By a massive margin: Disneyland Park, part of the vast Disneyland Resort Paris east of the French capital. Nearly 13 million visitors passed through its turnstiles last year -- more than three times as many as the next most popular European theme park (Europa-Park in south-west Germany).

Europe's most popular theme park

By a massive margin: Disneyland Park, part of the vast Disneyland Resort Paris east of the French capital. Nearly 13 million visitors passed through its turnstiles last year -- more than three times as many as the next most popular European theme park (Europa-Park in south-west Germany).

With its pink castle and "lands" themed on the Wild West, the future and fairy tales, the Disneyland Park looks much the same as Disney properties in California, Florida, Tokyo and Hong Kong. There are costumed Disney characters to meet at every turn, colourful parades and shows, and a host of gentle rides such as Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast and Pirates of the Caribbean. It's A Small World, a colourful boat trip, that takes in miniature characters from all around the globe is a particular favourite among the under-eights.

For older visitors the outstanding rides include a pair of spectacular, high-G roller-coasters -- Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril, and the stomach-churning Space Mountain: Mission 2 -- plus the thrilling but less gruelling Big Thunder Mountain.

Expect queues to be monstrous -- if possible, visit outside school holiday periods and on weekdays rather than weekends.

If you are staying at one of the Disney hotels you should be able to get in before the crowds. For the most popular rides, Disney operates a free Fastpass system -- you pick up a ticket at the attraction, and return later within a stated time slot when you can join a shorter queue.

In 2002, the resort opened Walt Disney Studios Park, which takes the movies as its theme. Broadly speaking, it holds more appeal to older children and adults: The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror is one of the scariest theme-park rides you are likely to encounter, while Rock'n'Roller Coaster is tenuously themed around an Aerosmith gig. But the number of attractions pitched at younger children is growing: don't miss Stitch Live!, in which the cartoon character on the screen can somehow chat with members of the audience. Crush's Coaster, based on the film Finding Nemo, is now one of the most popular rides in the park.

A word of warning. After a few days of relentless rollercoastering and Mickey Mouse shenanigans some visitors go slightly loopy. If that happens you can always seek refuge in that other great fantasy land, Paris itself.

For more information about the seven themed hotels, shops, restaurants and night-time entertainment, visit disneylandparis.ie or call 0033 1 60 30 60 30.

Breakaway (01 6079966; breakaway.ie) is the main Irish agent for Disneyland Paris. Three nights at the Sequoia Lodge cost €119 per adult per night, including theme park admission for four days and meals. Children under seven stay and play free. Free to children under 12 travelling between January 3 and April 1. Park tickets and packages can also be booked at aerlingus.com.

No picnics are allowed in the parks, but bottles of water and snacks should be acceptable.

Any educational theme parks?

Futuroscope (futuroscope.com), spread over a dozen futuristic-looking buildings near Poitiers, springs to mind. Its most intriguing attraction is The Future is Wild (pictured) in which you interact with imaginary animals that could inhabit the world millions of years from now.

In the early years of Futuroscope, some visitors complained that it was too worthy and not exciting enough. Happily, there is a host of new attractions. Fly Me to the Moon is an animated 3D film based on the Apollo 11 mission; EcoDingo is a simulated ride on environmentally friendly vehicles; while Building the Future is an explorable "house of tomorrow", offering ideas for sustainable living. The new nocturnal multi-media extravaganza, The Blue Note Mystery, was designed by the artistic adviser for the ceremonies at the Beijing Olympics.

Just outside Benidorm and plumb in the middle of Spain's Costa Blanca,Terra Mitica (00 34 902 02 02 20; terramitica park.com ) is divided into zones representing Egypt, Greece, Rome, Iberia and Mediterranean islands. Top rides include the Magnus Colossus, claimed to be Europe's longest wooden rollercoaster, and the Flight of the Phoenix -- a 170-foot free-fall drop. The (unthemed) Atalaya Adventure Park is new, with rope bridges and zip lines. Note that there is a separate admission charge from the theme park proper (from €10).

