2013: A year of pure Disney magic.

It's over, 2013 has left us and we are now in a brand new year. But wow, what a year it was. It was the year that Disneyland Paris told us that they were building a ride, they even named it. It was a year where exceptional events just happened, and as one event ended, an even more magical one began. There wasn't even time to ponder what would happen next.
So, let's take a look back at those past 12 months.

The year began in a reasonably quiet way, February saw the introduction of the Aristocats to the Disneyland Paris character line up with a spectacular unveiling on February 14th in a special cavalcade that ran twice in the day (Rain cancelled one of the scheduled three showings). This was followed by a weekend of character couples in Disneyland Park - but that was not all. That weekend also saw the inaugural LNB (Ligue national du basket) Leaders Cup take place in the Disney Events Arena in Disney Village, the contest which involved a number of the top French basketball teams competing in a series of knock out matches involved a few Disney touches, each match was covered live on French Sport channel Sport+ which was also shown in the Sports Bar, and saw a special celebration seeing Disney Village open until 2am in the morning. This event was hugely popular and 2014 sees a new round of matches taking place.

The end of March 2013 saw the launch of the 20th Anniversary extended celebrations, this involved a fashion show, Light'Ear launch and two new scenes added to Disney Dreams! (The Lion King and Brave replacing The Jungle Book and Mary Poppins). The ears looked beautiful when every member of the audience was wearing them, but the public would need to wait until June in order to try them out for themselves.

Then came along April which was another quiet month. May saw the Disney Dreamers Everywhere event, a series of private meet and greets were held for a special group of guests in all the Disney parks across the world - a special event indeed.  Despite the main attractions being invite only, regular day guests could meet the rare characters during the day at their special photo location. Characters in Disneyland Paris included Clara Cluck, Darkwing Duck and more.

Not too much happened in June other than the Toad Hall restaurant re-opening after a period of refurbishment, the restaurant was immensely improved. The end of the month saw the closure of Hollywood pictures in order to make way for the LEGO store. 

July saw Parcorama publish a blog about the deteriorating state of Disneyland Paris and launched a petition to Bob Iger to improve the state of things at our beloved Parisian resort. The petition reached the required number of signatures and was sent to the Walt Disney Company in Burbank amongst a high level of media attention across Europe. We also began to learn more about the Halloween festival and Christmas.

In August we learnt that the special Disney Dreams of Christmas would be a show in its own right, and would take elements from the new Disney Animation Studios film Frozen. We learnt that we'd be getting a new Christmas tree, and a new lighting ceremony that wouldn't involve characters.

September was perhaps the biggest month of the year for Disneyland Paris in 2013. The 20th Anniversary reached its conclusion, and Disneyland Paris held a What's New, What's Next event in which hotel refurbishments and new merchandising was introduced to a assembled mix of the Disneyland Paris fan websites and blogs. Ratatouille: L'Avenure Totalement Toquée de Rémy was unveiled as the Ratatouille attraction name, as well as a piece of artwork unveiled.

In October, the Halloween season was launched in Disneyland Paris which involved a new cavalcade, some new decorations and new character opportunities, this was widely regarded as a huge success for the resort. The new Disneyland Paris website was launched, which offered a cleaner design, new features and a mobile version of the site.

November was the launch of the most extensive Christmas celebrations to date, decorations from the previous year were extended and new decorations added. A beautiful new Christmas tree was unveiled with a fantastic lighting ceremony which could be viewed as a 360 degree spectacle. The big finish was a new version of Disney Dreams! named Disney Dreams of Christmas featuring Olaf, Frozen, Toy Story and many classic tales.

And that's it for Disneyland Paris 2013, it was a wonderful year, more news than action but this coming year will see many new features heading to our resort - and I for one can't wait.

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We need a Disney Christmas now...

During last years Christmas season, Disneyland Paris introduced the new Christmas Cavalcade to huge praise from the Disneyland Paris community. The short parade consisted of three floats, and many many performers along the route.

This year, the Cavalcade has been extended and improved, and whilst the improvement don't make it feel any more festive (Since it already felt incredibly festive), they do make the parade feel different enough to still call it new for this years season. If you want to experience the Cavalcade, make sure you watch our YouTube video now:


It all begins with my favourite Toy Soliders; these smiley, fun characters were always a joy to see perform, but this year, they have a new leader in Goofy.

