Magical Gatherings Info up on the website!

[zulaya]

There is info on Magical Gatherings on the Disneyworld website! Info on Grand Gatherings and their special events.

I called and asked about DVC members and it seems that when we make our ressies with MS, we tell MS that we want to be designated a Grand Gathering (you have to have 8 or more people travelling in your group) and then once your ressies are made, MS sends that info to the Grand Gathering people and someone there contacts us directly.

I am so excited about this because I have 10 people next year for our trip and those events are going to be fun!

 

[BillPA]

Here's a link.


http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wa...gatherings/grandgathering?id=MGrandGatherings

 

[TarraLee]

New commericals about GG were on WB tonight during 7th Heaven too! One is really cute, sort of a circle-of-life thing, and at the end Grandpa holds up the baby grandson with the castle in the background. Other one, four kids, four adults outside MS. Adults ask kids how it was, and kids are like, "Okay. Fun. Interesting." Adults: Not scary? Kids: Nah. THen you see the adults on MS, screaming, and one says something like, some friends they are. THen the tag line, bring your "good" friends to WDW. Very cute campaign! (but not as good as our little souvenier and too excited to sleep! I love wdw commercials!)

 

[DemoBri1]

I hate to play Devil's Advocate here, but...are we certain that DVC members are eligible for Grand Gatherings? If so, I may need to find a couple of more people to go with us next year, as I will only have 7 in my party since my DS will only be 2.

Brian

 

[zulaya]

YES! I have already talked with 2 different persons at Grand Gatherings. The first one, Lauren, I specifically identified myself as a DVC member staying at DVC resort on points. She put me on hold for what seemed forever (and probably was only 5 minutes) and came back with yes, as long as we have 8 people in our group all staying on Disney property, we are good to go.

I also talked with Veronica today when asking more questions and mentioned I was DVC with 8 people and she didn't blink and eye.

So YES YES YES!

 

[MelissathePooh]

I don't think its anything that great though. We're taking 25 family members down next year and we thrilled that there may be a way for such a large group to get some extra magic - well we can as long as we pay extra for it. We got the impression it would be a discount program, but all it is is "special" things you can pay extra for if you want.

Great for people who want it I guess, but not so great for a cost conscious group.

 

[tjkraz]

I'm not too impressed either. I think that the vacation planner tool (coming soon!) may be very handy. If it works as described, all of the members of your party will be able to vote independently on what they want to do, and the tool will help assemble an agenda. That sounds kinda slick, but then again I may be reading too much into it.

The "Grand Gatherings Experiences" do not impress me. For example, the International Storybook Dinner at Epcot is described as:

"Indulge yourself at Epcot® with international delights and tantalizing cuisine from around the world. Share a magical moment as a favorite Disney story is told and a special guest arrives to delight kids of all ages. Then enjoy IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth from a specially reserved viewing location. Theme park admission is required. "

Price: $60 per adult, $20 per child. Yikes!!!

I guess if it's a first-class meal, the pricing may not be that outrageous. But the description makes it sound like a buffet of some sort. There's also no indication of how many groups they can accommodate at the selected site. It could end up being a glorified character meal with 80-100 diners and one character reading a story.

 

[zulaya]

The International Storybook Dinner is being held at the Odyssey restaurant at Epcot. Someone on the Theme Parks board posted that it's served family style.

I agree that this one is probably the least favorite and I probably will never do.

I think you have to look at these events and how they can impact a multi generational family travelling on what could be the ultimate family reunion. When you have aging grandparents and such, or people who may never come to WDW again, those groups will look at these events as major memory makers. In their view, it may be worth the cost at that special time.

It's hard for us as DVC to imagine people never coming back and having just as good a time as before.

If you think about it and read the fine print, the costs include all taxes and gratuity. So, I think that the pricing is fairly competitive for what you are getting.

International Storybook is $60 per adult. That's probably about what you would spend for dinner in World Showcase at one of the higher end restaurants when you include all the taxes and gratuity.