Monsieur Mickey

This is Disneyland Paris, the French translation of the American dream, the European home of Monsieur Mickey Mouse.

Your journey into the land of make-believe begins through gates beneath the majestic pink-coloured Disneyland Hotel, one of six themed hotels.

Stroll down Main Street, USA, which is representative of a turn-of-the-20th-century small American town, except it is spotless and all the buildings look as through the last lick of paint was applied hours before your arrival. There is a temptation to rush past the pretty wooden frontages that house shops, information points and eateries, but it is worth pausing to admire the architecture and take in the atmosphere.

Main Street leads to Sleeping Beauty's Castle, its turrets towering above the magic, and from here you pick from the four "lands" that contain the rides and shows.

We opted first for Discoveryland, home of the sinew-stretching, face-contorting, gut-wrenching Space Mountain. This is not for the faint-hearted or those measuring under 1.4 metres. Your last glimpse of Planet Earth comes as you are hurtled by carriage into the blackness of space on a 70km per hour journey to the moon. Looping, twisting and plunging along the way, you will reach the end of your journey relieved and exhilarated. Back in the light, I turned to find an eight-year-old blubbering at my side.

The 3-D experience of Honey I Shrunk The Audience is equally thrilling, but this time in the comfort of a cinema seat. It's great fun and features wonderful trickery.

In Fantasyland, we flew across the night sky in Peter Pan's Flight, took the train from a Victorian-style station and enjoyed short trips through tableaux tales of Snow White and Pinocchio, before marvelling at the sights and sounds of It's A Small World, a leisurely cruise past hundreds of singing and dancing pint-sized models.

Frontierland contains Big Thunder Mountain, a runaway train rollercoaster that is suitable for both children and adults. Its monolithic setting, an old mine, is quite magnificent.

From there we popped into Phantom Manor for a meeting with the Disney-style undead. It might be a little scary but it is also full of technical wizardry that creates some hauntingly weird images.

In Adventureland you can try a different sort of white-knuckle experience - the backwards rollercoaster that tears around the jungle setting of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril.

Or, for a bit of yo-ho-ho rather than aargh, take a boat trip to the Pirates Of The Caribbean, a subterranean explosion of noise and colour.

These are some of the ride highlights, but for many people the shows and the magnificent parades live longest in the memory.

During the Christmas period, which lasts until January 7, Disney sprinkles an extra touch of magic on the park.

I defy the most cynical not to be struck dumb by the character parade, which comes to life to the tune of the Nutcracker ballet. Every costume looks as if it is being worn for the first time and every carriage is a work of art.

There is barely enough time to get your breath back and take in a few more rides before Father Christmas returns to sprinkle a handful of pixie dust that turns on the Christmas tree lights and transforms Main Street into a sparkling spectacle. Then, in the evening darkness, watch the Electrical Parade wind its way in a swirl of glowing lights. It's awesome.

I spent two days in the park and saw probably only two-thirds of its attractions. Try to take in the shows, Mickey's Winter Wonderland and Mulan, featuring Chinese acrobats.

Some of the more recent characters from the Disney studios are not here, including Tarzan and the creatures from Dinosaurs. And the Toy Story heroes were only visible in Buzz Lightyear's Planet Pizza restaurant, which serves awful pizzas but keeps the kids happy.

What mystified me was why I saw not a single character or piece of merchandising from The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Victor Hugo's dark tale set in Paris, and a smash Disney film.

Don't expect too many big rides. They are few and far between and pale beside the arsenal of thrillers at Alton Towers.

No, Disneyland Paris is a holistic experience fulfilling the fantasies of children and taking adults back to their childhood. Pleasant dreams.

Train and plane

Disneyland Paris and Air France have launched Destination Magic, a weekly flight service from Manchester Airport. It leaves at 9.15am each Thursday, arriving at Paris Charles de Gaulle airport at 11.35am (local time). Each child receives a gift pack from the cabin crew. Guests are greeted at the airport by Disney staff and given hotel and park tickets before travelling by coach straight to the park gates. Guests can then go straight into the park while their luggage is whisked away to their hotel room.

Northern Spirit's Transpennine Express from York station to Manchester Airport, which runs hourly for most of the day, means you can leave the car at home and be at the gates of the park with a total journey time of under five hours.

During Christmas, a Destination Magic prices start from £255 an adult and £153 a child for a two-night Classic Package staying at Disney's Hotel Santa Fe. The price is based on two adults and two children (3-11 years) sharing a family room, and includes breakfast, return flights and a three-day pass to the park.

For further details and reservations, call Disneyland Paris on 08705 030303 or contact your travel agent.

Car and Chunnel

Disneyland Paris is easily accessible by car, situated 195 miles south of the Eurotunnel, Calais. All the pleasures of the theme Park are only three hours drive away on a terrific road system which leads directly to Disneyland. This also allows you the chance to stock up the car with Christmas drink and gifts from the excellent Cite Europe shopping centre half a mile from Eurotunnel.

With three trains an hour, four at peak times, and a journey time of just over half an hour, the Chunnel is a superb gateway to France.

Eurotunnel has a special Christmas shopping offer with crossings available from £15 at restricted times.

For further details on this and other fares call the reservations number 08705 353535 or visit the web site at www.eurotunnel.com.

Ten things you probably didn't know about Disneyland...

1 About 15 per cent (1.9 million) of the visitors each year are from the UK.

2 A new attraction for next year will be Disney's Toon Circus, featuring a hippo on the flying trapeze!

3The Disney Studio, a vast project centring on movies and entertainment, will open on April 12, 2002.

4Disney will in the next few weeks be connected via train and just two minutes away from a 95,000 square metre shopping mall, Val d'Europe.

5The Disneyland property covers 57 hectares, one-fifth the size of Paris.

6Prince Al Waleed of Saudi Arabia owns 23.6 per cent of the park. The Walt Disney Company has 39.2 per cent and the remaining 37.2 per cent is in public ownership.

7There is a seating capacity of 17,718 in 62 dining facilities.

8The 54 shops sell 22,000 items.

9Investment to date totals £3.4 billion.

10The average queue time is 15 minutes, thanks to the introduction of a Fastpass system which provides an allocated time slot for bigger attractions.