Birthday dinner fireworks show??

[DoryDorito]

Well I called Disney dining reservations and this is how our conversation went. Was she helpful? You decide....

dining: Hello..blah blah.

me: Hi, I was calling because I'm going to be there in December for my son's 4th birthday and I wanted to take him to dinner where he can see fireworks at one of the parks, can you recommend something for us?

dd: <silence> ummmm the California Grill at CR.

me: I was hoping for something inside one of the parks, I know there used to be "show and dinner" packages, do you still have something like that.

dd: <long pause> no, but you can eat at (the pub at the England exhibit) at Epcot.

me: Well, that doesn't feel very kid friendly, can you recommend something else?????

dd: uummmmm, not really.

me: oooohhhhh kayyy then. Bye thank you.

Now is it just me or was this woman as bright as a cave? There has to be somewhere to eat, that's appropriate for a 4 year old to enjoy fireworks. It's DISNEY for crying out loud. LOL

Anyone have advice for me. I'm not picky about location. His birthday is on a friday so I just want to make sure there are fireworks and that we are at the right park.

Jenny

 

[Mickey'sApprentice]

Others may have suggestions, but...

I like Rose & Crown and fireworks. Its not as kid friendly as Chef Mickey's or the Crystal Palace, but its more kid neutral. There aren't any characters to entertain, but its not at all stuffy. Plus, if your child has never seen Illuminations, it will be a real treat!

Another suggestion would be to make reservations for Chef Mickey's, Crystal Palace, or Ohana in time to be through before the fireworks starts. I believe that there is a fireworks viewing area on the 4th floor of the Contemporary, and on the beach at the Poly.

Outside the Crystal Palace has an excellent vantage point to the castle, but you may or may not have a good view from inside the restaurant. We ate at CP last year and I had a great view for the icicle ceremony. That is probably unusual.

Overall, for the greatest birthday for a 4 year old, I think I would go for CP with Pooh and Friends, and then stake out a spot for both Spectromagic and then Wishes. Spectro would be the deal breaker. Without it, I think I would go for Illuminations at Rose & Crown.

There is a great cake thread on the restaurants page.

There used to be a Fantasmic dinner package at HS. Fantasmic is nice, but it really is my 3rd favorite fireworks display.

As far as the CM, they are not all in Orlando, and some aren't huge Disney fantatics. Plus, if they don't have kids, they may not know how to best answer your question. Plus, I've found CMs to be less than forthcoming with personal opinions on the phone.

 

[DoryDorito]

Thank you so much for the clarification regarding the phone call. Really that means a lot, because I was thinking...this is supposed to be DISNEY and it left such a bad taste in my mouth and for my experiences with disney, well that's just unusual.

I did ask about Crystal Palace, she said, you can't see fireworks from inside the park. LOL I know that's not true so I find that funny.

I wonder, since it's my son's bday, and we'll be there the first week of December, if we'd have a decent chance of getting a great seat?? Also, can they bring a cake at a buffet rest?

 

[Pakey]

For Wishes fireworks at MK, there's Cal Grill at Contemporary, Narcoosees at GF, and Ohana's at Poly. Not so much anything inside the park.

For Illuminations fireworks at Epcot, there's Rose & Crown Pub in England.

For Fanstasmic show at DHS, there are dinner packages.

For Wishes and Illuminations restaurants listed here, none guarantee a window seat from which you can actually view the fireworks from your table. There's a good chance you would have to go stand outside of the restaurant with the other diners in order to see.

CG and Narcoosees are signature dining restaurants, well behaved children are welcome to dine there (and many do) but dining will probably take 90+ minutes especially if you plan to be seated when fireworks commence.

For best viewing of fireworks, booking a fireworks cruise is the best way to go.

 

[Mom2Nick]

The CM seemed to be helpful to me - she told you about the two most popular restaurants to view the fireworks shows from. If you needed more than that it's up to you to do your own research.

Having said that - Wishes you really will not get a great view from a restaurant inside the park. You need to be outside in the "streets" of MK to see that or at the CR/Poly/GF or on a Wishes cruise (which is Spectacular)

For Illuminations the best spot is the Rose and Crown if you get an outside table by the water.

The dinner/show packages are the Fantasmic Dinner Packages at MGM.

 

[DoryDorito]

The CM seemed to be helpful to me - she told you about the two most popular restaurants to view the fireworks shows from. If you needed more than that it's up to you to do your own research.

Having said that - Wishes you really will not get a great view from a restaurant inside the park. You need to be outside in the "streets" of MK to see that or at the CR/Poly/GF or on a Wishes cruise (which is Spectacular)

For Illuminations the best spot is the Rose and Crown if you get an outside table by the water.

The dinner/show packages are the Fantasmic Dinner Packages at MGM.

Thanks for that, as far as I can tell that's what I'm doing.

BTW, she told me they don't do any dinner packages. I don't know if that's true or not, if it's not than, nope I don't find that helpful.

 

[Mom2Nick]

Thanks for that, as far as I can tell that's what I'm doing.

BTW, she told me they don't do any dinner packages. I don't know if that's true or not, if it's not than, nope I don't find that helpful.

