Anyone else skip the fireworks/Fantasmic?

[twinspluscade]

We've never seen Fantasmic or Illuminations, mostly due to not wanting to deal with the resort buses at closing, and wanting to get to bed relatively early. We have seen (and loved) Spectromagic, and only I have seen the MK fireworks (which I thought were just okay).

For our upcoming trip in late May, we'll definitely see the MSEP and Wishes (hoping to get ADRs for the dessert party), but I am considering skipping Fantasmic and Illumations again. I just don't have any burning desire to see either one. Are we missing out by skipping them? Anyone else prefer to be relaxing back at the resort instead of dealing with the crowds and buses of the nighttime entertainment?

 

[RustManFan]

I would never EVER skip Illuminations. One of my favorite things at WDW! I've seen Fantasmic and once was enough. Too much wait time on uncomfortable seating

 

[Eastern]

I think that Fantasmic is overrated. So much hassle to get in and out, hard bench seating, etc.

I like Illuminations but if you want to see them and still make it out before the crowds, view them from near the front of the park. You won't see the Earth spinning but not a big deal. As soon as the finale is over, start walking to the buses.

 

[marauder]

My family picks one night show per trip. My kids aren't very good late-night so we just let them pick which one they want to see the most.

All the shows are different. Fantasmic is more movie and character based. The one at MK is more fireworks based and the one at Epcot is fireworks and Earth story based.

Disney is pretty good at getting people out of the park at closing, personally when making my way to the exit I have never had a more then 1 hour trip from end of show to my resort. It all depends on what priority you put on it and how much it is worth it to you.

If you prefer just sitting back at your resort sipping a glass of wine at the pool, that is good for you.

 

[pepe of ohio]

We've done 52 trips to WDW....we've seen all the fireworks and show so we're a little lazy going back....Fantasmic is a great show but we're not standing in line for an hour or paying for a meal to get preferred seating... we've seen it a few times..

EPCOT, we'll go over in the evening just to see it, we watch from the foot bridges by Odessy... and just sit till most guests empty out...I hate being in the mad crunch to exit the park..

MK, our most visited and liked park ...we try to stay in the general area to have getting there a snap and do enjoy the parade, fireworks and goodnight kiss....but only if we're either at BLT or WL....

 

[BuzzinDownToDisney]

I would never EVER skip Illuminations. One of my favorite things at WDW! I've seen Fantasmic and once was enough. Too much wait time on uncomfortable seating

Complete opposite of us, haha. We saw Illumination once and it was enough. We would never miss Fantasmic! and have seen it multiple times on a single trip. In fact if we had a trip planned and they announced a Fantasmic refurb at that time, we'd postpone till it was reopen.

 

[jcemom]

We always see MK fireworks but we often skip Illuminations and Fantasmic. Fantasmic's long waits and chaotic exit crowds, plus LONG waits for buses afterwards, are our reasons for skipping that one most of the time. We see Illuminations when we're staying at an Epcot resort, because the easy walk back, crowd-free, makes it an enjoyable way to end the evening. Generally if we're staying at a non-Epcot area resort then we skip it. We think it's just okay but I know most people seem to love it. Personally, I think the globe part is too long but the fireworks portions are spectacular, but that all averages out to just okay lol.

 

[Micca]

We haven't done Fantasmic for a long time, too much waiting involved. We like Illuminations, but again, we're not going to camp out ahead of time and then fight the crowds during the exodus. The shows are terrific, but my only incentive to see them again would be to accomodate someone traveling with us who had not seen them before.

 

[sweetnjmom]

Last November (2013) we skipped all fireworks. My son, then 4, just couldn't stay up and he had a MASSIVE meltdown before our planned viewing of Fantasmic (had the FP+ for it). He sort of saw the fireworks on the boat back to Wilderness Lodge but only just barely.

This coming May, we are pushing him to his limit of wakefulness to do the Pirates and Pals fireworks cruise. He LOVES Captain Hook and Smee so this will be a treat. I hope he manages to stay up. lol We aren't planning on staying for Wishes IN the Magic Kingdom (though we'll do the MSEP).

And we are planning to see Fantasmic. Even if the seats are uncomfortable, there are seats. And we'll sit anywhere. No rushing to get there early. I'd even try for FP+ again if a spot is guaranteed.

Probably skipping Illuminations, only because I hate trying to find a spot to see it and the wait. There really isn't anything for us to FP+ at EPCOT, so I could consider an Illuminations spot.

Honestly, if we miss fireworks, it's fine. He's still into the characters and not late nights.

 

[ZoZo]

I think that Fantasmic is overrated. So much hassle to get in and out, hard bench seating, etc.

