Grand Gatherings...

[shortypots]

Does Disney still do this? What does it take to qualify? What are the benefits? I just booked a GV at AKV-Jambo and have a total of 8 adults, 2 kids, and 1 infant going, and was wondering if we qualify and what we would get.

Appreciate the help as always.

 

[shortypots]

I sent DVC a note to try to find out more information and found out they only have 4 grand gathering events that are available for purchase. They used to offer itinerary planning and whatnot, but apparently not anymore.

There are four special Grand Gathering Experiences available for
purchase:

-International Dinner and IllumiNations Dessert Party at Epcot®
-Safari Celebration Dinner at Disney's Animal Kingdom® Theme Park
-Good Morning Character Breakfast at the Magic Kingdom® Park
-Magical Fireworks Voyage on the Seven Seas Lagoon

 

[macmom3]

We did the Magical Fireworks Voyage last year and loved it. We had 7 adults and 3 kids. The cruise captain sang songs, played trivia and each kid of the cruise got a prize. We are thinking about doing it again next year. My girls love Captain Hook and Peter Pan so seeing them was one of the highlights of their trip.

 

[chrismass]

The fireworks cruise is no longer just a GG event, it's open to everyone (and they increased the price by $10). The dining reservations are also no longer done through the GG specialists, they direct you to the regular dining line even when calling in to the WDW PLAN phone number.

I haven't found any perks in getting a GG number - by the time I coordinated what the whole group wanted to do the 2 events we wanted were filled up Don't forget you can call 180 days before - like I did!

 

[hellerjw]

We did all 4 GG events last year and particularly enjoyed the Fireworks Cruise and Safari Celebration.

The Fireworks Cruise was fun and the CMs were very entertaining on the boat (they do some trivia contests, etc enroute to the viewing spot). They just serve snacks before loading the boat so you don't get a meal with this one.

The Safari Celebration was a much slower safari ride followed by a buffet dinner at Tusker House. This was our favorite.

The Illuminations event was fun but we didn't particularly like the food. The desert and special viewing area for the fireworks show was nice though.

The Good Morning Character breakfast was disappointing. It was your standard Disney breakfast fare (eggs, bacon, sausage, pastry) followed by "VIP seating" for Philharmagic. Nothing special in my opinion and not worth doing again.

At the time we did these the 3 that serve meals were included on the DDP so we had no real out of pockets expenses for them other than the Fireworks Cruise.

I would do the Safari Celebration again, but probably not the other 3, particularly now that the Fireworks Cruise is no longer an exclusive event.

 

[DisneyKidds]

Anyone know if you can use dining credits for the GG meal events?

 

[chrismass]

Yes you can, the dinners take 2 table service credits and the breakfast 1. The fireworks cruise is open to all and doesn't serve a meal, so cash only.

 

[shortypots]

Anyone know the pricing of the experiences? I haven't been able to find much information, that is for sure.