Illuminations Cruise....Worth It????

[5champs]

Will be in WDW the first week in August and was thinking about booking the Illuminations Cruise.Will be a total of 5 myself,dh,ds 2&5,dd 10.Has anyone done this with small children?Is it worth it?We love illuminations and since we are staying at the BCV ,we will be going almost every night.I have read other posts that say it is really expensive.Dose anyone know where i can get a price?Does anyone know how long it is and what it provides?

 

[sharon78]

We went on an Illuminations Cruise,it was great My DD's were 9 & 7 at the time.We shared the cruise with 2 other Dis familys,so there was 11 of us alltogether,I cant remember how much it was but it wasnt a lot because we split the cost and paid per person.We went on the Pontoon style boat and Bob(our driver) drove us around and told us facts all about Disney hotels the lakes,parks, good places to eat etc..He drove us around to our spot there was 3 other boats there that night,we chatted for a while then it started.After it finished he turned the boat around and we went back to the dock,again taking to us all the time he was a very friendy guy who new alot about Disney.
Also it was a great way to view Illuminations.

If you go to the Theme Park Attractions & Strategies board theres a sticky right at the top of the page it will tell you every thing you need to know about the Illuminations Cruise,the type o boats they do,the cost,how to book ect..
Hope this helps.Have Fun

 

[Tink10]

Yes, Definately!

We took our first Illuminations Cruise when my DD was 6 & it's one of her fondest memories of WDW. It's become a bit of a tradition for us & it never loses its magic. The captains are great & the view is wonderful. It's so great to be able to watch Illuminations without having to stake out a spot an hour beforehand.

Granted, now that the cost has gone up so much, it is a bit pricey, but if you can fit it into your budget, definately give it a try.

 

[disneyfan'ole]

Illuminations is wonderful to watch from the "luxury" of your own boat. Pricey..yes, but definitely worth it. On our cruises we had some small snacks ordered for the little ones in case they got the munchies. DH ended up snacking more than the kids.
We also did the "Wishes" cruise from WL to the MK. It was just as wonderful.

 

[mareed]

I'll disagree and say it wasn't worth it for us. We joined some other DISers in Nov 2004 (when it was only $10 a person), and did not think it was even worth that price. The view was worse than we usually get when watching from within the park.

 

[WDWorBUST]

We did one with another family where it came out to be very affordable (our part was like $25) and although it was enjoyable I am SO glad we did it with another family. I was wanting to do it again with my parents on a trip a couple of months after that one and there was no way I could justify the expense for just the five of us. In my opinion - it's not worth it. But it's easier to say that after having tried it. I would definitely recommend trying to do it with another group.

 

[Willow25]

I absolutely loved the illuminations cruise. I would agree that you could probably get a better view from other parts of the park it was nice to not have to waste at least one hour holding a spot. With the price hike I think it is $250.00 now it would only be worth it to me to share the cruise and then only pay around $25 per person. Have FUN