F! on an "off" night? and other questions...

[mamarulis]

Hi all! I am a DL veteran (probably been 100 times over my 29 years), but I've never seen F! I know, I know, totally crazy. As a teenager, however, it just never took priority. We always just tried to ride as many big rides as we could while people were in line and watching it. However, now with a nearly 4 year old, I feel like it's something she'd really enjoy! We're headed down to the park arriving Sept 11th (Sunday) and leaving the 14th (Wednesday). We planned on spending most of Monday and Tuesday at the parks, but now I'm thinking that we should buy a 3 day hopper ticket and spend Sunday afternoon and evening. We're driving in from Vegas and should arrive at GCH around noon. Since it's an "off" time, there is no F! or fireworks on Monday or Tuesday, so Sunday would be our only shot. My questions are as follows:

1. how early should we arrive to try and find a seat for F!? keep in mind it's a Sunday night, albeit during the off season.
2. because my kiddo is young and will be tired, I feel as though the first show is best, but what's the best way to see both F! and the fireworks that start shortly after?

Thanks everyone!

 

[mvf-m11c]

You should check out the Fantasmic! Superthread that HydroGuy have started. It has all the information you need to know about F!.

As far as the questions that you ask:

1. There is no seating area like the F! at WDW DHS. The only seating for the show is the F! Dessert package. If you want to watch the F! from that area you have to pay $59 adult/$49 child. The other option for a seating area is the Riverbelle Terrace or Cafe Orleans. The only problem with that is the guests that are walking during the show can make it hard to watch. Since you are going during the off season in September and you care about getting a front railing at the ROA, I would show up at least 2 hours until the first F! show starts. I have seen people show up 3+ hours for the front railing spot. But if you just want a ground sitting area by the ROA, you can show up one hour until the first show starts at its schedule time.

2. You can see both F! and the fireworks from the same area after the first show of F! is over. The good thing about doing the first show of the F! dessert package is that you will be able to stay in your seats and watch the fireworks after F!. You will not be able to see the full effects from the fireworks since SB Castle is part of it. There is no way to see the first show of F! from the viewing area and go to the Hub for the fireworks since it will be very crowded. The best way to see the fireworks and F! from the best spots is to see the fireworks first from the Hub and go to the 2nd show of F!.

 

[WICKEDW3NCH]

The best place to watch Fantasmic! is diagonal from the pirates of the carribean right up against the river in the seating area. I would recommend sitting down at around 7-7:30 to be safe. As a last minute spot for kids on top of the pirates bridge is also a good spot to watch F! And when you want to watch the fireworks you can just shift a little to the left or stay where you are. I watch the shows from this spot every night