Candlelight Processional - Do you have to get "in" to enjoy it?

[Tormania]

As I review posts on how long you can expect to wait to get into the Candlelight Processional unless you pony up for a Dinner Package it got me thinking, since it is as much an auditory experience as a visual one, is it necessary to get into the "venue" for seating in order to enjoy it, or can one still hear it from "outside" the theatre? And is it common that for the average narrator that all of the standy line gets in or do they turn the last ones away cause the theatre is at capacity? (I realize that NPH and others will be 3+ hr lines and such)

Thanks!

 

[pandas138]

As I review posts on how long you can expect to wait to get into the Candlelight Processional unless you pony up for a Dinner Package it got me thinking, since it is as much an auditory experience as a visual one, is it necessary to get into the "venue" for seating in order to enjoy it, or can one still hear it from "outside" the theatre? And is it common that for the average narrator that all of the standy line gets in or do they turn the last ones away cause the theatre is at capacity? (I realize that NPH and others will be 3+ hr lines and such) Thanks!

Unless things have changed since we went 3 yrs ago, you don't pay extra for CP dinner pavksge. You just get a place to sit and even then you should get in line 45 minutes before the show. For me, the show is special because you see the singers enter and sing, and watch the narrator tell the Christmas story. So it's much better to sit and watch as well as listen.

 

[katgarbars]

But, in answer to the OP's question: yes, you can still hear the signing outside the venue. To be honest, I went a few years ago and didn't see what all the fuss was about.

 

[DavidNYC]

Not hard at all to see from the back outside the theater. And yes - there is a premium added to the package price that is more that what you would pay for the same food without it. Don't think its worth it - I'm perfectly happy to watch and listen from world showcase. Still great experience!

 

[KapBoy77]

Does anyone actually know how much of a premium there is? Thanks!

 

[bojangleshatdance]

Does anyone actually know how much of a premium there is? Thanks!

I don't know the extra cost but if you are on the dining plan it is two table service credits for the package.

We often stop by and listen from the outside. It is a beautiful performance to stop by and view for a few minutes.

 

[sharadoc]

Does anyone actually know how much of a premium there is? Thanks!

Depending on the restaurant and the meal (lunch or dinner) It can be anywhere from $15-$25 extra, from what I can recall. Look on the Disney website and try to reserve one at a buffet, then check the regular buffet price and you can see the premium.

 

[luvthemouse71]

I loved it last year, so much so that I got the package again this year. Im doing lunch at Via Napoli.

But, you can hear it outside of the theater too.

 

[ses1230]

Does anyone actually know how much of a premium there is? Thanks!

The prices are here: http://www.easywdw.com/category/worth-2/candlelight/

The package also includes Illuminations viewing from the reserved area.

 

[MichiganKris]

I have done it both ways, waiting in line for about 45 minutes the first time so I was in the theater, and then just sitting outside the theater and listening the second time because I decided not to wait in the very long line for that narrator. If the stand by line is not long, I would wait and try and get into the theater so you can see it, however, if it is a long line, just listen to it from outside the theater. You will get almost the same experience in either location. Being inside the theater is more relaxing and you pay more attention to the narration, outside the theater there are more distractions and I found that I didn't pay attention to the whole thing. I would not pay extra for the dining package, I don't think it is worth that.

 

[jaysmom4285]

We've been to WDW many times in December, and I've rarely had any problems getting into the CP as long it as it was a weeknight with one of the less popular narrators. But it is much more aural than visual, and if you can't get a seat in the theater, you can still enjoy it. If you get to see the singers process in with the candles and see the setup once everyone is in place, it doesn't change visually. It's usually easy to get a seat at one of the tables outside the American Adventure counter service restaurant, and you can hear it fine from there.

 

[Tormania]

Thanks for the replies. We have an ADR at Garden Grill at 6:45pm the day we are in EPCOT and I figure we'll be done with dinner in time for the 8:15pm performance. The narrator for that night (Thurs night) is Dennis Haysbert, a new one but could be popular, don't know. With a soon to be 4 yr old in tow I didn't want to try to wait in line right after dinner at that hour, if we can slide into the theater right at start time that is great, otherwise we'll listen to as much as we can outside.

 

[JennyDrake]

I think to FULL enjoy and experience, you need to be "in". PPers are correct--there IS a premium charged and to me it is now absurd--used to not be terribly out of line.

 

[DavidNYC]

I think to FULL enjoy and experience, you need to be "in". PPers are correct--there IS a premium charged and to me it is now absurd--used to not be terribly out of line.

