09 February 2024

THE JOURNEY Since the removal of the direct train into Disneyland Paris Eurostar has two choices, travel via Lille or get the train into Paris and travel from there. We’ve travelled via Lille before so decided to book to Gare du Nord and get a private transfer. This saved us about £400! The train journey was great. Comfortable seats and plenty of room for luggage. Sadly the only gluten free offering was a brownie (why is it always a brownie) so I was glad I’d packed plenty of snacks. When we arrived in Paris we walk to the front of the train and our transfer driver was waiting for us with a sign. He took us to the car and from leaving the train to getting in the transfer took 5 minutes! The drive was only an hour long. ARRIVAL When we arrived at the Sequoia Lodge our room was waiting for us, but if it hadn’t been, we could have left our luggage and gone to the parks. The hotel is just beautiful and has an enormous fireplace in the Redwood Bar. We did pop in there one evening and have a charcuterie and cheese plate to share (although I ate most of it!) and they provided us with gluten free bread to go with it. We dumped our bags in the room and dashed over to Walt Disney Studios Park to see Avengers Campus, which wasn’t open the last time we travelled. THE PARKS Straight onto Spider-Man W.E.B. Adventure, where I got massively beaten by everyone, and then on to Avengers Assemble: Flight Force where my and 10-year-olds braved their first “upside down roller coaster”! We were so pleased to have the PhotoPass to capture this memory ?? Around 5pm the temperature dropped and we had to wrap up in hats and gloves, but it wasn’t unbearably cold. FOOD We grabbed a bag of chips from the Green Van underneath Tower of Terror as they are gluten free, and the only food cooked there so no contamination risk. We also had some chocolate covered strawberries from one of the snack vans, round by Remy’s. Everything on that particular stand was gluten free and looked delicious. For breakfast the next day we had taken GF porridge with us to eat in the room BUT I know the hotels do offer an OK gluten free breakfast. We headed into the Disneyland Parc during the extra magic hours, and it felt like there was hardly anyone in around. We walked onto a few rides and could definitely notice the difference when the park opened to everyone. It still wasn’t overly busy though and a great perk of going during term time in February. For Lunch I had booked the girls a surprise. We were going into the Disneyland Hotel to dine at the Royal Banquet. When entered the hotel they checked we had a dining reservation (this has changed now, and anyone can enter the hotel if it doesn’t pose a health and safety risk) and were escorted to the lift. The lobby area is beautiful, and photos don’t do it justice. It smells incredible too and they sell the fragrance as a candle or spray in the hotel boutique! When we checked in for lunch we were asked about allergies. We were lead through the buffet to our table. I would definitely ask for a window table next time, but I was just so happy to be there I didn’t think. Our server asked about allergies and asked me and my daughter to wait for his supervisor, but my husband and daughter were free to go get their food. When he came over the supervisor introduced us to the chef with “the folder”. At first, he said “take a look and see what you’d like, and I’ll let you know what you can have”. I suggested it would be easier if he just told me what we could have. He then took us to the starter station and only 2 or 3 dishes weren’t safe. I asked if we could go eat that and then come back for the mains and he agreed. The charcuterie on the starters station was phenomenal and I could have just eaten plates and plates of that. Main course, again only a few dishes we couldn’t have AND the vegetables were cut into fleur de lys shapes ?? I didn’t even get to the seafood station as I was full and really wanted dessert. There was so many desserts available to us again, including the Gus Gus pumpkin and Excalibur mousse! For little ones that like “beige food” they had Mickey shaped potatoes, mac n cheese and fish goujons – my ASD daughter was very happy. Sadly, the gluten free choices for kids aren’t great, but my coeliac daughter didn’t starve and actually enjoyed trying the “royal shaped vegetables”. So, the food was brilliant, but the entertainment was even better! We met Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Daisy all in their royal attire (there are no guarantees who you will meet). We didn’t feel rushed at all and were there for a good hour and a half. It may look expensive but it’s such an amazing experience it’s worth it for the looks on the kids’ faces. You can ONLY book Royal Banquet if you have booked to stay in a Disney hotel. If you have a booking with me and would like to add it, please get in touch ?? When we left the restaurant, Rapunzel was there, so the girls go to meet her. The princesses are always wandering round the hotel, I bumped into Snow White on my way to the loo, so I’d say for Princess lovers THIS is the hotel for them. After our massive lunch we didn’t want dinner and just snacked on some crisps and biscuits, while waiting for Disney Electrical Sky Parade (which made me cry) and Disney Dreams Night-time spectacular (which made me cry again!) I was so grateful to be staying at the Sequoia Lodge, as it was only a short walk back to the hotel, no fighting to get on a train or transfer bus. A lot of the table service restaurants don’t have gluten free offerings so we stuck to quick service and the 2 places I can recommend are Cowboy Cookout, which has a GF kids’ meal and Au Chalet de la Marionette, that has a hotdog you can have without the bun. RETURN JOURNEY We were picked up 3 hours before our train, to allow for traffic, but we had plenty of time. There is a Five Guys offering gluten free options, at Gare du Nord before you check in for the Eurostar, but not much available after. And again no gluten free options available on the train itself. So my take-aways from this trip • I HAVE to stay at the Disneyland Hotel at least once. • Royal Banquet is so worth the money. • Eurostar to Paris and then private transfer is so straight forward and the only way we’ll travel going forward. • Disneyland Paris still doesn’t cater for a gluten free diet properly, but for 4 days it is manageable. • I’d definitely go again in February as, although it’s cold, it’s still magical.

