Anniversary Trip to Marriott's Village d'ile-de-France

[Pompey Family]

Another thing they do there (that I have started here) is that when the highway slows quickly, everyone puts their hazards on. At first glance it seems like a good idea, but it is born out of the fact that EVERYONE tailgates, like feet behind each other.

Putting your hazards on when traffic is slowing ahead is standard procedure in most of Europe, you're alerting fellow drivers to a potential hazard ahead, French tailgating is a different topic altogether.

 

[jwalk03]

I can't find the concierge email, but this one should work to get you info on hire cars. I can't remember exactly but think they can get them locally.
MVCI.Paris.Room@vacationclub.com

The concierge can also arrange tours if that suits you better.

Driving in that area of France is absolutely fine, just normal suburban driving, highways and then small towns depending on where you stop.

Here is the concierge email I received. Though I have been trouble getting a reply back from them. It’s been several days with no response.

MVCI.ActivitiesDLP@vacationclub.com

 

[elaine]

There are several rental car places with easy access. Avis and Budget are at the DLP/Chessy train station (not open Sunday). I also see that there is a Sixt is at the other station, Marne le Vallee, on the same bus in the opposite direction--also linked to large shopping area. All within 5 mile radius on local suburban roads. Note--some car rental places technically require an international drivers license (AAA offices issue them), but I recall we have only been asked once many years ago. We usually get it, as it was easy to pop over to AAA, and we'd hate to count on a car and then be turned down.

 

[Pink_Warrior]

We just got back. I did not rent a car. We did the Navigo passes. There was a photo booth in Chessy but I ended up buying at app so that I could resize our passport photos and print those up. So that was $2.99. They just handed me the passes so I just assembled those back at the timeshare. And we used those passes HUGE!! I needed the Navigo anyway and we weren't venturing out into the countryside so I was just more economical to use a taxi and Uber for the airport trips.

There is a bus across from check-in. It cost 3.90 round trip. The city bus is 4.30 round trip if you don't have a Navigo. The city bus numbers are now 2234 and 2235. 2235 is a bit faster and less crowded. But 2234 has a stop right across from Casino supermarket. 2234 tended to be more crowded as it stopped at a university.

There is a TGV train but we arrived before it started running. I paid 95 euro for a taxi for the four of us. We had an early flight out of CDG so I ordered an Uber which picked us up right at the check-in building for 71 euro. It was about a 35 minute ride (weekend, early morning.)

As for Paris, I bought Go City passes. These passes run on consecutive days so if you plan to do something else during those days, you need to take that into consideration. I bought 6 day passes for 3 adults and one youth (880 euro.) We actually only used them in Paris for 4 days with one day in the middle for Disneyland. Google maps worked really well for the buses and trains but it didn't work all that well as pedestrians in the city itself. Any time that we needed to get to Paris, it would take around 90 minutes. But we got really good at the trains and metros.

The museum pass was pretty much of a waste for us. We only went into the Louvre to see the Mona Lisa and that was about it. We did a five hour tour (which was great especially on day one.) We did a St Germain tour which pretty much turned us off to any Experience First tours. However, we did Notre Dame crypt and Eiffel Tower climb so we think that the St Germain might have just been a one off. We did get about $500 more value with the passes than gate pricing.

I bought tickets to the Catacombs (which only sell 7 days in advance.) Unfortunately it scrubbed due to a workers' strike. But that is always hit or miss.

DLP was about $105 each and we only did it because we were there. In hindsight we could have skipped this. The roller coasters are rough on the body. I travel with young adults and they were even complaining about this. I sat out of most rides as I just couldn't take the roller coasters or the motion sickness on pretty much every ride. We would have done the balloon ride at DLP which was on the Go City pass but we only saw the balloon up in the air twice as it was rained every day and it was consistently windy.

They do sell SIM cards. I have T-Mobile so we get 5gb international. That wasn't enough for all of our navigation so I ended up turning on international day pass with ATT for $12/day. We did need it as on one of our train rides they shortened the schedule so we got dumped out several stations away from our goal. So we had to manuever with google maps to a metro. We now know what to do if the doors close on you (just ask my son.)

Our guide on day one had pointed out pickpockets. In the metro they pretty much wear face masks and carry large tote bags. We did use money belts and small fanny packs with our cell phones attached. Nobody really messed with us as we probably didn't look like the easiest marks since absolutely everybody seems to have a cell phone in their hands. And avoid the girls with clipboards asking if you could sign a petition as they are working pickpockets as well.

