Dining with Park Location Question

[Princess.Neve]

Hopefully this is the right place to ask this, but on December 17 I'll be splitting the day between the Magic Kingdom and Disney Hollywood Studios. I want to try and see the 3:00PM parade at MK, but also see the 6:30PM showing of Fantasmic.

I was wondering what restaurant and about what time I should be looking at to book for dinner? I'll have to rely on Disney Transportation entirely so I know I'll probably need quite a bit of time to make this swing. I've only been to Disney once before, so I don't quite know how long meals take and how long monorail/bus transportation takes.

So, in order to see both the parade and nighttime show, where should I be looking at for dinner and about what time? Any specific restaurant names and recommendations would be great.

Thank You!

 

[Jessma9902]

Is there any other day you could do the MK parade? I think it may be difficult to get to both- considering the wait time in line for Fantasmic will likely start as early as 4pm. Perhaps skipping the MK parade and heading over to DHS earlier would be a better option. Especially with transportation time as well.

Just my 2 cents though...

Have a great trip!!

 

[jbdreamer]

I think you'd be lucky to fit in both the MK Parade and Fantasmic, much less dinner - it sounds stressful just thinking about it. Realistically it's going to be 45+ minutes travel time between resorts by the time you get to the front of the park to leave, catch a bus/drive a car, and go through security at DHS.

For Fantasimic you really need to be there at least 30-45 mins before showtime to get a seat.

If you must do both may I suggest a late dinner afterwords at Downtown Disney they have a lot of good restaurants - it's a 5 minute cab ride from Hollywood Studios.

 

[MouseMomx2]

If you want to see both in one day you're going to have to either do counter service between them or wait until after Fantasmic! to do a table-service meal. You can bring food into the Fantasmic! show and they even have a limited menu at a stand inside the theater.

If you choose to wait until after the show you could eat at one of the DHS full-service restaurants, head over to the Boardwalk/Beach Club/Yacht Club area, head to Downtown Disney or go back to your own resort.

Personally I think I'd try to have a later lunch (1:00-1:30ish), watch the parade, head to DHS for Fantasmic! and then have dinner.

 

[Princess.Neve]

Is there any other day you could do the MK parade? I think it may be difficult to get to both- considering the wait time in line for Fantasmic will likely start as early as 4pm. Perhaps skipping the MK parade and heading over to DHS earlier would be a better option. Especially with transportation time as well.

Just my 2 cents though...

Have a great trip!!

Wow, I really never knew that people started to wait for Fantasmic so early. I've only been to Disney once and it was when they had two showings of it, so the wait for the latter was maybe 25 minutes?

I might just have to try getting a late lunch right before the parade or doing a late dinner. I would miss the parade, but this is my only chance to see it before they switch over to the holiday one. Thank you for your comments though!

I think you'd be lucky to fit in both the MK Parade and Fantasmic, much less dinner - it sounds stressful just thinking about it. Realistically it's going to be 45+ minutes travel time between resorts by the time you get to the front of the park to leave, catch a bus/drive a car, and go through security at DHS.

For Fantasimic you really need to be there at least 30-45 mins before showtime to get a seat.

If you must do both may I suggest a late dinner afterwords at Downtown Disney they have a lot of good restaurants - it's a 5 minute cab ride from Hollywood Studios.

Honestly, I never knew that travel around the area took so long. I looked at a map, but that didn't really help much. I might have to take you up on that consideration for Downtown Disney then, thank you!

 

[Princess.Neve]

If you want to see both in one day you're going to have to either do counter service between them or wait until after Fantasmic! to do a table-service meal. You can bring food into the Fantasmic! show and they even have a limited menu at a stand inside the theater.

If you choose to wait until after the show you could eat at one of the DHS full-service restaurants, head over to the Boardwalk/Beach Club/Yacht Club area, head to Downtown Disney or go back to your own resort.

Personally I think I'd try to have a later lunch (1:00-1:30ish), watch the parade, head to DHS for Fantasmic! and then have dinner.

Thank you for the input! The later lunch is exactly what I've started to think about.

 

[Crystal824]

Wow, I really never knew that people started to wait for Fantasmic so early. I've only been to Disney once and it was when they had two showings of it, so the wait for the latter was maybe 25 minutes?

I might just have to try getting a late lunch right before the parade or doing a late dinner. I would miss the parade, but this is my only chance to see it before they switch over to the holiday one. Thank you for your comments though!



Honestly, I never knew that travel around the area took so long. I looked at a map, but that didn't really help much. I might have to take you up on that consideration for Downtown Disney then, thank you!

In the past, you didn't have to line up for Fantasmic so early. Laterly, Disney has cut down on the number of shows. When I was there last month, we got in line about 45 min. prior to the show and we almost didn't get a seat.

 

[Cherinva]

If you want to see both in one day you're going to have to either do counter service between them or wait until after Fantasmic! to do a table-service meal. You can bring food into the Fantasmic! show and they even have a limited menu at a stand inside the theater.

If you choose to wait until after the show you could eat at one of the DHS full-service restaurants, head over to the Boardwalk/Beach Club/Yacht Club area, head to Downtown Disney or go back to your own resort.

Personally I think I'd try to have a later lunch (1:00-1:30ish), watch the parade, head to DHS for Fantasmic! and then have dinner.

I agree with this option.