Disneyland Park (Paris)
Categories: Disney parks and attractions | Theme parks
Disneyland Park, known as Parc Disneyland in France, is the jewel in the crown of the Disneyland Resort Paris. Owned by Euro Disney SCA, it is one of two theme parks in the resort just outside of Paris, in Marne-la-Vallée.
Built using the template already proven successful in the Disneyland in California, the Magic Kingdom in Florida and the Tokyo Disneyland in Japan, the park opened as Euro Disneyland on 12 April 1992, changing to Disneyland Paris on 1 October 1994, and eventually the current Disneyland Park when the Walt Disney Studios opened on 16 March 2002.
The third Disneyland has slight differences to the original Disneyland, but not as large as the differences that were made to Tokyo Disneyland. The biggest change was the swap from Tomorrowland to Discoveryland, which takes a more nostalgic look at the way people in the past viewed the future instead of a modern look at the future. The Haunted Mansion sits in Frontierland instead of Disneyland's New Orleans Square and is instead known as the Phantom Manor.
The decor in Main Street USA leans slightly towards the 1920's art nouveau, inspired by the age of the flapper. From a distance though, it looks the same as Main Street in Disneyland and the Magic Kingdom. Many view Disneyland Paris's versions of Space Mountain and Sleeping Beauty Castle as far superior to the American equivalents, both aesthetically and physically. The Parisian take on the classic Disney castle, although one of the smallest, is viewed by Disney fans across the world as the prettiest.
Since its opening, the park has not met financial expectations. Some critics have pointed to cultural differences: the park refuses to serve wine, for example, running contrary to a staple of the French culture.
Lands
As with all Disney Magic Kingdom style parks, Disneyland Park is divided into lands to make up the five realms of the park, all distinct in theme and purpose:
Seasonal
Disneyland Park is host to several seasonal changes. Currently, the Wishes nighttime spectacular fireworks from the Magic Kingdom are being performed nightly, and in October "it's a small world" will receive a Christmas-themed overlay, already tried and tested at the Disneyland attraction.
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