 The jolly Christmas music fills the air, the emotion of childish happiness fills the air, people begin dancing and skipping. Many characters have been given entirely new costumes for this changed cavalcade, it's a more subtle Christmas in some respects.

For fans of the Disney characters and parades, these cavalcades provide the perfect opportunity to see many different (Occasionally rare) characters in a short space of time. Such as the surprise inclusion of Mr. and Mrs. Incredible.

Another great feature of this Cavalcade, is the chance to see those seasonal, yet much loved characters such as the Gingerbread Men.

The new found trend in the Cavlacades that Disneyland Paris has begun to produce is a high quality parade, with a lack of dead space, by 'dead space' I mean from the moment the first dancer arrives at your location, to the moment the final dancer leaves, there is no blank space. These are spectacularly filled with fun, happy dancers; something that really gives the parade a feel good factor.

The grand finale has changed from the core Disney characters of last year, to Santa Claus passing through with some very special young ducks.

As I have already alluded to, I am a huge fan of these new Cavalcades introduced to the park, they really help fill up Disneyland Park's daily schedule. I really hope they continue to grow into something even more perfect in the years to come. 

Disney's Enchanted Christmas runs from the 10th November 2013 until the 6th January 2014. The Christmas Cavalcade runs three times daily during this period. Check the programme available at the Park entrances for exact timings.

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Believing in the power of a wish

Quand on prie la bonne étoile, La Fée bleu secoue son voile, anything thing your heart desires will come to you. 

One of the highlights of this years festive offering at Disneyland Paris is the Magical Christmas Wishes show which is performed twice per night in Town Square in Disneyland Park. Let's take a step back and set up the scene, night has fallen on Main Street USA; the magical new Christmas tree with its many colours has been plunged into darkness. As crowds gather in and around Town Square, something magic is about to happen.

The lights turn off, the entire street is put into darkness, but we soon begin to find the lights on the tree and meet our master of ceremony Jiminy Cricket and Pinocchio, as we learn about the power of wishes, the tree becomes a screen on multicoloured lights in a changing formation. The whole show is technically brilliant, but you don't need me to tell you that, rather I'd prefer you to experience it for yourself, either in person or via our YouTube video.

What is particularly strong about this show is the many different colours and effects that have been used, it is impossible to not get that tingling sensation down your spine when that final reprise of 'O Christmas Tree' comes over the speakers as the mesmerising effect of the tree takes effect on the guests who have gathered to watch the spectacle. As a package, the show has evolved totally from what was experienced in recent years, which mostly involved singing characters and a child lighting up the tree (which was a nice touch). Whilst this made a nice show, there was one element that was against it, and that was it's one dimensional nature (from a viewing perspective). This show allows guests to experience it from multiple angles, 360 degrees to be precise; not having characters or a 'focal point' (That isn't a tree) means that the spherical nature of the tree can properly be exploited to magical effect. The experience changes from place to place, see it in Town Square, and you'll certainly see the tree (no child on shoulders needed!) and you might even see the garlands too. Stand mid-way down Main Street and the show will feel even more like a 360 degree show as the garlands join in on the act further into the show, the colour changing to reflect the show really is a perfect touch.

As a viewer, things don't get better than this show, as a technical fan this show is a real marvel. To see the baubles and stars light up in synchronisation is nothing short of a marvel. This show will continue to marvel audiences for as long as it runs, and lets hope that it does for a very long time.

Disney's Enchanted Christmas runs from the 10th November 2013 until the 6th January 2014. Magical Christmas Wishes is performed twice daily during this time, consult your daily program for more information, including show times.

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Rapunzel's Christmas Pin Event pins revealed!

One thing we love here at DLP Town Square are pins. Pins, pins and more pins. Every time I go to Disneyland Paris, I always walk away with a bag full of pins. Following this weeks record sell out in the pin event in about 30 minutes, Disneyland Paris published the pictures of the pins that we can expect from the event which takes place on the 14th December 2013 in Disney's Hotel New York.

