Originally Posted By dagobert Val D'Europe got a new website and since many will not know much about the town Disney created near DLRP, I thought I'm going to open a new topic dedicated to Val D'Europe. <a href="http://www.valdeurope.com/en" target="_blank">http://www.valdeurope.com/en</a> On the website is a Google Earth picture that shows how much land belongs to Disney.
Originally Posted By u k fan As a budget traveller I love Val D'Europe. I've stayed in most of the "partner" hotels and a few others in the area. The shopping district has some good shops. Auchan is handy for supplies and often has discount DLP tickets too. If we ever need additional passes we try and stop there first!!!
Originally Posted By u k fan It looks like a really nice town an the few drives through it I've had with a nice school etc. My only criticism is that my impression is that it's mostly apartments, but that could be the norm for the area!!!
Originally Posted By davewasbaloo That is because all the housing are over in our villages of Many la Hongre and Bailly Romainvilliers. I think of the Val de Europe as a new Milton Keynes (like Springfield is all flats and shenley has the lovely houses). I love Val de Europe, especially the place de la Toscane. Great dining options at a fraction of the price of Disney with better quality food and service. I love how the mall often has live music too. Since DLP have dumbed down their restaurants for the buffet crowd, we are more likely to be found in la Terrace or place de la Toscane than the Disney village. And if you think of all the companies and nationalities that have moved to the area, this place is the closest to the real epcot as Disney has ever come. Sadly the fanboys on the WDW board rarely read about DLP. They would probably be quite interested.
Originally Posted By dagobert Dave, which restaurants can you recommend for vegetarians at Val D'Europe? Is there an Italian Restaurant as well?
Originally Posted By dagobert I think it is also very interesting that there is a SeaLife Aquarium in Val D'Europe. Isn't SeaLife owned by Merlin Entertainment, Disney's biggest compatitor in the themepark industry?
Originally Posted By davewasbaloo It is a difficult call, as we are not vegetarians. However, the Chinese is excellent, as is the Japanese place, the Italian in place de la Toscane is good, as is the Indian and Korean bbq. The tapas bar is not bad either. Del arte is your typical chain pizza and pasta kind of place. As for Sealife, yes it is owned by merlin and is ok (though one of their smaller ones). We don't go much anymore as our merlin aps let us in to all the UK Sealife centres and the one at Val d Europe is about the same size as the one at Alton Towers.
Originally Posted By dagobert Thanks, Dave. We love Indian and Chinese cuisine, maybe we should give these restaurants a try. A tapas bar is also great. We have been to a very good one in Inverness, Scotland.
Originally Posted By exp_627 Hey Dagobert, I always enjoyed the Breton restaurant "Le Menhir" at Place de la Toscane. Their specialties are galettes (think crepes, but salty) ... which come in all kinds of varieties, so I *think* you should be able to get a decent vegetarian one there, as well. And wash it down with nice bottle of cidre.
Originally Posted By Bolna ukfan, since you mention the hotels in that area, which ones would you recommend and are there anyones which you would rather avoid? I kind of like the idea of staying there because it has a little bit of infrastructure around, but isn't too far from the parks.
Originally Posted By u k fan The Marriott at the golf course is very nice, but a bit out of the way. I've stayed at the Hotel Elysee a few times. It's in a great location about 30 seconds from the RER station and even closer than that to the shopping mall. As a DLP partner hotel it has a free shuttle bus and was the only non-Disney hotel to participate in EMH. I haven't been for a while though so either is subject to change. The staff were always very friendly and it has a business/city hotel feel to it. I would say that on our last stay the rooms looked like they needed freshening up, but this was a few years ago now so it could be better (or worse). As a large family we have stayed several times in the Adagio near Le Terrasse at the far side of the mall. It has self catering apartments that are basic, but comfortable. They also have a shuttle bus (which I think is shared with the Elysee). They are convenient for the shops and restaurants (McD's for breakfast is 2 minutes away), but it's a long walk to the RER station at the end of a park day so you want to be sure to get the last bus! Also in the area I have stayed in the Residhome Apartments. Similar to the Adagio, but with a more modern design I would say they look nicer than the Adagio although when it comes to it you don't get anything different between the two. Once again they are self catering apartments, but on a smaller scale. Some rooms at the Adagio could accommodate 10 whereas at the Residhome I think 6 may be the biggest. There is no shuttle, but it is literally on top of the RER and a couple of minutes from the shops. One word of caution, we parked on the roadside instead of in the hotel carpark one night and woke up to find our back window smashed (nothing taken). Something must have been going on as the fire alarm was also set off in the hotel in the middle of the night! Residhome is part of a three hotel complex, each catering for a different market. I think one is an Ibis and I forget the third. I think of the 3 the Elysee has the edge as it's a great location and has EMH. For self-catering I'd recommend either of the others. Residhome has the slightly better location as it's near the RER, but Adagio has the shuttle so I'd probably choose based on whether DLP or Paris was my main focus. I haven't mentioned the other hotels (Explorer's, Kyriad etc.) as they're too far out to be considered part of the town IMHO). I hope this helps!!!