Where to take a splash?

North along the Mediterranean shore, on the Costa Dorada, the resort of PortAventura has one of Europe's biggest and best water parks, in the form of the Caribe Aquatic Park. It boasts a wave pool, lazy river, water slides, and indoor area for young children. But the focal point of PortAventura is its excellent theme park (portaventura.com), which has five beautifully themed lands recreating Mayan Mexico, the Wild West, Polynesia, China and elements of the Mediterranean, and some top-notch rides such as the eight-loop roller coaster Dragon Khan. On hot days, the splash rides such as Silver River Flume will help you to cool down.

The owners of Siam Park (00 34 902 060 000; siampark.net), which opened in southern Tenerife last September, call their creation a theme park with aquatic rides.

The theme is exotic Thailand: slides are set among tropical vegetation, there's a floating market constructed from wood, bamboo and tiles shipped from Thailand, and a white sand beach.

For adrenalin seekers, main attractions are the Tower of Power -- after a near-vertical plunge, you whizz down a clear tube through a tank of tropical fish and alligators -- and the world's biggest artificial breakers (up to 10 feet high) in the wave pool.

Water is also a major element at Gardaland (00 39 045 644 9777; gardaland.it ), on the southeastern shore of Lake Garda. Alongside Italy's most popular theme park, there's a Gardaland water park and a Sea Life Aquarium, which opened last year.

Most European theme park?

The highly rated Europa-Park (00 49 1805 868610; europapark.de), in Rust, south-west Germany. It has a grey rodent called Euromaus as its mascot, and is divided into 13 European countries, with appropriate architecture, vegetation, food, shopping and attractions. In Switzerland, for example, you'll find the Swiss Bob Run, in Russia the Lada Autodrom, in Italy the Carnival in Venice show ("electronic birds celebrate carnival in Venetian masks"), and in England the London Bus ride. Ireland doesn't feature.

Many of the four million annual visitors come for big thrills: the park has 10 rollercoasters. These include Silver Star, in the French area, the highest coaster in Europe; and the new Blue Fire Megacoaster, which catapults riders to more than 60mph in 2.5 seconds above the landscape and fishing village of Iceland.Most enchanting park?Tivoli (00 45 3315 1001; tivoli.dk), a Danish institution in Copenhagen, can fairly claim to be the world's first amusement park -- it opened in 1843 -- and was an inspiration for Walt Disney when he was planning the original Disneyland in California. It is still the third-most popular theme park in Europe, with more than three million visitors. Besides its rides, Tivoli's appeal lies in its immaculate gardens, the Pantomime Theatre, performances from the uniformed Tivoli Boys Guard, and its dining options, which include two Michelin-starred restaurants.

Legoland: built to last

During the Depression, Ole Kirk Christiansen, a carpenter, experimented with building blocks. He chose the name Lego from the Danish phrase leg godt, meaning "play well", unaware that, in Latin, lego means "I put together". In 1954, his son, Godtfred, developed the Lego system; in 1968 Legoland (legoland.dk) opened next door to the factory in Billund. New twists this year include the Pirate Wave Breaker, "the red pirate boat that makes even the most experienced sailors shriek". Next door, a new resort complex, called Lalandia offers a water park and holiday cottages; see legolandbillundresort.com. The easiest access is by flying Dublin to Billund (ryanair.com), which is walking distance from the park.Parks essentials

Plan your trips to these attractions like military campaigns. Check out theme parks' websites for opening times, height restrictions on rides, and admission prices and deals -- prices are sometimes lower if tickets are bought ahead or are for multiple days, and ticket/hotel packages can be worth considering. Among the best guides to Disneyland is Frommer's Paris & Disneyland Resort Paris with Your Family, particularly if you are also staying in Paris.

Useful unofficial websites covering European theme parks: dlp.info (Disneyland Paris only), themeparkinsider.com, themeparkreview.com, screamscape.com. Tripadvisor.com is also useful.

- Fred Mawer, Kim Bielenberg

Irish Independent