I like Illuminations but if you want to see them and still make it out before the crowds, view them from near the front of the park. You won't see the Earth spinning but not a big deal. As soon as the finale is over, start walking to the buses.

I agree that Fantasmic is overrated. But lots of folks love it! The one time we saw it, we did the whole Fantasmic dining package to try to skip some of the wait. When we finally saw the show, we were pretty much "Meh??" I don't plan to see it again.

I do like Illuminations, but luckily it's pretty to find a place to view it from (as opposed to Fantasmic, which has limited seating).

 

[pigletto]

I think we skipped Wishes until maybe our 5th trip!!
We were rope droppers, had young kids and hated being stuck in crowds. I think the first trip we went on was a special American Pyrotechnics Anniversary show at MK and even that we watched mostly from the bus stop. We catch more of the shows now that the kids are older. I'm really looking forward to the MVMCP fireworks this week!

 

[lustergirl]

Illuminations: a big yes

Fantasmic: a big no in my book.

 

[Disney Von Drake]

All of the Disney fireworks are rather blah including Illuminations and Fantasmic. Disney tries too hard to be artsy fartsy with their pyrotechnic displays. Most commercial 4th of July regional displays are better than the abbreviated shows Disney presents.

 

[Dreamport]

I'm with BuzzinDowntoDisney on this one. We never seem to get a good view for Illuminations anymore, and Fantasmic! is my favorite show on any Disney property!

Since it sounds like you're not late-night people, and if you know you'll be back again, maybe just see what you've already planned for and save trying the other two for another time.

 

[jtowntoflorida]

We've never seen Illuminations, other than from the monorail as we were leaving the park. We've seen Fantasmic once and hated it (never again). We usually try to take in Wishes, but our son generally hates fireworks so it's not an absolute must-do.

 

[maxiesmom]

Skip Illuminations? Never!

If you don't want to deal with the buses, you can always grab a taxi. What we do is watch from near the twin shops, and then book to the bus stop. I've never had a long wait for a bus doing that.

 

[HopperFan]

Preface: Been going since the entire world opened so I've seen it all.

Fantasmic highly over-rated. Long lines to get in, then all the pushing to get to a seat. Then sit on a bench for what seems forever at end of long day and if you are unlucky enough to be there a night with preshow entertainment - ugh, just lots of yelling. I think the last three times we've been there have been major components missing from the show and I've walked out saying "why do we keep coming in here?" Walking, haha, so slow I'm almost going backwards cause it takes that long to unload the place. Would honestly love to see it go in favor of real fireworks and use that land for something that will be open all day.

Illuminations, the battle in our house. You know it has a cool idea and my son the history buff loves the entire story behind it and gets all the underlying meanings, fire, earth, etc. I just want a good fireworks show. So we sit on the ground and wait for a show that sits so far out in the water I can't see what's on the screen. Then the fireworks. Kinda cool they are low but, again, give me some good ones in the sky with more color. I usually just see white and smoke, sometimes leave smelling like the smoke.

Don't get me wrong I LOVE fireworks and all, but Disney has done it so much better than those two, in my opinion.

 

[wdwjeffc37]

If you have never seen them, then yes you are missing something that you might really like. My rule is try everything. You don't know until see them for yourself. If you are really worried about the crowds and buses you can try this. For Fantasmic! sit at the top near the exit and beat a hasty retreat out of the park and you can get to the buses fairly quick. Same for Illuminations. Try to get a spot on the lagoon near the walkway to Futureworld and as soon as the show is over make your way straight out of the park. Be mindful of the wind direction. There can be a lot of smoke. We don't do Fantasmic! every trip as we have seen it several times, but we always see Illuminations. We love being in the Worldcase at night so even after the show is over we hang out, finish our drinks and wait for the crowds to thin out. Then have a nice stroll out of the park. One thing, if you do the Dessert party at the MK you don't get a very good view of the castle projection show, Celebrate the Magic. Whatever you decide, have fun. You'll be at WDW!!!

 

[ms tom morrow]

Full disclosure - we are night owls with no kids, so we have far more flexibility than most people. That said, we usually do Fantasmic and Illuminations once each trip, and Wishes at least twice. I tend to get anxious/claustrophobic in large crowds so we usually hang back and either wander the shops or find a spot out of the way to people watch until most of the herds have passed. Also, we try to schedule our Fantasmic viewing on a night when Epcot is open late so that we can walk from Hollywood Studios down to the boardwalk and then into Epcot after the show. Something about being on the move and having Epcot to look forward to helps me deal with the horrendously slow pace of the Fantasmic exit!

 

[Gumbo4x4]

I think the fireworks at WDW are "okay", glad we saw them once, no need to again. Rest of the family would probably give then a better rating.


Our entire family hated Fantasmic. It's #1 (of 1) on our "never again" list.