The Best Time to visit Disneyland Paris? It’s such a subjective question and depends what you’re looking for. Seasonal events? Sunshine? Low crowd levels? Every month in Disneyland Paris has it’s own benefits from the awesome decorations of Halloween to the long park days and hot weather in the summer.

But our personal favourite? The time of year we would happily go again and again? Visiting Disneyland Paris in January! I know this isn’t the most popular time of year to visit Disneyland, but hear me out….

We’ve now visited Disneyland Paris in January three times and, as long as you don’t have any objections to exploring Disneyland Paris when the weather is cold, it’s such an underrated, hidden gem. And if you visit early enough in the month (which we do!) you can still see all the Christmas decorations and festivities, but without the crowds too.

Read on to find out why we love Disneyland Paris in January:

1. Why Visit Disneyland Paris in January
2. Booking Tickets For Disneyland Paris In January
3. Weather and What To Pack For Disneyland Paris in January
4. Disneyland Paris Ride Closures In January 2026
5. Top Tips For Disneyland Paris January Visitors
6. How Does January Compare To Other Months?
7. Final Thoughts: Visiting Disneyland Paris in January
8. Further Reading: Planning Your Disneyland Paris Trip

Heads up! This post may contain affiliate links, which means if you click and make a purchase, I might earn a very small commission – at no extra cost to you. This helps to keep the blog going. Thanks for the support!

Why Visit Disneyland Paris in January

There are so many great reasons to choose January for your trip to Disneyland Paris! I’ve popped some of the reasons I think it’s an underrated month, and a great time to visit, below:

• Lower Crowd Levels. January is one of the quietest months to visit Disneyland Paris. The kids are back to school after Christmas, the weather is cold (which puts a lot of people off) and the post-Christmas blues have hit. This means that, in terms of crowd levels, there’s no better time than January. And no better way to beat the post-Christmas blues either!
  
• Cheaper Prices. When crowd levels drop, so do prices. You’ll find that hotel prices are typically lower in January, particularly when compared to peak August or Halloween prices.The same applies to your flights or transport costs.
  
• All the Fun of Christmas Without the Cost.  For 2025 the Disneyland Paris Christmas season will run from November 8th 2025 until January 6th 2026. Visiting in early January (I recommend 4th – 6th as a sweet spot) means that you’re getting all the fun of Christmas but without any of the expense OR the crowds it usually brings.

Booking Tickets For Disneyland Paris In January

I ALWAYS recommend booking your Disneyland Paris tickets in advance. Please don’t risk buying them on the gate: not only are the on the gate prices much more expensive, there’s also no guarantee that tickets will still be available. Back when we were Disneyland Paris annual pass holders and went to the parks a lot, we once saw a family being turned away at the gate: one of the kids was crying and it broke my heart. So I don’t care how or where you buy your tickets, just BUY THEM IN ADVANCE.

If you’re planning a Disney holiday over several days, then the best way to book this is directly with Disneyland Paris via their website. But these packages tend to be a little too expensive for our family!

We tend to book our offsite hotel and tickets separately to save those £££. If you’re staying off site and just want tickets for a day or two then we always book via Klook. These are great value, and delivered instantly, straight to your phone!

👉 Check availability and BOOK your Disneyland Paris Tickets here!
🎁 USE code THATMUMTRAVEL5KLOOK to get an additional 5% off ticket prices too.

✨ TOP TIP: We LOVE trips instead of gifts (and more stuff we don’t need filling the house). If this sounds appealing to you too, then tickets to Disneyland Paris in January would make a GREAT Christmas present! ✨

Weather and What To Pack For Disneyland Paris in January

I’m not going to lie to you here, the weather is one of the main draw backs of visiting Disneyland Paris in January – it is going to be cold!! The average daily temperature in Disneyland Paris in January is 3 degrees centigrade, which is the coldest month of the year.

But if you bundle up warm, this doesn’t have to stop you from having a good time! The key is to be prepared, and pack more clothes that you think you’ll need.

We all wear thermal trousers and long-sleeved tops under our clothes: layering means if it does warm up in the afternoon, you have options. Hats, scarves, and gloves are all essentials too and hand warmers are a godsend for the evening mornings of Extra Magic Hours: my husband even tucked them in his socks!

I’ve popped our full cold-weather Disney essentials packing list below:

• Thermal base layers (We got merino wool ones from Go Outdoors but you can find similar here)
• Thermal socks (We always use cosy merino wool ones like these)
• Disposable handwarmers (we carried these in our backpack so we had them when we needed them)
• Ski gloves (these are thicker and will keep your hands warmer than wool gloves. They’ll also stay drier if the weather doesn’t go your way). The boys wore these ones.
• Winter boots. Choose boots with grippy soles rather than fashion boots, because the floors in Disneyland Paris can be slippery when wet.
• Disney sweatshirts. We choose sweatshirts over those lovely-looking knitted jumpers because they’re more practical if they get wet: wool will hold the water, meaning that you’ll stay wet all day!

