Deep in the heart of rural countryside yet just 30km from the centre of Paris you’ll discover Les Villages Nature Paris. A holiday resort that’s perfect for those who want to spend time at Disneyland Paris, who love nature, want a taste of la vie Francais, love sports activities, want a family break with loads to do, plus easy access to the city.
At Villages Nature – Centerparcs meets Disney but with a dash of luxury and a lot of style, and its only 6km from Disneyland Paris…
Family fun
Covering 120 hectares, Villages Nature offers five “immersive worlds”, the Forest of Legends, an appealing playground for kids, Extraordinary Gardens, Lakeside Promenade, BelleVie farm, and the Aqualagoon.
It the latter that gets most visitors excited. A huge water park and heated outdoor lagoon make this a honeypot for just about everyone who visits Villages Nature. There’s a wave pool, lazy river and slides galore including one that truly deserves the white-knuckle award.
With seven slides in total there’s one to suit everyone in the family but for those with a sense of adventure The Rocket beckons. Stand on a trap door in a clear plastic booth and listen to the countdown “… 3, 2, 1” the doors open and you drop at speed with a swish into a tube which whizzes you about in a somewhat trippy manner before you shoot out the bottom.
If a more relaxing swim is your thing, you can do that too. And you can even book an early morning swim before families get up and join in, I had the entire pool to myself at 09h. And there are lots of classes, from Aqua spin to gentle stretching in the warm water.
You’ll find no lack of entertainment with masses of kids activities including the Forest of Legends with swings and climbing frames and all the stuff kids love. At the BelleVie farm there are cows, goats, chickens, pigs, horses and other animals. Kids can go riding or be a farmhand for the day. The whole family can join in bread making and bee keeping classes and a whole raft of activities.
Sporting Activities
From a gentle boat ride to energising stretch classes there’s more than enough to keep even the sportiest family happy. Hire a bike and enjoy the car free riding, have fun in the bowling alley, caper about on the forest trails, enjoy a dip in the lake in summer months or simply sit along the lakeside promenade and watch the world go by.
Classes cost extra by the way, there’s a time table of classes with all the details and you need to book in advance at the Welcome centre.
Spa treatments
Treat yourself to a massage, the team here are real pros, one of the best massages I’ve ever had, though not cheap. The spa is sparse to be fair, a sauna, steam room and salt room – but book a massage and you’re get an hour in the spa included.
Restaurants & shops
There’s a choice of restaurants on site and a supermarket which is typically French – great cheeses, cakes and everything you expect from a shopping trip in France. There’s also a smashing grocery with upmarket goodies you won’t be able to resist at the BelleVie Farm shop.
Though self-catering is really popular here with great kitchen facilities and shops, don’t miss a chance to indulge at Cépages restaurant and wine bar. scrumptious dishes, great wine list and lovely service with a large terrace overlooking the lake. Amongst the other options for dining out, we all deserve a day off from cooking once in a while, there’s also Vapiano which serves Italian and Mediterranean food and Pur etc for a healthy option.
Accommodation
Accommodation is upmarket and ranges from Country Premium apartments and cottages around the lake and in the woods, Cocoon VIP apartments and cottages by the lake or in the village centre and Clan Comfort cottages in the woods, outstanding self-catering facilities in all options. Staying here is pretty good value, especially for families. Everything works on a high-tech system with electronic bracelets acting as the key to your door, access to booked activities and to give you entry into the amenities. There are lifts to apartments so no dragging of suitcases or shopping bags up the stairs.
Day Trips
Handily located in the Welcome centre are the lovely team of You Moov who organise taxis, airport transfers, Disney tickets and trips. Whether it’s a day in Paris with a guide, by boat or 2cv, a trip to Champagne, or to discover more in the area such as a day at the fabulous Chateau de Vaux-le-Vicomte. They’ll give you advice on day trips and book them for you and there’s a ton to do in the area. Details: you.moov.com
Disneyland Paris
With Disneyland just 15 minutes away by bus, which is not much more than it is to take a bus from the Disney hotels, plus you get to stay in this lovely resort and experience the magical Kingdom with ease. You can buy tickets and take a shuttle bus from the resort from the YouMoov desk, or a public bus outside the resort direct to Disney World.
Shoppers Paradise
Take a bus from outside the resort and into the town just 10 minutes or away, where you’ll find the terrific Val d’Europe shopping centre with 160 shops, plus next door, the designer outlet mall La Vallée Village with more than 100 shops.
A great Family resort for Disney and Paris
It’s a great resort. It’s new, it only opened in September 2017 so there are still things to settle in and amendments are ongoing, for instance the Vapiano Restaurant which serves great Italian food is moving to table service instead of you having to queue to put in your order which is a bit haphazard in terms of groups getting their meals at different times.
I spoke to several British families at Villages Nature and everyone of them said how much they were loving it. “You can get a bit Disney’ed out sometimes” said one mum with two young children. “Here we can all calm down, chill, enjoy a relaxing break for the whole family and then go back to Disney for the day when we’re in the mood – best of both worlds really, two days here, two days at Disney, a day in Paris. Yes, we’ll definitely be back”.
Whatever the age of those in a group staying here, be they toddlers, teens, mums and dads or nans and grandads – there’s plenty to do to keep the whole family entertained and enthralled. Beware though, if you’ve got kids, they won’t want to leave this place…
Get there
The nearest train station to Les Villages Nature® Paris is Marne-La-Vallée (Disneyland Paris) from which guests can take a public bus (the 47) to the resort.
Eurostar operates a daily direct service in each direction to Disneyland Paris/Marne-La-Vallée (daily direct services to the resort do not operate on Tuesdays and Saturdays except during school holidays). Children under 4 travel for free. Eurostar www.eurostar.com
You can also take a train to Val d’Europe. Train services from Orly Airport and Charles de Gaulle Airport are frequent.
Although Les Villages Nature® Paris is a car-free holiday village, those arriving by car can park for free near to their accommodation
Book accommodation at Les Villages Nature® Paris: www.villagesnatureparis.co.uk
Paris Convention & Visitors Bureau www.parisinfo.com; Atout France: www.france.fr