Originally Posted By davewasbaloo >>>Residhome is part of a three hotel complex, each catering for a different market. I think one is an Ibis and I forget the third.<<< Etap is the 3rd. Personally I love the Marriott as there are a lot of amenities (5*) so we are happy to chill out and relax. There is a chargeable shuttle and the public bus at the end of the road. we drive, so it is a non issue. we prefer the seclusion of being on the golf course as DLP can be crazy. Others find it too far away (though it is still closer to DLP than many of the WDW resorts are to their nearest parks). The beauty of Marriott is they are 2 and 3 bedroom houses with a full kitchen, laundry room, 2.5 bathrooms (one with a soaking tub), flat screen tvs and a DVD player. Also on site are 2 pools, a sauna, a turkish bath, a kids club, a bar, a gym, an internet cafe, a shop (sells food items), basketball court, football pitch and wonderful gardens. If none of the ones mentioned tempt you, I really like the Radisson SAS (also on the golf course) or the Dreamcastle. However, let me state, when I go on vacation, I am looking for something a little special given that so far this year I have spent 97 nights in hotels. There are a number of more afordable no frills options. For a couple for instance, looking for cheap and cheerful bed and shower and intend on spending all their time in the resort or the mall, then the Etap, Ibis or Kyriad are perfectly fine. For larger groups, than I have toured the apparthotels and they seem fine. If you want luxury and do not want to splash out on the DLP, then the Marriott, Radisson or Dreamcastle get my vote. Any questions, hopefully UKFAN and I have you covered.
Originally Posted By dagobert The hotel Elysee looks interesting. We are not sure yet, but next time we might stay in another hotel than Disney. We were thinking about the Vienna International Dreamcastle, but since UKFAN was fine with the Elysee we might consider that one as well. We go several times a year to Vienna and always stay in a VI hotel, but I'm not sure if you can compare a business hotel in a city with a family hotel near DLRP. We just want a hotel with a shuttle service, because we enjoy having a beer at King Ludwig's and then a car is not an option for us.
Originally Posted By davewasbaloo BTW - Buses run until about midnight: <a href="http://www.buspeps.fr/fiches_horaires/buspeps_FH50_PA.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.buspeps.fr/fiches_h...0_PA.pdf</a> And then, for the Marriott, and all the hotels in the region, there is the 34 that runs until 2am. It will get you to the Val D europe and the other partner hotels too, it just takes longer: <a href="http://www.buspeps.fr/fiches_horaires/buspeps_FH34_PA.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.buspeps.fr/fiches_h...4_PA.pdf</a>
Originally Posted By davewasbaloo Kein Problem Bolna. Oh, for fullness, the other ones worth considering are the partner hotels across from the Santa Fe. The Explorer's Hotel mainly aims at Brits - it is ok, but no frills really. The pool is fun for little ones (not a big draw for you I am guessing). The Magic Circus is functional and has an ok pool. It is of the same calibre as the Sequoia Lodge or NBC, only less themeing. It feels like a typical Holiday Inn (and it used to be - shame it still is not, I used to get many free rooms there). The Dreamcastle is a 4 star and has great service. they used to aim their service at Austrians and Germans, I am not so sure now. The Kyriad is functional, and if a pool is not too important, it is not a bad choice if you can get a good rate. You are stuck with their restaurants though. Serris (a.k.a Val de Europe) has much more to offer in terms of dining and bars. It also feels like you are in Frnace. If you opt for the Marriott - besides the main resort amenities, a 10 min walk and you are into Bailly where there is a creperie, a bistro, an indian, an italian, and a couple of bars. There is also a bakery, tabac, chemist, and a nice grovery store (not as huge or expensive as the Auchan in Serris).
Originally Posted By dagobert >>>The Dreamcastle is a 4 star and has great service. they used to aim their service at Austrians and Germans, I am not so sure now.<<< I think the VI hotels are aimed towards Germans and Austrians, because according to a German Disney board, many Germans stay there. Germans got a discount through the ADAC, the German Automobile Club, but I don't know if discount is still available.
Originally Posted By u k fan As you can tell Dave is a fan of the Marriott (as am I). We stayed there a few years ago in the off season and instead of opening up a villa large enough for our party they have us 2 smaller ones with adjoining doors which was great as it doubled the number of bathrooms and kitchens we had! The hotels I mentioned were in Val D'Europe proper so IMHO have more of the infrastructure you might be looking for. Of the 4 partner hotels just beyond Santa Fe here are my opinions. Dreamcastle - I have never stayed here. It looks lovely though. I'm not especially bothered about luxury on a Disney holiday and the competition next door is cheaper so I've never really looked into this option. The Explorer's - Never. Again. The rooms were badly furnished and poorly laid out, reception staff were rude and wanted to turn us away because we were late saying we'd have to sleep in the car park (with 2 children) and check in in the morning (it was after midnight due to delays), breakfast was a free for all which only the strongest could survive. The kids did enjoy the pool, though the fact that there's been a fatality there since our visit makes me think twice about using it again. I would rather sleep on a bench at Disney Village. Magic Circus - I haven't been to the Magic Circus since it was taken over, but it was our hotel of choice for a while. Nice theming, though not over the top and friendly staff make this a good pick. Kyriad - Probably my favourite of the bunch. It has less amenities, but lovely tasteful theming that is not in your face. If you weren't looking for it you might not notice it at all. It's visited by less families than the others and when travelling with adults I really appreciate the peace and quiet. If I can get a downstairs room, I love to open the patio doors and sit outside on a deck chair and let the world go by. I've stayed in other Kyriads and have nothing but praise for them. Without a car though you are really treating DLP as your nearest town. You can get the bus to Val D'Europe, but I don't go on holiday to start messing about with timetables etc. If it's an important part of your trip IMHO it's more convenient to stay in Val D'Europe and shuttle or RER to DLP!!!
