My wife and I are Disney fans, so we decided to stop by Disneyland Paris as part of our honeymoon trek across Europe! We decided to stay at the Sequoia Lodge based on its value and distance to the park. We stayed on Disney Vacation Club points rather than paying cash, so out of pocket expense was minimal ($95 fee). We were excited to experience another Disney property, but knew not to expect much... even then, our expectations were too high.
Commitment to high-quality, consistent service is a Disney trademark, but that wasn't the case here. The issues began at check-in. The front desk staff informed me they couldn't check me in without a voucher. I tried to explain that I made my reservation through DVC, but they didn't know what that was. Thankfully, they eventually found someone that did and we were issued our room keys. Before we could head up to our room, though, we were told that we MUST make our breakfast reservations for the following day or we wouldn't be able have breakfast at all. So we committed ourselves to a 7:30am reservation time. What they failed to tell us at that time was that the cards they issued us was the payment for breakfast, as breakfast was included with the room. What they also failed to mention was that both restaurants were identical, so there was no advantage for choosing one over the other! It was also mentioned that to dine at any restaurant in the park, we'd have to have a reservation as well...
The property itself is laid out in a confusing pattern. The hallways seemingly never end and it took us a full 15 minutes just to get to our room. It was located on far end corner of the property with a view of a quiet pathway and trees. The room itself, like the rest of the resort, is decorated in a fashion that supposed to evoke a lodge in the Californian redwood forests. In the room, this also meant Bambi themed artwork. While large by European standards, the room was very sparse with a single queen bed, an LCD TV, a table with two chairs, a tiny closet with a safe, a single vanity, a toilet and a shower/tub combo.
What was even more disappointing than the sparse nature of the room (felt like a cheap motel), was the fact that the room came with no toiletries at all, save for a single bar of soap. Thankfully we had brought our own! On the plus side, we were left a 1l bottle of water, as well as some chocolates and a letter congratulating us on our recent wedding.
The night before our checkout day, we had the concierge setup a taxi appointment for the following morning. They did, but never provided confirmation as promised... even more disturbing was the fact that when we went down to the lobby to check out at about 6am, it was deserted! No staff or even a security guard were present at all. Thankfully our cab showed up on time or we would have been stranded!
Given the $800/night rate at the time we stayed, I'm glad we used DVC points for this stay. I would never pay to stay here and doubt I'd ever return to this park or any of its hotels. read more