so its not tool bad if you havent driven on the other side of the road before. The hotel car parks are pretty good and we had no problem parking our large family car, not damaged or bumped at all.

The main bonus to driving is that you are free to take whatever you want and if like us you go a bit mad in the DLP shops there is plenty of space for bringing home your goodies!!

[sarahh83]

All 3 times we have driven. Abliet the first time we should have been on the eurostar but a tyre blowout out in the m6 meant we missed our non refundable/non changeable train!

Pros of driving - take whatever you want and buy whatever you want without worrying about baggage size and allowance. It's massively cheaper! We usually get the 550am euro tunnel, a good run the other side and we are in the park by 10am. Always get the tunnel back that's around 9pm so we leave the park by 4pm ish

Cons - it's tiring for the driver, my boyfriend always drives as I won't drive abroad. As the passenger thou it's also tiring but maybe that's my ocd Stress and I can't sleep cuz I worry about him being tired ha ha. Yeah it takes longer than flying or eurostar too

Other points - We've never done the ferry always euro tunnel. I guess if you chose ferry you've got that extra time for resting as the tunnel is only around 35 minutes crossing