Where you stay can have a bigger impact on a Disneyland Paris trip than you might expect. Staying at a Disney Hotel puts you close to the parks, gives you access to benefits such as Extra Magic Time and keeps you inside the Disney bubble for a little longer.
Staying off site can mean more space, more flexibility and, sometimes, a very significant saving. We have done both, and we do not think there is one option that is always better.
For us, it comes down to the price difference, the length of the trip and what we actually want from the hotel. Here is how we decide whether staying at Disney is worth paying extra for.
There is no Winner
We use both. The right answer changes with price, trip length, room needs and what we want from that particular visit.
Why stay at a Disney Hotel?
Most of the Disney Hotels are within walking distance of the parks, so you can leave the room in the morning and stay inside the Disney bubble until you return at night. We really like that feeling, particularly on shorter trips when we want every part of the stay to feel like Disneyland Paris.
There are practical benefits too.
Depending on your booking, these can include Extra Magic Time, when hotel guests can enter the parks before the general opening time.
That extra hour can be genuinely useful. We often use it to get one or two of the most popular attractions done before the main crowds arrive.
Why stay off site?
For us, the biggest reasons are price, space and flexibility.
There are plenty of hotels close to Disneyland Paris, and some can cost substantially less than staying on site. That saving can be difficult to ignore, particularly on a longer holiday or when the difference would pay for meals, Premier Access or another night away. You can also sometimes get much more room for your money.
This really matters to us. A larger room, separate sleeping areas or simply a little more space at the end of a long park day can make a bigger difference than you might expect.
We particularly like Val d’Europe as an off-site base. You are still extremely close to Disneyland Paris, with straightforward transport into the resort, but you also have restaurants, shops and supermarkets nearby.
The trade-off is that you lose some of the convenience and atmosphere of staying at Disney. Once you leave the parks at night, the Disney part of the day really is over. For some people that will not matter at all. For others, it is a surprisingly important part of the holiday.
How We Choose
We never compare the hotels on price alone. We look at the actual difference in cost and ask what we are getting for the extra money.
If staying at Disney costs a little more and gives us Extra Magic Time, an easy walk to the parks and a hotel we really want to experience, we may decide it is worth paying. If the difference is hundreds of pounds and we can stay somewhere comfortable ten minutes away, the decision can look very different.
We normally compare:
- the total price of the stay
- walking time or transport into Disneyland Paris
- room size and sleeping arrangements
- breakfast and other hotel facilities
- whether Extra Magic Time matters to us
- how much time we expect to spend at the hotel
- how long the trip is
A two-night Disney break and a six-night family holiday are very different things.
What Would we Choose?
What we would do, doesn’t really matter… But…If money were no object, we would probably stay at a Disney Hotel more often. There is something lovely about walking out of the parks at night and still feeling as though you are part of Disneyland Paris.
But we would never stretch the holiday budget just to say we had stayed on site. We have had great trips doing both, and a good off-site hotel does not make Disneyland Paris any less magical.
Our advice is to price both properly before you book. Sometimes the Disney option is surprisingly close. Sometimes the difference is enormous. And when it is enormous, we would much rather keep the extra money for the holiday itself.
Use our Simple tool to help guide you based on what’s important to you!
Let’s find the right option for you
We’ll ask you 10 simple questions, one at a time. Answer honestly and we’ll recommend whether a Disney Hotel or an off-site hotel is likely to suit your trip better.