On first glace, I wasn't too keen on these pins. But upon second glace, I'm starting to love them. Let's talk about them pin by pin.
The first pin is still my least favourite. It's essentially Rapunzel tugging a sack of presents by her hair, with a mini pascal inside the sack. It's a cute one that's certain. It's also the most plain of the lot.
The second pin is a fantastic one, It's Mother Gothel and Rapunzel decorating a Christmas tree with Rapunzel's hair being used as Tinsel. This one is fantastic, and it's so rare to see these two characters on a pin.
The third and fourth pin can be considered almost as a pair, one pin sees Rapunzel and Flinn sharing a sled, whilst the other shows Maximus and Pascal acting as a Reindeer.  You can see that these two link up, effectively making one pin.
The final normal pin of the series is the most beautiful pin I think Disneyland Paris has ever created. It's not particularly festive, but it is that famous gondola floating light scene with two attached at the bottom by a chain. This one is going to be mega collectible. (And if anyone wants to grab one for me, please do e-mail me. I'd be forever grateful!)

We then move into the round pins which are a feature of every pin trading event, day or night. This event sees Rapunzel, Pascal and Flinn in festive attire. (You won't see these in the shops after the event, these will sell out).

The final pin looks to be a very special one. It's a jumbo pin, the word Tour meaning Tower gives it away as being Rapunzel's Tower from the film.  I can't wait to see this pin in real life.

Rapunzel's Christmas will be an extremely popular event, featuring many super-collectible pins. If you see these in the shops in the following days, be sure to buy them up as they will hold great trading value in the future. Not that I'm expecting to see these in the shop, the savy traders will snatch them all up pretty quickly. 

If you're going, have a great time! (And don't forget one of your favourite DLP websites!)

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Let the Festive Fantasy commence!

Christmas is the most wonderful time of year in Disneyland Paris. It's a time that both parks get involved with, and evidence of the season can be seen in multiple places around the resort. Perhaps this season, more than any of recent years, the Christmas celebration this year has seen a bit of an overhaul and has grown up somewhat.

What is certain though is that Disney's Enchanted Christmas offers something for everyone. Last weekend (November 9th and 10th 2013), the Christmas celebrations were presented to the press, following a day of soft openings. This has given ample time for fans to sit and digest what the new features are, and formulate opinions; which at the moment are overwhelmingly positive. Perhaps what is striking about this Christmas is the integration of the newest Disney Animation Studio's film Frozen. The film has not even been released in cinemas, and yet the characters are on their new Disney Magic on Parade float and can be seen in Disney Dreams of Christmas. Compare this to last Christmas where Wreck it Ralph was nowhere to be seen in Disneyland Paris (and still isn't), other than in merchandising.

As one walks into Main Street USA, the sights and sounds of Christmas immediately flood the air. Gone is the usual ragtime loop, and in comes the warm sound of classical Christmas carols. Main Street Station is appropriately dressed for the occasion, images of classic Disney characters appear in a snowy Christmas settings. Garlands adorn the station and glisten in the evening sky. The beauty of Disney's Enchanted Christmas is immediate, before the new Christmas tree even comes into sight.

Image: Disney

The new Christmas tree in Disneyland Paris stands tall and proud in Town Square, towering over Main Street. Everything about this tree is new, and will excite guests of all ages. The new ornaments look classy, yet maintain the Disney touch. Perhaps this tree is more striking at night when the lights come on. This is not a 'simple' tree; the lights aren't 'on or off'. This tree is at the height of technology, the colours change and light formations alter in the new Christmas tree lighting ceremony Magical Christmas Wishes. This show centres around wishing upon a Christmas star with Jiminy Cricket and Pinocchio, when we wish upon a Christmas star all our dreams come true in this spectacular light, sound and snow show.

Disneyland Paris has once again found its festive overlay for the winter season, the garlands above Main Street are the obvious highlight, the ooze class and the classic Christmases whilst maintaining their Disney nature. What is amazing this year about those garlands is how they react to the Magical Christmas Wishes show, and to Disney Dreams of Christmas. These shows have suddenly become much more immersive, and Disneyland Paris is much better because of it. Other decorations include the return of the snow men to Central Plaza and Christmas shop windows. Various Disney characters are doing meet and greets in special Christmas dress including Duffy the Disney Bear at the Boarding House, Winnie the Pooh near Casey's Corner; and for the first time Sandy Claws will be at Jack and Sally's Cemetery, and various Disney characters will be waiting for you whilst you wait to see Santa Claus at Father Christmas Village in Frontierland. 

In Fantasyland, It's a Small World Celebration returns for yet another year; discover how different cultures all across the globe celebrate the holiday seasons whilst being enchanted by fabulous Christmas carols being mixed into that very familiar, well loved, piece of music.

