Are the Dinner Shows worth it??? And, which one???

[misslissa]

I am going for the Dining Plan for the first time and am wondering if the Dinner Shows are worth it... and also which one you recommend... or don't???

 

[a*lil*bit*goofy]

we personally think they are worth it. since my brother and i were little kids on our first trip to disney 20+ years ago, we have had to do the HOOP DE DOO Revue every time. I went with a friend, we had to do it. went with my dh , we had to do it.

Now i find myself going with my mum and my brother (and my family and my sil !) and brother, mum and i all agreed: must do. even my dh agreed. its a tradition.

i posted earlier today that our flight may conflict with our ressies , as we arrive on the saturday at 2 and our dinner is for 5pm. We love it so much, that we wanted it for the night we arrive at disney!!!! but for conflict of time we are changing it to half way during our trip.

we love the show. love the food. always have a great time and we have fond memories.

have fun whatever you decide!

 

[eeyoregirl]

The HDD is one of my absolute *favorite* things to do in all of WDW. It's a fun evening for the whole family. The food is good and the show is as corny as all get out, but it's a blast.

 

[wdwholic1206]

We LOVED HDD. We attended our first show during our last trip. We wondered why we had never do it before? Great food and great entertainment. It was worth every penny to us. And has now won a place on our MUST list for every trip!!!

 

[pooh2001]

If you love Hawaiian Luau type show - fire twirling, hula dancers, tiki huts, roast chicken & ribs, pineapple, rice, salad, then you can try the Polynesian Luau show.
Menu -> http://www.allearsnet.com/din/luau.htm

If you like laid back slap stick entertainement, fried chicken & ribs, baked beans, corn, salad with dressing already on it - do the Hoop Dee Doo show at Ft. Wilderness.
Menu -> http://www.allearsnet.com/din/hddcom.htm

Both shows take your pciture and offer you a picture package (your choice to purchase it).

Both shows are pre-paid and both have discounts at the last show.

You can secure seats at the 180 day mark for both shows starting in 2007.
For shows this year, seats can be secured up to 2 years before.

You can pick up your tickets for both shows at any WDW resort up to 7 days before your show date.


We have done both shows. Our kids prefer the HDD. But then again DH likes the Three Stooges, so I guess the HDD fits more with my family.
We are at the HDD on 6/29 @ the 7:15 PM show

 

[Gerweniel]

We've been to both and prefer the HDD. It was laugh out loud funny, the food and drink good and plentiful! We are planning on going again our next trip.

I liked the Luau because of the location at the Poly and I loved the ending with the fire dancers. The rest of the show was kinda boring for my sons, but little ones may like it.

In either case, IMHO, definitely worth experiencing at least one time and even better if you are using the free dining plan.

 

[Kimi313]

We have done both the Luau and Hoop de Do and we enjoyed both and our glad we done them. I enjoyed the Luau more maybe because I am from the south so the food at Hoops was nothing new not that the food at Luau is great but it was different for me. I guess my best advice would be when you are paying for the meal don't think of it as the food better be worth it think of it as I am paying for the meal AND entertainment but more for the entertainment. I think everyone should at least go to each of them once because everyone has different taste so I think anyone you pick will be good. With all that said my family enjoyed Mickey's Backyard Barbeccu best of all. I didn't see a prior comment about it and i am not sure if they still do it but it was the same kind of food as Hoops, they have a band that plays with jokes, rope tricks, and then they teach everyone a few dances where you actually get on the dance floor and try. Then 2 different times they have Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Chip, and Dale come out for a time for pictures and autographs. I have heard people say they went and had carnival games. but the night we were there it rained so everything was inside and not room for games I guess.

 

[a*lil*bit*goofy]

may i also add: the drinks are flowing all night at HDD. Not sure about the other places tho. but its bottomless coffee tea softdrinks beer and wine!

 

[Stitchfans]

We have done both and really enjoyed HDD. The food and entertainment was wonderful!! The Luau food was really very good too, but some of the entertainment IMO was corny. When we go back in March '07 we plan on only going to the HDD again.

 

[cdntourguide]

The dinner shows at WDW are definitely worth going to. Always a lot of fun.

AS for using 2TS credits, imo it would be better to pay oop, Use the 2TS credits for a couple of really nice lunches or dinners at another restaurant.

 

[spookyuki]

You can pick up your tickets for both shows at any WDW resort up to 7 days before your show date.

I have ADR on dining plan for Hoop. So, I have to get physical tickets from the hotel before we go to the show?

Thanks

EDIT to add one more question.. Do they require physical tickets for Fantasmic package, too?

 

[HERSEY]

Yes your resort will print out the tickets for you.

 

[D&R love Disney]

I've been a big fan of the HDDR since we first went way back in the 70's! We try to go every couple of years.

 

[jbird327]

I have been to both. HDD only once in the 80s and the Luau on just about every other trip. I did not care for the show or food at HDD.

 

[missmun52]

are these shows something so grea,t that they are "not to be missed"??

 

[spookyuki]

Thank you!

 

[Karnak]

I know nothing about the "dining plan," since I like to make meal plans free of any conditions whatsoever. But I would recommend both the Luau and the Hoop De Doo. Both are really nice ways to spend an evening, and when you consider the cost of a meal AND entertainment, it's a no brainer. (Of the two, I like Hoop De Doo the most, but really enjoy them both.)

Enjoy.

 

[WDWNicole]

I've done HDD 4x and Luau 2x. I like them both, but if you have to choose 1, I would pick HDD.