Other than that, we got a lot done in a short amount of time. We learned a lot with our guided tours. Yes, it was very expensive (but not as expensive as Iceland.)

 

[zora]

We stayed there a couple of years ago and I agree that your plans are very ambitious. 1. I caught the bus to town/Chessy and caught the train to the city (Paris). From the unit to the city is a couple of hours at best and so I wouldn't count on doing more than one or two things per day. 2. We drove to the city and traffic gets so bad it took about 3 hours to get into the city. And because traffic was so bad, we ended up parking the car at a shopping mall and took the metro. 3. For us, the big difference between DLP and DLF is Ratatouille. Make sure you make reservations for the Ratatouille restaurant and go on the ride when you're there. DLP is the only Disney park with Ratatouille. 4. We went through the Louvre with Tours by Locals and it was totally worth it. Pricey but worth it. 5. I agree with Pink Warrior, buy the Navigo passes. You will use them. 6. The little shop by the check in has fresh croissants every morning. SOO GOOD.
Have fun!

 

[HereAndThere]

When we were there a few years ago in September, we took the shuttle to the train station at DLRP, then the train to Paris. I had a rental car, but it didn't have the required emissions sticker to go into Paris. Also, be aware that there are cameras everywhere and you will be ticketed (or rather receive a lovely email from the rental company) for going 5 kph over the limit. They don't mess around!
We drove to Giverny which was lovely, and also to Reims. I really wanted to visit Veuve Clicquot, but they are closed on Mondays which was our only day available to go. Actually, most houses were closed so we went to Mumm and enjoyed it.
We live very close to Disneyland, so didn't visit on that trip. We visited ages ago and I just remember Belle was a big focus. Have a fabulous time!!! The geese on the property made it all the more charming.

 

[jwalk03]

Starting to nail down our plans for this trip now. We are renting a car at CDG for the entire week. But do not plan to drive into Paris itself. Can someone walk me through the specifics of taking the train into Paris? Is this the Chessy station or Val de Europe? How early/late does the train run? Do we have to take the train to a specific station and then transfer to a metro system in Paris itself? Is it more economical to buy the pass or just pay by use for 3 days of taking the train to Paris and back (and using the metro in Paris itself) ?

We will go to the Eiffel Tower, the Louve, the Arc de Triomphe for sure. I purchased the museum pass so also considering the Conciergerie & Sainte Chapelle, & Musee Picasso. Any other museums or monuments/sites that are must see I may be overlooking? (even if they are not part of the pass)

Also planning to visit the Versailles Palace. I am thinking it will be easier to just drive there since I have the car anyway rather than taking the train?

What's the best way to travel to Disneyland Paris for 1 day? Bus? Train? Drive? Some combination of these?

 

[letsgobobby]

Starting to nail down our plans for this trip now. We are renting a car at CDG for the entire week. But do not plan to drive into Paris itself. Can someone walk me through the specifics of taking the train into Paris? Is this the Chessy station or Val de Europe? How early/late does the train run? Do we have to take the train to a specific station and then transfer to a metro system in Paris itself? Is it more economical to buy the pass or just pay by use for 3 days of taking the train to Paris and back (and using the metro in Paris itself) ?

We will go to the Eiffel Tower, the Louve, the Arc de Triomphe for sure. I purchased the museum pass so also considering the Conciergerie & Sainte Chapelle, & Musee Picasso. Any other museums or monuments/sites that are must see I may be overlooking? (even if they are not part of the pass)

Also planning to visit the Versailles Palace. I am thinking it will be easier to just drive there since I have the car anyway rather than taking the train?

What's the best way to travel to Disneyland Paris for 1 day? Bus? Train? Drive? Some combination of these?

Musée d'orsay is an absolute must. Go in the morning (reserve the first time slot of the day) for the most peaceful and contemplative experience. L'orangerie for Monet and the monumental size paintings is a wonderful experience. You can whip through or skip la Conciergerie, the story of Marie Antoinette is interesting but the space itself is largely empty.

With a car you could go out to Giverny and Monet's gardens unless you save that for your future Normandie trip. but seeing both Giverny and the paintings at l'Orangerie is a terrific way to see Monet through different perspectives.

Musée Cuny is the remodeled Medieval museum and has rave reviews but was just reopening when we were there so we couldn't make it work.

The Catacombes are not on the pass but kids and teens tend to find it fascinating. The Paris sewer museum is another fun one.

