MK Parade viewing

[twitterpated31]

Greetings!

We will be taking our first Disney trip mid March next year. The MK parade is a priority for my daughter and I.

A couple of questions:

How difficult is it to get a good viewing spot? I'm not picky about the view beyond the parade. Just want a good view of the parade itself.

I don't mind waiting in a viewing spot about a half hour but any longer and I see it being problematic for my kiddos. Is that realistic or would we need to stake out our spot sooner?

I'm thinking about the parade dining pkg. I know for sure my daughter will want to see the parade. My boys are maybes and my dh could go either way (he'll b happy to stay or take the boys on rides). Given that I'm waffling on the pkg. for those who have done the parade pkg:

Does it tend to book up quickly?

Were you happy with the viewing area?

Is it sitting or standing?

Many thanks for your help!!

 

[mom2rtk]

Frontierland is great. Doesn't fill up too early, and the parade starts there so you don't have to sit around waiting for it to arrive. There are some spots you can watch from a porch of one of the shops.

 

[rwdavis2]

frontierland or at the bottom of the train station steps at.park entrance.

 

[Robo]

A look at the MK Parade Route-

The 3 O'Clock Parade (Festival of Fantasy) and both the MVMCP and MNSSHP parades start near Spalsh Mtn. and exit near the Firehouse.

Less crowded than on Main Street, but still spectacular viewing can be found near the Hall of Presidents, or deep into Frontierland, past the Country Bears.

 

[cmarsh31]

We did the Tony's Festival of Fantasy Parade package in February and it was fantastic! The food was much better than we expected (from the not so spectacular reviews) but the viewing spot was just outside and we were just about the only people in it! Plenty of space, went out right before the parade came by. Kids had a blast and we had some great interactions with the characters in the parade. It was totally worth it for us.

 

[DisneyChris2016]

If you don't care about the background view, I would definitely recommend Frontierland. You can get a good spot most days about 15-20 minutes before the parade starts, especially if you don't mind standing/sitting on the sunny side of the street. The parade will pass by you almost immediately after it starts, and as soon as it passes, they roll up the ropes and you can be on your way.

 

[djc9699]

We always watch the parade from Frontierland. We grab a spot 20-30 minutes before parade time with a pretzel and drink and talk about what to do after. For the Christmas parade, however, we have made a reservation at Tony's on Christmas Eve so we can be on Main Street and not fight for a spot.

 

[twitterpated31]

Thanks for the great tips everyone!!

This may seem like a silly question but how much interaction is there between characters and parade viewers (aside from waving). For example, do the on foot characters (ie the dwarves) come up to the crowd at all? Is it more likely to occur for people who do the parade viewing pkg at Tony's? That alone might make it worthwhile.

Cmarch31, was there seating in the reserved viewing area? (In case my parents join us)

 

[Robo]

1. do the on foot characters (ie the dwarves) come up to the crowd at all?
2. Is it more likely to occur for people who do the parade viewing pkg at Tony's?
3. was there seating in the reserved viewing area?

1. Yes. Not always at the same place along the route.
2. Could be.
3. No seats.

 

[cmarsh31]

Thanks for the great tips everyone!!

This may seem like a silly question but how much interaction is there between characters and parade viewers (aside from waving). For example, do the on foot characters (ie the dwarves) come up to the crowd at all? Is it more likely to occur for people who do the parade viewing pkg at Tony's? That alone might make it worthwhile.

Cmarch31, was there seating in the reserved viewing area? (In case my parents join us)

No seating, just open sidewalk. Our best interaction was with Minnie up on her float. She noticed my DD's Minnie Mouse shirt, pointed, waved, blew her kisses, etc. She's my DD's favorite, so totally perfect for us. I didn't pay a lot of attention to who came up - was more just caught up in the moment

 

[Mousefan mom]

Greetings!

We will be taking our first Disney trip mid March next year. The MK parade is a priority for my daughter and I.

A couple of questions:

How difficult is it to get a good viewing spot? I'm not picky about the view beyond the parade. Just want a good view of the parade itself.

I don't mind waiting in a viewing spot about a half hour but any longer and I see it being problematic for my kiddos. Is that realistic or would we need to stake out our spot sooner?

I'm thinking about the parade dining pkg. I know for sure my daughter will want to see the parade. My boys are maybes and my dh could go either way (he'll b happy to stay or take the boys on rides). Given that I'm waffling on the pkg. for those who have done the parade pkg:

Does it tend to book up quickly?

Were you happy with the viewing area?

Is it sitting or standing?

Many thanks for your help!!

If you are planning to go for a mid-day rest break, one tip I've done is be near the entrance as it will end there about 3:30ish. There are no crowds at all, I got a drink and sit and watched. Then I could easily exit, go back to my resort for a few hours and come back in for parks in the evening.