Image: Disney

When the Christmas Cavalcade arrived in Disneyland Paris last year, it was made very clear that is was just the beginning of a larger piece of work. This is evident the moment the parade arrives in vision this year, the cavalcade has grown and evolved into something even more beautiful than in previous years. The music begins, and it's instantly Christmas. The new floats (and the rearranged previous floats) looks superb. The parade floats match the change in Christmas atmosphere, the Christmas tree is represented (take a moment to look at the float, and the tree), there are new characters on the parade route and many more dancers. Making this superb parade even more impressive.

What can be said about Disney Dreams of Christmas that has not already been said, this beautiful new spectacle of a show will be on the castle each day at park closing time until January 6th 2014. It is a version of Disney Dreams that makes us dream of Christmas. It makes us laugh, and cry, it entertains us, it marvels us. Disney Dreams of Christmas is a real success of a show, and hands down the best piece of Christmas entertainment in Europe. Read our thoughts on the show in this dedicated article. (And our friends thoughts at Dedicated to DLP)

The 2013/14 Christmas season at Disneyland Paris is huge, bigger than one article can hold for all the details, it's a spectacular looking event and feels totally re-imagined this year. Many Disneyland Paris fans will be heading to the magic this Christmas, and we wish you a magical time. Christmas at Disneyland Paris is where magical family memories are made, what will your memories be?

Disney's Enchanted Christmas runs from November 10th 2013 until January 6th 2014. Disney Dreams of Christmas runs nightly at park closure. Consult the programme in the parks for full times during your trip.
DLP Town Square will be LIVE in Disneyland Paris on the 23rd and 24th November. Follow us on Twitter for live updates, and to request photos.  - I'll be posting follow up articles after the trip detailing the festivities with pictures and videos.

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Once upon a Christmas Dream...

As Disney Dreams! began to be talked about more and more, it was revealed that the nature of the show allowed for scenes to be taken in and out. This lead to speculation of seasonal changes for various holidays. This of course has happened over the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World, where the show Celebrate the Magic frequently receives additional scenes for various holidays.

Then, the day came. It was announced that Disney Dreams of Christmas would not be an additional scene, rather an entire twenty minute show all to itself. This was further hyped by Disney's California Adventure in Anaheim's announcement of a Winter Dreams! show as a festive version of World of Color. A few weeks later, an image appeared of the Disney Dreams! creative team standing outside London's Abbey Road studios.
Various visuals surfaced, including visuals of Tinkerbell superimposed on the castle, and that of Anna and Elsa. Disney Dreams of Christmas was beginning to take shape in our minds; and on the castle itself as programming really got under way.

On Friday 8th November, Cast Members got a sneak peak of the show in it's entirety and on Saturday 9th November, the lucky invited press (and Disneyland Paris bloggers!) got to see the show. Obviously the show leaked online almost immediately. After careful deliberation, and consultation with my twitter followers, I decided to watch the show on YouTube. Wow. I was rendered speechless immediately following the show. After a second viewing, I felt much more able to bring myself to post a reaction.
My reactions are posted here, scene by scene. Of course, a huge SPOILER WARNING is to be placed on the rest of this article.

Opening: The show opens with a chilling, festive version of Carol of the Bells, as the music gets grander, and more festival magic scene is unveiled before our eyes, as we move into our first featured film of the show: Fantasia. In snowflakes, various classic Disney scenes are represented, with some more traditional friends taking centre stage: Mickey, Donald and Goofy.
What is so fantastic about this scene is the transition from the initial, quiet calm and peaceful Christmas to the grander, importance of the event. As the scene moved from the 0 second mark, it gradually built up the pace and the anticipation of what was to follow.

Introducing Christmas: Our host for the evening is introduced, a Disney favourite already (and his film isn't even out yet), Olaf. The castle is beautifully lit and projected onto, in fact a more perfect lighting of the castle will be incredibly hard to find. The use of projections and Christmas ice castle lights here is perfect. As in Disney Dreams!, a secondary character is used in order to translate Olaf's speech into French, in this show Anna is used.This section is used to introduce the character, and Christmas in general. The projections onto the castle looks beautiful, and the song choice is good. We then move into another featured film, Bambi. It's only a short clip, but manages to fit the context very well and transitions well into Mickey, Minnie and Donald.The transition projections worked very well to a radically changing type of music and theme.

