'I took my baby to Disneyland Paris and was surprised at the rides he could do'

Daily Mirror

21 hours ago

Disneyland Paris is on most families' bucket lists but the majority of people will wait until their children are a bit older - but it's actually a brilliant spot for a baby-friendly holiday
"But he won't remember any of it!" all the naysayers cried. Let's be honest, my 10-month-old baby also wouldn't remember a beach holiday or city break, but for some reason when I mentioned I was taking him to Disneyland Paris, that was the first comment I always got.
Here's the thing; a sleep regression, an 8pm bedtime for us parents and the mental load of wanting to plan a trip abroad with a baby all made for quite limited holiday options. Still, my partner and I were determined to get away, and when I jokingly suggested Disneyland Paris, suddenly Mickey Mouse 's Parisian home appealed.
Baby-friendly restaurants and accommodation? Check. Breastfeeding-friendly? Check. Something that would be pure fun and let us escape out of daily life a bit? Check.
I'm a travel writer, but the thought of figuring out air travel was still too daunting at the time - so the fact we could reach Disneyland Paris with one Eurostar and train was also a big draw. (There's no luggage limit and you can keep the pram with you, so that made life a lot easier when it came to packing!).
We opted to stay at Santa Fe, one of the Disney hotels to enjoy the extra perks; easy to walk directly into the parks (meaning baby could get a pram nap in), Magic Hours with earlier access to the parks to avoid queues, and the bonus that these hotels are so geared to families, we didn't need to worry about travel cots, baby-friendly food and high chairs.
In fact, we requested a travel cot pre-arrival, and it was already all set up in the room which was very welcome after travelling! The room itself was clean, had plenty of space for our stuff and pram, and the bathroom had a decent tub for baby bathtime. As for breakfast, there were plenty of high chairs and baby-friendly food options, not to mention the staff were fantastic at coming over to see if we needed anything, and even entertaining our little one.
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As for the theme parks themselves? I was pleasantly surprised to discover that there are actually heaps of rides and attractions which you can take a baby on. (The Disneyland Paris website has a handy list of everything on offer for babies, if you want to take a look). One real highlight included the Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast - a huge amount of fun for adults, and a sensory experience for the baby. Spider-Man W.E.B Adventure was also a surprise; although you do get thrown about a bit so it's not one I'd have taken our baby on if he wasn't in full control of his head!
However, avoid the Phantom Manor - we thought it was going to be lighthearted and fun, which it is for adults and older kids, but it's spookier than I remembered, and it was definitely one where we had to have a little break and snuggle with the baby afterwards.
I've listed out all the rides we did with our baby below:
Disneyland Park
Peter Pan's Flight
It's A Small World
Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast
Casey Jr - Le Petit Train du Cirque
Le Pays des Contes de Fées
Phantom Manor
Walt Disney Studios Park
Flying Carpets over Agrabah
Remy's Ratatouille Adventure
Spider-Man W.E.B Adventure
As for the rides where you can't take a baby such as Hyperspace Mountain or Avengers Assemble, Disneyland Paris has a brilliant service called 'Rider Switch'. Essentially, one of you queues for the ride, while the other can roam around the park nearby with the baby. Once the first parent has ridden, they can ask the staff members at the exit for a password. You then come out of the ride, give your partner the password, and they can head straight in through the exit or fast pass queue, so they can ride without having to go through the queue again! It's a huge timesaver and means you don't need to miss out on the rides that are very much for thrill-seekers.
We also decided to splurge and opt for the fast pass option, Disney Premier Access. You can choose between paying for specific rides and having timeslots to join the queues, or the 'Ultimate' option where you can rock up at any point in the day to do a ride (you can use it once per ride each day). Honestly when you have a baby this is so worth it, as it cuts down how much time you're waiting around for rides, with the maximum time we waited being about 10 minutes. With a 10-month-old, that made a huge difference when it came to trying to plan around nap and feeding schedules, and gave us real breathing space to enjoy the parks.
There was something extra magical about a Disney holiday with a baby; we had so much fun, he had the ultimate sensory getaway, and by the end of the four days, we didn't want to take our Mickey Ears off to head home. We even made it to the fireworks one night when all the excitement was so much that he actually fell asleep in his pram!
So no, he won't remember the trip, but this time it wasn't really about him; and if anything, it's made us even more excited for the day we return when he will be a little bit older...
Extra tips
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If you can, go out of season. We went in March when the parks are a little quieter, and made the most of these last few years we have before we're tied to term-time dates.
Noise-muffling headphones were a game changer when the noise from the parades, fireworks, music and rides were a bit too much for the baby, or when we were trying to get him down for a nap.
We opted for the Half Board meal plan and it made our lives so much easier; we opted to use the plan for a table service restaurant every day, so we all could have a bit of a break from the crowds, and there was a guaranteed spot with a high chair and baby food. We couldn't believe the choice we had at each restaurant - it also meant we could budget as most of our meals were sorted before we'd even arrived. All the staff were fantastic, and they even offer you baby purees if you've forgotten some weaning snacks.
Take a change bag for the queues! There is pram parking at every ride but if you do find yourself in a longer queue, you'll be grateful that you have snacks/water/emergency toys for distracting the baby with you.
Travelling by train? We booked the Disney Express Luggage service for an extra €18 each, and it was absolutely worth it. You can leave your bag with them at the station and pick up your tickets to maximise park time, then your bags are at your hotel when you're ready to check-in. It was equally useful on the way back out; all our luggage was left at our hotel but was at the station by the time we headed to get our train, so we could really enjoy the last park day stress-free.
We booked a 3-night/4-day package with Disney Holidays, which included transport, a Disney hotel, breakfast and our park tickets for every day, which came in at around £1,800 including the Half Board meal plan. The luggage service and fast passes came with extra costs. You can find out more on disneyholidays.co.uk/disneyland-paris