They do them for Fantasmic which is more of a show as it's held in a theater and everybody has seats - it's not like the grand fireworks displays that are done at MK and Epcot.

 

[DoryDorito]

But do they offer food? I swear I remember back in 2004 (sadly it's been that long) they were a few places that you could make reservations for during the fireworks. Am I remembering wrong???

It's the first time we'll be going with kids so I feel like I'm a newbie in a lot of ways. LOL

I'm just looking for something, anything where my son can eat, see fireworks, order a cake in a place that's age appropriate for a 4 year old KWIM?

Is Ohana too nice for a kid, that's one place I'm looking into.

 

[Mickey'sApprentice]

I really think Disney quit offering the MGM packages.

I've never went on a fireworks cruise, or viewed fireworks from the lagoon, but can't imagine that you get the same effect as actually being in the hub. Of course, I would also think that you wouldn't have the throngs of people fighting for a spot either.

The only place that you can sit and eat and calmly have a front row seat to the action is at Rose & Crown. California Grill offers a really great vantage point to see Wishes from outside the park AND Disney pipes in the music. Its on the 16th floor of the Contemporary after all.

Ohana is great for kids, but rowdy. DSis said that her kids stayed busy doing lots of activities at Ohana and never touched the food. It might work great, but I could see a situation where you want to enjoy your child's birthday with your child, and not even be able to enjoy the cake because your child would rather go be in the action then cut a cake.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

[PrincessTrisha]

You can't see the fireworks sitting inside the Crystal Palace.

If you are looking to see the MK fireworks from a restaurant there are only 3 choices, none are inside the park and none guarantee a fireworks view.

The only fireworks you could see sitting in a restaurant in a park is at the Rose and Crown in Epcot to see Illuminations - and that's only if you get seating on the patio (again - not guaranteed).

There are Fantasmic packages available in DHS but again, these involve eating in the restaurant and then, closer to show time (still at least 30 minutes in advance), going to the outdoor theatre and sitting in a specific area.

I think you might have a case of "wanting what doesn't exist".

 

[Mom2Nick]

But do they offer food? I swear I remember back in 2004 (sadly it's been that long) they were a few places that you could make reservations for during the fireworks. Am I remembering wrong???

It's the first time we'll be going with kids so I feel like I'm a newbie in a lot of ways. LOL

I'm just looking for something, anything where my son can eat, see fireworks, order a cake in a place that's age appropriate for a 4 year old KWIM?

Is Ohana too nice for a kid, that's one place I'm looking into.

The Fantasmic DInner Package includes a meal then a ticket to basically skip teh regular line into Fantasmic.

'Ohana is absolutely not too nice for kids - it's perfect as they do coconut races and hula hoop things etc.

And to the other poster MGM has not done away with the Fantasmic Dinner packages as we have a reservation for one on our stay in 2 weeks....

 

[TDC Nala]

Other than Rose and Crown, there is no table service dining within a theme park that has a good view of fireworks from inside the restaurant.

I'd suggest leaving the park and trying 'Ohana.

The CM is correct in that there are no dinner packages that involve a fireworks show. There is the Fantasmic dinner package at Studios (yes, it's still offered) but that is not a fireworks show - it's a show that has a few fireworks in it (Studios does not have a traditional fireworks extravaganza). As mentioned, it includes a meal in a Studios restaurant (there are three to choose from) plus a ticket for reserved seating at the Fantasmic show.

 

[Mom2Nick]

I've never went on a fireworks cruise, or viewed fireworks from the lagoon, but can't imagine that you get the same effect as actually being in the hub. Of course, I would also think that you wouldn't have the throngs of people fighting for a spot either.

The cruises are spectacular. For Wishes you can have the music piped in and you can see the full display with the Castle. Nothing is like right being there but it's so much better than viewing it from a restaurant. You also get an up close and personal view of the Electrical Water Pageant which is amazing when you're literally 30 feet away.

 

[Tricia1972]

But do they offer food? I swear I remember back in 2004 (sadly it's been that long) they were a few places that you could make reservations for during the fireworks. Am I remembering wrong???

It's the first time we'll be going with kids so I feel like I'm a newbie in a lot of ways. LOL

I'm just looking for something, anything where my son can eat, see fireworks, order a cake in a place that's age appropriate for a 4 year old KWIM?

Is Ohana too nice for a kid, that's one place I'm looking into.

The only places I know of that you can make reservations for, during the fireworks, that have a fireworks view are California Grill, Ohana (request a window seat) Narcoossee's and Rose and Crown.

 

[Pumbaa_]

i think the cm did the best they could. there is not a place out there that you are looking for unfortunately.

there are very few places that you can see fireworks AND dine. CG has some tables but mostly people head out ot the catwalk

R&C is the other that has seating

most ts are located inside with little view to the outside, if any.

If you want a special bday, i would suggest as a pp suggested, booking a wishes cruise and having cake on the boat after dinner at one of the kid friendly places around MK. the boat is a great experience and having cake on the boat would give you a break after dinner t o let dinner digest and then have a little snackie during the show

Is this for dec 2009?