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Credit: Disneyland ParisGuests have complained about recurrent cases of pickpocketing at one Disney resort.
Disney may be the master of crafting magic and memories, but there’s one unpredictable element even Mickey Mouse can’t control: the guests. When a scandal rocks the parks, it’s often the result of the surprising—or downright shocking—actions of the visitors themselves.
Over the years, we’ve seen a man arrested and banned after stripping naked on “it’s a small world” at Disneyland Park, two families brawl at Disneyland Park after one group failed to move out of the other’s way, guests clash over the unavailability of tables at Pym Test Kitchen at Disney California Adventure Park, and even one guest rip out another’s earring in an argument over line-cutting on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.
Beyond fights, guests have also complained that theft is on the rise at Walt Disney World Resort. Further afield, there have also been multiple reports of pickpocketing at Disneyland Paris, with some guests noting that the issue is only getting worse.
Pickpocketing at Disneyland Paris
Inside the Magic recently heard from a guest who had their phone taken from their open bag while visiting the smallest of the two parks at Disneyland Paris, Walt Disney Studios Park. Bad enough though this is as an isolated issue, this isn’t the first time we’ve heard of guests having their belongings snatched at the parks.
In early 2024, one guest took to Reddit to share their pickpocketing experience. “This afternoon a woman put her hand in my pocket as I was walking towards Buzz,” they wrote. “It was raining so I had my hood up and I guess I appeared to be looking down and not paying attention. She was wrong, I felt the tug and caught sight of her hand pulling out. I have nothing in my pockets so she bolted away.”
Others had similar stories to tell. “We had a similar encounter a few years back,” another user wrote. When we were in the elevator in Phantom Manor, someone got the wallet of my wife. She realized that when we left the elevator and started to yell. The guy disappeared in the dark. Had to go to the police station.”
Back in 2016, a ring of organized pickpockets was actually uncovered in a joint operation by Romanian and French police. The group committed at least 1,000 thefts over a six-month period, amassing cash, expensive leather goods, cellphones, and jewelry with an estimated total value of at least €1 million euros ($1.1 million), dispatching young pickpockets to steal from tourists both traveling to Disneyland and at the resort entrance.
Where Are Guests Most Vulnerable?
On our own trips to Disneyland Paris, we’ve noted multiple announcements both on the train and at Marne-la-Vallée train station by Disney Village, warning guests of the risks of pickpockets. While we’ve been lucky in the past, other guests have fallen foul in the area, plus on the hotel shuttle buses.
A guest recalled their own incident on a Disneyland Paris shuttle on Reddit. “We were on the outer edge squeezing onto the bus and a woman came behind my friend and seemed to be reaching towards her bag which was in front of her,” they wrote.
“We were on the bus at this point and it seemed like the lady was pushing to get on. My friend clocked her so the lady touched my friend’s hair instead and made a comment about how her hair is so long and then backed off the bus when the man she was with said they would get the next one.”
After they got off the bus, the guest noticed that their backpack was undone and their wallet was missing. While their credit cards were later handed into the hotel, their wallet was never returned.
While pickpocketing does occur within the parks themselves, guests have noted that “the ones inside the parks target buggies and people putting bags down.” Whatever the case, we recommend staying vigilant with your belongings during your visit. Easy though it may be to let down your guard in Mickey Mouse’s domain, better safe than sorry.
Have you ever fallen victim to theft at a Disney theme park?