14 November 2022

I recently returned from Orlando where I spent 10 nights in Lake Buena Vista and 4 nights at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort. We chose to do this as Disney has taken away a lot of the benefits for staying onsite, so despite having stayed in Disney hotels in the past, we thought we’d save money by doing a twin centre holiday. We stayed at the Holiday Inn Resort Orlando Lake Buena Vista, in a room with a kid’s den. The room was enormous, and our girls loved that they had two sets of bunkbeds to choose from! The den also had a tv and Xbox, although we didn’t have time to play on it. The room also had a fridge, microwave and coffee maker. Onsite in the hotel was an AppleBees, which was very handy as the kids could eat free there – unfortunately, as my daughter and I have coeliac disease the only thing the had that was gluten free was eggs and bacon. My husband and other daughter loved the breakfast though. On day one we came across the first huge difference between staying offsite compared to staying in a resort hotel – the transport! We got to the bus stop for the Disney bus, 20 minutes early as I’d read the time wrong, and it’s a good job I did as there was already quite a queue and it just got longer and longer. When the bus did arrive, we were lucky enough to get a seat, but then had to have our girls sit on our laps as they crammed everyone on the bus – the driver’s saying was “if you can see the floor there’s room for more”. It was rammed as the next bus wasn’t for another hour and a half. Once we set off the driver then informed us that they only dropped off at the Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios and Epcot – we’d need to get the monorail from Epcot to the Magic Kingdom. Had I known this before we got on, I’d have got an Uber. We arrived at Epcot, walked to the monorail, jumped on that to The Ticket and Transportation Centre and then got the ferry to the entrance to the magic kingdom – from hotel to gate it took us around 2 hours. After a busy first day at the park, we headed back to the hotel, we got an Uber as the bus only picked up from Epcot at 6:30pm and we wanted to leave earlier than that. I have to say, getting an Uber or Lyft around Disney is so easy and not too expensive (around $13), so we didn’t bother with the free bus again. When we got back, we got the girls showered and put them to bed. Unfortunately, we had a pool view room, and the pool was open until 11pm with loud music playing, luckily the girls were so tired they crashed out, but it did keep me awake. When we moved to Disney the Pools closed at 10pm and there was no loud music. The pool was a good size and had a splash area for little ones. There are no lifeguards, but as it was only us when we went in the pool, I wasn’t worried about this. The Holiday Inn was great value for money and the girls loved it UNTIL we moved to Disney. On our check out day, my youngest cried as she didn’t want to leave as she was happy there, but you should have seen her face when we pulled up to the Art Of Animation! We had already checked in online, via the My Disney Experience (MDE) app, so when we arrived, we left our luggage with Bell Services and went to have a look around. The shop was the size of The Disney Store in London, and the Food Hall was amazing. The girls (and my husband) were particularly taken by the arcade. We ordered some food via the MDE and received a notification when it was ready to collect. While we were eating, I received a message to say our room was ready and what number it was. We already had magic bands link to the app that acted like room keys, but if you didn’t have these there is an “Unlock my door” facility – again in the app. As we reached our room our luggage was being taken in by a cast member – every cast member we saw said hello to us with a smile and made us feel welcome. The room was something else – although small – the theming in our Little Mermaid room was incredible – me and the girls couldn’t stop smiling. We got changed and headed down to the pool, “The Big Blue”, the biggest pool on Disney property. There were cast members playing games with the kids and so many lifeguards. Our first park visit was Epcot and we decided to get the Skyliner there. I’ve never been on the Skyliner before but I blooming LOVED it. I wish you could get to every park via it, it’s so peaceful with some amazing views. It also runs to Hollywood Studios. After a busy day walking around the park, it was a lovely and relaxing way to travel back and we avoided all the traffic (we could see it as we floated above). The next day we headed to the Magic Kingdom. When we got to the bus stops, there was a bus per park, and they ran every 10-15 minutes. Many people don’t realise you can’t park near or drive up to the entrance to the Magic Kingdom, you must park/get dropped off at the Ticket and Transportation centre and then get a monorail or ferry over to the park. But when you stay in a Disney resort hotel, you avoid this and get dropped right by the gate – this is handy in the morning but an absolute blessing in the evening after the fireworks. Value for money, offsite is definitely a good option, especially the Holiday Inn Resort Orlando Lake Buena Vista. But for service, cleanliness, convenience and transportation it has to be a Disney Resort Hotel.

