YC - illuminations

[mark_o_2005]

I'm staying at YC this summer (for my honeymoon, I'm stoked!) and was hoping to be able to see illuminations our first night there without wasting a day's admission getting into the park. Any suggestions on the best places to view the show outside the park?

And while I'm at it, any excellent honeymoon suggestions?

 

[Kim1964]

We've never had a water view room so I don't know how they are from those balconies, but we've watched them from the YC beach. You don't see all the low stuff, but you get a pretty good view of a lot of the high stuff. You can't really hear the music very well, but DD#2 is afraid of the fireworks noise, so it's a good compromise place for us to watch them.

 

[Pakey]

A lot of the Illuminations show is at water level. If you are not standing around the World Showcase inside Epcot, you will only be able to see the higher fireworks which are not going to be all that spectacular without seeing the rest of the show.

The best way to see them without a park admission is to book an Illuminations Cruise (or share one with fellow dissers, there is a thread for it here on Theme Park board). These cruises leave from the Yacht Club Marina and you have a front row seat for the show. We have done this twice and it's the best way to see this show. These boats are limited and very hard to book so this is not something you can plan last minute.

I hope you have a wonderful honeymoon. In my opinion, there's no better place in the world to spend it than at WDW.

 

[LSchrow]

a very popular spot is on the bridge connecting BC & the BW. as others have said, the view is mostly of the higher fireworks, but it is still beautiful & you should be able to hear at least some of the music.
& after the "show", take a few steps toward the BW & enter the gazebo. it's a great place to gaze at the BW & BC/YC lit up, with their reflections in the water , as well as have a quiet talk & (fyi tho: the gazebo at night is the only place i always get bitten by mosquitos but it's still too pretty & romantic for me to pass up).
btw, YC is my favorite non-DVC resort ~ have a wonderful honeymoon!!

hth
laurie s

 

[kldmom2000]

We spent our honeymoon in 1994 at the YC/BC and my DH won't stay anywhere else now

Last year on our trip, we were generally in SAB during Illuminations. We could see the fireworks portion perfectly from the pool/SAB You can't hear the music, but being @ the resort w/ the fireworks going off was wonderful

Also... if you're lucky enough to get a room on an upper level above the main entrance facing the parking lot... you'll get a great view of WISHES You can't hear the music to that either... but I was so surprised not only getting bumped up to the concierge level on our last trip (it was our 8th time staying at the YC/BC and we've never had a room higher than a standard view) but to find out after the 2nd night when I went out to the balcony to hang our wet clothes, that I could see Wishes!! What a magical surprise!

Have a wonderful honeymoon!!!!

 

[Hopefully]

To "experience" Illuminations you need to be inside Epcot along World Showcase lagoon. I am sure you will do this during your trip. But on your arrrival night you can walk to the bridge over the canal between the YC/BC and the Boardwalk. You will see a good portion of the Illuminations high fireworks.
The YC is a wonderful resort with a wonderful location. SAB is the best pool on property. Take an afternoon break from the parks and come back for a swim. Sit by the pool and maybe sip an "Adult Beverage". It is lots of fun.
The quiet pools are nice, quiet and romantic.
Have a wonderful trip.

 

[Stef♥Tigger]

Do you have to stay at the Yacht Club for the Illuminations cruise? I would like to do the cruise sometime from July 22-July 27.

 

[Pakey]

Do you have to stay at the Yacht Club for the Illuminations cruise? I would like to do the cruise sometime from July 22-July 27.

No, you do not. However, you will need to be dialing at 7:00 am on the morning bookings open up for the particular day you want as these go fast, fast, fast. If you don't get through, check the sticky on the Theme Park Attractions Board where dissers post if they got one and have availability to share spaces.

 

[CoachBagFanatic]

No, you do not. However, you will need to be dialing at 7:00 am on the morning bookings open up for the particular day you want as these go fast, fast, fast. If you don't get through, check the sticky on the Theme Park Attractions Board where dissers post if they got one and have availability to share spaces.

Congratulations on the upcoming wedding. I agree with calling at 7:00am. If you are staying at the YC concierge, you can email them ahead of time and they can arrange the cruise for you. This is what we did and we had our reservation without a hitch. It was great. We also had a Jr Suite that overlooked SAB and we could only see part of the fireworks from our balcony. Like others have said, you have to be ground level to see the rest. Have a great time.

 

[Stef♥Tigger]

Do you have any idea when I would have to call, like what's the timeframe? What do you do on the cruise, do you just cruise or do you eat or anything?

 

[mark_o_2005]

Thank you all for your suggestions. My DF loves fireworks, so I glad that we'll be able to enjoy a good portion of them still.

 

[helenk]

Do you have any idea when I would have to call, like what's the timeframe? What do you do on the cruise, do you just cruise or do you eat or anything?

You can not book until 90 days out Here is a link to the information on the Illuminations Cruises

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=560160

 

[steffali]

We spent our honeymoon in 1994 at the YC/BC and my DH won't stay anywhere else now

Last year on our trip, we were generally in SAB during Illuminations. We could see the fireworks portion perfectly from the pool/SAB You can't hear the music, but being @ the resort w/ the fireworks going off was wonderful

Also... if you're lucky enough to get a room on an upper level above the main entrance facing the parking lot... you'll get a great view of WISHES You can't hear the music to that either... but I was so surprised not only getting bumped up to the concierge level on our last trip (it was our 8th time staying at the YC/BC and we've never had a room higher than a standard view) but to find out after the 2nd night when I went out to the balcony to hang our wet clothes, that I could see Wishes!! What a magical surprise!

Have a wonderful honeymoon!!!!

Do you remember the room number? I want to stay in concierge level room in yc/bc. with a good view. Also what floor is the lounge on?

 

[kldmom2000]

Do you remember the room number? I want to stay in concierge level room in yc/bc. with a good view. Also what floor is the lounge on?

We were in room # 5812 in the Regatta Club. Everything is on the 5th floor-the concierge rooms and the lounge. The room itself was exactly like a standard room on any other floor. At first, I didn't find anything spectacular about the view (we were just so thrilled about being on Club level ) Here is the view by day:

AT night though, it was quite the surprise to see the fireworks from Wishes

The balcony was MASSIVE as it was shared by 2 or 3 other rooms as well. One night while watching Wishes from the balcony, we struck up a conversation with our neighbors from Canada. We had a great time chatting with them

Have a wonderful time!!!