Frozen (Let it go): This is the emotional piece of the show. Elsa (Idina Menzel) sings Let it Go from the upcoming Disney Animation Studios film Frozen. Perhaps this section is slightly too short, but the projection and pyrotechnic effects look fantastic. It really does help build hype for the film, and I really felt an emotional connection to the piece; which ultimately is a sign of a job well done.

It's a Small World: It was quite comical to see Olaf in 2D animation on a Christmas card. The idea of seeing how Christmas is celebrated across the world is a fantastic idea, especially here in Europe where we have many different cultures visiting one park. It really felt like a nice educational, yet entertaining section. The music here tugged at my heartstrings, as did the meaning of the segment, which was that of peace, the word appearing in multiple languages on the castle affected me in a way that I didn't imagine it world do. The animation style obviously matched that of the It's a Small World attraction.

Toy Story Nutcracker: The big comedy section of the show, which was clearly designed for laughs. And laughs it got. I felt this was timed quite well after what was a heavily sentimental and meaningful section. It was introduced by the second star becoming the 'wishing star'.
After a short introduction segment by the Toy Story characters (ripped right from the Toy Story 3 teaser trailer), it was time to launch straight into the Nutcracker. What pleasantly surprised me was the various uses of the music, which I found to be very clever.
As Woody and Jessie dance together, the traditional Nutcracker suite gets a country feel to it. It was the middle segment which sent me into tears of laughter. Seeing the little green aliens and Rex dancing to the suite was hilariously funny.

Spanish Buzz and Jessie appeared which featured the visual highlight of this segment with it's castle projections. The segment ended with the Toy Story characters leaping in slow motion across the castle, this is sure to delight guests day after day during this Christmas season.

Jingle Bells Sing-a-long: For me this was the highlight of the show. I can easily visualise families singing along to this each night. What I found striking was the use of pyrotechnics; the way they were used with this particular arrangement of Jingle Bells made the entire piece feel grand (which is should do, as in a sense it is the shows finale), and adds excitement. The use of language also impressed me, quite often things in Disneyland Paris are presented in either French or English; this section of the show was presented in many different languages promoting learning languages whilst providing guests from each nation to sing their bit just that little bit louder. We finally meet Santa Claus, the music begins to build and we see our favourite characters in baubles, whilst pyrotechnics are going off. (Much like the Disney Dreams! finale). Suddenly LED lights begin to turn on in the trees in Central Plaza, and on the garlands on Main Street USA. Disney Dreams! has finally become a 360 degree show, lights can be seen in all directions, the show has literally jumped from a castle show, to incorporating all of Main Street.

Post-Show: The pyrotechnics have gone off, the projections have finished. The castle has gone black. But wait... there's more. In an incredible post show twist, Disney have saved some of the best projections. Olaf reminds us to make sure we've got all our belongings. Colour fills the castle and street, it's become a celebration. Then, the lights turn on and it's all over for another night.

Overall thoughts: The music used is simply stunning. I cannot think of a better arrangement of classic Christmas songs (mostly used in links) to suit the show more.
The film Frozen is not yet out in cinemas, Disney have obviously realised this and introduced all the characters in a very easy to understand way, meaning that none of the show is lost on the audience from Day 1. 
The projection effects even outperform those featured in Disney Dreams!, the teams who have worked on the show deserve a huge congratulations.


Once again, by launching Disney Dreams of Christmas, Disneyland Paris have affirmed themselves as a world leader in seasonal celebrations. This is one show we'll be enjoying for years to come. Isn't it great to not just be on the map, but leading the game?

Disney's Enchanted Christmas runs from November 10th 2013 until January 6th 2013. Disney Dreams of Christmas will run nightly at closing time.

