‘WHERE ARE YOU?!’ cries the curly-haired little boy in front of me – my two-year-old son Theo – as fireworks crack and bloom above a lake, illuminating ‘mountain peaks’ glazed with ‘snow’.
He’s not, however, enquiring about me. He’s keen to know the location of a certain platinum blonde in an ice-blue dress he met earlier: Queen Elsa.
Because we’re in Arendelle, or as close as you can get to the fictional kingdom from Disney’s Frozen.
This is the opening of the World of Frozen at Disneyland Paris, the result of a multi-billion-euro expansion – and we’ve been lucky enough – along with French President Emmanuel Macron (no less), supermodel Naomi Campbell, Spice Girl Emma Bunton and TV presenter Holly Willoughby – to have a behind-the-scenes preview before the tourist hordes descend.
For the record, I’m avowedly not a ‘Disney adult’, that particular breed of grown-up fan whose lives revolve, in part or whole, around the parks, the films, the mythology and more. But it’s hard not to be impressed with World of Frozen.
The fictional kingdom of Arendelle, from the Frozen films, comes alive at Disneyland Paris
Visitors can explore the Scandinavia-inspired village – and they might bump into their favourite characters
There’s a dollop of whimsical Scandi in the gabled rooftops and colourful Nordic-style waterfront buildings. The engineered ‘mountain’ towers 118 ft high, looking unnervingly realistic, crowned with Elsa’s ice palace.
Even the water of the 7.5-acre Adventure Bay lake carries a strange blue-green sheen as though belonging in a fairy tale.
Kooky shop/sauna proprietor Oaken and Mossie, the pint-sized baby troll, cheerfully roam the village centre.
Several times a day the ‘A Celebration in Arendelle’ show features characters such as Anna, Elsa and Kristoff, plus ‘villagers’, singing and dancing, while the loveable snowman Olaf comes to life in animatronic form.
You get closer to the stars inside the ‘castle’, enjoying one-on-one encounters with Anna and Elsa.
Frozen Ever After is a musical boat ride that glides through landscapes of fjords and ice, slowing at vignettes showing pivotal scenes from the first film.
Catchy songs such as Let It Go fill the air, while on all sides you’re met with Disney’s impressive ‘Audio-Animatronics’ robotic figures.
Pivotal scenes from the first Frozen film play out in front of you on the Frozen Ever After ride
Ben and his two-year-old son Theo at beside the fountain in the recreated Arendelle
In short: it’s a blast. We ride it three times. Theo alternates between sitting silent and staring, and moments of unencumbered joy.
Loud ‘oooohhhhs’ are forthcoming as he recognises his favourite characters, shouting ‘hello’ as we pass – waving so much I’m worried his arm might drop off.
World of Frozen is not subtle, nor is it trying to be, but it works with remarkable efficiency. Combined with the setting – so carefully managed you lose sight of anything beyond Arendelle – it becomes something closer to theatre than theme park.
World of Frozen blends with striking coherence as an expansion of Disney Adventure World, which is the new name for Walt Disney Studios Park, more than two decades since it opened as an addition to the original Disneyland Park. Here, attractions take their cue from Toy Story, Ratatouille, Cars and the Marvel heroes.
But Disneyland Paris is not finished yet. Late last year, construction began in a large area dedicated to The Lion King, the first of its kind that promises to plunge visitors ‘deep into the Pride Lands to follow Simba’s adventures’.
Kooky shop/sauna proprietor Oaken roams the village – perfect for photos with the family
The World of Frozen is part of the newly renamed Disney World of Adventure in France
There’s still plenty of charm in the other park – the jaunty Mad Hatter’s Tea Cups, the sea shanties of Pirates Of The Caribbean – but older rides such as Peter Pan’s Flight now feel distinctly dated.
But there’s little stopping this tourism behemoth. Since opening, Disneyland Paris has contributed a staggering €120 billion (£104 billion) to the French economy, accounting for 6.1 per cent of the country’s tourism revenue.
By the time we make our way home, I’m humming Disney tunes that have, it turns out, been lodged somewhere in my mind since childhood. For parents, the experience may be exhausting, but to see the happiness in your child’s eyes is entirely worth it.
Am I still perplexed about die-hard Disney adults? Yes. But if World of Frozen has taught me anything, when it comes to that feeling, I might just need to Let It Go…
