Fantasmic--Like it or not?

[Anastasia]

The kids loved it, but DH and I didn't like it.

Illuminations and Wishes however, we could watch over and over!

 

[mskani]

We loved it!! We saw it during our last two trips and we sat in the reserved section both times. I will say that if we didn't have the special passes, then we probably wouldn't do it

 

[leebee]

Mixed feelings on Fantasmic. Of course the girls (4&7yo nieces, DD11) love it, but DD11yo didn't love it the time we sat over on the side and the princess floats weren't illuminated when they were in front of us. Long wait is hard...we usually take in supper about 75 mins before showtime, so eating takes up some of the time, meeting new friends sitting near us takes up some time also, but it is a long wait. If the weather is chilly or damp, it's often not worth the wait. It seems that that theatre gets extra chilly- possibly the water screens for the show? My Dsis and BIL love it, so when we travel with them we always go but if it is just myself and DD (with or without DH) we sometimes bypass Fantasmic- we've found showtime is the best time to ride ToT and RnRC without long lines!

 

[Lizzybee]

I asked my kids before we left "what is the ONE thing you MUST do at DW?" and they both answered Fantasmic. We love it. The only thing is when we saw it there was no dragon. I wouldn't have even noticed, but my 7 yr old who apparently was waiting for that big moment, burst into tears afterwards. It was probably more her drama queen tendancies and her tiredness (it was day 5 of 7) than really because the dragon didn't appear. I had her ask a cast member about it and they said that maybe with so many shows, Maleficent was tired and not powerful enough to summon up the dragon. That explanation together with allowing her to use some of her spending money to buy a stuffed dragon quieted her down. Still next time we'll go again for sure.

 

[Vivianne]

Last year we did the Fantasmic dinner package and I personally didn't care for it. By the time we got in it was packed. We were on the far right corner in front. While the masses are enjoying the show I'll be at the other rides. I'm glad others like it.

 

[leighe]

The main problem that ruins it for me is the ridiculous lines and waiting. If they could come up with a better way to view it, it would improve my attitude!

I agree. I don't think it is all that great. DH loves it. I think getting in and out of there is a huge hassle to watch parts of Disney movies on water-screens (cool, but still not worth the hassle). I do think that the storyline is cool - Mickey's dreams and nightmares - but I think the show is rather disjointed. What's up with the Pocohantas bit out of nowhere? I like the premise - I just think it could be better implemented.

 

[iceskatejen]

LOVE IT at DL and I've seen it there dozens of times. I was underwhelmed by the WDW version, though if I'd never seen the DL version I'd have been blown away. Next time I go to WDW I'll probably skip it. If I go to DL and it's showing I wait hours for it and it's worth every minute on the hard ground.


My 1,000th post!!!

 

[AB&Me]

We saw it when were there in October, but had no idea what we were really going for, got there too late for a seat, and had to stand. It was hot, and we were tired, but what I could see of the show, I loved it. I thought it was really amazing. DD(2) didn't really stay focused, but I think even that will be better this go around. We're going back in June and will definitely try again - this time with seats!!


Heather

 

[Disney Ella]

We really liked it. We saw it for the first time in November and all of us liked it better than Illuminations. We also liked being able to sit down to watch it!

 

[BrinxFam]

We love it here too! Can't wait to go back and see it again. Didn't care too much for Illuminations though.

 

[buzzriders]

We um.................LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!! We are seeing the 1st night we get there!!!

 

[Quasi123]

We love it too. My favorite part is when the Princesses come out

 

[swankybeth]

Fantasmic is okay, I tend to enjoy it more when we do the dinner package and don't have to numb our butts for hours on the metal benches. It's not something we do each trip, but we'll probably do the dinner package next time we go because it will have been a long time since we've seen it.

 

[ncbyrne]

I enjoy it when I see it with my DGDs, but when it's just a trip for DH and I we avoid it.

 

[mickeyfanmom]

LOVE IT GREATLY! IT'S THE BEST- ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU SEE IT FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME IN THE CENTER ABOUT 10 ROWS BACK!

 

[Twende]

I do not like it at all...my DH does not like it at all......our children do not like it at all.............................
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WE LOVE IT!

 

[UrsulasShadow]

Just didn't like it. Had the dinner package seats, so missed the lines, but just didn't get the attraction. Couldn't wait for it to be over.
DH loved it...was his favorite attraction, next to Cirque du Soleil. DD14 and DS12 were okay with it...I think they liked it, but wasn't their favorite. If we go to see it next trip, it's only to placate the DH. I'll go if we get the dinner package again, and get to eat at the Hollywood Brown Derby...

 

[rwodonnell]

Count me in with the people who are not fans of this show. I hadn't ever seen it until March, and perhaps I'd read how so many people like it that my expectations were too high, but I have never been more disappointed in a Disney show. I thought it dragged, and frankly, I was bored of it all half way through. I agree with this from leighe:

I think getting in and out of there is a huge hassle to watch parts of Disney movies on water-screens (cool, but still not worth the hassle). I do think that the storyline is cool - Mickey's dreams and nightmares - but I think the show is rather disjointed. What's up with the Pocohantas bit out of nowhere? I like the premise - I just think it could be better implemented.

It is terribly disjointed. And the Pocohantas thing must have been 5 minutes. Why on earth would they devote that kind of time to a second-tier movie? I think the idea is good, but cut down the length and tighten it up. Do we really need that many movie clips? The water screen loses its novelty after a couple minutes, but still it drags on...

I'm sure they won't change it, as it seems to be very popular. All the better to hit the rest of the park, I guess, while the masses are lining up for this.

By the way, I took the advice on this board and went on a day with 2 shows and then went to the second show, and that I think was a good move. The amphitheatre wasn't even completely full, there was a complete section on either side that was open.

 

[becka]

We also love Fantasmic. We didn't go on our last trip because I just didn't want to deal with the massive crowds trying to leave the theater with a tired 21 month old but I am looking forward to going on our next trip. It seemed strange to go to MGM and not stay for Fantasmic.

 

[RyMickey]

Illuminations is our favorite show - we LOVE the music from it.

That being said, we like Fantasmic, but don't think it's great. We always see it once, and a couple people in our family go to see it twice, but personally, I think that they do WAY too much on the water screens. We've seen it from nearly every section of the theater and personally don't think it makes that big of a difference where you sit (although I know others disagree).

Granted, we're a family in which the youngest person is 16, so we generally bypass shows with characters (and is probably why we LOVE Illuminations and see that 3-4 times each trip). Fantasmic isn't ideally aimed at us (although ideally Disney's attractions are aimed at all ages).

So, to conclude this long-winded post - We like Fantasmic, but aren't thrilled by it. We see it once each trip and that's enough.

RyMickey