BBB or Anna and Elsa?

[geergirl]

I am looking for advice on which of these would work best for us. We arrive on a Friday and weren't planning to be in the park on Saturday. That makes me think A&E would be a good option for Saturday. I have read the hairstyles hold up well overnight and I think even with my limited skills I could touch them up if necessary Sunday morning. My girls are 4 and love Frozen but also a number of the princesses (mostly obsessed with Rapunzel right now). It sounds like the experience is a bit better at BBB but it does take up park time.

I'm not looking to go all out. We have dresses we could bring with us so that's not an issue. Budget is a problem given the pathetic state of the Canadian dollar. Everything is costing us 30% more so we are much more price sensitive than usual this time.

In terms of the options at each place my main concern is the hairstyle. One of my daughters has quite short hair. She likes to twirl it around her finger and matt it so we have it cut short to deter that. There's not a ton to work with so I'm not sure what either place would do with it.

 

[calilou]

We've done both places and my girls enjoyed both experiences very much. Their first time was at BBB when they were 6.5 and 5. The second was at A&E when they were 8.5 and 7. My older daughter had short hair both times -I would say right above the shoulders/bob length- and the stylists were able to work with it. For the traditional princess bun style at BBB they did get it all up into a bun with the help of some amazing gel! At A&E they left the back section down and did their style that twists the rest of the hair in the front back. It was cute. My suggestion with shorter hair is that you go in being flexible with what they'll do and not have your heart set on one specific style. Once you add the desired dress and accessories it's going to look darling and special.

If my daughters were 4 and it was their first experience, personally I would choose BBB and happily sacrifice an hour of park time (schedule the first available appointment if possible). I would then head to DCA for breakfast or lunch with the princesses at Ariel's Grotto for the ultimate princess experience. This will probably be the only time they'll want to/get to do this so enjoy it! My girls are now 10 and 8 and would likely pass if I offered a BBB appointment now (maybe even an A&E appointment).

The idea of doing A&E on your non park day sounds fun too. Then maybe a special meal and experience in DTD after. I'm sure either option will surely put a smile on their sweet faces.

Relish the princess days while you still can!

 

[Winnowill]

We did BBB when my DD was not quite five, and A&E two years later. Both were terrific, and she loved both experiences. A&E's hairstyles are cuter, IMHO, in addition to being less expensive. The A&E experience isn't as immersive, though, and, depending on which area of the store your daughter winds up in, there may not be seating available for you. In both cases, the hairstyles lasted at least two days.

For a first-timer, I'd probably pony up for BBB. The extra touches are worth it.

 

[Janemall]

If my daughters were 4 and it was their first experience, personally I would choose BBB and happily sacrifice an hour of park time (schedule the first available appointment if possible)

How do you make a reservation at BBB and how far out can you make it?

How much were the packages?

 

[calilou]

How do you make a reservation at BBB and how far out can you make it?

How much were the packages?

Since it's been awhile for us, there's probably someone out there who can provide more accurate details. But I can tell you that you that there's a number on the website to call and make a reservation. Not sure of the exact window, but at least 30 days in advance. Cost varies depending on the package - I'm remembering they start at $25ish for more basic at A&E to $60+ at BBB.

Here's the link to website: https://disneyland.disney.go.com/shops/disneyland/bibbidi-bobbidi-boutique/

 

[ktlm]

We have done BBB (at WDW) several times and A&E (right around the time it changed over from Studio 360 to become Frozen themed). DD had long hair the times she did BBB, but I have seen them their styles on girls with shorter hair without issue. DD had cut her hair to a shoulder length bob at the time we did A&E and it was an issue. They said her hair was long enough for the braid for Anna and Elsa, but not long enough to complete the bun and that if they could not do the bun, they would not do the hairstyle at all. I asked if they could just do what they could of the bun with the length and just pin her hair there if it was not long enough to do it perfectly and was told no. We were told the only hairstyle they could do on her was the cool as ice style, which was pretty much identical to the courtyard package hair she had done at BBB and absolutely hated because it was too tight. Luckily, they still had a couple of the old hairstyles from 360 because it was right around the changeover (If I remember right they were transitioning to A&E, had moved in a bunch of A&E merchandise and were doing A&E hairstyles, but were a few days from closing down to get rid of the remainder of the Disney channel stuff, add some Frozen theming and "re-open" with the new name). One of the stylists saw that DD was upset and came over and said she believed that DD's hair was long enough to do the bow hairstyle (they have since gotten rid of that one), and that she would be happy to do it for her (love that lady!). Maybe now that they have really settled into A&E and been converted for a while they have figured out how to do the Anna, Elsa, or Olaf styles with shorter hair, but I wonder if since it is in DTD, there is a direct number somewhere that you could call and ask to be sure. Based on what we have seen and our experience, the BBB is better with short hair, but that could have changed over the past year.

