Fantasmic! Dining Pkg.

[MARsMama]

I am looking for opinions on whether the Fantasmic! dining package is worth it or not.
Fantasmic! is dd's favorite show, and while it is not showing on her actual birthday we want for her to be able to see it while on the trip. We are going to be there the end of Sept through the first full week of October. Fantasmic! is only showing three nights and only once each night. Does anyone know if the show is super busy this time of year and if we'll risk missing it altogether if we don't go with the package and get the reserved seating?
We are on the dining plan, but are not really excited about any of the restaurants associated with the package. Also, the reserved seating doesn't look to be the best seats.
Would we be better off dining somewhere else and missing out on the reserved seats, or should we be 'safe' and go with the package? Any thoughts, opinions?

 

[TiggerTrigger]

Having done the pkg- I HIGHLY recommend it. We went at a super slow time back in early December. Park crowds were a 1 (3 at most) on Touring Plans for the bulk of our trip. The place was packed by the time we arrived for our preferred seating and they were turning people away at the gates. The seating might not be your first choice, but you won't miss any of the show from the spot. Hey, it's better than waiting on line for 2 hrs to get in and try and get a seat.

If it's in the budget, Brown Derby's food quality level is heavily rumored to be back to major signature glory. If not, Mama Melrose is your best option. We did Mama Melrose back in Dec, and minus the slow service, we were VERY pleasantly surprised with the food.

 

[whitney37354]

It was worth it for us not to have to stand in line for hours to get a seat. We had dinner at Mama Melrose at 4:30. We walked around in the shops afterward for a while, then went on in to the seats. We got our snacks and settled in. I would not have wanted to be the people standing in the long line waiting to get into the second show the night we were there. We had no problem with where the reserved seats were.

 

[KayLuvsMickey]

We LOVE this option. We do Mama Melrose, and YUM! I don't like having to stand in the really ridiculious line for the show, so being sent in and seated before the people get CRAZY is great. We do this every year

 

[mmay60046]

My wife and I went to Disney just the two of us back in September 2009. It wasn't crowded at all, but I do remember people began lining up for Fantasmic about 3 hours ahead of time. We finally went in about 45 minutes before showtime and we were lucky to find a spot for the two of us in the standing room section at the very back of the theater.

We're going back in May with a group of 10 including our kids and we reserved the F! Package at Mama Melrose. Our reservations are for 3:55 pm which is a lot earlier than we usually eat dinner, but I'd rather have an early dinner and spend the evening enjoying the park knowing that we will have access to reserved seating than having to sacrifice most of my evening waiting in line to try and get seats if we can even get in at all.

 

[MARsMama]

Thanks so much for your responses.
I am thinking that we really should do the dining package to make sure we get seats. However, dh has looked at the menu for Mama Melrose and there's absolutely nothing on there that he would eat (can you say fussy eater?! lol). Is Hollywood & Vine all that bad? I have not read any positive feedback on this place, and while I know everyone has different tastes when everything you read is negative you have to wonder.
The third option, the name has escaped me, will use two dining credits and I'm not sure we are prepared to do that. It seems like a lot.
I guess I'll soon have to decide as there are only 4 days left until I can make my ADRs! lol

 

[JayhawkFans]

Having never done Fantasmic and waiting too long to make ADR we might be stuck as "one of them" in the long line. Hoping we can snag a cancellation for Mama Melrose (or really anything) for the one night Fantasmic is showing the week we are there in August.

 

[teresa kay]

We used this option last week and it was worth every penny! The seats we had were fine and it was so much better than standing in line for hours!! I would use it again

 

[mmay60046]

The third option, the name has escaped me, will use two dining credits and I'm not sure we are prepared to do that. It seems like a lot.

Brown Derby. We had lunch there and it was very good. I wouldn't claim it was two TS good (since it was lunch we paid OOP). If your husband is a picky eater I would avoid H&V.

 

[dolfan71665]

DO it!!

We were on the DxDP and ate at the Brown Derby at 4:30.

At 7:15, we walked in and sat down and had almost any choice of seats, in the sections roped off. While others were lining up at 6:00.

 

[MARsMama]

Is it possible to pay OOP if you are on the DDP? If so, is there a flat rate for a lunch at Brown Derby with the Fantasmic! dining package or is it just the cost of whatever you order?

 

[DAZY3BYZ]

The lines for F! can just get ridiculous! I would definitely do the F! package to save yourself some aggravation and time! We have done H&V a few times and honestly they were never "good" but the last time we went was just terrible! We had a really nice meal at Mama Melrose. Really good food and nice atmosphere and won't use 2 credits. That would be my vote.

 

[mmay60046]

Is it possible to pay OOP if you are on the DDP? If so, is there a flat rate for a lunch at Brown Derby with the Fantasmic! dining package or is it just the cost of whatever you order?

You can pay OOP but I don't know if the F! package at Brown Derby is a flat rate or not. It does say lunch or dinner. We're doing ours at Mama Melrose so we're just using 1 TS credit.

 

[chocolateMinnie]

We will be booking a package for our next trip - we have never got to see the show so last year we made it our priority. the week we were there in October it was showing on the Sunday and thursday but Thursday was out for us at it was our MNSSHP night. We arrived at DHS at 6pm for a 7.30pm show, walked straight to the fantasmic entry so were there at approx 6.05pm and already the line had been shut so we still didn't get to see it. Fingers crossed for this year's trip and will definitely book the package.

By the way if you look at the MM menu on the WDW site it shows a steak option too if you prefer that to the Italian foods.

 

[ChicagoCinderella]

We have done the Fantasmic Package every time. It is totally worth it to eat a leasurely "linner" (dining time usually between 330 and 430) and then not have to wait in the looong line to get seats. Brown Derby is my favorite just because I'm a fussy vegetarian and the coconut crusted tofu noodle bowl is out of this world even my carnivore husband has had it on occasion. However, Mama Melrose's has been good, too, if you like standard italian fare. We never use our dining credits for this, though, and opt to pay as we can get more bang for the buck on credits elsewhere.

 

[TiggerTrigger]

To OP- you noted that the Mama Melrose menu didn't appeal to your spouse, but I can tell you for certain that the menus I've seen posted online were not the menu we were given the night we dined. My dad had a version of the pippette that I'd never seen and DH and I had these wonderful steaks with a cabernet sauce. I can't guarantee these will be offered when you go, but it's proof that menus you see on line are truly only sample ideas of what you might get when you go to dine.

 

[MARsMama]

You have all been so very helpful, thank you so much.
Dh has decided to give Mama Melrose a try, so I'm going to see if I can get an ADR there with the Fantasmic! dining pkg. Of course, now that I've decided that it will likely be unavailable! lol

 

[DrD]

We just did this 3/29. it was worth it. One perk that I didn't know about was that the meal (lunch) also included an appetizer, but still only 1 TS credit each. So we got appy, entree, and dessert for the same 1 TS!

We decided it's worth it even if you don't go to show!

We went to Mama Melrose and it was awesome. The spaghetti and meatball cupcake was a highlight.

Only down side was an odd time (2:30)

Sure were hungry by then!