MK "Happily Ever After" Dessert Party (Parties) Discussion

[bonjing]

Thank you all for the recent replies to this thread. I booked plaza view then cancelled for terrace view and after reading the most recent replies I rebooked for plaza garden. I don't mind having to stand and hopefully will be less crowded. I'm also hoping with the people paying the "premium" there will be less rude people just trying to force their way in between people.

 

[Lesley Wake]

Thank you for this wonderfully helpful thread! Based on the great advice, I've booked for October for me and my kiddo (solo mom and kid trip!) who is as vertically challenged as I am. I am still debating whether to keep it or try to get up to the train station twenty minutes or so before the show and then not be burdened by the possibility of a tiredness meltdown or bad weather.

My main question is, does anyone have experience with the gluten free offerings at this party? Thanks in advance !

If you go to this Dining Trip Report, her boyfriend had the gluten free option and loved it: https://www.disboards.com/threads/f...-8-15-completed.3604699/page-11#post-57988360

 

[kmc8826]

Thank you for this wonderfully helpful thread! Based on the great advice, I've booked for October for me and my kiddo (solo mom and kid trip!) who is as vertically challenged as I am. I am still debating whether to keep it or try to get up to the train station twenty minutes or so before the show and then not be burdened by the possibility of a tiredness meltdown or bad weather.

I did the party on the August trip because in May we tried to find a spot where D9 would not have her view blocked and was not successful. One night we did go up to the train station unless you were up there a lot earlier than 20 minutes that would not be a good space for someone little to see. You would have to be right at the railing to have a clear view, and even then you would be further away from seeing the castle projections.

 

[pangyal]

^ THANK YOU to both, that's amazing!!!

 

[Lesley Wake]

I wanted to share my experiences last week (Wednesday, Sept 13). I had done the Hallowishes party the night before and it was very awkward and a waste of money, so was worried about this one but it was within the 5 day cancellation window so knew I couldn't get a refund. Well, I'm sooo happy I went ahead and did it, because it was so much fun! I would absolutely do it again.

We checked in around 7:45 for the 9pm fireworks show. We got wristbands and they escorted us to a table on the upper terrace (near the bathrooms). I think every group had their own table and larger ones were set aside for larger groups.

Got our first plates of desserts, drinks, and also picked up a kid kabob plate on my way back to the table (we were 2 adults but they didn't bat an eye at us taking one). My sister is allergic to pineapple but loves grapes so she asked if they had any that weren't touching pineapple and they brought out a huge plate of grapes just for her!

IMO, desserts were very good and they had plenty. I think they ran out of chocolate covered strawberries and chocolate macarons during the night though. Ended up getting 2 more plates of desserts (with progressively more and more cheese/fruit...)

That night it was Once Upon a Time at 8:30 and HEA at 9pm. They did a 10 min and 5 min announcement for OUAT and about 75% of the people went out to the plaza. I saw some people trying to watch from the very edge of the terrace but I don't think it'd be a good view. We decided to catch it another night rather than give up on part of the dessert party. Everyone else ended up leaving by about 8:40, so my sister and I closed out the party! We ended up chatting for a bit with the girl running the sundae station and complimented her cupcake decorating/kabob making skills (she was very bored once everyone left). She gave us a handful of mickey straws to take home.

We were escorted out to the plaza by a CM with a rainbow wand, and we got perfect spots against the back railing, with about 15 ft of empty space in front of us. Loved, loved, loved the show!

Next time I go to WDW I will definitely be booking this again! I also did the Star Wars party a couple nights later, but I actually preferred this one because of the seating!

Some pictures:

 

[Lsdolphin]

I wanted to share my experiences last week (Wednesday, Sept 13). I had done the Hallowishes party the night before and it was very awkward and a waste of money, so was worried about this one but it was within the 5 day cancellation window so knew I couldn't get a refund. Well, I'm sooo happy I went ahead and did it, because it was so much fun! I would absolutely do it again.