As far as keeping the hair overnight, typically those hairstyles do last, BUT DD never wanted to sleep in them. She always wanted them out and wanted all the goop washed out of her hair before she went to bed. She has kind of a sensitive head, and thought some of the styles were too tight to keep in overnight too. If your girls have remotely sensitive heads, they may not want to keep the styles overnight. Also, if you are not doing the parks that day, are you planning on swimming? If the girls want to swim that will also be an issue. I will say that when DD had the shorter hair, with the style she got at A&E some of her hair did start to come out some later in the day (she was there in the morning). I think that was totally due to the length of her hair.

Both places were a lot of fun for DD. The experience is a little more at BBB (at least it was at WDW), but it is also at a higher price. I think your girls would have a fantastic time at either place.

 

[ktlm]

How do you make a reservation at BBB and how far out can you make it?

How much were the packages?

Here is the pricing information from the Disneyland website:

https://disneyland.disney.go.com/shops/disneyland/bibbidi-bobbidi-boutique/

Here is the A& E info, but it does not include the pricing- I think the Anna, Elsa and Olaf were $34.95 when DD had her hair done there, but that was over a year ago, so they might have increased the prices by now:

https://disneyland.disney.go.com/shops/downtown-disney-district/anna-and-elsa-boutique/

 

[tiggeroo42]

We haven't done BBB, but we did A&E's boutique in December. I was so impressed, and my kids had SO much fun!!! My girls aren't so much into the princesses, but they love Frozen so I thought it would be a better fit. My son even loved it! I thought it was a great value for how much it cost. We paid under $100 for all 3 of them. We brought our own dresses. I also liked that the girls got to take home their makeup, nail polish, tiara, and hair brushes. My son got a choice between a t-shirt and an Olaf plush.

One of my girls has shortish hair (right above shoulder). I don't know how, but they managed to do the Anna braid and completely put her hair up! It was adorable! We did it on our last day before we checked out, and it lasted about 3 days. Not having to use park time on the experience was a big plus for me as well, and a huge deciding factor in not choosing BBB. We had the first seating at 10 when they opened, and we were out of there by 10:45.

 

[geergirl]

ktlm, thank you for the feedback about short hair. DD's hair is quite short, especially in the back. This is very close to what it is now. What you've said makes me think that unless things have changed at A&E they may have a hard time doing something with it. It's a good point too that hers will come out worse from sleeping in it. I don't think they have especially sensitive heads so I don't expect that to be an issue. Swimming may be depending on weather. Maybe I'll look into booking BBB during a morning about halfway through our trip. If the hair lasts, great, If not, at least they'll get a full day with it.

 

[ktlm]

She is adorable!!! Her hair is quite a bit shorter than DD's was when we visited the boutique. DD's touched her shoulders. I bet they could do the cold as ice hairstyle on her at A&E, but unless things have changed, they may say that is the only one they can do like they did for DD (which could cause problems if her sister is being Anna or Elsa). I think BBB will do something with that length hair. If you search online you can find pictures or videos of them doing the BBB princess bun on some pretty short hair. Also, I would not count on it staying overnight if she has short hair. Seems like I have seen some posts that with shorter hair it doesn't last- that glue like gel can only hold short hair for so long. How far away is your trip? Do you have time to grow her hair out some by then?

 

[geergirl]

Thanks. No, we don't have time to grow her hair out (2 weeks) and we wouldn't anyway. It's that short because she twirls it when she's tired and mats it. We keep it short to minimize the damage and detangling.

I have them both booked at BBB in the morning and we are doing lunch at Ariel's Grotto. If her hair doesn't hold until the next day so be it. I'll repair it as best I can but at least she'll get a day of excitement out of it.

 

[ktlm]

Have a great trip!!! Ariel's Grotto is fun. Sounds like they are going to have a great day! Rapunzel was at Ariel's last summer when we were there- since your girls like her hopefully she will be there on your day!

 

[whitneyebz]

We just booked A & E for our first day there...hoping DD will keep it in until at least the second day! But she has long hair, so I will make sure not to get it cut before then just in case. Hopefully you get her hair done at either place with no problem!