We love Disney holidays but the word budget and Disney rarely go together. We have learnt over the years how to find prices for Disney holidays that are within our budget. Having to stick to school holidays we have searched for numerous ways to book a budget Disneyland Paris trip. These are the options we research when booking a trip to Disneyland Paris*.
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We love sharing our Disneyland Paris adventures on our blog. Make sure you visit our Disneyland Paris Trips and Experiences post to read all about them.
Plan An Off-Peak Visit To Disneyland Paris
If you don’t have to stick to school holidays planning an off-peak visit to Disneyland Paris is easier. The best time to plan an off-peak visit would be in school term time staying midweek. Remembering to avoid any French and possibly Spanish public holidays too. Avoiding seasonal events also helps to keep costs down. But you might want to see the Halloween or Christmas decorations. So remember that visiting during these times will increase the costs.
- Tip: If you want to see the Halloween decorations visit as soon as the Disney Halloween Festival* starts as hotel prices will be cheaper. The same goes for visiting Disney’s Enchanted Christmas*. But for Christmas, the first week of January before the decorations come down is also a cheaper time to visit.
What If You Need To Stick To The School Holidays?
The February half-term is usually the cheapest school holiday to visit in. It can be busy as it can sometimes coincide with the French school holidays. May is typically a quieter month to visit as European schools don’t usually share this holiday with the UK. Don’t rule out visiting Disneyland Paris in the summer holidays. We have found that the last week of July can be more affordable than visiting in August.
Book Your Disneyland Paris Hotel Early
If you know you want to go to Disneyland Paris and stay at an on-site hotel* book as early as possible. As soon as your preferred travel dates are released if possible. The best prices can always be found the earlier you book. Since the coronavirus stuck Disneyland Paris has offered some very good booking terms and conditions. Booking earlier also helps with budgeting your holiday savings. You can even pay in instalments* which really helps when planning your budget Disneyland Paris trip.
Choose Your Arrival Day Carefully
The day you arrive can really make a difference to the cost of your holiday. Arriving on a Friday will normally cost you more than arriving on a Monday or a Tuesday. The Disneyland Paris website has a price estimate calendar* that can help you work out the cheapest day to check-in.
Don’t Check In To Your Disney Hotel On Your Travel Day
This might sound like madness and I think it definitely depends on when and how you travel to Disneyland Paris* but not checking into your Disney Hotel on your travel day can really help with costs. We have travelled on the direct Eurostar arriving at Disneyland Paris just after lunch. From the train station, we headed straight to the parks. So this would not have been a good option for us then. But if you are driving checking in the next day might be an option for you.
When you book an onsite Disney hotel park tickets* are included with your stay. So if you book a two-night stay you have three-day park passes. It takes us five hours to drive to Disneyland Paris without stopping. Booking the Eurotunnel for the middle of the day is normally the cheapest option. So by the time we arrive, the parks are probably closing in a few hours or already closed depending on the time of year. That means the arrival day park passes are wasted.
We have found that booking a local off-site hotel for the night of our travel day and then checking into our Disney Hotel first thing the next morning is very cost-effective. Not only do we get a full day in the Disney parks. It might even be possible to extend our stay by a night or upgrade the hotel we stay in. On our last trip to Disneyland Pairs, we stayed in Novotel Marne Vallee Collegien on our travel day. We have also looked at booking a room-only option for our Disney Hotel on Expedia* but didn’t find the rates very competitive.
Think About What You Need From Your Disneyland Paris Onsite Hotel?
It is easy to get caught up with all the options that the Disneyland Pairs hotels* have to offer. But really think about your needs during your trip. If you are visiting in the winter months do you really need a hotel with a swimming pool? Visiting in the summer will you actually have time to go swimming?
If you have no issues walking will the value hotels be a better option being a little further away from the parks? If you book a club-level room will you actually go back to the hotel during the day to use the extra perks? At the end of the day, how many times have you heard someone say you only sleep at your hotel? Think about if you really need the extras that are costing you extra money.
