Thoughts on Fantasmic Priority Seating

[catigger]

We did the Fantasmic Priority Seating. Picked up the tickets at check in at the DL Hotel. We were told to check in for the show at 7PM. Got there at 6:50 and discoverd a long line. Once we reached the podium all the front row seats and second row seats had been spoken for. We ended up with third row seats. My 5 year old had to sit on my lap for most of the show to see over the adult heads in front of us

Desert was a buffett consiting of gingerbread cookies, brownies, rice krispy star treats, and chocolate covered strawberries. Hot and cold drinks were also served. The castmembers who hosted the seating area were fantastic. My only regret is that we were not able to leave with any dessert. DD 5 ate one gingerbread cookie and I had a brownie and a few chocolate covered strawberries. My advise check in early!! Bring something to wrap a few desserts in to take with you.

The show was awesome and I am very glad we had a seat and avoided a long wait. We were told we could stay and see the fireworks but due to the weather they were cancelled.

Any questions, please ask.

 

[RuthieT]

thank you for your review.. do you guess what time we should check in at?? we have a 3.5 year old and front row would be the best for her... can you not take the box the goodies come in?? if you dont eat them all and you bring something (zip lock or etc??) is it ok to take?

 

[nunzia]

Sometimes the dessert is a buffet, at other times it's in a box, and they seem to change higgeldy piggeldy. We also were 'early' for check in and found front row totally gone, so yes, go as soon as you can. I had my fanny pack and took a few napkins from the buffet to wrap things in as we had just had dinner and weren't too hungry. My favortie was the raspberry filled shortbread. It was worth the cost of admission to just have somewhere to sit!

 

[godalejunior]

I saw another post recently that said they had to wait an hour in line at check-in as people from the later showing of F were checking in too. I was thinking about doing the seating but if we have to wait this long, I might as well stake out a spot myself..........
I also heard a rumor that there may be new balcony seating at Riverbelle Terrace......can anyone confirm this?

 

[RuthieT]

we will be there on Friday night for the 9PM showing... I am trying to figure out what time we should show up... Do we all need to be there or just one of us for check in??? and What time should we return before the show starts?

 

[catigger]

I am not sure what time they start to let you select where to sit but I would defnitely be around there at 6:15 - 6:30 ish. Only one person needs to check in but you do need to show your tickets. After we choose our seats, we were told to come back at 8:30 for the desserts. The show started at 9:10 that night. We were not given a plastic container with the desserts. They were set out in a buffett.

When the boat comes out at the end my daughter actually ended up standing on the chair so she could see well. I really do wish we had had a front row seat for her.

Even though the fireworks were cancelled that night it did snow! So we enjoyed that and the cast members refreshed our hot coco's.

 

[cheesemouse]

Where EXACTLY do you go to check in for the seating? My DH and DS (21 months) are going and we need to get good seats because he's so little and short.

Also, does anyone know where to pick up the tickets the day of?

Ruthie, we'll see you there on Friday - we're doing the 9pm seating too!

 

[RuthieT]

Also... we will be there with our little princess Bailey so we should say Hi!! I am very excited about the show.. I think you go to Guest Services to get tickets... But not sure I would also like to know where we go to get tickets and what time you recommend checking in.

 

[stitchlover]

We just booked our first trip to Disneyland earlier today...how much does the priority seating for Fantasmic cost?

 

[cheesemouse]

It's $59 for adults and $49 for kids. Definitely not cheap! We did it mostly because we have a very squirmy toddler and I can't imagine staking out seats for an hour or more and trying to keep him entertained and still that whole time.

But, if you want to do this, you have to call exactly 30 days before the day you want to see Fantasmic and call right at 8am PST. There are very limited seats and they sell out FAST.

Also of note, the woman who helped me with the reservation said that my 1 year old didn't need a ticket for the premium seating since he was so little and would just sit in my lap. So maybe this applies to all 2 and unders who don't need park tickets??? not sure, just guessing.

 

[catigger]

If you are staying on-site, vacation planning can assist you with getting tickets. I contacted them about 4 day's before the 30 day mark and they got them for us. Also, if you are staying on site they will give you the tickets at the time you check into the hotel. At least that is how it worked for us when we checked into the Disney Land Hotel.

