There are two things that let Disneyland Paris down, my editor warned me. “The weather. And the French.”

Well, as it happens, we were bathed in glorious November sunshine for our trip, but I can add another potential spoiler instead: an over-tired child at the wrong end of a sugar rush and a long journey.

As I now know, nothing will fray your festive spirit quite like tethering a howling toddler to an impromptu naughty step alongside Dumbo the Flying Elephant.

Here, I struggled to reason with my three-year-old while she emitted ear-piercing screeches and a queue of bemused parents and their children beamed beautific smiles from the sidelines.

“Just enjoy yourself!” I hissed, to no avail.

But, tantrums aside, it is testament to the magic of Disney that we came out on the other side of our weekend stocked up on classic memories and a Christmas glow.

The festive season is now well and truly rocking at Disneyland Paris. Sleeping Beauty’s castle alone is a breath-taking sight, spangled with 6,000 LED lights. Yes, it’s only November, but you’d have to have a heart of stone not to laugh like a simpleton as every one of your childhood Disney heroes parades through Main Street with a wiggle and a wave as lifelike Snow flutters down from the sky.

Our journey to this winter wonderland began at St Pancras and we were ushered seamlessly to Marne-La-Vallee in just two-and-a-half hours. Smooth, spacious, efficient and eco-friendly with just a short hop to the hotel on the other side, surely Eurostar is the most civilised way to travel? Not a tantrum in sight so far.

We found glitz and glamour at the Hotel New York. Our supersized suite offered a surprisingly adult bite of Big Apple luxury with supremely comfortable beds (one tip though: when getting your key from reception, listen to directions instead of getting overawed by the fairylights in the lobby. Otherwise you will be wandering the corridors for half an hour, feeling as though you’re trapped in The Shining).

For an adult, let alone a child, who has never been to a theme park, the sheer scale of Disneyland Paris is staggering. Europe’s biggest tourist attraction, there are 5,800 Disney hotel rooms, 56 attractions, 57 restaurants and 60 shops. Where do you start?

We trundled through Disney Village where I first felt the onslaught of Disney merchandise. And this was how I lost my grasp on my toddler’s behaviour. For at every turn, we were bombarded with princess dresses in every hue of nylon.

No sooner had I swerved her past one rack of child-height frocks than another popped up to mock me.

Now, I’m not deluding myself here, my little girl Amber is a good sort – not spoilt or shouty, in general. But as soon as she entered the gates, she became obsessed with the synthetic clobber. As another parent advised me later, if you have a little girl, pack her princess dress and carry it with you to satisfy her inner diva or else you’ll have to fork out 60 euros for an off-the-peg Rapunzel number, as I eventually did on the second day in the hope of a quiet life (and it was worth every penny.) Disneyland Paris comprises of two parks – Disneyland Park and Walt Disney Studios Park – which attracted 15 million visitors last year. I heard spine-chilling tales of the Tower Of Terror from the older children in our group, but we headed off for the more sedate pleasures of Fantasyland.

Our first day was punctuated by aforementioned mood swings as Amber spotted princesses everywhere, but these attractions were still about as much fun as you can have with your clothes on.

She was especially struck by Alice’s Curious Labyrinth with its twists, turns and smoking caterpillar. The only dark moment was on my 18th lap of the maze when, having lost sight of Amber again, I was startled to hear myself in stereo and turned round to see my doppelganger: a red-faced, sweaty Queen of Hearts hollering furiously at the top of her voice. At this point I decided that I needed to chill out and give in to the ‘Magic’.

It worked. After retrieving my child, we headed over to catch a boat at It’s A Small World. We were both mesmerised by this realm of living dolls, in glittery, camper-than-Christmas splendour. Mad Hatter’s Tea Cups, Slinky Dog Zigzag Spin and Magic Carpets all had us similarly fixated – and these are just the tip of the iceberg in a park boasting full-on roller-coasters and rides to thrill much bigger kids.

Disneyland has beefed up its character appearances for the Magical Moments Festival this year, which is how we stumbled across Aladdin (white, white teeth and infectious smile) and the Genie (hot) for our first interactive encounter.

Try to be cool and cynical all you like, but when you catch a glimpse of Snow White and the gang, you will gasp like a child.

I was prepared for a bit of jostling having witnessed the jaw-dropping rudeness of French mothers pushing brazenly in front of us in the queues for rides. But think your tot will get his autograph signed by Goofy by waiting in line? Sharpen your elbows and get ready for a scrum, or forget it. Because those French mothers are ready to take you down.

“This is nothing! It was all kicking off over at Woody,” one parent told me as I watched, gobsmacked, as two women brawled.

Entertainingly, the staff at Disneyland combine dazzling, world-class charm with dashes of comic French rudeness.

I haven’t been to the American versions, but I’m pretty sure that on asking for directions in the local language, the cast won’t bark “You should ’ave a map”, before flouncing off. I was told off so many times that I started to enjoy baiting the staff.

But I do think there is something admirable about a nation that manages to blend the very best in service – the food was uniformly exceptional and the general treatment sublime – with shots of that extreme Gallic surliness.

Every little detail is lavished with care – from the cafes around the bazaar to Merlin’s Cave in the castle. But twilight is when the parks really come into their own. Every evening for the next two months, Minnie, Mickey and Duffy the Disney Bear, the new merchandise-generator, sorry, adorable character, invite one child to switch on the lights of the huge Christmas tree.

Seeing the little cherubic faces all lit up with glee and twinkling lights would melt the iciest Scrooge.

Priceless memories you will promise to remember forever.