Agree. When it first started it was $5-10 more at most than what you would have expected to pay if you just went to the restaurant (and in some cases I think it could have actually turned out cheaper depending on your food choices). Now, even if you order the most expensive ala carte items it looks like $15-$20 more is standard (and it could be more if you would have chosed some of the less expensive options).

 

[AmyB2006]

Thanks for the replies. We have an ADR at Garden Grill at 6:45pm the day we are in EPCOT and I figure we'll be done with dinner in time for the 8:15pm performance. The narrator for that night (Thurs night) is Dennis Haysbert, a new one but could be popular, don't know. With a soon to be 4 yr old in tow I didn't want to try to wait in line right after dinner at that hour, if we can slide into the theater right at start time that is great, otherwise we'll listen to as much as we can outside.

Mmmm, you are going to be hard pressed to eat dinner, and walk over to American Pavillion in time, IMO. I think you'll definitely be standing outside unless there are still empty seats in the back.

Dennis Haysbert isn't too popular. I think he's the same one that I saw last year. And that's who we see this year. But lines are always still long. Just reaaaallly long for people like NPH. LOL

We go every year and always get the package. It's worth it to me.

ETA... ref you're original question... Can you still enjoy it outside the theater? Yes. You can still hear the music and the narration. Obviously being in the theater sitting with the acoustics in place, would be a better experience, but you can still hear it walking past.

 

[JLTraveling]

I normally go with my father, who has a bad back and can't stand in a long line. We've discovered that if you stand in the back, just behind the rope, you can see about 95% of the performance and hear beautifully. It's also where the singers enter, so you get the chance to see the procession close-up. It works beautifully for us, because he can trade off standing for part of the performance and sitting at an outside table nearby.

 

[snowwite]

My DD is in Encore and was singing in the choir on Saturday with Gary Sinise as the narrator. We didn't do the meal package since we wanted to take her for a meal after the performance. There are several shows per evening and since the choir is so large they use different members in each show. We arrived at 3:30pm made our way to the boats from Mexico to Italy and found the end of the line already that far back. We waited and around 4:30pm a CM came out counting parties on the line and told us that we would not make the 5pm show but to stay in line for the 7pm. The problem was my daughter is only in the 5pm show. So we decided to keep waiting because when everyone slides in there is always room for a few more. A few minutes later a large party with the dining tickets left in a hurry and gave thier passes to the man in front of me. He very generously handed my husband and I tickets so we got to see her perform. I think he might be an angel.
This is my second time and although it was nice, if my child was not in the show it is not worth waiting several hours in line to sing a few hymns and hear the Christmas story. We can do that at church for free without a line.
My DD 's BFF was with us and didn't get in. He stood at the rope at back of theatre and saw and heard everything. There were lots of empty seats but the usher stated that there is a number they cannot exceed so no one else was allowed in even though I saw several empty rows in the front and many scattered empty seats in the ampitheatre.

 

[Otter49]

We went over this past Sunday to catch Gary Sinise. We passed the theater about 5:30 and there may have been 150 people in the standby line for show #2.

We got in line at 6:00 and were seated by 6:30 for the second show. We had aisle seats 5 rows behind the covered area, so they were very good. By the time they started loading guests, the standby line stretched almost to Germany. I'd guess they got all but about 50 people in.

This is a deceptively large theater, official capacity of 1800. Once they seat a bunch of people on the planters, they're closing in on 2000. We've never failed to get a standby seat for the performance we wanted.

Dennis Haysbert is new this year - his voice should suit this event perfectly.

 

[Dislover1991]

Unless things have changed since we went 3 yrs ago, you don't pay extra for CP dinner pavksge. You just get a place to sit and even then you should get in line 45 minutes before the show. For me, the show is special because you see the singers enter and sing, and watch the narrator tell the Christmas story. So it's much better to sit and watch as well as listen.

I do believe now the cost has increased just for the package - dinner at Garden Grill is about $38 for the time we are going but is $57.50 for the package. So we're paying about $20 extra/person for CP entry & Illuminations viewing.

 

[scjo68]

We got the lunch package at Via Napoli. This was the first time we have done the CP or eaten at Via Napoli at all. When we got the check, they gave me a total of all the items I ordered, so I could see each item, but gave me a different check to actually pay, which listed the package amount. The package amount was a couple of dollars less. That is what I paid.

So unless I read the check wrong, I was not actually charged "extra" for the package. I may have read the check wrong- I didn't study it or anything. I mainly made sure that I was paying what I knew the package price was. I did pay way more than I would have normally, though. I would never have ordered a separate pizza, salad, and dessert for each of us, at least not at those prices.