Which special evening experience would you eliminate?

[VAfamily1998]

This trip will be just me and my Dh, it's his 50th birthday! We will be staying 5 nights at Coronado Springs resort. We've been to Disney many times and will likely go again within two years--on average we go to Disney at least once a year.
On one night (his birthday) we have dinner reservations at Citricos, so we have four other nights to do "special" things. So far I have

Saturday--9 pm dinner at the Edison
Sunday--Rose and Crown Epcot Forever package
Monday-- 7:45 pm dinner at Toledo at Coronado Springs
Tuesday--his birthday dinner at Citricos
Wednesday--Circle of Flavors, Harambe Nights at AK

We leave Thursday afternoon.

I'd also like to do the Star Wars dessert party, but to do that I'd have to eliminate one of the above. I think the one that seems least "special" might be dinner at Toledo, but I do kind of like the idea of enjoying a night at the resort we are staying at.

We have never done any of the above 5 things before, each will be a new experience for us.
Any thoughts? And do you think my reservation times are good (hoping to see fireworks from Toledo, and to see the entertainment at the Edison.)

 

[Farro]

I think that looks great!

I'm not sure how Toledo works with fireworks - I'm not sure what side you'd want to sit on. But I think it would be special - the restaurant is very beautiful at night (at least from pictures) and I think probably romantic. I'd get rid of The Edison before Toledo. We are also doing Toledo on our first night (staying at Gran Destino). We are making reservations for 8pm for two and we will see where we end up!

I voted to eliminate the Star Wars dessert party actually - I think those are a waste of money. Just grab a drink and find a spot! But that's just me.

 

[BrianL]

Honestly, I'd skip Toledo, not that I have been, but it seems the least exciting. All the other stuff sounds great and I know firsthand that The Star Wars Dessert Party is a lot of fun!

 

[Katie1174]

I vote to eliminate the Edison. It is nice enough but doesn't seem as special to me as the other choices.. My husband and I love the Star Wars dessert party, I am a fan and he is not, but he loves that party, he says it is probably his favorite dessert party.

 

[ninafeliz]

I have no real interest in the Edison, so I would eliminate that. We love guaranteed seating for shows- no stress over where to watch, etc, -time is money- and they are fun with food- so I would definitely do the dessert party and the Epcot Forever show. Toledo looks great and it’s nice to spend time at your resort. I haven’t done Harambe Nights, but it looked like a wonderful event, particularly for a couple. So I would drop the Edison hands down.

 

[lovin'fl]

R&C package. Just watch the night show in the park. Avoid R&C as it's not the best, IMO. Stick with your other options.

 

[ninafeliz]

R&C package. Just watch the night show in the park. Avoid R&C as it's not the best, IMO. Stick with your other options.

I do agree that if Epcot forever live is anything like Illuminations was, you shouldn’t have a problem at all getting a spot to watch it. So if you eliminate the package and just watch you could do all of the rest and only give up the add on, not the show.

Like I said, though, we really enjoy dessert parties and guaranteed relaxed seating, so I would probably do it anyway- particularly with a couple and not having to pay for 6 of us.

We also really like R&C and have eaten there a lot. I have made us try some other restaurants during recent trips because it seemed silly to go to Epcot and always eat at one place with so many choices LOL! But the family hasn’t had one they like better yet! (We’ve only tried a couple so far though).

 

[lovin'fl]

We just ate at Toledo and really enjoyed it. But it's different so if you all are picky at all it might not be for you. We thought it was really good. I have only had 1 meal at R&C and it was Xmas Eve one year and that might have played a part in it not being one we like. Slow spotty service. We were party of 15 and seated outside at 4 different tables. Food was cold. No drink refills. No silverwear at table. The fish and chips is pretty much exactly the same as the quick serve but several bucks more expensive. We've sat at the bar and had drinks there other times and really enjoy that. But maybe look at Toledo's menu and give that one up for the R&C package if Toledo isn't your cup of tea.

