<P> Michael Eisner , Disney 's CEO at the time , signed the first letter of agreement with the French government for the 20 - square - kilometre ( 4,940 - acre ) site on 18 December 1985 , and the first financial contracts were drawn up during the following spring . The final contract was signed by the leaders of the Walt Disney Company and the French government and territorial collectivities on 24 March 1987 . Construction began in August 1988 , and in December 1990 , an information centre named `` Espace Euro Disney '' was opened to show the public what was being constructed . Plans for a theme park next to Euro Disneyland based on the entertainment industry , Disney - MGM Studios Europe , quickly went into development , scheduled to open in 1996 with a construction budget of US $2.3 billion . The construction manager was Bovis . </P>
how much did disneyland paris cost to build
a construction budget of US $2.3 billion