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Disneyland Paris November 2013 pins

As we move away from the Halloween season and ebb ever closer to Disney's Enchanted Christmas and 2014, another set of pins are due to be released in the resort. As usual, the poster has been released:

Quite honestly, whilst I like most of this months pins, I'm not blown away by any of them I'm afraid. Let's take a closer look week by week.
Saturday 2nd November sees the release of the 2014 pins, each year Disney Parks creates a new 'look' for the year, and whilst I really like 2014's look, 2013 just had that bit extra. However, that doesn't translate into pins, and I really feel like the 2014 pins are very nice to look at. I especially like the use of the Sorcerer Mickey image in the pins, and like the 2014 'Disneyland Paris' pin, perhaps this is a collectible set across all the resorts? The booster set really catches my imagination, I really like the characters in front of various Disneyland Paris landmarks. I will certainly be adding that to my collection.
Saturday 16th November sees the release of another good luck/bad luck pin, this time featuring Belle. I'd be interested to see the good luck side if the 'bad luck' side is Gaston. The Beast makes both perfect sense and no sense since Belle never wanted to be locked up. I really, really like the Mickey Mouse birthday pin and hope it is still available the weekend afterwards when I will be in the resort, however I suspect it will not be. It looks to be a lovely pin, perfect for the Disneyland Paris audience.
The final weekend releases take place on Saturday 30th November and feature yet another Princess locket, this time featuring Merida from the film Brave. The final locket should be released next month (and will be Tinkerbell). Speaking of Tinkerbell, the Christmas limited edition pin will be released this weekend as well. I find it a rather uninspiring pin for a limited edition, despite it's nice design.

The Pascal pin is a preview release for the 'Rapunzel's Christmas' pin event which will take place in Disneyland Paris on the 14th December (poster below). Whilst this event will feature Rapunzel heavily, something bugs me about the price for what seems to be a very simple pin. However, an ebay search on release day will prove that it will be a very popular pin. (Rapunzel is VERY collectible in the Disney pin world).

Overall, I'm happy with the pins, but only one jumps out as a must have. What are your thoughts?

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First glimpse of Disney Dreams of Christmas

Having tried to stay away from spoilers posted on twitter by @DLPTreasures (Whose new blog I do recommend you read by clicking here), I finally gave in. I saw his photos and was blown away by the entire new show, whilst not a surprise the quality seems high and I think we can be expecting a real treat this Christmas. Now, as you know I'm a bit of a fan of the festive season at Disneyland Paris (I've been keeping a tracker since the site launched in July!). Today, Disneyland Paris finally released a 1 minute trailer featuring footage from the show, which I certainly recommend you take a look at. But, as I tried to avoid spoilers, and I know some of you are also trying, I'm attaching a SPOILER ALERT to this post from this point onwards, as I will try and 'disect' this promotional video.

The first clear image we see are the Toy Soldiers marching perhaps as part of the promised Toy Story
Nutcracker sequence since these toys are traditionally linked to this very famous piece of music.
To me, one of the most interesting (and perhaps exciting) pieces on this video was a small snapshot of Mickey and Minnie ice skating through a wintery scene, depending on the length could we claim this as Mickey's first real Disney Dreams appearance (and yes, I am aware he features briefly in the Be Our Guest segment of the normal show), but also making an appearance will be chip and dale and the 101 dalmatians.

Obviously we can expect Frozen to take a reasonably large part in this incarnation of Disney Dreams, especially with Olaf featuring as the main character in the way that Shadow is represented in Disney Dreams! There also seems to be elements of a more traditional Christmas as a toy train appears on the castle snaking around.

Perhaps the star of this show will be the aforementioned Toy Story nutcracker sequence, which from the clips shown in this video looks to be spectacular (in perhaps a similar way to Never had a friend like me is currently). Steve Davison appears on the video and tells us to expect scenes from Fantasia, 101 Dalmatians and Frozen in additional to ones that have already been rumoured such as Bambi.

As Santa Claus himself wraps up the video, we can safely say the show looks fantastic and that it will be an unmissable feature of the Disneyland Paris Christmas season for years to come. Personally, I cannot wait for those first videos to appear on YouTube and to be blown away, and I know many of you feel the same way.

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20th Highlights: Seasons!

If a company could own Christmas and Halloween, Disney would be the one that would want to have it. The 20th Anniversary brought a renewed focus on the two end of year seasons and the St. David's and Patrick's day celebrations, the magic of the 20th Anniversary increased for guests during these special times of year.