Stay At An Off-Site Hotel
We always stay at onsite Disney Hotels as it makes our holiday easier for us as an autism family. We like to be able to walk to the parks. But staying at an off-site hotel can really help you book a budget Disneyland Paris trip. Disneyland Paris has partner hotels* that they work with. They can offer shuttles to the parks as well as giving you free car parking at the parks. Staying at Les Villages Nature Paris is also a nice option that gives you self-catering accommodation and a short drive to Disneyland Paris. But if you book to stay there through the Disneyland Paris website you only get two park days included in your stay.
Book All Aspects Of Your Budget Disneyland Paris Trip Yourself – A DIY Booking
I usually find that booking all aspects of the holiday myself works out cheaper than booking it all in a package. If you do book the elements of the holiday yourself make sure that your travel insurance covers that type of booking. Travel insurance covers different things depending on the policy you choose, so this is really important. Don’t forget to use a cashback site when booking as all cashback can go towards the holiday fund. I use TopCashback* for all of our purchases.
Compare Disneyland Hotel and Park Tickets Package Prices
This is the part of the trip that I book as a package. When I know what dates we want to visit and I have used the price estimate calendar* to work out the best day to arrive at the Disneyland Pairs hotel I do a bit more searching.
I visit Magic Breaks* and search for our dates. Their search results list all of the Disney Hotels, all the available rooms and the price. I like this as sometimes you might be surprised to find that some of the more expensive hotels have rooms more affordable than the cheaper options. In the past, we have worked out that a Golden Forest Club Level Room at Disney’s Sequoia Lodge was a more affordable option than booking a normal room and adding a breakfast meal plan*.
When I have the hotel and price I want I then compare the price on the official Disneyland Paris website* and also the French version of the Disneyland Paris website – disneylandparis.com/fr-fr. Sometimes paying in euros on the French site can work out cheaper.
- Tip: If booking via the French website we use a Halifax Clarity Credit Card that doesn’t charge any foreign transaction fees on Euro purchases.
Buy Dated Entrance Tickets If Booking Your Own Off-Site Hotel
You have two options when buying tickets*, dated or undated. Dated tickets are to be used on the date you state. But they have the flexibility of cancelling them up to three days before arrival. Undated tickets still have to be registered for admittance but you have a year to choose the date you visit. Dated tickets are the cheapest ticket option to purchase. Also buying tickets without the hopper option will really help your budget Disneyland Paris trip.
- Tip: You can buy tickets directly from the Disneyland Paris website* but sometimes ticket sites like Attraction Tickets* can offer you extras when booking with them.
Book Les Villages Nature Paris Directly and Purchase Tickets Separately
We really enjoyed our weekend stay at Les Villages Nature Paris but if you book your stay through the Disneyland Pairs website they only give you two days’ park tickets. I would recommend booking Les Villages Nature Paris directly as they do have regular offers on their website. Booking early will sometimes also get you an early booking discount. As well as free cottage location preference and an activities gift card. Then book your park tickets separately* giving you more control over the days you go. I would factor in having to pay for parking at Disneyland Pairs if you book this way.
Does Adding A Disney Meal Plan Help When Booking A Budget Disneyland Paris Trip?
We have visited Disneyland Paris both with and without Disney meal plans*. I think if you need it or not really depends on what you want to do during your time in the parks. If you want a full sit-down meal every night then it can be a good option. But you might be restricted to eating in the hotel restaurants during off-peak times unless you have a sit-down meal at lunch. This is because some of the park restaurants close early if the parks aren’t open late.
We always add on the breakfast plan as we like to have full tummies before leaving the hotel. This can then mean we eat a later lunch and then snack in the evening. Booking the breakfast plan also means upgrading to a character breakfast at Plaza Gardens Restaurant doesn’t cost that much more. I think it was £50 on our last trip.
Booking a meal plan* helps you budget but you should book your restaurant tables as soon as you can as they book up quickly. When we book last-minute trips to Disneyland Pairs I tend not to add a meal plan for this reason. Sometimes a go-with-the-flow day works better for us.
We love sharing our Disneyland Paris adventures on our blog. Make sure you visit our Disneyland Paris Trips and Experiences post to read all about them.
DISCLOSURE – This is a collaborative post.
Books to help you plan your trip…