Disney Hotels

The resort hotels generally feature rooms with twin double beds or one King-size bed (confirm details when booking), en-suite shower/bathroom, TV, etc. A variety of TV channels are available in several languages, plus a Disney movie channel and a number of in-house information channels telling you about the park: channel 2 is French/English, channel 3 is Dutch/German and channel 4 is Italian/Spanish. Channel 1 is text-TV.

Hotel check-in is from 3pm, check-out before 11am. There are storage facilities for your luggage if you wish to arrive or depart outside of those times. If you require express checkout (assuming you are paying by credit card) your bill will be hung on your doorknob on the morning of your departure. If you check and agree with it there is no need to return to the Front Desk, just walk out and the bill will be automatically charged to your credit card. Note: unless you make special arrangements, your room key will cease to function at 11am on the morning of departure.

Hotel residents can also take advantage of a special 'charge card' system. When you check in and give the receptionist your credit card details, you will be given a personal card which can be used to charge any purchases made in the park or Disney Village (except Planet Hollywood) directly to your room account. You will pay just one bill for everything upon your departure. Purchases can also be sent back to your hotel, to avoid you having to carry all your shopping around with you.

Each hotel has at least one themed restaurant, but beware long queues during peak periods, especially at the larger hotels.

Hotel Disneyland (Four stars)

Actually the smallest hotel on site, but by far the most luxurious. Even if you don't stay here, pay a visit and soak up the atmosphere in the massive entrance lobby, or experience the relaxing lounge bars and restaurants upstairs, overlooking Main Street. Character breakfasts are available at this hotel.

Situated over the entrance to the park, the best rooms (known as Castle Club rooms) have a wonderful view right down Main Street to the castle. If you can afford it, stay here, right in the heart of the magic. Kids will love it! Very highly Recommended.

Parking at the Disneyland Hotel is FFr 50 per day, unless you're an Annual Plus passholder.

• 521 "fairytale" rooms (including 21 suites and 11 rooms for the handicapped)
• Rooms have mini-bar and air conditioning
• Indoor heated pool with whirlpool and saunas (free)
• Health club
• Mad Hatter's games room
• Laundry and dry cleaning service
• Baby-sitting service in room
• Three restaurants:
  Café Fantasia (great for breakfast)
  Inventions (wonderful buffet-style eating. Recommended)
  California Grill (includes The Wine Cellar private dining room)
• Main Street Cocktail Lounge (overlooks the park)
• The Founders Club (hospitality suite dedicated to corporate participants)
• "Character meals" and "Birthday Cake character meals"
• Shop: Galerie Mickey
• Telephone: (+33 1) 60 45 65 00
  Fax: (+33 1) 60 45 65 33

Hotel New York (Four stars)

Situated on Lake Disney, just past the Disney Village complex, this is the second-closest hotel to the park (5-10 minutes walk). Themed on the 1930's New York skyline, this hotel has a very 'art deco' feel to it. It has a lot in common with the Walt Disney World Swan/Dolphin resorts (not surprising; same designer). Very plush, but rather cold and lacking in Disney charm. Remember to request a lakeside view if you want one. Adjoins a large conference centre.

Ian Grey comments: "Whilst in the Parkside Diner, the servers occasionally karaoke along to numbers from Grease. The Empire State Burgers are very filling and good value (for DLP)."

Peter Donatsch (100065.2122@compuserve.com) comments on his stay at the New York: "The room was spacious and had a king size bed and a convertible settee. If you decide to have breakfast in your room (FF95 per person) have a paper bag ready for all the very fine bakery you won't be able to eat - your children will appreciate it. The Manhattan restaurant is a little more expensive than the Parkside Diner but it is worth the difference. Reserving a table in advance is strongly recommended if you do not fancy waiting an hour or more and if you want to avoid the rather noisy Parkside Diner."

Note: each room contains a 'Minitel' terminal. This is the France Telecom personal comms system, originally designed to provide all their customers with up-to-date directory information without the need to print new phone books every year. These days the system is much expanded to provide access to information services, shopping and booking systems, etc. The hardware is a very slow and antiquated by modern comms standards, and there is an hourly charge for using it. There used to be a link which allowed users to send Internet e-mail, for which the access code was "3614 CALVACOM", but apparently that system no longer operates since Calvacom have set up their own online service.

