How do you do Chef Mickey and Wishes?

[rcpae]

September will be our 1st WDW trip. I would love to do something special to kick off our trip. I've seen several people mention Chef Mickeys then Wishes. I know Chef Mickeys is at the Contemporary, where do you watch Wishes from?

Also, what is the electric boat parade and where can we watch that from? We will be staying at POR.

How do you know what time these begin? I would love to make some of my PS's around these "shows".

Thanks!

 

[lbgraves]

I know that one night DH & DS took the monorail to the Contemporary and watched Wishes from the outside of the monorail entrance. You can see the show across the lake. If you go to the calendar at the WDW site and click on the number for the date, it will come up with the show & parade times for the parks.

 

[txgirl]

I am no expert, but I was so surprised to see your tentative plans for Chef Mickeys then wishes because that is exactly what we are going to do the first day! I had never even read that before so I feel like it must be destiny!

Our plans (we are staying at POR also!) are to take the bus to MK then monorail over to Chef Mickeys, eat dinner (6:20) then monorail back to MK with plenty of time to catch Wishes at 9:00. We have never been to Disney and we are sooooo excited but planning this and organizing each day has been quite I chore (like I really mind!) I am searching the archives to try to find the best place to see and hear Wishes since my family has never been I want this first experience to be the best possible.

Good luck!

 

[DemoBri1]

Being your 1st trip to WDW you're probably not renting a car, but if you are here's what we did:

- made an early PS at Chef Mickey's for 5:00.

- drove to CR and parked with Valet so that we were able to leave the car without having to go back to TTC.

- took our time eating and then monorailed over to MK. Went on some rides and stayed for Spectromagic and Wishes.

- monorailed back to CR to pick up car and drive back to BCV.

If you're not renting a car, then the previous poster's scenario of busing from POR to MK and then monorailing over to CR sounds like your best bet. You can even walk back to MK without having to do the entire monorail loop back to MK. It'll probably be faster for you. On your trip back from CR, you'll have to take the resort monorail loop, which will stop at the TTC, then Poly, then GF before getting back to MK. You could get off at TTC and transfer to the express monorail to MK, but if it's not already in the station, then you could be waiting longer then if you just stayed on the resort loop.

Brian

 

[dimoe]

Best spot for wishes is on the bridge going to tomorrowland. Although it was nice to see it with the backdrop of the castle from the front of it we missed a lot the first time.
We also really liked watching wishes from the bus stops no crowds and was able to hop on the first bus when it was over.
We went to chef mickeys the first night what a way to start your trip!
Have a good time !
Diane

 

[Eeyore2003]

If you have a car, I'd beware of leaving your car at the Contemporary and then going to enjoy the park. While it might work, it is frowned upon and there is a time limit and then your car can be towed. Parking is for resort guests and people going to the restaurant. People used to do this and now they are stricter about parking in resort lots. Very unfair for resort guests when people are parking there to go to the park and they need a parking spot.

As far as what I'd do. If you are staying at POR, I'd take the bus to Magic Kingdom and then the resort monorail to Chef Mickey. I'd make my reservation for 5 or so and I'd leave the resort at about 4 or so, maybe even a little earlier, cuz I just like being safe than sorry. No later.

Then have fun at Chef Mickey, then I'd take the monorail back to MK and enjoy the rest of the evening. Below is the times of the Electrical Water Pageant. I've usually watched it from the Contemporary when we've stayed there, but it looks like you'd be able to see it from the dock at MK after Wishes. Then I'd take the bus back to POR.

Polynesian Resort -- 9 p.m.
Grand Floridian -- 9:15 p.m.
Wilderness Lodge -- 9:35 p.m.
Fort Wilderness -- 9:45 p.m.
Contemporary Resort -- 10:05 p.m.
Magic Kingdom -- 10:20 p.m. (only during extended MK park
hours)

 

[swilphil]

If you aren't planning on going to MK on your first day, you can watch Wishes from the 4th floor observation deck. They even pipe in the same music that you'd hear at MK. Many people don't want to use up a whole day on their passes if they are only going for a few hours, plus it's often hard to hit the parks after a long plane trip or drive.

I would definitely walk back to MK, especially if you want to hit Wishes. The monorail from CR to MK makes 3 stops for people to load and unload. It can take quite a while. There is a walkway from the CR to MK and they have a sign. You might want to ask though if it's dark.

The best spot for viewing the Electric Parade would be the pool or the beach. You can check on times by clicking on the Park Hours link at the top of this page.