Is Fantasmic Dinner Package worth it?

[Captainkidd76]

We currently have the package with dinner at River Belle Terrace. Not knowing the setup for Fantasmic at Disneyland, is this necessary? We did once at Hollywood Studios, which I know is a completely different set up. I thought it was kind of a waste there. Is it worth the extra money at DL or will we able to get a spot to see it without it? I know crowds are heavier than normal because of the AP blackout lift. It's for this upcoming Monday.

Thank you!

 

[BecAus]

Yes, I'm in the camp that thinks it's worth it. IMO, you will have a much better experience with it. We usually do Blue Bayou but I've read a few reports lately about RBT that people were very positive about their experience.
I can't remember if you're travelling with kids, I think you are, it definitely makes it easier for them to see the show without the worry of someone being in front of them and they can't see.
If you think it's going to be busy, and from recent posts I think that is the consensus, I personally wouldn't hesitate to do it.
Have a wonderful trip!

 

[kappyfamily]

After many times at DL and many times trying to see F! and not wanting to camp out for awhile, I decided to give the meal package a try. I’ve never been able to simply just find a spot there. I was going to just do FP for it but then read reports that people are crammed in like sardines so decided to go this way.

 

[Captainkidd76]

My biggest issue is my boys are 11 years old, and there is nothing on the menu they will want to eat. $45 is a bit much for food they won't eat. Obviously, we'd love to see Fantasmic, but it's not a must do for us, as we can catch it in Florida. Fireworks and Paint The Night are must do's. World of Color would have been as well, but not sure if we'll see that.

 

[BecAus]

I can see where you're coming from. The RBT menu didn't appeal to me when I checked it last time which is why we definitely went with BB again.
I can't remember if you can swap out meals at RBT - perhaps it was Hungry Bear people were talking about being able to swap meal choices? Hopefully someone else might know.
It's definitely a lot of money.
I had great luck getting a great spot at the 2ND showing of Fantasmic last September. I had a FP, made my way over after the fwks and got in the 'sitting section' just a few meters away from where I'd sat the night before for my BB package. The 10.30pm show may be too late for your boys though?
I've not tried to see Fantasmic with a FP for the 1st show with the new set up but I have heard it's pretty busy.
Best of luck with whatever you decide to do - it is well worth seeing if you can make it work.

 

[BecAus]

Just an FYI:

If they will eat something off the kids menu I believe they can order off that even though they are 11.
I've read mixed reports on what you may be charged for that. You have to be prepared to pay the adult price.
When you tell the server the kids would prefer to order off the kids menu I've read: sometimes only charged the kids meal / package price
and sometimes the 'kids meal' is a double / larger serve and then charged at the adult price.

If I am wrong on the above someone please feel free to correct me but this is my understanding.

 

[Marcus A. Jordan]

I vote no but maybe yes.

There are usually plenty of places to stand for the second show, or you could grab a FastPass for a similar view as the dinner package. On a really busy Sunday, I’ve seen FastPasses for the second show still available into the early afternoon.

However if you want to eat at one of the restaurants, you might as well. It gives you a great view of the show.

 

[ktlm]

Unlike at WDW, at DL, Fantasmic does not have an auditorium or seating. Unless something changes, you are allowed to sit on the ground in the dining package areas, but in the other areas you have to stand for the entire show. If you are short like me, unless you stake out a great spot for an extended period of time (and people sometimes spend hours staking out spots), you can easily wind up seeing only someone's back, someone's head, or their raised up ipad or iphone. So, for DD and I, that definitely makes the dinner package worth it. DH is pretty tall, so he is fine either way.

 

[Tinkerbell19672]

For me it’s worth it. I don’t like showing up early for shows though, so that’s a factor. We did the BB package and walked up about 10 minutes before it started. Got a great view with plenty of room. It’s a one time thing for me, don’t plan on seeing it again but the dining package was worth it

 

[maleficent55]

I'll be seeing F! for the first time ever this August and reserved a BB F! dining package. I just want ease...and an excuse to eat at BB again, not that I need one

 

[kappyfamily]

My biggest issue is my boys are 11 years old, and there is nothing on the menu they will want to eat. $45 is a bit much for food they won't eat. Obviously, we'd love to see Fantasmic, but it's not a must do for us, as we can catch it in Florida. Fireworks and Paint The Night are must do's. World of Color would have been as well, but not sure if we'll see that.

Sounds like you’ve already answered your question! Go with your gut.

 

[PlutoRocks]

We did the RBT dinner package and loved it! We were able to see really well and I didn't have people falling all over me trying to squirm around and get a better view forcing me to squirm around them and so on and so forth. We had our table and ate our dinner then watched the show from there, it was great! I had the brisket sandwich which was ok and my sister had the ribs which she said were really delicious. The corn chowder soup was really good as well. In my opinion having a chair to sit in and space to view the show is worth it every time.

 

[limace]

Maybe Hungry Bear would fit your needs better? Less expensive and I think you can get more kid friendly food, and I’ve heard the view is excellent

 

[theluckyrabbit]

We did the RBT dinner package and loved it! We were able to see really well and I didn't have people falling all over me trying to squirm around and get a better view forcing me to squirm around them and so on and so forth. We had our table and ate our dinner then watched the show from there, it was great! I had the brisket sandwich which was ok and my sister had the ribs which she said were really delicious. The corn chowder soup was really good as well. In my opinion having a chair to sit in and space to view the show is worth it every time.

To clarify: this sounds like it was the RBT F! Premium Dining Package, not the regular RBT Dining Package. The Premium Package includes dinner and seating on the RBT patio for the first F! show. The Premium Dining Package can only be booked by phone. The regular RBT Dining Package does not include seating on the patio, but gives you ground seating in the reserved section up by the waterfront railing to the right of the BB reserved section. That package can be booked online or by phone.

