Restaurants with views??

[IrishMinnie]

Can anyone tell me what restaurants you can eat at and get a view of fireworks at night or parades during the day? We thought this might be a good way to see the "shows" without having to fight a crowd.

Thanks in advance!!

 

[Beauty & the Best]

Did you mean in a park or outside of a park?

If so, which park?

Outside of MK you can see fireworks from Ohana and I believe, California Grill

 

[IrishMinnie]

It could be in or outside of the parks.

I guess fireworks at Magic Kingdom and Epcot? At Hollywood Studios you have to be inside the theatre thing to see them, right?

Sorry. We have been to Disney World before, but we didn't stay for any of the fireworks or parades. I actually am not even sure which parks have what!?!

 

[shordiebecka]

Okay, here is a rundown of the fireworks, etc.

Magic Kingdom: Fireworks are the Wishes! Spectacular. From what I understand, you see them best at the California Grill and Narcossee's. You can eat dinner (request a later dinner reservation), then you go out on the balcony, they dim the lights and play the wishes music. I've heard both are great views of the fireworks, never been though.

Epcot: Fireworks are Illuminations. This is a ground pyrotech show plus fireworks, so while you can see some fireworks from the boardwalk, you cannot see the ground effects. This one isn't as disney-esque as wishes is, but amazing anyways. I suggest getting a dinner at Rose & Crown Pub (again, make a later dinner reservation). last year, they held our food for us till after the fireworks, and we were allowed on their private balcony to view the fireworks. it was a wonderful, non crowded view, and when we left, there were no crowds to beat, because we still had to eat & pay.

DHS: Fantasmic! Is a night time pyro/water spectacular show. It is amazing, and much more thematic (thus why it's at DHS), than Wishes or Illuminations. You can do a dining package, where you get dinner at Mama Melrose, Hollywood Brown Derby or Hollywood and vine, then get VIP seating at Fantasmic. Personally, I'm not sure if it's worth it, depending on what night & what showing you go to.

There's my run down..anyone have any places to add?

 

[Tiggr924]

I would either go to Narcoossees or California Grill. I personally like Narcoossees better.

 

[crisi]

Note that the restaurant crowds for fireworks are often worse than some of the better park places. Fireworks time at the California Grill can be a madhouse. Rose and Crown is worse. Also, no restaurant will guarentee you a view of the fireworks from your table - they will all let you get up from the table and see it if you don't have a view. Its also pretty time consuming, as you can't expect to see fireworks unless your dinner reservation is about an hour and a half before they begin - anyone who can stretch their dinner to sit through the fireworks tends to do so, so seats don't tend to free up right before fireworks.

There aren't restaurant spots for parades.

 

[4disneyfreakazoids]

thanks for the info! Now how are you supposed to know when the fireworks are 90 days out? Isn't Wishes always @8PM?

 

[MillerTribeMum]

OT: Hello from Abilene, IrishMinnie!

We ended up getting an ADR for restaurant-of-choice in Epcot to be followed by us finding a random place outside to watch IllumiNations (going with the "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em mantra). We have a 7:30 CG ADR with the hope of seeing Wishes as well as a 7p ADR at Narcoossee's another evening.

My plan for Spectromagic is to get an EARLY place atop the train station. I will continue to do research on this, however!

Best,
Jeni

 

[IrishMinnie]

We are in San Angelo, less than an hour and a half away!!

Thanks for the info!!

 

[PrincessBelle94]

You can see Wishes! from Ohanas. If you eat at Chef Mickey's, there's some balcony on that same floor of the Contemporary you can supposedly see Wishes really well from.

 

[IrishMinnie]

I was asking about parades because I thought I had read somewhere that if you are in Yak and Yeti on the second floor you can watch the AK parade. I could have been dreaming that though!!

I also thought I had read somewhere that you can sit at a CS place in MK and see the parade.

Maybe I am crazy!! There is so much info out there. I think my brain is overloaded!!

 

[PrincessBelle94]

nevermind!

 

[crisi]

I was asking about parades because I thought I had read somewhere that if you are in Yak and Yeti on the second floor you can watch the AK parade. I could have been dreaming that though!!

I also thought I had read somewhere that you can sit at a CS place in MK and see the parade.

Maybe I am crazy!! There is so much info out there. I think my brain is overloaded!!

There are a few CS places where you can see the parade at the MK, but camping out in those spots is as big a deal as camping out anywhere else - and people will come crowd around your table (and very likely stand in front of you if they can manage it). We did it once (Liberty Tree Tavern?) and it was among the worst parade experiences we've had.

 

[crisi]

You can see Wishes! from Ohanas. If you eat at Chef Mickey's, there's some balcony on that same floor of the Contemporary you can supposedly see Wishes really well from.

Not for Chef Mickey's (although Wishes is pretty good from the front of the Contemporary by the lake - and my parents once ended up with a free fireworks cruise by being on the resort ferry) California Grill has a balcony, but you need to have a reservation for that evening to use it (and California Grill isn't cheap - so it can be an expensive fireworks viewing).

 

[diskids2]

thanks for the info! Now how are you supposed to know when the fireworks are 90 days out? Isn't Wishes always @8PM?

And hence why so many scream "when will they put the hours out?'

 

[BriarRosie]

I personally think it's a bigger hassle to try to arrange dining around nighttime fireworks, so I tend to discourage it.

And yes, I have seen reports of people sitting at a second story window view of Yak and Yeti watching the afternoon parade go by, but even then, I wouldn't eat there just for the chance to get a parade view.

IMHO, the best place to watch "Wishes" is from the middle of Main Street USA, standing between Casey's and the Plaza Ice Cream Shop, just before you get to the Partner's statue in the Hub.

When you're watching it from California Grill, it's a nice view, but you don't get the full OOMPH impact as a direct castle view from inside the park.

There are plenty of good places to watch Illuminations without trying to get an outside table at Rose and Crown. I like the big expanse at Norway, or the Torii gate in Japan. If I had a little time to wait early, I even like the bridge between UK and France. The Illuminations cruises park under that bridge, and you can get the same view for free.

 

[IrishMinnie]

Thanks everyone!! So I guess it is better to just watch them in the parks. Thanks so much for all the info!!