25+ Disneyland Paris Top Tips for Families

Visiting Disneyland Paris should be an unforgettable experience for the whole family, filled with magic and fun – especially when you’re visiting with kids. In this post we run through over 25 of our Disneyland Paris top tips for families that we’ve gathered over years of visiting with young children.

From what to add to your packing list to what to expect when you’re there, our tips will help you plan your trip to Disneyland Paris and keep everyone happy. Whether you’re a first-time visitor or a seasoned Disney enthusiast, we’re here to help you make the most of your visit. With so much to do and normally not that much time to visit, some insider knowledge ensures that you make the most out of every second!

This site contains product affiliate links. We may receive a commission if you make a purchase after clicking on one of these links.

What’s in this post?

Here’s all of our top tips for families visiting Disneyland Paris, click on one to be taken straight to that section in the post or keep reading to read about all of them. 

25+ Disneyland Paris Top Tips for Families

Research the different types of tickets

When you go to buy your Disneyland Paris tickets it can be confusing sorting through all of the options. There’s 1 or 2 parks, a different number of days, and dated or undated tickets. I’d recommend to book directly on the Disneyland Paris website, they normally offer the best price and you pay for a package that includes the tickets.

Download the official Disneyland Paris mobile app

The Disneyland Paris app is key to getting around the park and we would have been lost without it. Everything you need is on there including locations and timings of rides, queues, shows, characters, food places, and parades.

Be flexible on when, where and what you eat

You may have to give up your routine while you’re at Disneyland, in fact, you’ll have a better trip if you do! It’s easier to fit your schedule around the queue, show and parade times so you don’t miss anything. We found it easier to snack more frequently throughout the day and eating when we felt hungry rather than having three big meals.

Take a midday nap

These are long days with early mornings and late nights so its a good idea to have a rest during the day, especially if you have young children. We always go back to our room when we stay onsite to get the kids down for a nap and refresh ourselves for the rest of the day.

Don’t dress up as an adult

Disneyland have very strict rules about dressing up as an adult. Children are fine (and kind of expected) to dress up but as an adult it’s a clear no go. This makes sense from a reputation stand point but also for the safety of all younger guests who visit. Some adults do Disneybounding, this involves being inspired by a character with your clothes rather than dressing up with an exact likeness. For instance, wearing a particular colour, pattern or item of clothing.

Make a plan of action

There’s loads to see and do so to make the most of your visit you should have a plan of action, even if it’s just a plan for your first day. If you’re not sure where to start then take a look at our one day Disneyland Paris itinerary.

Bring a power bank

As I said above, these are long days and you won’t have an opportunity to charge your phone unless you can go back to your room. With so much to see and all that magic you won’t want to miss a single moment or get lost with no map!

Take a reusable water bottle

Drinks on the Disneyland parks are super expensive! When you’re buying drinks for the whole family it can easily add to the expense of the holiday. To overcame this cost take a reusable water bottle and make use of one of the many water stations dotted around the parks.

Don’t overlook the shows

Disney is all about the rides and characters and I understand why, but a lot of people overlook the shows. This is a mistake as the shaws at Disneyland are awesome! You can buy a ticket if you want a guaranteed seat or join the queue 30 – 60 minutes before the show starts and try your luck at getting in for free. We’ve always been lucky and gotten a free seat but you do run the risk of getting turned away if they’re full.

Stay nearby the day before and after your visit

When you stay onsite at a Disney hotel you get the day of your arrival and day of departure included in your park tickets, spending half of these days (if not more) travelling is a waste of extra ride time. If you can afford to arrive the day before your Disneyland stay to get to the park at 8am. Then on your last day you can leave as late as you because you only need to travel up the road to your hotel.

B&B Hôtel près de Disneyland Paris is a budget option that is close to Disneyland Paris with a free shuttle to the park. It hits all the plus points with free WiFi, family rooms and free breakfast

Book B&B Hôtel près de Disneyland Paris here

Make the most of Early Magic Hour

Disneyland is busy most of the time but for an hour a day its slightly less busy! This is during early Magic hour which is when the park opens an hour earlier than the normal opening time for Disney hotel guests only. If you’re staying at a Disneyland Hotel make the most of it and try to get to the front of the queue before everyone else. If you’re not sure where to start when planning where to head in your Early Magic Hour then take a look at our list of the best rides for kids and toddler rides at Disneyland Paris.

Find a good spot early for the parades and fireworks

The parade and fireworks are the two times a day at Disneyland that nearly every single person on the Disney resort is together in one place. This means it gets ridiculously busy – honestly, if you hate crowds stand at the top of Main Street for the fireworks. To get one of the best spots you’ll need to get into position early. For the parade 20 – 30 minutes is fine but you need to find your spot at least an hour before the fireworks, ideally 90 minutes.

