1 day at Disneyland Paris- total newbie

[Alps79]

We have never done Disney and this could likely be the only time my kids visit the park so I really want to get the most out of our day, without going totally crazy. Girls are 8 and nearly 11. We'll be there in October and I'm excited that the park will be decorated for Halloween. We'll take the train from Paris early in the AM and hopefully be there as the park opens and we'll stay the full day, until they make us leave. I'd love tips to help us get the most out of our visit. I'll have tix prepurchased online. From what I gather, it's very doable to visit both parks in one day. We will be going on a week day, smack in the middle of October. 

Before we go- any movies my kids should watch that might enhance their visit? I know there is an Indian Jones ride- is it worth is to watch the movie? (I loved the movie as a kid, but omg is that the one with the terrible monkey scene? We might need to FF though that.) Assume they haven't seen many movies; it's not really our thing. I can see the rides list and they definitely haven't seen all the corresponding movies. Does that make a difference at all? 

Shows & characters- what shows should we make time for? Do you have to get there way prior to shows starting to get good seats? What about characters? I'm not sure how impressed my kids will be meeting the characters, but they may surprise me. 

Dining- I understand the food is just mediocre. Should we just bring in maybe cheese and crackers and plan on buying some treats? Any extra fun ones, or any food that would be memorable? Wine for me, yay!  I really don't want to waste a lot of time standing in line for average food. It will just be me and my 2 kids so not another adult to help divide and conquer. 

I'm sure there is many more things I am not thinking of. I will take a small backpack with refillable water bottles. We will wear comfy clothes with a layer. We'll watch the weather and bring rain gear if necessary. What else do I need to think about for 1 memorable and smooth day in DLP?
Thanks!

[dcrunnergirl52]

If this is your first (and potentially only) Disney experience, I think covering both parks in one day would be tough or at least quite rushed, especially given that the Fast Pass situation doesn't allow you to hold more than one FP at a time, so your will likely spend a good portion of the day waiting in lines for rides. Generally, when we were there, most rides seemed to have an average of 20 minute wait, especially in the afternoon. The shortest wait times were in the morning right after the park opened.

If I were you (now that I've been to DLP), I'd focus on Disneyland Park, and if you have time, go to the Studios Park, but I think if you don't get there, you aren't missing much.

For movies to watch, there is a ton of Stitch merchandise as well as a cute Stitch show, so I'd watch Lilo and Stitch. And I'd probably do the Toy Story movies too b/c there is a lot of Toy Story stuff and the movies are so good.

For shows, I'd do Mickey and the Magician or Mickey's Philharmagic (but I don't think you need to do both), Lion King, Stitch Live, and try to see the parade. And, if you stay until the evening, definitely the fireworks. There are ways to get priority seating tickets to Mickey and the Magician if you have a Mastercard, but it requires getting a first come-first serve ticket someplace in the parks (not sure where), and I don't think it's really needed.

There will likely be very long lines to meet characters. If you download the Lineberty app, you can book a spot in line for some character meet and greets at the start of the day. But, unless one of your DDs really wants to meet a character, you could skip that.

Yes, food is mediocre, or at least what we had. I'd focus instead on snacks. Or, if you want to meet some characters and not wait in line, you could book a character meal. They are pricey, but I do love doing them at WDW when we are on the dining plan (so I don't ever actually have to see the actual cost of the meals). Character dining is a good way to break up the day and give you some down time.

Getting from the train station to DLP is super easy b/c the stop is literally at the gate for DLP. I couldn't believe how close it was.

If you want more tips, I learned a lot from this FB group: www.facebook.com/groups/disneylandparisadvice/

[10nille]

I liked the Ratatouille ride there.

[Alps79]

Thank you dcrunnergirl52,! That facebook site has my head spinning! Great info though!!