My wife is a bit of a Disney addict.. this can get somewhat expensive, and whenever we’ve popped down to Disney Paris we get asked how we can afford it.
Yes, if you go for the full on-site package it gets very expensive very quickly, even with special offers they run (such as the frequent ‘kids stay free’ offers).
But it can be done on a budget – this is how we’ve done it most recently.
Getting there – Cheating a bit here – Tesco clubcard points are worth 3x their value if you use them to purchase Eurotunnel tickets.. so £20 worth of points gained from doing your shopping and petrol over a few months worth out at £60 worth of Eurotunnel voucher. You get the vouchers online, but then you need to phone the booking agents, so its worth checking the times and rough pricing on the Eurotunnel website first.
If you time the purchase of your tickets correctly (and don’t mind them being non-cancellable) then this is enough to cover a return trip through the tunnel with your car. Once over the other side, its a straightforward drive – mostly on a single road, and takes about 3 and a half hours.
Cost: £0!
Hotel – Since you’re driving, you can stay a couple of miles down the road for a far cheaper price than staying on-site. Last time we used Ibis budget Marne la Vallee hotel that was a short 15min drive away, but Expedia shows several with similar pricing nearby. It was basic, but after a day in the House of Mouse, all you need is a bed to collapse in! We did the booking via Expedia and used our QuidCo account to get cashback on the booking as well.
Cost: £52.00 inc breakfast (price will vary depending on dates)
Park tickets – Our park tickets came from 365tickets, which again gives the option of Quidco cashback (referral link, so I do get a bonus if you sign up, but its worth it!). Prices do vary depending on season, but there are often offers such as ‘Adults for the price of children’. If you’re only going for a single day, you can get a 1 park, 1 day ticket for just £41.97. Most people want access to both parks which puts it up slightly and is what I’ll calculate on (as its what we got last time)
Cost: £121.00
Grand total: £173 for 2 adults 1 child
Comparison price.. ok, you don’t get the extra hours and food is extra, but the saving is worth it if you don’t need the ‘full experience’ (although you should do the whole thing once!).
If you did the above direct through the Disneyland Paris website, the hotel and park tickets come to about £575, on top of which you need to add either Eurostar (at least £300 extra) or other forms of travel. If you did do it direct however, use a private/incognito tab in your browser and use one of the overseas DLP sites – the disneylandparis.ie and disneylandparis.fr sites often have much better deals and pricing than the .uk one!
So you’re saving at least £400 – which can be put to either spending money, or put to one side for the next trip!
The Word of Rob 