• 574 rooms (inc 36 suites and 13 rooms for the handicapped)
• Rooms have Minitel terminals, mini-bar and air conditioning
• Indoor & outdoor heated pools
• Health club
• Two tennis courts
• Rockefeller Plaza open-air skating rink (used to be winter only, now open all year round); often features weekend skating sessions with Disney characters. Costs FFr 50 for adults, FFr 40 for children.
• Beauty salon/barbers shop
• Times Square games room
• Laundry and dry cleaning service
• Baby-sitting service in room
• New York Coliseum Convention Centre with 4,000 sq. feet of meeting space
• Restaurants: Parkside Diner and Manhattan Restaurant
• Bar/Lounges: Manhattan Jazz Club, 57th Street Bar, Pool Bar
• Shop: New York Boutique
• Free water taxi rides to the Newport Bay Club
• Telephone: (+33 1) 60 45 73 00
  Fax: (+33 1) 60 45 73 33

Newport Bay Club (Three stars)

Themed after a turn-of-the-century New England resort, the Newport Bay Club is also on the shores of Lake Disney, about 10-15 minutes walk from the park. Some rooms sleep six (may now be discontinued or renamed as "family rooms"). Remember to request a lakeside view if you want one. One of the quieter, more romantic hotels, with great atmosphere. Recommended.

One minor note of dissent from Margery Wilson (WILS@MED.MIT.EDU): I visited the park in the summer of '94. We stayed in the Newport Bay Club, and I was surprised (dismayed!) to discover that there were no bellmen nor trolleys available. As you know, the hotel is huge, and we were heavily laden with luggage and had to haul it several miles (so it seemed!) from the train to the bus, then from the bus to the hotel, then from the hotel lobby to our rooms.

• 1098 rooms (inc 15 suites and 23 rooms for the handicapped)
• Rooms have mini-bar and air conditioning
• Four convertible conference rooms totalling 687 sq. feet
• Nantucket Pool: Indoor & outdoor heated pool
• Health club
• Croquet Field
• Children's Playground
• Sea Horse Club games room
• Laundry and dry cleaning service
• Baby-sitting service in room
• Convention Centre with 1,800 sq. metres of meeting space and 3,000 sq. metres of exhibition area

• Two restaurants: Yacht Club and Cape Cod
• Bar/Lounge: Fisherman's Wharf
• Shop: Bay Boutique
• Free water taxi rides to the Hotel New York
• Telephone: (+33 1) 60 45 55 00
  Fax: (+33 1) 60 45 55 33

Sequoia Lodge (Three stars)

Themed on a Rocky Mountain hunters' lodge, this hotel is located beside Lake Disney. Five separate accommodation blocks spread out from the main building, so you might prefer to request rooms in the main lodge, perhaps with a lakeside view if you want one. The roaring log fire in the lounge area would be great in winter. About 10-15 minutes walk from the park. Recommended, especially if you've got kids.

• 1011 rooms (inc 14 suites and 21 rooms for the handicapped)
• All rooms have mini-bar and air conditioning
• Two meeting rooms, totalling 450 sq. feet
• Quarry Pool: Indoor & outdoor heated pool, with slides, etc.
• Health club
• Children's Playground
• Kit Carson's Arcade Game Room
• Laundry and dry cleaning service
• Two restaurants: Hunter's Grill and Beaver Creek Tavern
• Redwood Bar and Lounge
• Shop: Northwest Passage
• Telephone: (+33 1) 60 45 51 00
  Fax: (+33 1) 60 45 51 33

Hotel Cheyenne (Two stars)

Inventively themed as a wild west town, the hotel rooms are located in dozens of out-buildings so you might find yourself sleeping above the 'bank' or 'saloon'. Great for the kids; the only site hotel which features rooms with bunk beds. No pool. 15-20 minutes walk from park.

• 1000 rooms (inc 21 rooms for the handicapped)
• All rooms have one double and two bunk beds
• Rooms no longer have mini-bars
• Fort Apache and The Coral children's playgrounds
• Nevada games room
• Baby-sitting service in room
• Laundry and dry cleaning service
• Restaurant: Chuck Wagon Cafe (9 themed 'food stores' laid out along the town's main street).
• Bar/Lounge: Red Garter Saloon
• Shop: General Store
• Telephone: (+33 1) 60 45 62 00
  Fax: (+33 1) 60 45 62 33

Hotel Santa Fe (Two stars)

The cheapest and most basic hotel, supposedly with a New Mexico theme. This doesn't quite work, and it looks more like an unfinished building site - and the entrance driveway is incredibly tacky, albeit intentionally in places. Guest accommodation is spread out from the main reception building in 42 'pueblos'. No pool. 15-20 minutes walk from park. Avoid, unless you're on a real shoestring budget (or you're desperate to see the erupting volcano, or the drive-in movie screen)

Report from Roy Turner (rturner@netcom.com): It is a bit plain, not fancy at all, but the rooms are fine. Easy walk to the park, or there is a shuttle. There is only one on-site food facility, which is themed as (guess what) southwest 'Mexican' food. We ate there several times, and got real tired of it. There are only a few items on the menu. But all in all, it was good value for the money (compared to the rest of the hotels).

