Poindexter Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 Hi I'm off to Disney with the wife and kids at the weekend. Does anyone have any tips for a nice stopping off place between Calais and Paris to stretch our legs and a toilet stop for the kids? we'll be going A26/A1 unless someone can sell the A16 to me as a better route? I would like to do the trip in one go as it apparently only 3hrs 20mins ish, but I think the wife and kids will have other ideas. Any other top tips for Disney Paris will be greatly appreciated. Cheers Guy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 If you are going down the A16, then the Aire de la Baie de Somme is very nice, but maybe still a bit close to Calais. I don't know the A26 too well south of Reims (or the A1) because I don't have much call to use it - if you are on the A26, watch your speed. The Gendarmes love to clock Brits with their foot down! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium DIW Posted May 22, 2013 RMweb Premium Share Posted May 22, 2013 Have a look here, the ASFA website (English version), it is a useful place to start! At about the middle of the page, click on 'Services for the Disabled - Service and Rest Areas'. It will take you to (or open up a new tab or window, depending on your browser settings) this page. Underneath the map of France on the left is a drop-down box in which all the motorways are listed. Select your motorway of choice and click 'ok'. A new window/tab/page will appear with a pdf document showing a linear diagram of the motorway selected, along with rest areas, service areas and junctions along with their locations by milepost (allright I know that they're kilometreposts but that isn't yet a proper word in English!). I used the information to compile a list of services and toilets along my intended route. Services for my two-hourly break and coffee, and toilets because of a nearly-out-of-nappies toddler. Hopefully if we are unlucky enough to visit one of the less well maintained toilet blocks, it will train said youngster in the art of waiting for the 'proper' services to appear on the horizon. I've no idea why access to this information is through the Disabled Information page, you can imagine how much time I've spent on the site and the associated motorway company sites looking for exactly that information. (By the way my favourite company site has to be SANEF because they have a map of their network in there somewhere, while I've not found the same on the others I needed to read. Oh, and they play the stream from Radio Motorway (107.7) so I can practice listening to the traffic news in French before I actually need to know what they're saying). Hope this helps! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
br2975 Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 One tip - identify the rides you want to experience most, and get the 'fastrack' tickets, available from a machine near the ride. . The tickets will have a timespan on them for when you can ride, and return then - joining the shorter queue than if you just turn up and want to ride. . Be prepared to pay ..... most evening meals in the hotels and Disney Village, generally 'all you can eat' buffets are in the region of euro28 per person - and I paid euro13 for two pints in the 'sports bar'. . If you stay in one of the Disney Resort Hotels there is a regular shuttle bus to the parks / village / railway station - however, bear in mind that unlike in the UK - 'Johnny Foreigner' has yet to grasp the art of queuing - and you may find yourself first at the bus stop, but I guarantee you will not be the first on the bus ! . I had my twin grandsons in a double buggy and lost count of the number of ankles I 'accidentally' cracked !!!!!!! . Also, don't expect the "Hi, how are you today" sickly smooth approach you receive from staff at Disney, Florida - this is France, and my experience led me to believe we (punters) were something of a nuisance, and lots gets lost 'in translation' e.g. my three year old grandsons have minor learning and communication disabilities - and one 'cast member' referred to them as 'retarded' .... cue letter to Disney HQ and apologetic response. . So we're going again next year. . Brian R Brian R Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poindexter Posted May 22, 2013 Author Share Posted May 22, 2013 ............ It will take you to (or open up a new tab or window, depending on your browser settings) this page. Hope this helps! Exactly what I was looking for, thanks. I just found the road then searched Google maps to get an idea of size and distance from start/stop point. Guy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyB Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 We did half board and ate in a range of restaurants within the park and on the resort over a 3 day visit. If you fancy a particular restaurant then book it in advance, day time, restaurant. We tried Mickey's Cafe - worth doing as you get to see a lot of the characters. Walt's restaurant on Main street has good views of the parade if you book it for around 5ish. The Blue Lagoon restaurant by the Pirates of the Caribbean ride wasn't that great, to be honest. The ride was fun though. The Frontier Cafe / Restaurant (?) was good with friendly and efficient service. Food was also good. You can buy wine and food in the mini-mart by the station, but you can't take drinks into the park. If you buy wine at the mini-mart then you can't walk them back to your hotel as they route you through bag checks. You need to catch the shuttle. The Princess meal is expensive but was good food and, again, you get to see the characters. Our children were 5 and 8 when we did the trip, so maybe the above advice about characters may not be relevant to you... Re the way-points on the route there are some good ones and some really basic ones. Sorry, can't remember which are which. We took the autoroute down as far as Charles de Gaule airport and then turned on to the ring road. This was quite busy and slow moving traffic around mid afternoon. Delayed us getting to the resort by about an hour or more, which meant that by the time we checked in, found our room and figured out about booking restaurants some that we would have liked to try were fully booked. So, if you can book restaurants in advance, then do so. Hope this helps, Andy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fat Controller Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 The coastal route via the A16 has the advantage of being free for much of it's length, and has some spectacular viaducts just after Boulogne. You will need either a decent map-reader or sat-nav when you get closer to Paris- sat-nav might be preferable to arguments. The A1 tends to be much heavier and faster traffic, with many drivers seemingly unaware of speed limits- scary stuff even when you're used to French traffic (and I've probably driven more miles on autoroutes than on motorway) The services at Baie-du-Somme are probably about 90 minutes or so into your journey; the food isn't special (but then it seldom is), but the kids can stand on the decking out the back and watch the fish. If you're crossing by Shuttle, I hope we give you a trouble-free journey; I'll be doing my bit overnight tomorrow and Friday to make sure the crews and trains are where they're needed. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poindexter Posted May 22, 2013 Author Share Posted May 22, 2013 Really good info lads, cheers. The kids are 5 and 14 (girls) if that helps for any info given. Guy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leander Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 It's worth stopping at Aire d´Assevillers Est which is about half way from Calais to DLP on the A1. It has shops, loos and several cafes and take-away food outlets and is close to Peronne and the TGV line, so passengers may indulge in some high speed train spotting en route. Bon voyage! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Tony_S Posted May 23, 2013 RMweb Gold Share Posted May 23, 2013 There are fairly frequent "Aires" with just lavatories, picnic areas and sometimes a play area. Especially useful if anyone you are taking wants a loo stop just after you have passed one of the big service areas! Tony Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Tony_S Posted May 23, 2013 RMweb Gold Share Posted May 23, 2013 I'm off to France this year (not Disneyland though, I did that some years ago, child was well behaved, his grandparents were "difficult"). I notice that there have been a few changes. I already had the headlamp deflectors, spare bulbs, reflective jacket and warning triangle. I have now also added the breathalysers (NF approved) and checked the status of my sat nav. The built in one doesn't do radar warning so is legal. The TomTom we have for our other car can be certified as legal for France. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
trisonic Posted May 23, 2013 Share Posted May 23, 2013 Less hassle going to bloody Florida - and people are nicer to you......... Best, Pete. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob D2 Posted May 25, 2013 Share Posted May 25, 2013 my experience is similar to Brian's , spot on. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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