DESTINATIONS DISNEYLAND PARIS | THEME PARKS & ATTRACTIONS
rry Mickey h
o! Ho! Ho! Merry Christmas!” Santa’s familiar greeting booms out from nowhere, taking me by surprise. I had just arrived on
Main Street, USA, the first destination as you enter Disneyland Paris. And even though Christmas trees and decorations are everywhere, the fact that it’s daytime in mid-November, with fairly mild weather, means the experience is a little more confusing than anything else.
But it doesn’t take long to get into the Christmas spirit – this is the holiday season at Disneyland Paris, after all. Indeed, a light flutter of ‘snow’ appears as if on cue – as it does at least 12 times a day here – and the already excitable children around me start jumping up and down with their hands in the air. Overhead, fairy lights are twinkling against the shiny baubles on Mickey-shaped garlands all the way from City Hall, where a 24-metre-tall Christmas fir takes pride of place, to Sleeping Beauty’s castle. I’m told more than 1,000 decorative objects, from presents and candles to snowflakes and
travelweekly.co.uk
lights, adorn this single majestic tree alone; I haven’t tried counting them all, but suffice to say the view is pretty spectacular.
ALL THE TRIMMINGS While much of the action is concentrated around the entrance, the festive spirit permeates every corner of the park, as I discover when I make my way around. It’s the Christmas music and festive decorations I notice first, but since this is Disney, every little detail is considered. Take the gardens, for example. The parks’
horticultural team spent four days planting more than 37,000 flowers, including different shades of heather, to create festive snowflake shapes. There are also 73 smaller Christmas trees across the two parks, each covered in lights and ornaments. It means every photo you take will have something festive in it. The Disney team has also created a number of exclusive food items for the Christmas season. At sit-down spots such as the Plaza Gardens ²
25 NOVEMBER 2021
33
PICTURE: Valentin Desjardins
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52