Visit in the summer months

The park is open later in the summer months meaning you get more ride time. It can also sometimes be cheaper than other times of the year, we’ve gotten a better deal in August than April.

Find a nearby supermarket

Snacks and drinks are really expensive at Disneyland Paris so head to a nearby supermarket to grab plenty of snacks for your hotel room. You can still enjoy some of the awesome food at Disneyland but it will help your budget it if you supplement them with pre-bought snacks.

Pack a baby sling/carrier

A baby slinger or carrier will come in handy if you’re travelling with a toddler and you have to queue for a ride. It’s a long time to have to carry them and they get tired quickly. Your back and arms will thank you!

Don’t worry if you don’t speak French

Although this Disneyland is in France most if not all of the employees speak some level of English – certainly enough to get by. Its always polite to try and speak the language though so l’d recommend brushing up on the basics like the numbers 1-10, do you speak English, please, thank you and hello.

Use Disney’s hands free shopping service

Part of the fun of Disneyland is getting to spend time in the shops looking at all the souvenirs. If you buy something that’s breakable, big, or you just don’t want to carry a bag around the park with you then use Disney’s hands free shopping service. This is a free service at Disneyland where you can request for your souvenirs to be taken to the shop in the Disney village, or your hotel if you’re staying onsite. Then just leave your bags in the shop and pick them up from your chosen location when you leave!

Buy Disney ears and clothing before you go

There are some souvenirs that you can’t just buy anywhere else so it makes sense that they would cost a premium to buy at Disneyland. Disney clothes, outfits and ears just aren’t one of those exclusive to Disneyland items, but they’re still priced at a premium. Save yourself some money and buy these things before you go.

Wear comfortable shoes

Make sure you pack plenty of comfortable shoes as you’ll be doing a lot of walking when you’re at Disneyland, we average 20,000 – 30,000 steps every day and that doesn’t include the time spent standing in a queue.

Stay at an onsite hotel

If you’re trying to decide if it’s worth it to stay at an onsite Disney hotel rather than staying offsite I’d recommend going for it! There are many perks to staying onsite, the main ones being the free shuttles to the park, early magic hour, and getting to meet certain characters at your hotel to avoid the queues. Our personal favourite is Hotel Cheyenne as it offers great value for money, the themeing is on point as a Wild West Town, and you get to meet Woody from Toy Story.

Be prepared to practice patience

Disneyland is the most magical place on earth and with this comes crowds, pushing and queueing. You definitely need to find your inner patience and develop a go with the flow attitude during your visit.

See the characters at your hotel

One of the perks of staying at a Disney hotel is that you can see specific characters in your hotel for a fraction of the queue time as those meets are only open to guests at that hotel. You can’t see every character there though as they’re themed depending on the hotel (Woody at Hotel Cheyenne).

Book restaurant reservations in advance

It’s recommended to book restaurant reservations as far in advance as possible as they book up quickly, especially the more popular restaurants or character dining. If there’s a restaurant that you’re desperate to book email the concierge and they can normally help even if it’s showing as fully booked online.

Bring something to keep kids busy in queues

Even if you plan your day around low queue rides they’re unlikely to be walk on so you’ll still need to queue for at least 20 minutes. it might not sound like a long time but if you keep children in a line for that long without anything to distract them it will feel like hours!

The Princess Pavilion, Mickey Mouse and Stitch have huge queues

All Disney characters are popular but the princesses, Mickey Mouse and Stitch are the most popular characters On the park. Mickey Mouse and Stitch regularly have queues of 60 minutes or more, and the queue to get into the Princess Pavilion is regularly more than 2 hours.

Get on the app early to book a superhero visit

I will never forget my sons face when he met Spiderman for the first time and something I was so grateful for as we tried when avengers campus first opened with no luck. On our last visit we were able to meet Spiderman but there’s a couple of things you need to know. You have to book and you can only do this on the app when you’re in one of the Disneyland Paris parks. Also, there’s a limit to how many people can book so get on the app as soon as the bookings open at 10am and 2pm. It’s a virtual queuing system so you request a place and you’ll be notified when it’s nearly your time slot so that you can start making your way to the avengers campus.

Disneyland Paris Top Tips for Families – Final Thoughts

Making the trip to Disneyland Paris with your family is a magical experience that you’ll never forget, but planning your magical trip can be stressful, especially if it’s your first time visiting the Disney parks. This post filled with our Disneyland Paris top tips for families is everything I wish I’d known before we went to Disneyland Paris for the first time so hopefully they’ve helped you plan your dream trip.