If you know me, you know I love Disney. I used to be a cast member in Disneyworld in Orlando, Florida and ever since then Disney feels like home to me. And since I can’t fly across the ocean all the time to visit, I am glad there is Disneyland Paris to escape to once in a while…
But as we all know, a Disney vacation isn’t the cheapest trip to do, so here are some of my tips for a Disneyland Paris vacay on a budget.
Note: This blog post contains links & mentions to third party sites etc. – this is non commercial as nothing was paid for. But let me mark this as an Ad for legal reasons. 🙂
Where to stay
Hotel Campanile Val de France
My No. 1 Tip for saving some money is staying at one of Disney’s partner hotels instead of the original Disney hotels. Of course – they won’t be quite as magical as the real deal but to be honest? You’re only there to sleep so better save that money and put it towards other magical things!
All partner hotels are close to the parks and connected via Disney shuttles which makes life so much easier!
Personally, I can recommend the Campanile Val de France, since this is where I stayed the last two Disney vacations. It is quite lovely, clean and just very convenient.
â–Ş Click HERE for a direct link to the Disneyland Paris website, where you can find a list of all the partner/ associated hotels.Â
âť—Always keep an eye out for special dealsâť—
So far I haven’t booked directly through Disney, but through other sites that give you great deals on Hotel+Ticket Packages!
If you are planning to go to Disneyland for only a day, another great option is an airbnb in the city center of Paris. You will be happy to hear that Disney includes transfer from the city center in their tickets now (this is new, I didn’t even know!).
Transport
This is more of a convenience tip, than a money saving tip, but here it comes nonetheless: take the Magical Shuttle from the airport to the parks.
Yes, it costs 23€ one way and that’s not cheap BUT don’t shy back from spending that money because it will be much faster than taking the trains to Paris’ city center and then taking the train from the center out to Disneyland.
And you know, sometimes time is more valuable than money.
And to be quite honest, the train ride will probably cost you around 15€ as well, so the shuttle is the obvious choice – it also gets you in the Disney mood right away. 🙂
It is very easy to book this shuttle when you arrive at the airport. Simply go to one of the tourist information counters and ask for the shuttle to Disneyland.
The price is the same as buying it in advance on Disney’s website, unfortunately there is no special offer for buying both ways right away.
✔Magical Shuttle Timetable:
The shuttle departs roughly every 25min from 9h00 AM until 07h45 PM and the ride to Disneyland will take roughly an hour.
Cost: 23€ one way
Food and Drinks
Ahh yes, the food in the parks. Ice cream, doughnuts, chocolate covered marshmallows, popcorn, Mickey shaped pretzels… the options are endless and around every corner. And they are pricey $$.
What can I say about saving money… here’s the deal: If you like to indulge in sweet treats on that one day you are in Disneyland, then do it.
Personally I choose 1 or 2 things that I will definitely treat myself to (besides actual food), because it’s not like you’re there every day, right?
The sit-down restaurants are really quite pricey, especially if you’re going for character dining (where the characters will join you at the table to say hello!). So if you’re on a budget – better skip those, it is completely doable to survive on snacks and cheaper sit-down options.
Breakfast will usually be included in the hotels so you’re on your own only for lunch and dinner.
My absolute top tip is this: EARL OF SANDWICH. If you haven’t yet had an Earl’s hot sandwich in your life – you are missing out. I literally crave it all the time and it’s only available in the Disney village (the downtown area before you enter the parks, free to get to without a ticket). A sandwich will be between 7€ – 10€ and let me tell you, every time I am at Disney I survive on EARL’s.
Often, when you book one of the Disney or Partner hotels, you will even get a coupon code for EARL’s, so there’s that tip for saving even more money.
Vegan Snack Food in the parks:
âś”Mickey shaped Pretzels are always vegan, as is the “buttered” popcorn fresh from the carts!
✔The Ice Cream Parlor on Main Street in Magic Kingdom offers vegan sorbets.
✔Earl of Sandwich in the Disney Village, if you have the veggie sandwich without Feta cheese.
âś”The good old fries for example from Casey’s corner at Magic Kingdom
âś”In Walt Disney Studios there are lots of little food kiosks by the Ratatouille ride, they vary in what they sell but I’ve seen many vegan options there.
Bring your own water bottle. Water will be about 2,50€ for a bottle in the parks and by bringing your own and filling it up at the water fountains you are not only saving money, but also saving single use plastic. Double win.
Single Park Ticket vs. Parkhopper
If you didn’t know yet, there are two Disney Parks in Disneyland Paris: Magic Kingdom & Walt Disney Studios.
Do you only have 1 day and want to visit only 1 park?
Do you have 2 days for one park each?
Do you have 1 day and want to visit both parks with a Parkhopper pass?
Parkhopper passes are a little more expensive than a single park ticket. If you only have one day and you want to visit both parks this should be the obvious option BUT be aware that it is not necessarily doable to see and do everything in both parks.
I think a park hopper makes sense, if you already know the parks and know what you want to do and know how to time your activities. If it’s your first time, maybe just explore one park to the full extent.
If you only have 1 day, I would choose to spend a full day at the Magic Kingdom. The Magic Kingdom is that dreamy fairytale land, with the castle that everyone knows, the magical Main Street, lots of different lands inside the parks, great shows and awesome rides like Big Thunder Mountain & Star Wars Hyperspace Mountain (formerly known as Space Mountain) just to name two.
Walt Disney Studios is also really fun and has great rides (Rock’N Roller Coaster & Tower of Terror to name the most famous ones, Ratatouille is perfect as well) but is much smaller, so I think you’d be a little disappointed if choosing only this park for a full day. Let me add though, that they are still continuing to build so this might change in the future!
✔Cost (subject to change of course):
One Park Pass incl. shuttle from Paris 109€
Two Park Pass incl. shuttle from Paris 129€
So there you go, those were my tips on saving money at Disneyland Paris. I hope it will help you plan your own getaway to the happiest place on earth! Let me know if you have any other questions and I will absolutely do my best to answer them!
Love & Magic to you all,
Jules
