Travel: Time to try Disneyland Paris
This year marks the 25th anniversary of Disneyland Paris – and they’re celebrating in style, as Laura Millar found out
It’s not often I find myself lost for words, but being catapulted around a steel track at a thundering 45 miles per hour, doing endless, stomach-churning loop-the-loops, twists and turns will definitely do it. Normally, riding on a multimillion pound rollercoaster is the last thing you’d ever catch me doing. So why was I submitting myself to insane G-forces, eyes screwed shut the whole time, until the whole experience came to a merciful end? Well, I wouldn’t do this kind of thing for anyone else except... Minnie.
Minnie Mouse, that is.
On 12 April 1992, Minnie, Mickey, Goofy and all the other Disney characters packed their passports and headed to their new home, just 20 miles east of Paris, in the pretty rural region of Seine-et-Marne. Since then, they’ve been entertaining kids and adults alike, swiftly making Disneyland Paris (formerly known as EuroDisney) the most visited theme park in Europe.
Over 14 million people pass through its gates each year, and now, for the first time, I was one of them. The occasion? The park’s
25th anniversary, which is being marked with a host of new rides, stars and entertainment.
Small world
As my friends and I strolled through the security gate into Main Street USA, a recreation of an early 20th-century American town, for me, it was hard to suppress the first of several unladylike (and unadult-like) squeals: having only ever seen Disneyland on TV or in films, it was surreal being here in real life, and seeing the rows of old-timey shops and restaurants lining the street. Then I got my first glimpse of that famous multi-turreted, pink and grey castle. It’s the image that marked the start of so many treasured childhood films, from Cinderella and Bambi to Fantasia, and it catapulted me instantly back to my youth.
We started gently, with a visit to It’s a Small World (in Fantasyland, one of the main park’s five zones), possibly one of the best-known Disney rides. Strapped safely into a boat, we sailed through a colourful, animated vision of life-size dolls dressed in costumes from all over the globe, singing a catchy
theme song. It was utterly charming, and beautifully done. Rain had, alas, temporarily halted the Giant Teacups from spinning, so we took shelter on the Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Ride, another fairly lowkey ride through the classic story.
Hoping to ramp up the excitement factor, we headed for Phantom Manor in Frontierland, which promised chills galore. It’s a ghost train ride, which took us past many a skeleton, headless man and eerie spirit, but didn’t quite leave us quaking in our shoes. It was time to bring out the big guns.
Feel the Force
One of the new rides that has been created for the anniversary is HyperSpace Mountain, a revamp of the rollercoaster Space Mountain, but with a Star Wars theme. As you whirl through thin air, sheer drops on either side, you see (I’m told) incredible CGI graphics of space, Imperial TIE Fighters and Star Destroyers. I wouldn’t know, because, as I may have mentioned, I had my eyes closed the whole time. The fact that all we could hear on joining the queue were piercing screams from other riders should have been some kind of warning, but I kept telling myself that if – relatively – small children were doing it, surely I could, too? Let’s just say that my shrieks were not those of delight, but of sheer, naked terror.
However, my ordeal wasn’t over, as a friend suggested we visit the neighbouring park, Walt Disney Studios, to tackle one of the scariest rides of all: the Twilight Zone of Terror. This is based on the legend of one Halloween night at the Hollywood Tower Hotel in 1939, where five guests got into a lift which was struck by lightning – and were never seen again…
After passing through an abandoned hotel lobby and into a dark lounge, a bellboy came to take us to the lifts. Unsure what was going to happen next, I was strapped on to a metal bench, then, suddenly, we were sent hurtling up to the 13th floor, hanging there for a few seconds – with a view out over to the whole park – before plunging down almost to the ground with a lurch so fast and furious it left my stomach several floors behind. Then it happened all over again. At the end, my throat was raw from screaming but, OK, I’ll admit it was an exhilarating rush!
Animal magic
As a reward, we sought out one of the many character meeting areas, and made a beeline for Minnie. This queue was longer than any of the others, filled with adorable kids brandishing autograph books, many wearing those distinctive rounded black ears. As we reached the front, Minnie rushed forward to embrace us, grown adults, with the same gusto she’d shown the little ones, and posed prettily for photos.
The whole visit was a thrill; it was impossible not to be charmed by the attention to detail, the efforts the staff and characters go to, and the smiling faces of the young and young at heart alike. It proved that, whatever our age, we can all do with some magic in our lives.