Finally, pack comfortable and waterproof shoes! Theme park days are long, and comfort is key! If it rains I promise you, then there’s nothing worse than spending the day walking around with cold, soggy feet.

Disneyland Paris Ride Closures In January 2026

Throughout the year, Disneyland Paris closes different rides at intervals. This is important for essential maintenance, and as a general rule means that if you visit Disneyland Paris more than once, you’ll see that different rides are closed, giving you a different experience every time. No single month is better or worse than another in terms of ride closures (it just depends if there are any rides you really don’t want to miss!)

Disneyland Paris attraction closures are usually released around 3 months in advance.The Disneyland Paris ride closures for January 2026 won’t be released until next month, therefore, but I will update this section of the post as soon as they’re published.

🎃 Wondering if Halloween season might suit you better? Or if the closures are different? These have already been announced (to give you an idea of what they might look like) and you’ll find them when you read my top tips for visiting Disneyland Paris at Halloween here.

Top Tips For Disneyland Paris January Visitors

Think January is the right time for your Disneyland Paris adventure? Here are our top tips:

• Book tickets and hotels early. Even though January is a quieter period, the best deals can still get snapped up. We book our tickets via Klook and we LOVE the offsite Explorers Pirate Hotel. You can read our full review of this hotel here.
• Take advantage of shorter queue times. You’ll find the queue times are shorter in January than in other months, but there are still tips for taking advantage of this. Do your favourite/the most popular rides earlier and later in the day when queue times are shorter.
• Plan dining in advance. If you want to do any character dining then book this before you arrive: it books out year-round. For other dining, check and book in advance because some restaurants reduce their hours, or even close, outside of the peak season.
• Enjoy seasonal snacks. Often the special event treats and snacks outlive the events they’re promoting. At the beginning of the month you can try the delicious Christmas treats before they’re taken off the menu for another year.

How Does January Compare To Other Months?

We like visiting Disneyland Paris in January because it’s just so quiet: there are sections of the park so empty in parts that you’ll feel like you’ve got the whole place to yourself. You’ll definitely appreciate this more if you’ve already visited Disneyland Paris during one of its most busy and crowded periods. These tend to be Christmas, Halloween, and the summer.

🎃 You can read my top tips for visiting Disneyland Paris at Halloween here
😊 You can read my top tips for visiting Disneyland Paris in August here

I believe that, when compared to other seasons and especially these busy seasons, visiting Disneyland Paris in January is best for families that don’t want chaos and don’t mind a little bit of cold weather. Families with young children that don’t want to queue (and don’t have to be in school), families who think the Disney magic is enough and don’t need any special shows or events will all love visiting at this time.

It’s the perfect time to take a first trip to Disneyland Paris. In terms of crowd levels, the only other months that are similar to January are September and February. We’ve visited in both months and had great trips! If you’re kids don’t like the cold, I would recommend September as a good alternative: you can read about visiting the Park in September here.

Final Thoughts: Visiting Disneyland Paris in January

For us, January is a real Disneyland Paris sweet spot. The Christmas rush has gone, the crowd levels couldn’t be lower, and you still get all of the magic of Christmas in Disneyland Paris without the chaos and the cost that comes from visiting in the peak of the season.

When you visit Disneyland Paris in January you can slow down a little, enjoy the shorter queues (our boys used this as an opportunity to ride their favourite rides over and over again), and soak up the parades and the general atmosphere without feeling rushed or hemmed in.

If you’re flexible about when you visit Disneyland Paris (because you’re not tied to school schedules) then I think visiting Disneyland Paris in January is one of the best choices you can make! You’ll save money because you won’t have to pay peak season prices for tickets or accommodation.

There is a drawback of visiting Disneyland Paris in September – it’s a month that doesn’t include a big, seasonal event if you visit after Christmas ends on 6th Janury 2026. But that’s exactly why it’s such an affordable, underrated gem. If you’re booking your Disneyland Paris trip in January then I’m jealous! It’s a great month to be in the parks.

Further Reading: Planning Your Disneyland Paris Trip

Still planning your dream Disneyland Paris trip? Keep reading these blog posts to plan the perfect trip:

🎅 Thinking of Visiting Disneyland Paris At Christmas? Read This First! First Hand Tips and 2025 Update
🎠 One Day Itinerary For Disneyland Paris: Top Tips To Maximise the Fun
💶 Disneyland Paris on a Budget: Family Friendly Money Saving Tips

👉 Don’t forget to check availability and book your park tickets NOW!
🎁 Use code THATMUMTRAVEL5KLOOK to get 5% off ticket prices, and put that money towards souviners when you arrive!

Are you going to Disneyland Paris this January? What are you most looking forward to about your trip? I’d love to hear your thoughts! And if you have any questions I haven’t answered here, please post them below!

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Heads up! This post may contain affiliate links, which means if you click and make a purchase, I might earn a very small commission – at no extra cost to you. This helps to keep the blog going. Thanks for the support!