VIP tour updates?

[twodogs]

We have done many VIP tours at WDW and enjoyed them. We are thinking our doing our first VIP at DLR since my parents are finally venturing out to travel again after COVID. It will be me, DH, our two teens and my parents who are fit and active.

I am wondering if anyone can post recent experiences? I read the threads that exist here, and there were some negative ones about the waits in the LLs (and lack of guide’s ability to use short cuts). We have been to DLR 3 times since it reopened, 1 since G+ started, and I understand how long the LLs waits were when we were there. I feel capable at G+, but this would be a special treat for my parents.

Also, how many of the nighttime shows/fireworks/parades/WOC/Fantasmic could we see on the night of our tour? We will be reserving a Saturday night in October. As I understand it, we don’t need to still be on tour at the time of the fireworks etc to go to the VIP area (which is different than WDW)?

Thanks all and any tips on specific energetic, engaged guides that can keep up with ride-junky teens are appreciated!

 

[vacay77]

We have done many VIP tours at WDW and enjoyed them. We are thinking our doing our first VIP at DLR since my parents are finally venturing out to travel again after COVID. It will be me, DH, our two teens and my parents who are fit and active.

I am wondering if anyone can post recent experiences? I read the threads that exist here, and there were some negative ones about the waits in the LLs (and lack of guide’s ability to use short cuts). We have been to DLR 3 times since it reopened, 1 since G+ started, and I understand how long the LLs waits were when we were there. I feel capable at G+, but this would be a special treat for my parents.

Also, how many of the nighttime shows/fireworks/parades/WOC/Fantasmic could we see on the night of our tour? We will be reserving a Saturday night in October. As I understand it, we don’t need to still be on tour at the time of the fireworks etc to go to the VIP area (which is different than WDW)?

Thanks all and any tips on specific energetic, engaged guides that can keep up with ride-junky teens are appreciated!

I decided to book the VIP Tour and we went on it this past Monday. For what it’s worth, I thought it was worth it. Yes, you still need to wait in the LL line on most rides, although we went front of the line for Peter Pan because there is not a LL line for that ride. We usually didn’t wait more than 5-10 mins for each ride (with the exception of Goofy’s Sky School which I don’t recommend doing on the VIP tour but it’s my son’s favorite ride so we made an exception). And yes, you get preferred seating for all the nighttime performances. We did Fantasmic and the fireworks and we could have done Main Street Electrical Street Parade afterward but everyone was pretty much exhausted by that time.

 

[Mr. Mike]

And yes, you get preferred seating for all the nighttime performances.

Please tell us about the seating for Fantasmic. Did you get actual seats to sit on or did you sit on the concrete?

 

[vacay77]

Please tell us about the seating for Fantasmic. Did you get actual seats to sit on or did you sit on the concrete?

We got actual seats . It was great! We were able to remain in the same seats to watch the fireworks from Rivers of America. From there, we could have gone to Main Electrical Street Parade or WOC but we opted to call it a night after the fireworks. Our family consisted of a teen, 2 tweens and my elderly mom who was in a scooter. It was unanimous that the VIP tour was worth it for us, especially comparing it to the other 2 days we were there, using Genie +. I’m usually the planner and it was nice to have someone else lead the way. Our guide knew which rides were broken down at given times and he was able to re-route us accordingly.

 

[CeCe0906]

We got actual seats . It was great!

This is a big part of what I'm going to enjoy about our upcoming tour( not that the rest of the things aren't important). It's not pretty to watch me get up from the floor anymore, especially after I've been down there a while and stiffened up . How early did you have to be there to sit down in the VIP area for the show?

 

[vacay77]

This is a big part of what I'm going to enjoy about our upcoming tour( not that the rest of the things aren't important). It's not pretty to watch me get up from the floor anymore, especially after I've been down there a while and stiffened up . How early did you have to be there to sit down in the VIP area for the show?

I think we were there 30 mins before the performance began. We sat in the last row but we were still able to clearly see everything.

