DISNEYLAND Paris re-opened today for the first time since pandemic lockdown, with families heading for a host of new attractions.

With more than 60 fan favourite characters popping up at selfie spots, and daily surprise appearances, there’s plenty of interaction even if you can’t get up close and personal.

Characters from the Disney, Pixar, Star Wars and Marvel film franchises have all been called into action as Imperial Stormtroopers rub shoulders with Disney princesses.

New re-opening experiences find Chewbacca, Kylo Ren, and Stormtroopers at the Videopolis Theatre, and appearances by Cruella, and Emile and Remy from Ratatouille.

Characters straight out of Alice in Wonderland are special guests in the Cheshire Cat Train on Main Street, USA, and a float welcoming Disney Princesses will make surprise appearances.

At Walt Disney Studios Park, watch out for Frozen favourites and Marvel superheroes, including your friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man at the Studio Theatre.

The big new attraction is the Cars Road Trip ride, which sees the former Studio Backlot tour given over to the four-wheeled heroes from Radiator Springs, with fire and water aplenty.

Launched today, the ride takes guests along Route 66 in a streetcar, meeting Lightning McQueen, Mater and many others, while passing by Cars landmarks. It’s a smooth ride until things start to go wrong… Take a look at the teaser trailer.

The re-opening comes ahead of next week’s opening of Disney’s Hotel New York – The Art of Marvel, which will pay tribute to iconic superheroes and the artists who created them.

With more than 350 pieces of artwork on display spanning comics and movies created by more than 110 artists from Europe and beyond, it will be one of the largest publicly viewable collections of Marvel art in the world.

I’ll be reporting from the Hotel New York launch event on Tuesday, so keep an eye on paulcoletravels.com.

Also coming soon is Disney Junior Dream Factory, a new live entertainment show for families with young children, opening in Walt Disney Studios Park on July 1.

An immersive 20-minute show will feature some of Disney Junior’s most popular Characters such as Mickey, Minnie and Timon and rising stars Vampirina and Fancy Nancy Clancy.

Natacha Rafalski, President of Disneyland Paris, said: “We are absolutely thrilled to bring the Disney magic back to our guests, in the most wonderful way and with enhanced health and safety measures.

“As the top tourist destination in Europe, I am so proud to see Disneyland Paris play a key role in the re-ignition of the tourism industry.

“It is a chapter filled with hope and optimism that we are starting all together as we believe that the need to dream and share moments of happiness with family and friends have never been so important. 

“And as part of our longstanding commitment to supporting our communities, we are delighted to be celebrating this milestone with 300 beneficiaries from local associations”

To support social distancing, limited attendance and advanced ticketing and reservations are in place. For booking and availability, together with the latest Covid advice and health precautions, head to disneylandparis.com.

For the latest UK government international travel advice on holidays in France click here and for the current entry requirements see here.