I stayed at Les Villages Nature Paris park – it was like two holidays in one

THE mysterious lights appeared after dusk as we wandered home from our holiday park’s swimming pools.   

The site’s dazzling Aqualagon complex was lit up behind us, and it took a few seconds to realise we were seeing the 9pm illuminations and fireworks at nearby Disneyland Paris.

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That’s the beauty of staying in Les Villages Nature Paris — it’s two holidays in one.

Mickey, Elsa, Belle and pals are only a 20-minute bus ride away and we combined both resorts for a magical five-day break in the French capital.   

It was the perfect choice as my daughter Sadie loves all things princessy — and she was celebrating her 7th birthday.   

After a short flight from Glasgow to Charles De Gaulle, we were whisked to the Center Parcs-style site by a friendly taxi driver in 40 minutes.   

My wife Joanne, son George, nine, and Sadie were excited as we explored our top-floor pad which boasted lovely views of the park’s lake.   

The modern two-bed home was spacious and comfortable with a terrace for watching all the comings and goings — and those fireworks of course!

After unpacking, we hired bikes and cycled the short distance into the main ‘village’.

It’s called the Promenade du Lac and is the hub for restaurants and many activities.

The Franprix supermarket was stocked with all the necessary food and drink needed for a few days.   

Sadie immediately found the pancake maker. Press the button and a couple of minutes later we had 12 fresh, hot and tasty pancakes. It’s impossible to not eat most immediately.  

Afterwards, we headed to stylish Italian restaurant Vapiano for dinner. It’s great to watch the chefs prepare your meal in front of you. Another nice touch were the bunny-shaped kids’ pizzas with tasty doughy ears.    

The sun had set as we headed home past the swimming complex, giving the children their first glimpse of the pools they’d enjoy later on.   

That’s when we saw Disney’s lights dancing in the night sky. Knowing we’d be heading there the next day, our excitement levels rose another notch.  

After a fantastic sleep, we woke to a delivery from the park’s Chez Meunier Bakery — no one does breakfast like the French, and we tucked into croissants, pains au chocolat, coffee and freshly-squeezed orange juice on our balcony.

The food was wolfed down fast, because now it was Disney time.  We cycled five minutes to the bus stop at the park’s edge, where the No47 bus arrives every half hour. Fares were just 2 euros each to the Disneyland Paris entrance.  

The smiles on George and Sadie’s faces were beautiful as we entered the iconic Main Street — it was a special time to visit as the site was celebrating its 30th anniversary.  

Quicker than you could say ‘When you wish upon a star’, Sadie had persuaded us to buy her Minnie Mouse ears that she wore for most of the day.  

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We wandered along to Sleeping Beauty’s stunning pink and blue castle, the park’s heart is a great place to plan the day.  
Sadie and George opted for Wild West-themed Frontierland first and went all in with the creepy Phantom Manor followed by the Big Thunder Mountain rollercoaster. 

George and I held on tight in the front row as it rocked and bumped around the track, through two tunnels and just managed to dodge the roof of the ‘old mine’.  

As the colour returned to my face, we let the children burn off steam in the playground as the old-time riverboat’s horn tooted on the nearby lake.  

All refreshed, we headed into Discoveryland for the Star Wars simulator where C3PO sat talking right in front of us during a 3D flight.  

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The children enjoyed Buzz Lightyear’s Laser Blast and the Orbitron ride in the shadow of this area’s main ride — Star Wars Hyperspace Mountain. 

But our family’s favourite attraction here was Autopia with the kids controlling little cars racing around the track. 

After a pitstop for food, we headed to grab a spot on the kerb under the castle for the 5.30pm parade. It’s standing room only by the start so the kids didn’t mind waiting around for 30 minutes since we’d bagged a perfect view.  

Here, they got up close to so many iconic characters such as Mickey, Minnie, a palace of Princesses and all the Toy Story stars. You’ll find yourself humming catchy tune Ready for the Ride for weeks.

Afterwards, many visitors leave or head to their hotels ahead of the 9pm illuminations, so we took advantage of smaller queues for rides in Fantasyland and Adventureland.  

Alice’s Curious Labyrinth was an excellent change of pace as George and Sadie hunted the middle of Wonderland’s maze.  

You’ll need two or three days to pack in all the attractions and we didn’t have time to visit the Disney Studios park filled with Marvel and Pixar rides. We did see its amusing ‘Earful Tower’ — a water tower featuring Mickey’s black lugs.   

Our action-packed first day’s finale was explosive and colourful. The 9pm show combines movie music, fireworks and projections onto the castle. It was a truly magical climax.   

Needless to say, we all slept soundly with Sadie still sporting her Minnie ears in bed.

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We stayed onsite in Les Villages Nature for the next two days which was a welcome shift from Disney’s thrilling pace. The kind staff had arranged a cake for Sadie to celebrate her birthday and with presents to open it made turning seven even more special.   

After another delicious breakfast, we cycled to the Aqualagon. The water park has indoor and outdoor pools and slides for all ages, and an awesome lazy river. 

Inside the huge wave pool staff had laid out a 60ft long floating track that children had to dash along without falling into the water.

My two had tremendous fun making it to the end.  

There are six flumes including the Liaison where two of you race down in parallel tunnels and in another, you start high up in a tower and whizz down in a double rubber ring.

We certainly had built up an appetite as we popped into Miam Burger for lunch. We sat on the terrace as we enjoyed yummy patties.  

It’s easy to forget Les Village Natures isn’t on the coast because they have their own lovely little beach. In summer you can take a dip in the lake and there’s volleyball courts and mini-golf nearby too.  

From there, it was only a short cycle ride to the bowling hub. The kids and Joanne faced a last-frame showdown with mum finally declared family kingpin.  

She was still toasting her victory as we later arrived at the classy Cepages restaurant. The friendly staff quickly served our meals and I enjoyed my best ever meat and cheese platter.  

On the wall above our table was a huge wooden map of France featuring all the various wine regions. Tempting as it was to try one from each, we did manage to sample a fair few as the sun set over the lake. Bliss. 

We spent most of our final full day at the site’s BelleVie farm. It started with a family-friendly buffet breakfast at Les Delices de le Farme, before the kids enjoyed a pony trek.  

Sadie climbed aboard Ziggy while George was on Indian for the pleasant half-hour trot through pretty woods. Afterwards, they headed inside to the giant farm-themed playzone, imaginatively called Lait’s Play where they mixed with German kids and ran, bounced and climbed themselves into the ground, while we were able to relax with a latte.

Our last activity here was chocolate making, where we got to create our own sweet treats.

It was interesting to learn loads about the whole process, from picking cocoa beans to greedily enjoying the delicious finished product.  

And finally, our wonderful trip to Les Villages Nature was sadly drawing to a close.

But we’re definitely planning a return because central Paris is only a 40-minute train ride away and we’d like to squeeze in the Eiffel Tower and a Seine cruise into our next journey.   

So as we watched the Disney lights dance around the sky on our final night, it felt like a sign that they will guide us back here again soon.

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