We checked in around 7:45 for the 9pm fireworks show. We got wristbands and they escorted us to a table on the upper terrace (near the bathrooms). I think every group had their own table and larger ones were set aside for larger groups.

Got our first plates of desserts, drinks, and also picked up a kid kabob plate on my way back to the table (we were 2 adults but they didn't bat an eye at us taking one). My sister is allergic to pineapple but loves grapes so she asked if they had any that weren't touching pineapple and they brought out a huge plate of grapes just for her!

IMO, desserts were very good and they had plenty. I think they ran out of chocolate covered strawberries and chocolate macarons during the night though. Ended up getting 2 more plates of desserts (with progressively more and more cheese/fruit...)

That night it was Once Upon a Time at 8:30 and HEA at 9pm. They did a 10 min and 5 min announcement for OUAT and about 75% of the people went out to the plaza. I saw some people trying to watch from the very edge of the terrace but I don't think it'd be a good view. We decided to catch it another night rather than give up on part of the dessert party. Everyone else ended up leaving by about 8:40, so my sister and I closed out the party! We ended up chatting for a bit with the girl running the sundae station and complimented her cupcake decorating/kabob making skills (she was very bored once everyone left). She gave us a handful of mickey straws to take home.

We were escorted out to the plaza by a CM with a rainbow wand, and we got perfect spots against the back railing, with about 15 ft of empty space in front of us. Loved, loved, loved the show!

Next time I go to WDW I will definitely be booking this again! I also did the Star Wars party a couple nights later, but I actually preferred this one because of the seating!

Some pictures:
View attachment 271617
View attachment 271618 View attachment 271619 View attachment 271620
View attachment 271625

View attachment 271622

View attachment 271626

View attachment 271627

View attachment 271624

View attachment 271623

What did you not like about the Hallowishes dessert party? My friends are attending the Plaza Garden Hallowishes dessert party on 10/29 and were wondering if desserts were the same HEA party.

 

[Lesley Wake]

What did you not like about the Hallowishes dessert party? My friends are attending the Plaza Garden Hallowishes dessert party on 10/29 and were wondering if desserts were the same HEA party.

For the Hallowishes party, it was just an awkward experience. The garden viewing was so empty! Like there were 12 people there. So we were sort of sitting at tables, just staring at each other and the lady at the sundae station. The desserts were similar to the HEA, so they weren't bad, I just think the regular park offerings would have been better at a cheaper cost. The villains cupcake was inedible-like it tasted entirely like dye! Oogie Boogie tart was the same as the s'mores tart during HEA. Jack skellington was fine, and poison apple tart was ok too. Worms and dirt was pretty dry.

For the viewing itself, yes the spot was great. But the party I was at was so empty it would have been extremely easy to just walk up a few minutes before and get an equal view. There were people standing in the walkway in front of the plaza who were able to lean up against the railing and get an equal view as we did and we paid $$$.

Maybe for your friends it will be better and more worthwhile, if that party is more crowded. But I would have preferred to just camp out for spots beforehand and create our own dessert party with the various offerings around the park.

Here are some photos from the Hallowishes (sorry, huge blurry because it was pretty humid!):

 

[GADisneyDad14]

I had done the Hallowishes party the night before and it was very awkward and a waste of money, so was worried about this one but it was within the 5 day cancellation window so knew I couldn't get a refund. Well, I'm sooo happy I went ahead and did it, because it was so much fun! I would absolutely do it again.

For the Hallowishes party, it was just an awkward experience. The garden viewing was so empty! Like there were 12 people there. So we were sort of sitting at tables, just staring at each other and the lady at the sundae station. The desserts were similar to the HEA, so they weren't bad, I just think the regular park offerings would have been better at a cheaper cost. The villains cupcake was inedible-like it tasted entirely like dye! Oogie Boogie tart was the same as the s'mores tart during HEA. Jack skellington was fine, and poison apple tart was ok too. Worms and dirt was pretty dry.

