Who turns down an invitation to test out a brand-new rollercoaster at Disneyland Resort Paris? Not Raisingkids.co.uk's editor Catherine who took her husband and child along for the ride.

There are some invitations that you don't need to think twice about and being invited to Disneyland Resort Paris to try out two of their brand-new attractions is certainly one of them.

As part of their 15th anniversary celebrations, the resort has been working overtime to get two brand new rides, Crush's Coaster and the Cars Race Rally, completed. Now all they needed was some willing volunteers to come and see what all their hard work had achieved.

For the benefit anyone who's been living in a cave for the past decade and hasn't seen Finding Nemo yet, Crush's Coaster is based on the Disney movie where Nemo's father Marlin and his sidekick Dory ride the Gulf Stream to Australia with a group of laid-back turtles. Each carriage on the coaster features four seats in the shape of a turtle shell and over the space of a few minutes hurtles the inhabitants on a - mainly indoors - ride through an underwater experience.

Our first impressions were really magical. Yes, I screamed like a banshee, but I loved the day-glo creatures that the ride span us past. Part of the rollercoaster hurtles you outside, to the amusement of other park visitors, and the family consensus - including that of our four-year-old daughter Emily whose first rollercoaster ride this was - was a resounding thumbs-up.

Over a jam-packed weekend, we also managed to fit in several trips on the new Cars Race Rally - which younger kids will appreciate - as well as numerous rides on the Peter Pan, Pirates of the Caribbean and Star Tours adventures. Emily and I even managed to persuade my husband to come on It's a Small World - but with hindsight that was probably a ride too far. Grown men and thousands of tiny singing dolls probably aren't meant to go together.

Our tips for getting the best out of a family trip to Disneyland Resort Paris are as follows:

1. Take the Eurostar. A three-hour journey brings you to the door of Disneyland Resort Paris and it's a much more eco-friendly, not to mention fun way for the whole family to travel.

2. Stay in one of the resort hotels - you'll enjoy access to the parks earlier in the morning, before the rest of the world descends, which is a godsend, particularly on busy weekends.

3. Use the fast-pass system. It's free and saves queueing which means you'll get more out of your visit to the park.

4. Bring rain-proof clothes. We foolishly believed the BBC's forecast for uninterrupted sunshine and were caught out (hence the day-glo yellow Disney poncho Emily is wearing in the picture above). Just because this resort is in France, does not mean it's going to be sunny!

5. Get a good position for the parades. The current one is called Once Upon A Dream and as the picture below shows, is really spectacular. Families nab decent postions up to half an hour before the daily parades.

6. Take in a show. As you'd expect, Disney doesn't do things by halves. We went to The Legend of the Lion King and it was 30 minutes of musical magic. Better still, time your visit with a mealtime and kill two birds with one stone by eating at one of the tables overlooking the stage.

7. Take time out. We visited a nearby chateau on day three of our trip to see some of the beautiful countryside outside the resort. Barely 30 minutes drive from Disneyland Paris is the magical park of Vaux-le-Vicomte, the precursor to Versailles. Celeb tip: this is where Desperate Housewife Eva Longoria is getting married this summer.

Information:
Raisingkids.co.uk travelled to Disneyland Resort Paris with Eurostar and stayed at Disney's Hotel New York. For more information on family holidays to the resort, click here.

• Return to our travel homepage
• Groovy times at The Grove hotel
• Summer fun on the Isles of Scilly