Should you stay at Disney’s Santa Fe Hotel at Disneyland Paris?
Are you thinking about staying at the Santa Fe Hotel at Disneyland Paris?
We recently stayed there in March. We want to share our verdict on this car's theme hotel, a look at the rooms, amenities and if this on-site hotel is worth the money. Our full roundup is below, or you can check out our full review on our YouTube channel.
What is the Disney Santa Fe Hotel?
The Santa Fe Hotel is part of Disneyland Paris’s value resorts, rated 2 stars and located directly across from the Cheyenne. This is usually one of the cheapest on-site hotels, located about a 20-25 minute walk from the parks or a free 5-minute shuttle.
This hotel lacks the amenities of its more moderate hotels, such as Sequoia Lodge and Newport Bay, which feature indoor pools. But we think this strikes a good balance between good value and proximity to the parks, especially if your room is just somewhere to rest. The walk itself is very scenic, as you pass all the other hotels on your way to Disney Village.
The Theming
If you’re deciding to stay on-site at Disney, convenience is not the only factor. You care about that Disney experience and the theming.
The Santa Fe hotel is themed to Pixar's Cars, taking you straight into Route 66 with nods to the franchise throughout. Despite being the budget Disney hotel option, it does a great job of the theming; Cars fans and children will love this hotel.
The theme extends outside with road-styled paths; each of the buildings is named after a key character in the Cars franchise, and this extends to the rooms with road cones for lights and car characters on the walls.
What are the rooms like at the Disney Santa Fe hotel?
We found the rooms at this Disney hotel to be clean, comfortable and with just enough space. On our last stay, we stayed in a twin room in the Lightning McQueen building adjacent to the stream. As you enter the building where your rooms are located, you’ll find car-themed hallways with cool carpets and your room numbers with the character.
Inside the rooms, the cars theme extends to road cone-themed lamps, industrial-style mirrors and full cars themed bathroom with a themed mirror, tissues and shampoo. Our room also had a nice resort view of the winding road paths.
We’d honestly say these rooms are clean, comfortable and at the right price- good value for money. We also found it to be not too different from the Cheyenne; however, the rooms do need a little TLC and updating.
What are the amenities at the Santa Fe Hotel?
For a budget Disney hotel, the Santa Fe comes with some decent amenities. There are free hot drink dispensers or if you don’t fancy that there’s an on-site Starbucks.
When you enter the resort, under the big cars billboard, you’ll find the reception to your right, where you can check in, collect a priority pass if you’ve applied ahead of time and opportunities to snap a picture with guest appearances from Characters in the lobby.
Across from the reception and check-in area, you’ll find the luggage storage. A super convenient experience if you arrive early and want to head straight to the parks.
The hotel also features an on-site gift shop, although most of the merchandise is similar to what you’ll find in the parks. We did pick an Up pin from here as it was my partner's birthday.
What restaurants are at the Disney Santa Fe hotel?
Now onto the last of the on-site amenities, the Santa Fe hotel features a restaurant called La Cantina. We dined here for breakfast, and they served Mickey Waffles, a lot of pastries, traditional English breakfast food, cheese, meats and fruit.
It also includes unlimited refill juice and hot drinks. We dined as a morning birthday treat, and truth be told, we would not say this is the best restaurant, mainly because most of the food didn’t taste great and food was being packed away at least 30minutes before closing.
For the price, we’d recommend looking at alternative Disney restaurants, like Pym Kitchen or one of the other hotel eateries.
Disney Santa Fe has a shop and petrol station next door
Did you know Disneyland Paris’s Santa Fe hotel has a shop only a 2-minute walk away?
This hotel comes with its own little hack: it’s located directly next door to a petrol station and shop. It’s easy to get to, you just exit out the entrance to Santa Fe, take a left, and it’s there. It’s only a 2-minute walk and is a great place for drinks, snacks and any holiday essentials you forgot, such as a charger or plug adapter.
Santa Fe at night
Did you know Santa Fe features neon lights at night?
One thing this resort has over the other Disneyland Paris hotels is how it comes alive at night. The billboard comes alive with neon lights, providing a wonderful atmosphere when you arrive back from the parks and the most iconic and recognisable look amongst the resorts.
Our verdict
Is Disney’s Santa Fe worth staying at on your next Disneyland Paris trip?
The answer: yes, if you can get it for the right price. When we stayed on our last visit it was only £640 for 3 nights, including park tickets - providing the most affordable on-site Disney Hotel option. If it’s not much more, we would recommend the other hotels, as the Santa Fe is a budget-friendly option and the amenities reflect that.
We hope this helped you plan your next stay. Be sure to sign up for our newsletter and check out our YouTube channel for all our reviews, tips and guides.