Julia Mueller (sister of Felix Mueller, FeLIX@mst.e-technik.uni-dortmund.de) really enjoyed her stay at the Santa Fe, and comments: The hotel Santa Fe is the cheapest hotel at DLP, but is in no way ugly or uncomfortable. I felt really set into New Mexico because of the stony buildings (pueblos), the sandy ground, the desert plants and so on. In the Rio Grande Bar there was live entertainment, and outside the lighting of the buildings was very well chosen. There are also nice illuminated symbols for the 4 different areas. The rooms are beautiful and contain everything you need (TV, ventilator, well equipped bathroom, two big French beds), especially for the low price! I know it is a bit far from the park (10-15 min), especially after a whole day spent walking, but the path next to the Rio Grande is good to walk along and you have a nice view of the other hotels (Sequoia Lodge and the others set around Lake Disney). Apropos the nice view, there are some buildings at the Santa Fe upon which you can climb to take photos of the Cheyenne and a bit of the park - especially Space Mountain. All in all it is a very beautiful hotel and I highly recommend it.

Matt Robinson (Matt@machine.demon.co.uk) reports: For cheap drinks, I strongly recommend walking the short distance from the hotel to the Esso garage. We got 1.5 litres of mineral water for FFr 3.90 (as opposed to FFr 10 for half a litre inside the park). This garage also sells beer and canned soft drinks, as well as a range of cheapish sandwiches.

• 1000 rooms (inc 21 rooms for the handicapped)
• Rooms no longer have mini-bars
• Totem Circle Children's Playground ("Anasazi Ruins")
• Pow Wow games room
• Baby-sitting service in room
• Laundry and dry cleaning service
• Restaurant: La Cantina
• Bar/Lounge: Rio Grade Bar
• Shop: Trading Post
• Telephone: (+33 1) 60 45 78 00
  Fax: (+33 1) 60 45 78 33

Davy Crockett Ranch

About 15 minutes drive from the park, the Davy Crockett Ranch is themed as a wilderness hideaway. The 4 or 6 person log cabins (do make sure you specify which you need) have all the luxuries of home, though, or there are campsite facilities for those who wish to take their own tents. Great activities for the kids, but too far away from the park to consider if you don't have your own transport. Please note: there is no free bus service from the Davy Crockett Ranch to the park.

Report from Olav Geisser (Fidonet 2:246/1401.52): Davy Crockett Ranch is located in a very nice forest and each bungalow is equipped with everything you need: Outside there is a grill and a wooden table, with connectors for electricity and water for a caravan. Inside the bungalow it's better equipped than usual apartments in Europe! We had a coffee maker, microwave, dishwasher, refrigerator with prepared ice inside the freezer, and every kind of kitchen utensil. At the check-in we received a 'welcome basket' which contained coffee, tee, milk, sugar and a packet of cookies.

Report from Ian Parkinson (I.W.Parkinson@bms.salford.ac.uk): The on-site shop (Alamo Trading Post) was extremely expensive for day-to-day groceries - prices were up to three times what we would normally pay in England! Far better to go to the supermarket about ten minutes drive away. Called INTERMARCHE, it is in the town of Montevrain. From the camp, take the first exit at the roundabout, following the signs for Lagny. After about three miles, turn right at the crossroads, signposted Montevrain. The supermarket is on the other side of the town, which is quite a small place. The supermarket is very similar to English ones in terms of size, layout, food range, and most importantly, price. Typical comparison; Cornflakes FFr 8 here, FFr 18 on-site. Their service station also sells the cheapest petrol in the area.

Matt Robinson (Matt@machine.demon.co.uk) comments: The thing I liked the most was when we arrived we were given a "welcome basket" which was very considerate. It contained 2 french sticks (baguettes), leaflets, noodles, and other stuff - a full meal for at least 5 people, and we were only 3.

Bicycle/etc rentals are available:

Adult: FFr 35 per day (FFr 150 deposit)
Child: FFr 25 per day (FFr 150 deposit)
Quad (4 seater): FFr 85 per day (FFr ??? deposit)
Electric Golf Cart: FFr 150 per day (FFr 1000 deposit)

• 498 cabins for 4 or 6 people (confirm which you need when booking) plus 97 camp sites - you can even rent a tee-pee!
• All cabins feature bath, TV, telephone, heating and daily housekeeping service
• 4-person cabins have one double bed and a fold-away bed in the living area. 6-person cabins additionally contain twin bunk beds
• Kitchenette area: cooker, oven, fridge/freezer, microwave, dishwasher, plus an outdoor BBQ grill
• Comfort stations with shower, laundry, etc.
• Blue Springs Pool: Excellent large indoor heated pool with slides, river, whirlpool, etc - by the far the best pool at the resort.
• Outdoor tennis courts and sports fields
• Outdoor activities such as Jogging Trails, Mountain Bikes, Archery, Indian Camp and Horseback Riding
• Davy's farm: children's playground, petting farm and pony rides
• Arcade games room
• Bowie's Bike Barn: bicycle and minicar rentals
• Restaurant: Crockett's Tavern
• Shop: Alamo Trading Post
• Telephone: (+33 1) 60 45 69 00
  Fax: (+33 1) 60 45 69 33 (to be confirmed)

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