 

[lovin'fl]

And we also just saw new night show at Epcot. It's a lot like how it was for Illuminations. Just stand somewhere and watch. Though it's new so there is likely more people saving spots than usual. We watched it like night 2 and just walked up to the wall in France and watched.

 

[NYCgrrl]

I also voted to eliminate the dessert party. CG brunch had a really odd chocolate dessert with a Star Wars name and it turned me off to the idea of trying any of the other SW themed desserts, LOL.

 

[DaisyDuck001]

I would get rid of the dessert party. I like dessert, but I can't see spending more on dessert than I would typically spend on dinner, plus it would only encourage me to have way more dessert than a reasonable amount.

Additionally, you can dine at Rose & Crown without a package and still see Epcot Forever from the restaurant's own standing viewing area, so I'd skip that package also, but still dine there.

And the other three experiences look worth keeping.

 

[MomOTwins]

Dessert party. You can get amazing desserts pretty much anywhere on property for $10 or less. And fireworks are free.

 

[only hope]

All of Epcot Forever takes place in the sky unlike Reflections, so there is no need for a reserved viewing area or to be up front to see a globe on the water. Just find a place with no trees, poles, etc in front of you.

 

[petrola]

I vote to give up the Edison. Not because it doesn't look good, but because I wouldn't want to give up the other four! We are also doing the Rose and Crown dining package in April and really looking forward to it. I also love the dessert parties - not at all interested in trying to find a spot to watch the fireworks 45 minutes to an hour before they start. Maybe it's because we go Easter week and it's so crowded - but having the reserved viewing area is wonderful and one less thing to think about. Harambe Nights looks like so much fun and not like anything else on the list - definitely something I would want to keep! I also like the idea of having one night to just relax and enjoy the resort - and that's why I would keep Toledo. Maybe that's the day you leave the parks a little early, head back for some pool time and not have to scramble to get anywhere for dinner - it's right at your resort! Just my two cents though.. sounds like a great list... have a fun time!

 

[alltwelve]

The Edison has great drinks and atmosphere, but I would never go there for a meal again... the food just isn't worth the cost. Can't think of anywhere else that charges $20 for a grilled cheese sandwich for dinner!

 

[nkereina]

I would eliminate either the Edison or Rose & Crown Epcot Forever Package. Epcot Forever is the easiest of the shows to pull up and find a place to watch from, even at the last minute. Rose & Crown is decent, but its easy enough to move it to a lunch or cancel and grab fish & chips from Yorkshire if you really want it. As for the Edison, we stopped in for drinks there and it was fine but nothing on the menu stood out to us and the atmosphere was just meh. I don't think the place has been quite as popular as anticipated.

 

[GwladysStreet]

Contrary to what most are saying, I absolutely LOVED the Star Wars dessert party. That might have something to do with the open bar and the fact that I'm an uber-geek for Star Wars but I had a brilliant time, certainly got my money's worth (on the drinks anyway haha) and thought that the atmosphere was fantastic.

 

[MrsDuck]

I'd skip the dessert party.

 

[starousse]

Definitely skip Edison. I'm all for giving a second chance, but it was horrible for us. Food was nasty, our seats were probably the worst in the house and the service was horrible. Never again!

 

[VAfamily1998]

Thank you so much for all the imput! The overwhelming majority vote to skip the Edison! And very few votes for skipping Circle of Flavors, so that's a keeper!
I'm leaning towards:

Saturday (our flight lands around 10:30 am): Dinner at Toledo (our resort is CSR) then head to Jellyrolls at the Boardwalk (we've done Jellyrolls before and LOVE it!)
Sunday: Rose and Crown EF package (I already have booked)
Monday: Star Wars Desert Party (will need to book this once they release dates)
Tuesday: Dh's birthday dinner at Citricos (already booked)
Wednesday: Circle of Flavor (already booked)