30 September 2021

The moment I heard Disney Cruises would be sailing from Tilbury I KNEW I had to book one! As a HUGE Disney fan, there was no way I could see the ship docked across the river from where I live, and not sail onboard. We treated ourselves to a stateroom with a veranda, which was a mistake, because now I cant imagine staying in any other type of cabin. The great thing with Disney cruises though, is that their standard cabins are 25% larger than any other cruise line, so the inside cabins are still very spacious and they have so much storage. There are very strict rules surrounding covid, which I wont bore you with, but receiving the all clear at the port was the first time I got excited and truly believed we were going on a Disney Cruise! We were lucky enough to be chosen as "Family of the day" which meant we were allowed to board first! I'm not going to lie - I cried! Walking up the gang plank there were cast and crew members waving and ushering us on board, and we were greeted by a red carpet that read "Welcome Home". We were announced on board and in the atrium Captains Mickey and Minnie were waiting to say hi (cue more crying from me). After that it was just a whirlwind of magic. Everything was just so well organised and ran smoothly. We went for lunch and our server showed us where on the navigator app to find which restaurants we would be dining in and on what nights. We went to take a look at the kids clubs and shortly after left the kids there for an hour - they loved it so much they didn't want to leave! They made lots of crafts, played games, had story time with princesses and made space goo with Stitch! One of my favourite things about Disney cruises is their rotational dining. On a lot of cruises you have the same server in the main restaurant, but if you dine elsewhere you have someone different - on Disney your server comes with you! We had the most amazing Waitress, Andrea from Peru, who dealt with our gluten free requirements amazingly! We found out she is gluten free too, so she was able to make recommendations and if there was nothing on the menu that could be made gluten free - she would arrange for us to have something different! I never once felt nervous about what we were eating, and even the quick service pizzeria made separate pizzas for me and my youngest. The cast members cannot do enough for you, and do go above and beyond. PLEASE if you book a Disney Cruise, do not remove your gratuities, the staff work so hard and deserve every penny, we even tipped them more. The shows are West End quality and totally spectacular, I was in tears during Disney Dreams - an Enchanted Classic (ok, ok, I'm a crier!!) The look on my girls faces was worth the cruise fare alone. The Disney Magic converted my anti-cruise hubby and my kids both loved it and want to go back so we will definitely be cruising with Disney again.

