There’s a lot to think about for any Disneyland Paris trip – what rides to prioritise, where to eat, shows to see. But if you’re differently-abled, neurodiverse or have long-term medical conditions, planning for your Disneyland Paris trip might look a bit different. As folks who have planned many a Disney trip around our health differences, here are the extra planning steps we recommend for our differently-abled friends to ensure a smooth trip!

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Balance pacing vs price

We recommend pacing for any Disneyland Paris trip – going full on hour after hour without breaks can be exhausting for everyone. If you’re differently-abled, pacing really is a must. But more breaks means that more time will be needed to see the parks – so you really need to balance pacing and price when planning your trip.

Ideally for a Disneyland Paris trip, especially if it’s your first time, you want to book as long as you can (ideally at least 4 nights / 5 days in the parks). But we’re more than aware that the longer the trip, the more it costs! And for folks on a budget, it can be tough to weigh up having enough time to explore the parks without getting frazzled, and not blowing your budget.

If you’re differently-abled we recommend you do your research, and book as long as you can – but we also don’t think any Disney trip is worth getting into financial trouble for. So it may be that you need a very honest look at your budget and decide what’s going to be possible for you.

And if your budget means a shorter trip – don’t worry! You absolutely can have a great shorter trip to the parks, but you might need to accept you can’t do it all, and get stuck into some research to decide what your top priorities are. If you’d like some advice on budgeting for Disneyland Paris, we looked at this in a previous blog post.

Get travel insurance that takes into account your health differences

We recommend travel insurance for any Disneyland Paris trip. You never known when bad weather, travel delays or other unexpected circumstances might strike. But sadly, if you have health differences or are differently-abled, you also need to think about what might happen if a sudden flare in your condition impacts your trip.

To take this into account, we recommend getting travel insurance that will also cover your health differences. There are a few different ones on the market, but we’ve always had good results with Staysure. They cover a wide range of medical conditions, including mental health conditions, and they do so without you having to have a physical check-up. You can also get annual policies, if you travel more than once a year, or one off trip cover for those once in a lifetime occasions!

Click here to get a quote for your travel insurance with Staysure.

And if you book by 31st August 2025 you can save 20% on your Staysure policy with code AUG20.

One thing we don’t recommend is getting travel insurance where you don’t declare any health differences or medical conditions. If you end up needing medical help while away and it’s found out that you’ve not declared your conditions to your insurer, your insurance policy may be void and you’ll be liable for any costs!

Make sure you’re taking advantage of all the support Disney can offer you

The MagicALL programme at Disneyland Paris aims to make the parks as accessible as possible to everyone. And with it comes a range of support that Disney offer the differently-abled to help everyone enjoy the parks.

From accessible hotel rooms to cards that help reduce time standing in lines, and hearing loops for those using hearing aids and audio description for those with visual differences, support for the differently-abled comes in many different forms. So many it’s easy to lose track!

That’s why I recently wrote a blog post summarising all the support that Disney offers for differently-abled guests, so that you can easily find what might be of benefit to you – so please do give that a read next.

Of the support Disney can offer, one of the most beneficial is the Priority Pass for people who have evidence of long-term differences that need support. This pass allows the card-holder and up to 4 other guests access reduced waiting times for rides and theatre shows, and the card holder and up to 2 other guests to be able to access special viewing spots for the parade and Tales of Magic that are less crowded. To find out if you qualify, how to apply and the benefits do please check out our complete guide to Priority Pass.

Another benefit I do like to shout about is that differently-abled guests can also save 25% on Disneyland Paris park tickets! Sadly this doesn’t apply to hotel stays (and tickets bundled with hotels are normally much cheaper than on the door prices anyway), but if you’re staying offsite and looking to buy Disney park tickets it can be a great help (and help with our budgeting point above!)

Click here to save on Disneyland Paris park tickets for the differently-abled.

Plan for any support you may need while travelling

It’s easy to get so wrapped up in planning the fun of a Disney park day, that you might overlook any support you need while you’re travelling. But it’s important to consider it to make sure everything goes smoothly!

What support you might need will depend on your means of travel. If you’re driving yourself that’s probably easiest to consider as it’s your own vehicle, but make sure you’ll be able to travel in comfort if it’s a long way, and make sure there’ll be rest stops along the route that are compatible with your needs. Also if you’re driving a very long way and will be breaking up the journey with an overnight stay, make sure the hotel you book is aware of your needs too.

For both flying and taking the train, the airports and train firms should all be able to offer support. Sadly here in the UK there’s been a lot of bad press recently about support not turning up when needed, particularly for those relying on wheelchairs. Of course this is utterly unacceptable. But the best you can do is research and book what you can for your route, and be prepared to make a fuss (or someone in your group to make a fuss) if the support you need isn’t there!

Make sure all your group understands what you can and can’t do in the Parks!

While at Disneyland Paris it’s easy to get caught up in the colour, joy and adrenalin and push yourself way beyond your limits. But as someone who has learnt this the hard way, if you do this your body generally issues you a receipt, which can come in the form of a flare up bad enough to derail the rest of the trip.