I've been to Versailles several times. I think the fastest version of it you can do is best. It's enormous and you need to see the Hall of Mirrors and the gardens but the endless furniture, paintings, and ornate rooms are only so interesting unless you are a real history or period buff.

 

[geist1223]

When you do the Musee d'orsay go to the top floor and descend slowly while viewing.

 

[jwalk03]

Anyone been to the Moulin Rogue or Crazy Horse Cabaret? Was considering doing one of those shows one evening.

Also how late does the train run from Paris back to Chessy? I have tried to download the timetables but they are always in French and I can't figure out how to translate them? Want to make sure we can still catch a train back after the show would end.

Do the trains run all night? I was just playing with the IDF Mobilites app and it seems to list times throughout the night? But I swear I read some reviews saying people had missed the last train back and been forced to take a cab instead.

 

[vikingsholm]

When visiting there at Village d'ile de France some years back, really enjoyed walking over to the nearby little village to be able to walk away with and enjoy the daily fresh baked bread.

In Paris, am more of a fan of architecture and city planning than art displays, so the long walks around town were great. Spent more time marveling over the building itself that is the Louvre than the art inside it!

 

[JohnB3]

I'm just back from a week at the Marriott and it was a great week

 

[elaine]

When you have time, please post what you liked (or not) and what you did. Elaine

 

[JohnB3]

OK fair request @elaine I did drop a resort review but I did not cover our activities so here you go. We are a retired couple who travel a fair amount and planned this trip with the past 60 days. We flew from the east coast on Jetblue into CDG arriving at 9am. We cleared customs and got our bags quickly (<30 minutes). I prearranged a driver with Paris Disney Transfer to take us out to the resort and he was waiting as we left the customs area. I asked the resort for early checkin since we expected to be early and tired and the staff had a nice room (3405) available for us when we got there. We took the opportunity to rest a bit on arrival and then in late afternoon we took the resort bus to Chessy station and picked up a rental car for the week. We drove to the nearby village and did a bit of grocery shopping and then had an early dinner at the very nice Indian restaurant that others have commented on. We liked this enough that we ate here a second time during our stay. The next day we slept in a bit to recover from the long overnight and then drove to the mall near by and just had a relaxing day shopping we ended the evening going to the disney village shopping and having dinner at the resort restaurant at Newport. The following day we got the 10 am train into Paris using the resort bus to Disney/Chessy train station we transferred from the RER A to the metro 1 and exited at the Louvre station we walked a bit and had crepes for lunch at a Paris local spot called Chez Suzette (which was very good) the restaurant was a few blocks walk from the Louvre. After lunch we did a 2 hour small group tour in the Louvre (us and one other couple) with Dayin (which was very well done) we spent a few additional hours in the Louvre and then shopping in the attached center until around 7:15pm. We walked to Seine and took a dinner cruise on the ship LE CALIFE which was very good and a lot of fun at the end of the cruise and very nice meal we took an UBER back to the resort around 10:30pm. A fun and busy day. We relaxed and recovered the next day and had dinner at a nice bistro near the resort. The following two days were spend in Disneyland which allowed us to enjoy the parks with out rushing (I expect you could easily do both parks on one day), one of these two days we decided to have dinner at the resort restaurant and I was pleasantly surprised by the meal, not the best meal we had but a solid choice we also had lunch at Walt's in the park one day and the meal was solid. We go to WDW fairly often and enjoyed the familiar and first time experiences, I don't think I'd need to go back to Paris Disneyland but I'm happy to have experienced it. Our last full day we went back to Paris using about the same resort bus/RER A/Metro 1 travel exiting at the Champs-Élysées. We spent the morning shopping and people watching then had lunch a bistro called "Le sans unique" which was good and fun. we decide to take a quick tour using the big bus hop on hop off around the high lights of Paris before returning to Chessy. We got in late after getting on the wrong RER A train (not all of them go to Chessy) we needed to back track a bit to get the right train. Since it was late we grabbed sandwiches at the shop in the train station as it was closing and caught the resort bus back to the resort. The next day was check out and we took the rental car back to the train station and then took the TGV train to the Eurostar and spent a long weekend with old friends who live in London. We will go back to this resort since there are a bunch of other things we want to do out around Paris (Reims, Giverny, etc) and the resort and staff were first rate. Thanks to every one who has offered feedback reading this forum made my planning simple. If you have any questions I'd be happy to try to answer them. My though is if all one wants is Paris this resort would not be best (2 hours on the train everyday is a bit much) but there is so much more to France than Paris

