illumnations fireworks cruise

[surgefest]

I'd love to hear some reviews of your illumnations fireworks cruises. Step by step what it was like. What you liked and disliked about it. how does it compare to the Magic kingdom fireworks cruise if you've done that as well. How is the viewing for illuminations? Thanks so much. the more info the better!

 

[Robo]

IMO, the IllumiNation Cruises (I-Cruises) are superior to the Wishes Cruises, but the Wishes Cruises are so much easier to book (as they can schedule as many boats as they like on Seven Seas Lagoon at MK.)

As to the I-Cruise specifics...
Because you are actually IN Epcot with the I-cruise, you get to experience the full "surround audio" that is so much a part of the IllumiNations show.
(On a Wishes Cruise, you only have a portable wireless audio system for sound. OK, but not the "real deal" for sound.)

We absolutely LOVED taking the I-Cruise... but that was back before it cost about $300 !!!

Just for comparison-
You can get an identical view (albeit among many other guests) if you watch from the bridge between UK and France (#6 below.)

The boats from the I-Cruises all tie up beneath (#7 below) that bridge to view the show.

Epcot International Gateway Area

 

[WDWLover75]

Hi there! We have done the Illuminations Cruise but not the Wishes Cruise. My husband and I surprised my parents with the cruise as a thank you for helping us with the cost of our wedding, so there were 4 of us; 3 of us loved it, one, not so much.

The cruise leaves from the Yacht Club. After spending all day in EPCOT, my husband and I suggested going for a walk over by the Boardwalk since that is where we were married. We took the Friendship boat from the International Gateway at EPCOT and since the Yacht Club was the first stop, at the last minute, my husband and I said to my parents, let's get off here, we will have a nice view of SeaBreeze Pointe (gazebo where we were married). Reluctantly, my parents got off the boat and then we told them. They were both surprised, though later, my Mom said I was acting weird so she wondered if something was up......and I guess my Dad was tired so had suggested going back to the hotel an hour before and now they were glad they didn't!

Details...we paid for the cruise when we got there, and even though everything I read and when I asked when making our reservation, we DID get an annual passholder discount, which was really nice. I wasn't expecting it, doesn't hurt to ask . It was chilly that night so there were nice cozy blankets for us. Our captain was really nice and she'd been working at Disney for years so could answer all of our questions.

We started by taking a tour, down to Hollywood Studios where we past a few other boats full of people also on Illuminations Cruises (they all had more people in their boats, I was glad we only had 4). After our leisurely cruise, we headed to EPCOT. Here is where things went "wrong" for my husband. For the cruises, you are parked under one of the bridges in World Showcases, all the boats are tethered together. My husband did not like this location and felt that he missed some of the show, specifically the laser portion. Obviously, you won't be able to see the lighting of some of the countries. To me, these were small, small sacrifices to make to have a nice, dry, comfortable place to sit without being pushed, having a stroller slammed repeatedly into the back of my ankles or have a tall person stand in front of me. My parents also loved this as they aren't a big fan of crowds and the other things I mentioned above.

So, for the first half of the cruise, we had "privacy" (except for the captain) and during the viewing, there were lots of other people nearby in their boats, not a horrible thing but if someone were hoping for a romantic experience, that portion, not so romantic.

After Illuminations, we were taken back to the Yacht Club....here was kind of the lowpoint of the evening....since EPCOT was now 'closed', we couldn't get back into EPCOT to take a bus back to our resort (or assumed that to be true at least). My plan all along was to take a taxi from the Yacht Club to Port Orleans, I knew it wouldn't be THAT expensive (under $15)......but my very frugal Mom didn't want us to pay for that so insisted we used the bus system, taking a bus from the Yacht Club to Downtown Disney to our hotel.....we had to wait a while for a bus at both spots and in the end, probably took us about an hour to get to our resort when a taxi would have been 10 minutes.

Snacks/Drinks....the cruises are for 10 people, it's a set price, so, if you have 4 people, the price is the same as for 10 people and you get enough snacks and drinks for 10 people. When we were getting off the boat, we asked our captain if we could take a couple waters and sodas and she said, "of course, you paid for them".......there was A LOT left; I wish we had brought some bags for all of them since we had paid for them....most of the stuff went back to Disney so they could sell them again to someone else :-(. If we had brought bags and did this the first night of our trip, we would be set for snacks, soda, and water for the rest of our trip. Oh well.

I do think this would be a nice thing to do on arrival night, especially if you don't have a park ticket for that day; go to eat dinner at the Boardwalk/Yacht/Beach/Swan/Dolphin, walk around the Boardwalk, then take your cruise.

Now...the Wishes Cruise. I specifically picked Illuminations over Wishes because I think Wishes is just SO spectacular I really doubted that we would be able to have the same magical experience without being in the park, seeing the castle projections, and assumed we wouldn't be able to see all the fireworks. After having dinner at Narcoosees in September, my mind has been changed. Watching the fireworks from our table in the restaurant was still spectacular and I imagine that being in a boat, centered out on the lake would be even better. We will be trying that next!

I am sure that which ever special experience you pick, you will have fun....but if you have someone picky, like my husband, warn them in advance that you will be under a bridge for the Illuminations cruise. Even though we were seeing Illuminations again that trip...and in total, probably saw Illuminations 8 times last year, he still complains about that location.

 

[Dan Murphy]

Have done both Illuminations as well as Wishes a number of times each. I did Illuminations and Wishes (Fantasy in the Sky then) with my family, and other cruises of both with groups of folks from here on the board.

Assuming you have seen Wishes close up, I think the Wishes cruise is better, a very different perspective. Illuminations on the other hand, does not really give you a significantly different perspective than watching it from a 'regular' location. In fact, where the boats tie up is directly below the bridge between UK and France. Not really unique.

Another alternative, though not as private as either of the two prior mentioned cruises, is the Pirates and Pals Cruise for Wishes. If you have kids, it is even better. Here is a good review from Kenny.

http://www.kennythepirate.com/2013/01/29/pirates-and-pals-fireworks-voyage/

I did this with my daughter and two grandsons and we thought it was great!!!