But aside from our own enthusiasm to contend with, there’s also that of our travel groups. Those you’re travelling with might also get caught up in the excitement and forget that there’s things that you can’t do, or the need for breaks. This can particularly be the case for little ones caught up in the Disney magic – and if they don’t realise the adaptations you need to support your health differences, they might end up upset when they discover you can’t do what they wanted. And if you’re travelling with friends or extended family, they might not be used to working around your health differences on a daily basis and may not even take them into account.

As such we recommend sharing clearly with your group in advance what you need to do to manage your differences while you’re way – whether that might be scheduled breaks, attractions you need to avoid, the need for rest mornings / evenings and so on. Also share if there’s any restaurants you feel you can’t eat at for some reason (although generally speaking the restaurants are very good at handling restricted diets), so there’s no misunderstanding about what you can and can’t do. Hopefully that means that come the trip itself no one tries to make you do something you can’t – or if they do at least you can say ‘I told you that…’!

Plan for a flare up!

The long days and lots of walking at Disneyland Paris can cause aches and pains for anyone. For folks who are differently-abled, it might end up making a health difference or medical condition flare up. So while we recommend pacing and planning to avoid this if possible, we also recommend planning your trip just in case you do!

Need extra medication during a flare up? Bring it. Need mobility aids like a walking stick at times? Pack it. Need to rely on KT tape or braces for troublesome joints if they get grumpy? Bring them! You’re much better off having something you don’t need, than your entire trip being derailed because you’re missing something you need. And if you do bring mobility aids or joint supports, make sure you bring items that are comfortable with a lot of use! When it comes to supports I’m a big fan of the Bearhug ones, you can browse their range by clicking on the banner below. But definitely use what you know works for you!

Take what you need to get through the park day

Planning for a flare up is one thing, but make sure you consider your everyday needs when planning for your trip and park days, and make sure you have whatever you need in your park bag.

Different folks may need different things. If you’re someone who’s prone to sensory overload then ear plugs or ear defenders may be a go to. If someone is overwhelmend by crowds, distractions in the form of sensory toys may be needed (I use a fidget ring to help manage my crowd and travel anxiety). If you have a lot of different medications to take you may want to invest in a pill organiser so you have exactly what you need on hand. If you have allergies of course make sure you have an epi-pen with you – first aid will have them but you’re much better off using your own than to have to wait in an emergency situation! Think about if you have any medication that needs to be kept cold, and if so drop if off at first aid first thing, or invest in something like a Frio pack if it’s appropriate.

And something else to think about – favourite snacks! This could be particularly important for folks with conditions like ARFID or very restricted diets. As long as it’s not a full blown meal, something that needs to be kept cold or heated, alcohol, or something too smelly then you’re okay to bring it in with you.

Approach attraction planning from your own perspective

Most folks when looking at Disney attractions consider them from the point of view of ‘will I like them’, or for little ones ‘are they tall enough’. But for us differently-abled folks you might need to consider other things!

Are there ride warnings that indicate an attraction may not be suitable for you? Are you someone with visual and sensory differences that may struggle with rides in the dark? Are stairs needed for access? (Thankfully attractions relying solely on stairs are very rare but we did share them in a YouTube video).

For myself something I need to think about are ride vehicles – not something I often see discussed. But there are some more awkward ride vehicles I struggle with as I have coordination and joint issues. I flagged some of the most troublesome ones in our most recent video below:

Don’t be afraid to miss an attraction if it just isn’t compatible with your health differences. While it’s a shame to miss out on stuff, it’s sensible to make sure your needs are put first!

Think about comfort vs cute photos

Social media is full of pictures of people in cute outfits and Minnie ears, posing in front of Disneyland Paris icons like Sleeping Beauty Castle. And it can be very tempting to want to join in! But sadly, a lot of people think that items like mobility aids, joint supports or sensory friendly clothing aren’t compatible with the influencer style Disney photos we see all the time.

You know what I say? Those people are talking rubbish!

Of course you can have cute photos with your mobility aids, supports, sensory clothing, or anything else you need to do for your comfort and to manage your health differences. Those pictures will be cute because you’re in them having an amazing time of Disney. Anyone who thinks otherwise can go get stuffed as far as I’m concerned.

For me, comfort reigns supreme when planning Disney clothing. I’d love to do a cute Disney bound at times but I’m also honest enough to know that if I’m not comfortable I’ll be miserable. And Disney days can be stressful enough without adding discomfort into the mix!

If your heart is set on taking photos sans mobility aids etc, our advice is to try and get your photos as soon as you enter the park, either in the morning (Magic Hour for resort guests is a great time for quieter photos!), or once you enter the park after a break later in the day. Bring with you anything you might need later on in the day to support your health differences. Then once you’ve grabbed your cute photos you can always change or start using whatever you need to be comfortable for the rest of your Disney day.

Side note here, if you’re feeling embarrased about a mobility aid or similar at Disneyland Paris, don’t be. Honestly most people will be so wrapped up in their own day they won’t even notice, and there’ll be lots of folks like you there using aids as needed – because Disneyland Paris really is for all!

So there we have it, some extra steps that we think could make Disneyland Paris trip planning a lot easier for our differently-abled friends. Anything you’d add? If you’d like to stay up to date with out content please subscribe to our blog at the top of the page, and visit our YouTube channel. And if you’d like to support our work please consider leaving us a tip – your support will help us to keep this website and our social channels up and running! Thank you.