 

[davidvel]

OK fair request @elaine I did drop a resort review but I did not cover our activities so here you go. We are a retired couple who travel a fair amount and planned this trip with the past 60 days. We flew from the east coast on Jetblue into CDG arriving at 9am. We cleared customs and got our bags quickly (<30 minutes). I prearranged a driver with Paris Disney Transfer to take us out to the resort and he was waiting as we left the customs area. I asked the resort for early checkin since we expected to be early and tired and the staff had a nice room (3405) available for us when we got there. We took the opportunity to rest a bit on arrival and then in late afternoon we took the resort bus to Chessy station and picked up a rental car for the week. We drove to the nearby village and did a bit of grocery shopping and then had an early dinner at the very nice Indian restaurant that others have commented on. We liked this enough that we ate here a second time during our stay. The next day we slept in a bit to recover from the long overnight and then drove to the mall near by and just had a relaxing day shopping we ended the evening going to the disney village shopping and having dinner at the resort restaurant at Newport. The following day we got the 10 am train into Paris using the resort bus to Disney/Chessy train station we transferred from the RER A to the metro 1 and exited at the Louvre station we walked a bit and had crepes for lunch at a Paris local spot called Chez Suzette (which was very good) the restaurant was a few blocks walk from the Louvre. After lunch we did a 2 hour small group tour in the Louvre (us and one other couple) with Dayin (which was very well done) we spent a few additional hours in the Louvre and then shopping in the attached center until around 7:15pm. We walked to Seine and took a dinner cruise on the ship LE CALIFE which was very good and a lot of fun at the end of the cruise and very nice meal we took an UBER back to the resort around 10:30pm. A fun and busy day. We relaxed and recovered the next day and had dinner at a nice bistro near the resort. The following two days were spend in Disneyland which allowed us to enjoy the parks with out rushing (I expect you could easily do both parks on one day), one of these two days we decided to have dinner at the resort restaurant and I was pleasantly surprised by the meal, not the best meal we had but a solid choice we also had lunch at Walt's in the park one day and the meal was solid. We go to WDW fairly often and enjoyed the familiar and first time experiences, I don't think I'd need to go back to Paris Disneyland but I'm happy to have experienced it. Our last full day we went back to Paris using about the same resort bus/RER A/Metro 1 travel exiting at the Champs-Élysées. We spent the morning shopping and people watching then had lunch a bistro called "Le sans unique" which was good and fun. we decide to take a quick tour using the big bus hop on hop off around the high lights of Paris before returning to Chessy. We got in late after getting on the wrong RER A train (not all of them go to Chessy) we needed to back track a bit to get the right train. Since it was late we grabbed sandwiches at the shop in the train station as it was closing and caught the resort bus back to the resort. The next day was check out and we took the rental car back to the train station and then took the TGV train to the Eurostar and spent a long weekend with old friends who live in London. We will go back to this resort since there are a bunch of other things we want to do out around Paris (Reims, Giverny, etc) and the resort and staff were first rate. Thanks to every one who has offered feedback reading this forum made my planning simple. If you have any questions I'd be happy to try to answer them. My though is if all one wants is Paris this resort would not be best (2 hours on the train everyday is a bit much) but there is so much more to France than Paris

Thanks for the report. We did much of the same (no Disney) but drove our car the whole time. Lots of cheap parking in Paris cuts a bit off the commute.

 

[Pompey Family]

We were at the resort in the first week of September. It was very quiet as most kids were back at school and we pretty much had the pool to ourselves for most of the time. Good weather for the first few days but then turned cooler and rainier for the rest of the week. We've been to the resort several times previously but it's been a few years since we were last there. Nothing much has changed at the decor is starting to look fairly tired however I do like the townhouses and along with the Son Antem townhouses they're my favourite MVCI accommodations.

We ate at the local Indian restaurant but didn't think much of it. We were asked if we wanted the dish spiced to French tastes or to British, we chose British but it was still lacking in heat. Use of red food colouring which has gone out of favour in most British Indian restaurants as no-one really expects garish red food and also because the availability of Kashmiri chillies in the UK is far more widespread than it used to be (this gives the food its red colour). The service was very good and polite but I wouldn't choose to go again. We also ate at the bistro next door but was very disappointed in the food. In fact we struggled to find a decent meal at all during the week, the best was at a restaurant in Provins but even this was average. A couple of the restaurants that I wanted to try in Meaux were closed for the summer holidays.