As guests walked onto Main Street USA during October 2012, they will have noticed that ghosts have invaded the street, not scary ghosts but friendly ghosts. Main Street USA had become a turn of the century ghost town, gone was the 'in your face' orange, in came a more classic Halloween for all the family. Our friendly ghosts had tried their hand at being a band, guides, being a mechanic and even baseball. Witches had invaded lamp posts and turned them green. Life on Main Street carried on as normal, with the slight addition of cackled laughter every so often. Main Street Station's 20th banner was joined by silhouettes of Disney characters in their best Halloween outfits going trick or treating. Central Plaza saw our Disney pals appear in giant Pumpkin form. Frontierland wasn't missed out either! The former 'Halloweenland' concept was scrapped for 2011, but the pumpkin men had still invaded the Lucky Nugget and the Fort. The restaurant offered a special meal featuring a specially designed burger and a ghostly cupcake for desert.
Entertainment wise, Mickey's Trick or Treat returned, as did the Villains and Jack Skellington. The Walt Disney Studios saw no new decorations, but had host two nights of horror in their 'Terrorific Night' joined by Disneyland Park's yearly tradition 'Halloween Soirée'. Disneyland Paris continues to build on last years successful decorations this year by modifying a few features, as well as the exciting addition of a Halloween Cavalcade.

As Halloween ended on November 4th, the Disneyland Paris overnight workers set to work to transform the park in under one week from a spook paradise, to an enchanting winter wonderland. Gone were the spooky new ghosts, and in came Mickey shaped garlands across Main Street, the erection of the well loved Christmas tree, the snowmen invaded Central Plaza and the joy of Christmas both filled the air, and entered the ears as Magic Everywhere! got a festive overhaul, the biggest news of the 2012 Christmas season was the addition of the Christmas Cavalcade. A classy new parade which instead of being character heavy, aired on the side of the classic image of Christmas with the Toy Soliders, Elves, Plane Toys and our favourite
characters all wrapped up warm in the best Christmas clothing. The floats are fantastic, and the music is delightful and warm. Disney's 20th Anniversary Enchanted Christmas had the bases built for future years growth and filled Disneyland Paris fans with promise for what the season could be in just a few years. This year Christmas grows even further with a new Dreams! show and new floats in the Christmas Cavalcade featuring our new Frozen friends!

In March, Disneyland Paris usually celebrates St. Davids and St. Patricks day, this year the video mapping technology used for Disney Dreams was applied to the castle to create an even more unforgettable fireworks spectacular.   Videos:   St. Davids Day Video (DLRP Welcome) // St. Patricks Day Video (DLRP Fans)

Whilst the 20th Anniversary and these improvements may have been just a happy coincidence, there is little doubt that the future of special seasonal celebrations in Disneyland Paris are going from strength to strength and that last year was just the start of a beautiful future. Some may complain that features have been removed, but those being added last year and this year more than make up for that. We cannot wait to see what the future holds.

Our 20th Anniversary highlights week runs from 23rd September until the 30th September 2013 and celebrates the best moments of the anniversary year, from special events to new attractions. Check back everyday for a new article. 
1: Meet Mickey Mouse
2: Disney's 20th Anniversary Celebration Train 
3: Disney Magic on Parade! 
5: Disney Dreams!
6: 12th April 2012 
7: Light'Ears 
8: Memories  

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Frozen Disney Dreams! coming this winter.

It's news that has been a long time coming, despite the continued rumours, and news of a Winter Dreams
world of Color show, Disneyland Paris has been tight lipped about what was coming to Disneyland Paris this winter. Well, no longer as Olaf presents an exciting, totally new Disney Dreams! just for you this Christmas. Meet new friends from the Disney Animation Studios film Frozen, as well as discovering your current friends presenting a Toy Story twist on a celebrated classic: The Nutcracker. Amongst all that new Disney Dreams! fun, you also have the exciting new additions to the Disneyland Paris line up. Meet Anna and Elsa in a new parade float, and marvel at the utterly wonderful Christmas Cavalcade.
If you are in Disneyland Paris this Christmas (10th November - 6th January), you are in for an exciting adventure.

This news shouldn't come to a shock to those who follow us on twitter, when we tweeted this photo in early August

The Disney Dreams! development team visited London's Abbey Road studios to record the soundtrack at the same time as Steve Davidson confirmed he was there working on Winter Dreams (World of Color).
And we saw this image in the Autumn/Winter brochure a few months ago.

This news has certainly got me even more excited, Disneyland Paris fans have long been longing for a treat of this size and here it is.

