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Adventureland Girls

Sharing our love of all things Disney

Dining in Disneyland Paris: a guide to booking

This week we were able to book our dining for our upcoming Disneyland Paris trip, and I want to share with you all that we learned as well as how our booking experience went. First off, here are the basics:

  1. Restaurants that accept reservations in Disneyland Paris can be booked 60 days in advance by telephone (+33 1 60 30 40 50 )
  2. Except breakfast. That you can book once you are on site – unless you pre-pay for a breakfast with characters when booking a room
  3. Many restaurants are only open for lunch, or are open hours that are quite different than park operating hours
  4. Many restaurants have a menu where it is a set price for the meal, or for appetizer + main course(some also with dessert)
  5. Disneyland Paris DOES offer a meal plan (1/2 board or full, at a number of “levels”)
  6. There aren’t penalties for cancelling reservations last minute unlike Disneyland CA or WDW

This is a lot of information to take in – if you’re planning a trip as we are I would recommend first getting a look at the menus which are on the Disneyland Paris site, as well as reading a few Trip Advisor reviews, and Disney blog reviews to get a feel for what restaurants offer, what they cost, and what interests your party. I would also recommend writing down the names of the places that you like and want to consider eating at.

note: on the website you’ll see some photos, find a full menu, and be able to see where the restaurant is but you can not book online, nor will you see future operating hours.

After our trip we will of course add full reviews for everything!

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Trip Planning: Working with non-planners

One question I see a lot and I happen to be at an expert with: Planning around a non-planner, and planning for a group. In this article I’m going to address the non-planner aspect including challenges, strategies, and best tips that I’ve been using for 20+ years!

The first thing to address is the trip basics:
• Agree on when you’re going/approximate duration
• Agree on the general pace/theme of trip
• Know the people and their general preferences

Before you try to plan a trip for any size group, you need to know the who/what/why aspects. Knowing some basic information is going to go a long way! For example I know thanks to 20+ years of travel with him what my husband generally enjoys and what he considers to be torture. I know what our family likes with regards to hotels and transportation, and what stresses us out. [Read more…]

Vacation Dining: Planning for a delicious trip

Once upon a time it was high noon in the Magic Kingdom, and everyone was quite hungry. While toddlers melted down in the unseasonably warm December day from hunger, their haggard parents waited in lines out the door for popular counter service (“quick” being relative…), and the crowds so thick you could barely walk. Yet the Adventureland Girls crew calmly made their way to a hostess desk where folks were being turned away without reservations.

“Flaum, Party of 4” was called within moments and we were seated inside with air conditioning, ice water, and service with a smile.

When it comes to eating well on vacation – a little planning goes a long way. Now eating well comes in all forms from cheap eats to fine dining, but the planning is what will set you apart and minimize the meltdowns, drama, and general problems that occur without. One of the big delights for our family is eating well. Street food to fine dining, new cuisines to trusted favorites – we love to eat great meals! I would estimate somewhere around 40% of my planning efforts involve finding the best choices for us, researching our fast food options, and plotting when best to make reservations. In this article I will discuss all of my best tips and practices in general for planning to eat on vacation.  [Read more…]

Planning the perfect trip: Plan for the middle ground!

How do you plan and time out the perfect day on vacation?

My goal when planning a vacation for my family is to have each and every day be memorable, fun, and something we smile about by the time we go to bed that night. What they don’t fully realize is that I spend a ridiculous amount of time planning, plotting, and thinking to make it so. Do I mind? Absolutely not I love really jumping into the trip for months ahead and envisioning how things might go, what will pair well, where we should eat well, and more. In this article I will share my tips for you as well as the planning process and suggestions for your own magical vacation days. [Read more…]

Planning the perfect Disney trip: Part 1 an introduction

One of the worst things I hear is when someone comes back from a trip and had “no idea” about major happenings at the park. What do you mean, Haunted Mansion closes before Halloween? Halloween party? Never heard of it. While we can’t all know every tiny detail that only a seasoned regular would, we can be up to date about our own trips.

To accomplish this I’d recommend reading a blog or two (hopefully ours!) – but keep it simple. Disney Parks official “Disney Parks blog” covers all the major happenings so adding 1-2 others that are reputable, report good information (not random rumors!), and have good writing that you like the style of is what to watch for. We’ll talk more about that another day.

The other thing you’re going to want to do is lay out either on paper or via computer your plans. I recommend doing a spreadsheet style for this so that you can see the days lined up back to back. Why? Well doing this you’ll catch things like “hmmm, booked 2 buffets in a row” or “whoops! Late night is next to an early morning!” and other small details that could derail your perfect trip.

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