23 August 2021

With all the confusion over testing and green & amber countries, we decided to do a mini staycation in Deal on the Kent coast. My two girls, aged 5 and 8, absolutely loved it. We often think we need kids clubs and lots of entertainment for children, but they were so happy to paddle, throw stones in the sea and go to the arcade. The only thing my daughter wanted was to put her toes in the sea, and when she did she was over the moon. Be warned, the beach is pebbles, but with the weather not being so great we couldn't exactly sit and make sandcastles anyway. There is a free paddling pool a 15 minute walk away that, on a sunny day, would be brilliant for the kids and if you like a bit of history you have the choice between Deal or Walmer castles to visit. Deal is so beautiful and peaceful, but has plenty of places for you to grab a drink or a bite to eat. As someone with coeliac disease, I thought I would struggle to find gluten free food, but there was so much choice. Kerry's Bakehouse is 100% gluten free, you cant even bring in regular food! Seaview chip shop has a separate fryer for their chips so they are gluten free and Margheritas has gluten free pizza, pasta and CAKE. The Royal Hotel right on the seafront has incredible views of the pier and on a clear day you can see France. The food again was amazing and they happily catered for myself and my daughter who also has coeliac disease. We got the train and the walk from the station took us less than 10 minutes. Deal may not be the busiest or liveliest of towns, but to be honest that what I loved about it. I felt so relaxed and chilled out and have booked to go again in October (this time we will definitely need coats ??)

16 July 2021

Back in March the government announced that domestic cruising could return in May. Cruise lines can now sail around the British Isles with an exciting range of staycation cruise itineraries. So what exactly is a staycation cruise? A staycation cruise is simply a no-fly voyage that sails closer to home, just like a staycation in a UK town or city. Why are they so popular? With the ever changing traffic light system, it can be hard to plan a trip overseas. The British Isles have a whole host of hidden gems right on your doorstep, historical destinations that we often overlook as we focus on visiting more far flung destinations. With all the incredible features of a cruise you can enjoy exquisite food, incredible entertainment or just relax in the spa. In terms of health and hygiene, ships have implemented a whole host of new protocols from pre-embarkation testing and vaccine requirements to extreme, thorough, cleaning procedures. With departures from Liverpool, Newcastle, Dover, Tilbury and Southampton there is a staycation to suit everyone. Take this opportunity to find out if a cruise is for you.

20 July 2021

Do you ever scroll through Facebook and find photos from that trip, you know, the one you REALLY loved? This happened to me the other day when I came across our photos from our trip to California. Way back in 2012, before we had the kids, we decided we wanted to visit Disneyland, the original park that Walt built. As non drivers we figured a twin centre between Anaheim and Los Angeles was the best way to do this. We spent the first three nights at the Sheraton Park Hotel at the Anaheim Resort - now imagine my face when I realised we had a view of Disneyland Park from our room! The hotel was only a short walk to the parks, which was ideal for the purpose of our trip. For my husband and I the Disneyland Park was so special, we love Disney so to visit the place that Walt built was very emotional for us. We were also really impressed by Disney's Californian Adventure, although it's a more modern park it is still brilliant and a highlight for me has to be seeing Lightning McQueen driving around and talking to people! After spending 2 amazing days in the Parks and an evening at the Halloween party 9so much candy!), we took a cab to Los Angeles. Here we stayed four nights at the Beverly Garland (now known as the Garland Hotel). The hotel offered a shuttle into LA and up to Universal Studios which was ideal for us non drivers. We booked a trip to take us to see all the sights including Rodeo Drive, the Hollywood strip, TCL Chinese theatre, Venice beach and Muscle beach - I ticked a lot of things off my bucket list. Universal Studios was out of this world! We've been to Universal in Orlando, but it cannot compare to this! First of all you have the most amazing view of the Hollywood sign and secondly - it's a working studio! While we were there they were filming CSI and people had spotted Ted Danson standing outside the soundstage taking a break, I'm sorry Orlando but you cant compete with real life TV and Film stars! I hope to return to California one day and visit more of the state with our kids, as this really was one of our most memorable holidays.