 

[ktlm]

A couple of other thoughts--

For us, for several years we only went to Fantasmic at DL because we preferred it to WDW's version. We skipped it at WDW. That changed a little bit when they revamped it last year and got rid of the Peter Pan pirate ship portion. They did replace it with a POTC segment-- we just preferred the Peter Pan. That said--- DL's version still has a pirate ship section you won't see at WDW, and the dragon is alot more impressive at DL.

Also-- you said the fireworks are a must do. Be aware that when you do the Fantasmic dining package (for the first showing of Fantasmic if there are two), they do allow you to stay seated in the area to watch the fireworks, and they do the projections on the water also. It is not quite the same as watching it with a castle view-- BUT everytime we watch it with a castle view it always seems like at the last minute an extremely tall person, or a person holding an ipad or iphone over their head steps directly in front of me- so the times we have watched it from Main Street, I generally don't see that much anyway. That is a bit of a bonus with the Fantasmic package-- if you don't mind not seeing the castle. Also, I'm not sure how many nights you will be there, but I would suggest that you start trying to see the fireworks on the earliest night possible. We have been really surprised at how often they are cancelled due to wind (particularly when they are cancelled due to wind when we can not even feel the wind). I'm sure that is because it is a highly populated area, and I have also heard that the winds are stronger higher up there, even when you can't feel them at ground level-- but if their standards were applied in my state I don't think I would have seen 4th of July fireworks for my entire life. If our Fantasmic package is later in our trip, we will try to catch the fireworks earlier--- or at least I try and DH and DD whine about me making them be in the crowded area for the fireworks-- and then also catch them at Fantasmic. If our Fantasmic package is early in our trip, then we watch them there, and we might try to catch them with a castle view on a later night--- if DD and DH don't complain so much about me wanting to do it, that I finally give up.

Sorry about WOC --- we would always pick that one over Fantasmic. We aren't happy there are issues with it and the refurb is going to take longer either. That just means you will have to make another trip out West! At least you will have Paint the Night-- it is a great parade. My DH is not a parade fan and he loves it!

 

[katejc]

I think the F! dining package is worth it, but it is expensive!! I just keep telling myself I am buying dinner and a show, and then it seems like a reasonable deal. We did the BB F! package this past Monday and it was great, though like a PP, we really miss Peter Pan!! We arrived to the seating area a little after 8 and had a great spot dead center, behind maybe 2 rows of people. I don't like to be up at the rail so this was perfect. I had enough room to stretch out my legs while waiting, which was nice. I liked being able to view fireworks there after the show, too, though I do recommend watching from Main Street first, as it's definitely the better view. I am a big fan of F! (like it much more than WOC) and this is just a much easier and less stressful way to see it.

 

[Priory]

My biggest issue is my boys are 11 years old, and there is nothing on the menu they will want to eat. $45 is a bit much for food they won't eat. Obviously, we'd love to see Fantasmic, but it's not a must do for us, as we can catch it in Florida. Fireworks and Paint The Night are must do's. World of Color would have been as well, but not sure if we'll see that.

As someone who has seen both (but has a strong DL bias) I must add that DL’s Fantasmic is a lot better than WDW’s. You can’t beat the integration of ROA, Columbia and Mark Twain into the show. It’s magical.

 

[avalon451]

I did Hungry Bear F! package two weeks ago, despite concerns about some negative reviews on here regarding the food. We were pleasantly surprised; the food was quite good, maybe because we picked it up right at 3, the earliest available. There were only 2 rows of people seated in the F! viewing section (the early show on Memorial Day weekend! The regular viewing areas were packed and insane.); also it's not smack in front of the front water screen, but we still thought it was a great view. I loved that we walked up just a half hour before the show and got a great place to watch, seated.

 

[ricardol]

My biggest issue is my boys are 11 years old, and there is nothing on the menu they will want to eat. $45 is a bit much for food they won't eat. Obviously, we'd love to see Fantasmic, but it's not a must do for us, as we can catch it in Florida. Fireworks and Paint The Night are must do's. World of Color would have been as well, but not sure if we'll see that.

We have done the Meal Package last year, but we stopped doing it..... We Value Fireworks > Fantasmic! so our strategy is now to always make sure we get a Fastpass for the second show. This can be frustrating because it sometimes requires hanging around close to the distribution area and go and check 3 or 4 times when they switch over to the 2nd Show......

Then at night we usually camp early for Fireworks in front of the castle. As soon as the fireworks finish we immediately head to the Docks where you make the line for Fantasmic.. We have always gotten into the seated section, but yeah we know this is no guarantee that you will get the seated section. We have seen that tipically the amount of ppl with reserved section dinning is way less for the second show so this free up some space..

Our main complaint with The Fantasmic! packages is that they don't offer a lunch package.... They did last October and we loved the Cafe Orleans option, if they would bring that back we would probably do it again.

 

[kirstie101]

Just an FYI:

If they will eat something off the kids menu I believe they can order off that even though they are 11.
I've read mixed reports on what you may be charged for that. You have to be prepared to pay the adult price.
When you tell the server the kids would prefer to order off the kids menu I've read: sometimes only charged the kids meal / package price
and sometimes the 'kids meal' is a double / larger serve and then charged at the adult price.

If I am wrong on the above someone please feel free to correct me but this is my understanding.

Thanks for this info! DS7 will eat anything so I know he'll be fine. DD11 would probably prefer the kids menu though I'm sure I could talk her into the chicken on the adult menu if I had to. I was hoping she could possibly order off the kids menu and pay adult price.