Which one..Illuminations..or Fantasmic?

[GOOFY D]

Without a doubt, Fantasmic. Illuminations is very nice but IMO, not nearly as nice (or as "Disney") as Fantasmic.

 

[2belles'mom]

Yes, yes--the recent posts are correct about Fantasmic and arriving early UNLESS (!) you book a Fantasmic Dinner Package, which gives you guaranteed seating without having to arrive so early. We did dinner at the Brown Derby, and then headed to Fantasmic about 20 minutes before show time. We did not get the absolute best seats in the house, but we DID get seats, and they were great. We could have arrived a bit earlier (most dinner package holders arrive earlier than we did!!!), but hey, we were having so much fun at the Brown Derby, and we KNEW we would have seats!

Soooo, to avoid the outrageous arrival time of 60 minutes early (which I would NEVER do!), book a Fantasmic dinner package!

 

[micks]

I don't often jump in on these discussions, but Illuminations is a MUST for us! I've been to WDW a few times, 4, (not as much as many at the Dis) but it's a don't miss. I swear, you can FEEL the spirit of Walt Disney there. Of course, I was a huge fan of Tapestry of Dreams too, so take that into consideration! LOL

 

[OrlandoPlanner]

I just saw Wishes, Fantasmic and Illuminations last week for the first time. I loved Wishes and I enjoyed Fantasmic (especially the fact that you got to sit on a bench to wait). I did not really have a great view of Illuminations, I sat on the ground for an hour waiting and I did not really understand the concept.

 

[Mickeyhugger]

You're probably going to be more confused after reading these posts, BECAUSE THEY'RE BOTH GREAT SHOWS! I cannot make a recommendation. We just got back today and saw Fantasmic Thursday. (We saw it four years ago for the first time.) Two years ago we saw illuminations. We were awestruck. Whatever you choose will be the right choice. (There now. Are you even more confused?) Have a great time!

 

[aesalsa]

Before I experienced Fantasmic this year, I would have said that Illuminations is Not-to-be-missed. But HANDS DOWN is Fantasmic. It's very Disney, and it stars the main man--MICKEY!! You do have to get there pretty early to get a good choice of seats--or any seats!
IMHO, it honestly wouldn't bother me too much if I never saw IllumiNations again as long as I could see *WISHES* (THE BEST SHOW EVER!!! NO DESIRE TO ANY OTHER FIREWORKD SHOW AGAIN!!). Illuminations doesn't have that WOW effect on me anymore (I've seen it about 4 times), even though it is very nice. Of course I'm talking about Disney show comparisons, not general show comparisons.

 

[bigsky]

Yes, you guys are making it very difficult. I think now what we're going to do is try and go to both. Wishes is a must see for us. Providing that we can do the other two, we will try and make the effort.
It sounds like both are great. We may go and say that Fantasmic we wouldn't do again..or visa versa. It's just up to each individual. So we'll do them all and when we get back I'll tell you which one we won't miss again.

Thanks for all the replies.
We're down to 9 days and counting!

Laura

 

[sters]

I'd skip Illuminations. It was very disappointing since they've changed it. Fantasmic, on the otherhand, was truly unique.

 

[pewing]

I confess that I did not read all of the replies to your post...so excuse me if I am repeating

We love, love, love Illuminations! One of our favorite things at WDW! We see it as many times as we can during our stay.

I would reccomend doing both. Depending on when you are going and what time the shows are. We went last December and did the dinner package for Fantasmic (Mama Melrose...pricey but very good) at 7:00. We scooted out after and headed to Epcot in time to catch Illuminations too It's doable....

I have only seem Fantasmic once. It is a great show...definately will plan to see it again.

If you HAVE to choose...I would have to vote for Illuminations!