Fantasmic - which nights, reservations?

[nyTINKnPETE]

We'll be heading to WDW in early November, and we want to see Fantasmic. Can anyone suggest which nights might be less crowded? Also, is the reserved seating we can get with a restaurant reservation a Good Thing? Reviews seem to be mixed.

TIA!

 

[AimeeM]

Early November should be pretty low crowds. We go to WDW every January, and again this past Thanksgiving and we have never had trouble getting a seat at Fantasmic. We have gone in with less than 30 minutes before the show,and there were still plenty of seats. I havent done the PS for Fantasmic, because I dont really think you need it, especially at a value time of year. The seats reserved are off to the right side and up front. You can come into the theater late and get all the way to the left side so I really dont see the great advantage of the PS, unless you are there at an extremely busy time of year!

 

[tjkraz]

I agree with AimeeM. Our last two trips were in the off-season, and there were seats available (albeit not right in the middle) when the show began.

If you want prime seats, you'll have to arrive 45 minutes early. No way to avoid that. The dinner package seats are the section to the far right, and the last section to fill up with walk-ins is on the far left.

The major complaint that you will see regarding the dinner package is the seating. The dinner package guarantees you a seat--but certainly not a prime seat. If you are already planning dinner at one of the package restaurants (Brown Derby, Hollywood & Vine or Mama Melrose's), you might as well get the package. I don't believe you end up "losing" financially on the package. But for the time of year you are visiting, the package is likely to be irrelevant with comparable seats available at showtime.

If you're going to be in MGM on the day you plan to see Fantasmic, use the crowd levels to predict how busy Fantasmic might be. If standby times for the prime attractions hover in the 15-20 minute range, you should be able to walk in just before the show starts. But if the park seems much busier (say 45 minute standby times), plan to arrive 30-45 minutes before showtime.