Fantasmic & Illuminations question

[Jrits]

Are these for young kids? Ages 4-9, wondering is they would be scared at F? Is illuminations fun or will they be bored? My kids go to sleep 7-8pm so want to decide if its worth it to stay up for

 

[raven69david]

DS1 loved his first illuminations last month. If your kids are ok with loud noises, then the large bursts won't upset them. The biggest part is the finale to Illuminations when several hundred fireworks are released at once. We're going on Thursday and we'll do it again. Didn't make Fantasmic last time, but we plan on going this week. Will report back on this one.

 

[memma05]

My DS was 4 when we were there in December. She is rather bright and took fantastmic to heart and was very worried about Mickey! She burst into tears at one point and I mean you cannot ruin the magic by telling her it isn't real!! The story is a but intense and if you have a sensitive kiddo it might be a bit much...just from my experience

 

[figment_jii]

Are these for young kids? Ages 4-9, wondering is they would be scared at F? Is illuminations fun or will they be bored? My kids go to sleep 7-8pm so want to decide if its worth it to stay up for

It's hard to say if your kids will be scared of Fantasmic. I know a 5 year old who was scared of Peter Pan and a 3 year old who loved the movie. Every child is different. Some parts of Fantasmic can be pretty intense (e.g., dragon at the end), but other parts are mild (e.g., princesses). There are fireworks and fire.

Regarding Illuminations, I like the beginning and the end, but the parts with the globe are pretty slow. That's when you start to see people (adults and children) get bored. Like Fantasmic, it was fireworks and fire. If your kids are usually asleep by 8 pm at the latest, I'm not sure I would keep them up for Illuminations.

 

[Babbletrish]

It depends on the kids. First question to ask yourself is do they even LIKE fireworks or do they cry all through the Fourth of July?

Illuminations is very intense for the first few minutes, then it chills out a little, building to the triumphant grand finale. It's the best evening show in the whole of Walt Disney World, but you'll have to position yourself where you won't be too close to the pyrotechnics on the lake in the beginning but still close enough so the kids can see the images on the globe.

Fantasmic is one of those weird cases where you'd think it'd be more appealing to younger kids because the characters are involved, but even I feel like it's watching a montage of memorable Disney movie moments (both sweet and scary) while on strong hallucinogens.

Why not preview the shows with your younger kids on YouTube? I'm not sure how well this would work, but it would give them an idea of what to expect at least.

 

[TDC Nala]

If you have a child who is afraid of fire, put some extra distance between the child and the show at both shows.

 

[SpaceMtMan]

Last time we went (I believe my brother was 9 or 10 at the time) he was freaked out and totally lost it. Youre child may be different though

 

[Pooh667]

My kids were 3 the first time they saw Illuminations and 4 when they first saw Fantasmic. They liked Illuminations and weren't scared. They also like Fantasmic but sat on hubby's and my lap the whole time. They did get a little apprehensive for a short time but it passed quickly. A couple of years ago my cousin and his family came with us and their 6 year old did not like Illuminations and was a little scared at Fantasmic but as soon as it was over she wanted to see it again. [SIZE]

 

[smitch425]

My kids have loved both since they were 2 and 4 (They are now 8 and 10). We see both shows every year, multiple times for Illuminations each trip. That's not to say F! isn't great, just not worth another hour's wait in the same trip. We just walk up for Illuminations. You can get a pretty good view without being right up front.