Disneyland Paris Saturday 10 August 2013

Saturday 10 August 2013

Down for breakfast at 08:00 and see there is a sign pointing to the other breakfast rooms for Thomas Cook and Albatross. Albatross are the wholesaler we use to book the majority of our hotels and are a company I enjoy working with. On my hotel voucher, which the hotel has an exact copy, it clearly states that all correspondence towards my group must say Greys Coach Travel as the passengers don’t know who Albatross are.

The voucher also says all meals to be taken in main restaurant at tables of 2, 4 and 6. This is all to make the stay more relaxing, something I am very big on. The breakfast should also be a hot and cold buffet.

So no Greys on the sign so I go into the restaurant where most of my passengers are and give my room number and sit down to enjoy breakfast.

It transpires that five of my passengers had to go into the other room and the breakfast didn’t include anything cooked. There was also another group in there on large tables each seating ten people.

I wasn’t too impressed about this and will have a word later.                             

We leave the hotel at 09:30 for the fifteen minute journey to Disneyland and I immediately go wrong! I follow the signs to the motorway I want, the A4, but the is no slip road to join the motorway east! I spend the next five minutes driving round the block to approach from the other way where there is a slip road. I’ll know better tomorrow.

We arrive at Disney and I pay my €20 to park and then stop by the groups desk to collect our tickets. I join the short queue of drivers and couriers to await my turn at the ticket window. I don’t have to wait long and as I reach the window I hand over my voucher for our two day Hopper tickets. The man through the glass keeps reading and re-reading the voucher and then hands it back saying it is no good as there is no booking reference on it! I have a look and he is right! Bum! Albatross have a number I can call and I do this immediately and it is answered very quickly. Luckily the person on duty this weekend is Marcia, a good friend of mine who we have worked with for the last ten years.

She apologises as she boots up her computer to get me my number. I wait and wait as Marcy explains  that her computer has frozen on her! It always happens when you least need it to! So the laptop is turned on and eventually I have my number and then my tickets.

While I’m on the phone I explain about the breakfast and am assured we will all be in the restaurant tomorrow as it says on the voucher.

There aren’t too many coaches in the massive coach park and I can easily park next to the travelators that whisk people to the parks.

Everybody goes off on their happy way and once I’ve locked the coach I’m off with Wendy, Hollie, Daisy and Dot!

It’s going to be a long day!

The highlight for me is seeing the children’s faces lit up as they approach the entrance. Hollie loves it here but Daisy is super  excited and is so happy to see the Princess’s Castle it makes your heart sing.

We spend the day in Disneyland and will do the Disney Studios tomorrow.

It is busy but the queues aren’t too bad with most rides between 30 – 45 minutes.

We do a few rides including It’s a Small World which must be the happiest ride in the park, The Pirates of the Carribean Daisy’s favourite, the surprisingly dizzy Tea Cups and the Star Wars simulator which both Dot and I liked very much though it made Wendy feel sick! Daisy found this fun as well.

Add in a lot of walking and it is a tiring day.

I go back to the coach at 19:00 ready to drive back to the hotel at 20:00 and am soon joined by most of the group.

I have said I will drive back to the hotel at 20:00 and then return to the park to return again to the hotel at 23:45 allowing people the chance to see the firework display at 23:00.

I have a large group of ten people sat at the front  (a mixture of Tillmans, Woolheads and Pines!) who have stayed on for the fireworks and they come back to the coach at 23:45. I think they are a little surprised to be the only ones who stayed (so am I) but I really don’t mind waiting for them. It is their holiday and I’m here to help and enhance it and have no problem driving back late at night. Hearing how much they enjoyed their day makes me happy.

And I find my way back having to use another motorway junction (junction 12) without any problems.