For the viewing itself, yes the spot was great. But the party I was at was so empty it would have been extremely easy to just walk up a few minutes before and get an equal view. There were people standing in the walkway in front of the plaza who were able to lean up against the railing and get an equal view as we did and we paid $$$.

Maybe for your friends it will be better and more worthwhile, if that party is more crowded. But I would have preferred to just camp out for spots beforehand and create our own dessert party with the various offerings around the park.

Here are some photos from the Hallowishes (sorry, huge blurry because it was pretty humid!):

I meant to comment on this when I read it last week but it slipped my mind. We also did the dessert party for MNSSHP (the 9/1 party) and I 1000% agree with your assessment. Funny thing is I knew it was a total waste/bad idea going in. To be totally honest, I had booked it awhile back before I realized they didn’t offer a dedicated parade viewing spot and kind of forgot about it until too late, so ended up just going along with it to try it out.

On the plus side, it rained quite a bit my night and the first parade and Hallowishes were delayed. We ended up squatting at the tables in the Tomorrowland Terrace to wait out the weather, so that was nice.

But you’re right about the numbers... there were maybe 15 guests my night. We had the whole plaza garden to ourselves. Although that party was pretty busy on my particular night - I was glad to have a dedicated spot to watch fireworks, but it would have been fine too if we didn’t.

We ended up watching the first parade from the plaza garden. It’s not the best view but it’s not terrible either. We’re not “sit on the curb and wait for the parade” folks, so watching from the Plaza Garden was kind of a reasonable alternative for us.

But all in all, like most folks suggest, the dessert party on a MNSSHP night was a waste for us. Wouldn’t do that again.

Thanks for sharing your experiences, great pics too!

 

[Lesley Wake]

I meant to comment on this when I read it last week but it slipped my mind. We also did the dessert party for MNSSHP (the 9/1 party) and I 1000% agree with your assessment. Funny thing is I knew it was a total waste/bad idea going in. To be totally honest, I had booked it awhile back before I realized they didn’t offer a dedicated parade viewing spot and kind of forgot about it until too late, so ended up just going along with it to try it out.

On the plus side, it rained quite a bit my night and the first parade and Hallowishes were delayed. We ended up squatting at the tables in the Tomorrowland Terrace to wait out the weather, so that was nice.

But you’re right about the numbers... there were maybe 15 guests my night. We had the whole plaza garden to ourselves. Although that party was pretty busy on my particular night - I was glad to have a dedicated spot to watch fireworks, but it would have been fine too if we didn’t.

We ended up watching the first parade from the plaza garden. It’s not the best view but it’s not terrible either. We’re not “sit on the curb and wait for the parade” folks, so watching from the Plaza Garden was kind of a reasonable alternative for us.

But all in all, like most folks suggest, the dessert party on a MNSSHP night was a waste for us. Wouldn’t do that again.

Thanks for sharing your experiences, great pics too!

Thanks! I'm glad it wasn't just me and my sister who felt weird about it! I think it was partially because Disney released those dates so late so everyone interested in a dessert party did the terrace view and didn't know about the (slightly) cheaper plaza view. Oh well!

 

[zipuzee]

I'm definitely going to try and book this when we go next year. I hate fighting crowds and this will be well worth the cost to me!

 

[LizzyS]

Thank you so much for this great thread, OP!

I'm strongly leaning towards doing this when my husband and I go for our 9th anniversary in February!

 

[MyHappyPlace17]

Maybe not the best place to ask about this, but I'm wondering if anyone has noticed any difference in the clarity of the HEA projections on the castle now that the Dream Lights installation is well underway.

 

[TeresaWen]

My husband and I are doing this later this month. Plaza viewing. He may be using a wheelchair. He is recovering from back surgery and we don't know yet how much assistance he'll need. if he is using one, he most likely will stand for the fireworks but would sit while waiting.