My wife and the kids took the train to Paris one day (my wife for work purposes) whilst I lounged at the resort as I don't particularly like Paris. It's a long day and the resort isn't the best place to base yourself for multi day trips into Paris. The kids went to Disneyland another day but again, I have no interest in Disney so I lounged at the resort once more. I took the kids when they were younger and have no desire to return but they're older now and were happy to go on their own.

I probably did a lot less than other people do as I've been to the resort several times previously and have toured the area plus it's only an hours flight away and there isn't the sense of needing to cram in as much as possible so for me it was a week to relax and lounge about.

 

[Huskerpaul]

We were also there the first week in September. The main pool was very cold when we went, might have been why it was uncrowded. We didn't stay in that long. We did really like the hammam (arab sauna).

We also ate at the bistro in town Bistronome. I ordered the veal cutlet, which was not very good, but my wife had a pizza which was really tasty. I noticed most of the locals were ordering pizzas. I wish I has noticed that before I ordered LOL.

 

[jwalk03]

We were also there the first week in September. The main pool was very cold when we went, might have been why it was uncrowded. We didn't stay in that long. We did really like the hammam (arab sauna).

We also ate at the bistro in town Bistronome. I ordered the veal cutlet, which was not very good, but my wife had a pizza which was really tasty. I noticed most of the locals were ordering pizzas. I wish I has noticed that before I ordered LOL.

I never saw a single person even try to enter the outdoor pool last week while we were there. Was certainly too cold. Even the indoor pool was too cold for me. I did sit in one of the "hot" tubs for a while. It was certainly not as hot as I would have liked- more like warm but the jets did feel good after lots of walking around the city of Paris & Disneyland!

 

[jwalk03]

Thank you everyone that provided wonderful insight in this thread!! My wife and I just returned from a fabulous trip, and everything went so well thanks to the info I gained here and lots of advanced planning!! I will write a review once I get around to it.

 

[dioxide45]

We were also there the first week in September. The main pool was very cold when we went, might have been why it was uncrowded. We didn't stay in that long. We did really like the hammam (arab sauna).

We also ate at the bistro in town Bistronome. I ordered the veal cutlet, which was not very good, but my wife had a pizza which was really tasty. I noticed most of the locals were ordering pizzas. I wish I has noticed that before I ordered LOL.

I've learned you can determine the pool water temperature at a resort based on the people in, or not in, the pool. If you see most adults sitting on the edge with just their feet in the pool, chances are the water is cold. If adults are sitting on lounge chairs and kids are in the pool, the water is cold. If you see a lot of adults in the pool, then the water temperature is more comfortable.

 

[Red elephant]

We are at the resort now and were a bit surprised how dated the rooms and furnishings are. The appliances look updated though. The outside is really nice. The resorts in the US are more updated so was expecting the same.

 

[Pompey Family]

We are at the resort now and were a bit surprised how dated the rooms and furnishings are. The appliances look updated though. The outside is really nice. The resorts in the US are more updated so was expecting the same.

Prior to our visit a month ago we were last at the resort in 2011 and the decor hadn't changed. We did receive a new kettle, toaster and coffee maker mid way through our stay (along with all the other units) despite the previous ones still looking fairly recent albeit a garish red colour.

I have seen a photo of a newly renovated lounge which is going to be the basis for the new look for the villas. It's a more modern look with neutral tones. It looks smarter but does take away the character, it no longer has the French country house feel and is more in line with many of the US resorts.

 

[Red elephant]

Prior to our visit a month ago we were last at the resort in 2011 and the decor hadn't changed. We did receive a new kettle, toaster and coffee maker mid way through our stay (along with all the other units) despite the previous ones still looking fairly recent albeit a garish red colour.

I have seen a photo of a newly renovated lounge which is going to be the basis for the new look for the villas. It's a more modern look with neutral tones. It looks smarter but does take away the character, it no longer has the French country house feel and is more in line with many of the US resorts.

I think you can renovate and maintain French country but they have chosen not to based on your description. I wonder when it will be completed.

 

[Red elephant]

I was just notified that renovations will start fall of 2025 and it will start with the Giverny section.

 

[jwalk03]

I was just notified that renovations will start fall of 2025 and it will start with the Giverny section.

I noticed walking around that work was occurring in one of the buildings in Giverny. There was a crew painting I could see through the patio doors and then the next unit was piled with what appeared to be stacks of new furniture.

I agree the units do appear dated, but to me it felt like part of the charm of the French Countryside.