 

[Nonsuch]

…Also, how many of the nighttime shows/fireworks/parades/WOC/Fantasmic could we see on the night of our tour? We will be reserving a Saturday night in October. As I understand it, we don’t need to still be on tour at the time of the fireworks etc to go to the VIP area (which is different than WDW)?

Correct, seating can be after your tour ends. Multiple reserved viewing locations can be booked, but generally the show schedule makes 2 the limit. October will likely be Halloween Screams Fireworks (my favorite, and most “castle focused” show).

My strategy:

1. “East Crescent” of the Hub for parade viewing, and stay in those seats for fireworks
2. Quickly (run) through Frontierland to Fantasmic viewing

Book your tour and viewings early, since they sell out.
Have your tour guide point out the viewing locations (and where to check in)

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

As for a guide recommendation we had Michael Herrera in April. He was wonderful with our almost 13 year old boy (we asked for someone who would specifically be a good fit for him). We also appreciated his cheerful attitude and willingness to engage with all of us. As to logistics, he did a good job at monitoring the ride situation and when certain rides weren’t available during our tour he found a workaround that was completely acceptable to us. Plus when Rise went down he evacuated us immediately through the back cast member area, which was really cool!

He isn’t our beloved WDW guide (who my children are convinced is actually a family member they only get to see once a year) but we will happily ask for Michael next time we are in Cali.

I will say that we have had mixed experiences with DL VIP guides. It seems like there may be more of them or the training/requirements are less stringent than in Florida.

 

[FionaP]

We have done many VIP tours at WDW and enjoyed them. We are thinking our doing our first VIP at DLR since my parents are finally venturing out to travel again after COVID. It will be me, DH, our two teens and my parents who are fit and active.

I am wondering if anyone can post recent experiences? I read the threads that exist here, and there were some negative ones about the waits in the LLs (and lack of guide’s ability to use short cuts). We have been to DLR 3 times since it reopened, 1 since G+ started, and I understand how long the LLs waits were when we were there. I feel capable at G+, but this would be a special treat for my parents.

Also, how many of the nighttime shows/fireworks/parades/WOC/Fantasmic could we see on the night of our tour? We will be reserving a Saturday night in October. As I understand it, we don’t need to still be on tour at the time of the fireworks etc to go to the VIP area (which is different than WDW)?

Thanks all and any tips on specific energetic, engaged guides that can keep up with ride-junky teens are appreciated!

We have gone on a couple VIP tours at DLR., and absolutely loved them! Most recently was last summer. Had Terry as a tour guide and would highly recommend him!

 

[vacay77]

Correct, seating can be after your tour ends. Multiple reserved viewing locations can be booked, but generally the show schedule makes 2 the limit. October will likely be Halloween Screams Fireworks (my favorite, and most “castle focused” show).

My strategy:

1. “East Crescent” of the Hub for parade viewing, and stay in those seats for fireworks
2. Quickly (run) through Frontierland to Fantasmic viewing

Book your tour and viewings early, since they sell out.
Have your tour guide point out the viewing locations (and where to check in)

I second this. There are actual waitlists for the first performances and we were able to get the first performance for Fantasmic. But definitely something to be aware of.

 

[Steven G]

I was one of the people who complained about the vip tour not being able to bypass the LL line. this caused us to wait nearly 45 minutes in GOTG line, as well as over 30 minutes in webslingers.

because of this, I have personally boycotted vip tours at Disneyland, until I hear that their policy changes.

I will note a few things: this did occur during Christmas week in 2021, and my guide explicitly told me he was no longer allowed to bypass the LL line if there was one, unlike in the past. He also asked me to complain about it, which I did. About 4-5 years ago, I had another vip tour on Christmas Eve, and I don’t remember waiting for anything longer than a few minutes. Finally, even though we had these waits, we still managed to get on everything that was planned except space mountain, which was down when we were in that area, and the guide was very good. So overall, the experience was good except for that one issue.

so my boycott is more on the value. If they cant bypass the LL line, it loses a lot of value for me, since I know I was able to do it before, and disneyworld still allows their guides to do so.