How accessible is this event?

 

[GADisneyDad14]

My husband and I are doing this later this month. Plaza viewing. He may be using a wheelchair. He is recovering from back surgery and we don't know yet how much assistance he'll need. if he is using one, he most likely will stand for the fireworks but would sit while waiting.

How accessible is this event?

I will caveat that I don’t have direct experience with accessibility considerations, but from my untrained eye I would say “very accessible.” You can stay in the chair the whole time, from desserts to Plaza Garden viewing area. One time this summer we were next to two women in scooters in the Plaza Garden. They seemed to enjoy staying seated. They moved around a bit once the show started to get a better view, but not much.

In my experience, while the garden does fill in, it doesn't fill in so much as to significantly impact someone who may need to remain seated - generally speaking. You can always time getting to the garden a little earlier to secure a spot on the railing, if that is a concern.

Hope that helps.

 

[Dan Murphy]

A

My husband and I are doing this later this month. Plaza viewing. He may be using a wheelchair. He is recovering from back surgery and we don't know yet how much assistance he'll need. if he is using one, he most likely will stand for the fireworks but would sit while waiting.

How accessible is this event?

Adding to the reply above from GADD. We did the Plaza view party about a month ago, I was using a scooter. Extremely accessible, plus not crowded.

 

[TeresaWen]

Thank you both!

 

[prettypatchesmsu]

I had been on the fence about booking the Garden View party until of course I kept thinking about it and less than 30 days away decided why not! Well, of course no spots available. But I checked today again just for fun, and there were 2 spots! So yes! I just booked this...haven't told DH yet But he loves sweets so I'm sure he won't mind the cost after I tell him about all the desserts We did the Hallowishes Dessert party last year, but it had parade spot and terrace seats. I didn't care for the castle view from the terrace, but other than that we liked it. Not worth it this year without the parade spot though. But I've been still seeing crazy crowded reports from HEA, that I decided I wanted to do this instead. I'm really excited about it reading all these latest reviews! Looking forward to the garden view area.

 

[AllEar2017]

I booked this based on the post here and was very happy! Agree with some others that better to sit/stand in the back against the fence versus towards the front. Also we were some of the last to enter and everyone was clumped near the entrance but we just kept walking all the way across and there was plenty of open space.

We had 9:00 HEA and arrived at the party just after 8. So many people were leaving to get seats for fireworks just as we were entering! I panicked a little and asked the CM seating us if we should hurry and he assured us there was plenty of space. We ended up being some of the last to leave closer to 8:45 and as mentioned above had no problem getting a spot.

I saved this event for our last night and it took the pressure off feeling the need to see HEA the other nights. We saw the fireworks from the Poly a few times. This was our only special event of the trip and well worth it!

 

[GADisneyDad14]

I booked this based on the post here and was very happy! Agree with some others that better to sit/stand in the back against the fence versus towards the front. Also we were some of the last to enter and everyone was clumped near the entrance but we just kept walking all the way across and there was plenty of open space.

We had 9:00 HEA and arrived at the party just after 8. So many people were leaving to get seats for fireworks just as we were entering! I panicked a little and asked the CM seating us if we should hurry and he assured us there was plenty of space. We ended up being some of the last to leave closer to 8:45 and as mentioned above had no problem getting a spot.

I saved this event for our last night and it took the pressure off feeling the need to see HEA the other nights. We saw the fireworks from the Poly a few times. This was our only special event of the trip and well worth it!

Glad it worked out for you! I like this event with a similar schedule as you... arrive a later, then up to the fireworks viewing later. Makes for a fun, stress-free night. Thanks again for sharing your experience.

 

[LizzyS]

Thank you so much for this great thread, OP!

I'm strongly leaning towards doing this when my husband and I go for our 9th anniversary in February!

I booked the seated version and I'm really excited for it!