328 A Dynamic Duo of Disney Fans Discuss Paris

Welcome to the show notes for the Disney Dream Girls Podcast, show number 328, for Sunday 16th August 2020. If you want to listen, whilst reading these notes, just click the player below or alternatively find us on iTunes, Libsyn, Stitcher Radio, or any good podcast catching apps.
On this week's show, we welcome a duo of DLP fans to share with us their experience of making two trips to Disneyland Paris since it re-opened last month. This show was recorded prior to the change in quarantine rules when travelling to France from the UK.

Photo Credit Daniel Potter @dandjdisney

Meet Daniel and Jamie; a pair of devoted Disneyland Paris fans. Daniel has been visiting DLP since 1992 whereas Jamie is a more recent convert, having been visiting for the past ten years. Once the parks re-opened they made two trips on consecutive weekends and they kindly joined us to share their opinions on the park with us. 

Photo Credit Daniel Potter @dandjdisney

Hotels
At the moment, the only Disney 'on-site' hotels that are accepting guests are the Newport Bay Club, Disney's Santa Fe, and Disney's Hotel Cheyenne; though this is changing constantly.

Daniel and Jamie stayed at the Newport Bay Club as well as at an off-site hotel and were impressed by the Covid measures in place in both locations. The found no need to use the bus from Newport Bay Club as the walk was quite short and the security procedure straight forwards to gain entrance to the parks.

In-Park  
Once in the park, there are plenty of sanitising stations (pre-eateries, shops, and at the entry of attraction queues), and cast members will insist and watch you as you use them. Masks are to be worn and removing them for attractions or photography is not tolerated. In fact, they had seen people been escorted out of the park for non-compliance. 

Photo Credit Daniel Potter @dandjdisney

Whilst they do not have any 'relaxation zones' (a place where you are permitted to remove your mask in the park), if you are seated and eating food or having a drink it is permitted to remove your mask.

Food  
They were impressed by the table-service meals they had (as well as the quick service) but found the buffet's re-imagined offerings catered more for a European market so for their second trip they decided to cancel their bookings.
Bookings can be made via the Disneyland Paris App or by telephoning 60 days in advance and this is highly recommended. 

Characters  
They are both self-confessed Disney character junkies and as you can see from the pictures - DLP has done a fabulous job making the characters visible but socially distant.

Photo Credit Daniel Potter @dandjdisney

Prior to visiting they urge you to download the Lineberty app as a lot of the experiences in DLP have to be made via this. 

That's about it for this week. To find out more about our fabulous guests, you can find them on Instagram and youtube @dandjdisney or on their DLP dedicated page on Facebook - Disneyland Paris Advice.

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296 - Steakhouse 55 Afternoon Tea Experience

Should you invest your time and money on afternoon tea at Steakhouse 55? My answer is a big resounding yes! If you want to hear us review the experience (as part of our weekly podcast), click the link below to hear it right now or find us in your usual podcast listening device by searching - The Disney Dream Girls.
Firstly, you will need a reservation as these advanced dining reservations vanish quickly. They can be made up to 60 days in advance by telephoning or signing up and making a reservation via their website/app.

You can find the restaurant next door to Goofy's Kitchen, inside the Disneyland Hotel. Ensure you add extra time onto your visit to explore the lobby - it is certainly worth it!

There are hints of Walt Disney all around you in this restaurant - along with all sorts of Hollywood stars of bygone years. Inside, it is very elegant and seating is either in an open booth (like the one we had) or on more central tables.

Once seated, we were given the menu and a choice of which tea to order.  The prices are standard at $55 or premium at $70. Yes, you can say - ouch but by the end of this blog, you hopefully will agree that there is value and we all felt the $70 premium tea was the way to go. Annual pass discounts apply but there are taxes and gratuity on top of the quoted price. The price also includes three-hours of valet parking at the Disneyland hotel - a very handy add on. 

We began by choosing our teas from the very extensive menu and having a fresh bottle of sparkling wine opened tableside for us. The wine was very good - not too sweet nor dry. We all chose different teas and were impressed by the selection and the taste. I had the nutty chocolate and found it to be a very refreshing drink that complimented our meal. Our server offered recommendations and was available to help demystify the types of tea available to match our palate. 

Then onto the food and we began with a delightfully flavoursome salad. The dressing was sublime and each mouthful had something zingy and tasty in it. The blue cheese was perfect and I really liked the pomegranate.

Then our waiter explained the main event to us - the cakes and the sandwiches - so here he is!

The desserts were delicious however, I did feel the sandwiches were the weaker element of the meal. They were pretty but not very satisfying; we found the bread to taste and feel a little dry and also I prefer sandwiches with a base and lid (it's the English gal in me!). My favourite was the chocolate covered strawberry but the scones were also very good.

We did not eat everything that was served to us so they kindly packaged our leftovers up for us. At the end of our meal, we received a duo of truffles - a nice touch, which is only part of the premium tea.

Would we go again? Yes! I heartedly recommend paying extra for the premium tea also as we all felt the wine, salad, and truffles were well worth the additional $15.  

The Disney Dreams Girls is a weekly podcast, where the hosts - Michelle and Jayne - are your guides to the places where dreams begin. If you want to find out more about the show or would like to contact them, their social media links are below.

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Disney Dream Girls 247

Welcome to the show notes for the Disney Dream Girls Podcast, show number 247 for Sunday 10th February 2019.  If you want to listen, whilst reading these notes, just click the player below or alternatively find us in iTunes, Libsyn, on Stitcher Radio or via any good podcast catching app.
We start this weeks show discussing on the week in Disney history and what a week ahead it was (or is that is?). Robert Iger was born in 1951, Whitney Houston passed away, Ghiradelli Soda Fountain opened in Downtown Disney Marketplace and finally Lillian Marie Bounds was born in 1899.

Lillian and Walt Disney

Michelle and Jayne then chat through where they would visit if they had the chance of an all expences paid trip.

Who wants to join us in Tokyo?

After that, we share a listeners question about dining at Disneyland Paris. 

Cafe Aagrabah

Tracey Farley asked for recommendations of places to eat in Disneyland Paris using the half board dining plan. So our resident DLP expert, Liz Read, suggested some of her favourite places and also advised that post April, breakfasts can also be taken in the hotels.

Newport Bay Hotel

Then, Jayne checks with Michelle that her August trip reservations at Beaches and Cream would be safe - following the announcement that the soda shop would be closing for a lengthly refurbishment from August to December 2019.

Beaches and Cream

After that, we play guess the Disney souvenir price.  

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