There was one thing I did not like about Disneyland Paris ... the adults!
Like the Disneyland in Aneheim, Disneyland Paris had designated smoking sections to prevent people smoking freely around the par. Yet, you found people smoking while walking from ride to ride, standing in line for rides, while eating lunch, or browsing the outdoor shops. As an asthmatic this was not ok for me. By that evening I could feel the gunk clogging up my chest. Adding to the poor air quality is the cigarette butts littered all over the park. Why Disneyland Paris employees don't enforce their non-smoking rule is beyond me.
The bathrooms were disgusting. Toilet paper littered all over the floor and feminine hygeine product packages were thrown in the toilets as if there were no trash cans available. There were no toilet protectors offered either. The worse experience about the Disneyland Paris bathrooms was when I walked out of my toilet stall and found a man hanging out in ladies room as if it was a unisex bathroom. NOT OK. Shockingly this also happened in the women's locker room at the Disneyland resort hotel swimming pool. I don't think myself as prude, but I don't want some random man hanging out where Princess D and I are attending to "private matters".
At Disneyland in Aneheim you can find characters all over the park. People queue up to meet the characters to get their autograph books signed and take pictures. At Disneyland Paris if a character is found it is like a mob scene. No one queues. No one cares if a child is trying to get a picture taken with Mr. Incredible. Parents are pushing and shoving their children (or people WITHOUT children) towards these characters, so autograph books aren't signed. These adults don't care if someone was there first. Because of this there are very few times and locations you will find characters. By the Fantasyland train station is one of those "mob scene" locations, but if you go over to Woody's Round Up in Frontierland people are forced to queue to meet 7 characters. This was the only location where I didn't want to throw an elbow at a pushy mom.
Overall, did Disneyland Paris match up to the original Disneyland? Not to me. Would I recommend Disneyland Paris at a place to go? Of course. It is still a magical place for kids ... and that's what really matters!