To check in prior to the show there is a podium set up by the Churro cart on the River of America. Just ask one of the cast members and they will point you in the right direction.

 

[stitchlover]

We have seen Fantasmic at WDW. Is there a huge difference from WDW and DL?

 

[bouncy54]

We have seen Fantasmic at WDW. Is there a huge difference from WDW and DL?

I've seen both and prefer the DL version, mostly because of the use of the Mark Twain with all the characters at the end and Peter Pan on the Columbia.

When we saw Fantasmic at DL last month, we spread out a couple of picnic blankets about 1 1/2 hours before the show right at the fence in front of the Rivers Of America. There were 8 of us, so we took turns saving our spots while the others rode HMH, Big Thunder and Pirates which are on the water front.

I've never sat so close to the fence before, and in retrospect, I would probably sit a little further back on the inclined walkway next time. The fence was right at my eye level and I had to look through the holes in the fence to see some of the action.

With so much to see and do on the waterfront, the 1 1/2 hours went by quickly. Personally...I can't see spending $60 to see something that I can see for nothing, but that's just my opinion of course.

 

[ttig34]

Check in is at 7:00 pm- but by 6:45- I would say there were already 20 people in line. We got there about 6:10 and were second in line. So we had great seats. And only one person needs to be there to check in for your group.

We did not have a buffet. We had a Fantasmic! box with treats in it. Each box had 2 chocolate covered strawberries, 2 Mickey rice krispie
treats, 2 chocolate macaroons, 2 raspberry shortbread cookies and 2 biscotti.
We ate a couple of items and took the rest with us. So we were glad we got the box.

 

[RuthieT]

Alright so we will go there at 6 and see if anyone is in line at that time.. Is there any rides in the near area or shopping or food??

 

[mrs.beast]

I went last night. Went to line up at 6:00 near the churro cart and was sent away. came back at 6:30 was about 10th in line. we got great seats. second row in the middle (i think 10-13), there were front row left but they were on the left. we really loved our seats. all 3 of my kids could see. we had boxes with 10 treats each, we will have junk for days. we got the same as the other people listed. we also had unlimited soda, coffee, hot cocoa, and water. was totally worth it for us. it was sprinkling all day and the ground was wet and cold.

 

[nunzia]

I am not sure what time they start to let you select where to sit but I would defnitely be around there at 6:15 - 6:30 ish. Only one person needs to check in but you do need to show your tickets. After we choose our seats, we were told to come back at 8:30 for the desserts. The show started at 9:10 that night. We were not given a plastic container with the desserts. They were set out in a buffett.

When the boat comes out at the end my daughter actually ended up standing on the chair so she could see well. I really do wish we had had a front row seat for her.

Even though the fireworks were cancelled that night it did snow! So we enjoyed that and the cast members refreshed our hot coco's.

Since we had back row also, the cast member let us stand behind the chairs (leaned against the wall, not bad) so we could see very well, but we had those lovely chairs when we wanted them too..

 

[nunzia]

If you are staying on-site, vacation planning can assist you with getting tickets. I contacted them about 4 day's before the 30 day mark and they got them for us. Also, if you are staying on site they will give you the tickets at the time you check into the hotel. At least that is how it worked for us when we checked into the Disney Land Hotel.

To check in prior to the show there is a podium set up by the Churro cart on the River of America. Just ask one of the cast members and they will point you in the right direction.

Wow..I did not know this...I called at the 30 day mark, exactly when they opened and was still on hold.The gallery was sold out, but got the river. Too bad they don't seat according to when you purchase, because we were first for river.
I stayed at DGC and they did not give me the tickets when I checked in. I had to pick up the tickets at the place where you buy Annual Passes. They seem to mess up alot. It took them forever to find my tickets, and when my friend went at another time, they really messed up and had sold her tickets for the previous year! They made it right, but still...I picked my tickets up right when I got to DL. They warn you not to lose them, because if you do you are out of luck.

 

[drag n' fly]

We have seen both and I tell you it is 10 times better st Disneyland...like a lot of other things.....hmmm pirates, space mountain, splash mountain etc!