Update 30/08/2013: Christmas Dreams! will include scenes from Frozen, Toy Story, Fantasia and Bambi according to the French Disneyland Paris Christmas press release. Not going during Halloween? Huey, Dewie and Louie will also be in the Christmas Cavalade. Santa Claus will also head the Disney Magic on Parade! as well as the Christmas cavalcade. Our new Christmas Tree is now confirmed and will be replaced with a 25 meter high tree decorated with thousands of decorations from around the world, which every night will be illuminated in a special lighting ceremony named "Les Voeux Magiques de Noel" (literally translated to: Thr Magical Wishes of Christmas) headed by Pinocchio and his conscience Jiminy Cricket


Where will we be this Christmas? With any luck we'll be in Disneyland Paris! How are we getting there, and how are we paying for it? Well, that remains to be seen. Any ideas anyone?   We'll keep you updated on our progress on that one!

Dreams! images are copyright Disney.

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2013 Christmas Season Rumours!

Disneyland Paris promised a bigger Christmas season than ever before and so far that seems to be the case. So, let's just get straight into what we already have heard on the rumour mill. Once again to clarify, these have not been confirmed by Disneyland Paris.

Last year Christmas began it's overhaul, gone was Mickey's Winter Wonderland, gone was Belle's Enchanted Village, and so far we know that the Enchanted Village is not due to return this year. Mickey's Winter Wonderland is unlikely to return, at the shareholders meeting in London Disney Character Central reported that Disney are working on something new. Perhaps we will see that this Christmas?

Last year one of the more finer points in the advertising was a brand new Christmas tree for the 20th Anniversary, and then once the Halloween season ended the old Christmas tree was put up. The reason? The new tree hadn't got through all the approval processes in time. But luckily this year the tree has passed all the tests and we should see it in Town Square this Christmas season! Radio Disney Club have claimed that this tree will be at the 'height of technology'

The garlands arrived on Main Street last year to huge fan approval, and so it seems as if they are here to stay! Radio Disney Club once again have written that new decorations will be used on Main Street USA and in each of the lands.
The Christmas cavalcade also arrived last year to more fan approval, the plan that Disneyland Paris had for this little parade was to increase it by a float or two each year until it became a proper parade that could potentially replace the daily parade during the season. So this year the rumour is that one or two floats will be added and that a new female character will be added to the park (rumours range from Shelly-May, who has already premiered in our parks during Disney Dreamers Everywhere to Mary Christmas), one user on the Disney Central Plaza forum has said that there will be improvements, more performers and new costumes.
Like last year, this cavalcade will be three times per day and will not replace the classic parade.
The future really does look good for this cavalcade, and we are glad of this. It's the showpiece event of the Christmas season.

The Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony will be all new this year with new music and new characters for a more immersive ceremony which will include the garlands on Main Street USA.


Moving onto Disney Dreams! the UK version of the Autumn/Winter 2012/13 brochure advertised the Christmas season using this image. It really does look very likely that Disney Dreams! will be receiving a Christmas makeover. Now this is where we've heard conflicting rumours, we have heard that Disney Dreams! will be running with a little bit extra, but we've also heard that Disney Dreams! will be replaced by this Christmas edition. We think that perhaps it'll play with a little attachment, it's hard to see an entire new 22 minute show being played each night. Either way, we're really excited to see the results!

Father Christmas Village and It's a Small World celebration will continue as last year.

The Walt Disney Studios park will not see any new additions this Christmas season, except perhaps a few new decorations. Time will tell.
Finally, Christmas merchandise seems to be arriving in the resort, featuring a Christmas visual!

These were posted online by Mickey Island on Disney Central Plaza in the image we see the Main Street garlands and Mickey and Minnie in a Christmas costume with Disney Characters dressed in a Christmas outfit including Stitch and Angel. We also see a glimpse of the Christmas tree (is that representative of what we will be seeing in Town Square this November).

The Hotels are getting Christmas rooms for an extra £105 (Disneyland Hotel) and £89 (Hotel New York), included you get Christmas decorations, a christmas tree and a few little gifts. Thanks to Parcorama (Twitter) for pointing that out.

That concludes our look at the latest Christmas rumours. The Christmas season runs from 10th November 2013 until the 6th January 2014 and we are really exciting to hopefully be going over and taking a look at all the new features. We're huge fans of the Christmas season and just how the entire resort has a buzz around it. What are your opinions? We'd love to hear them both below and on twitter @dlptownsquare

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