Magic Kingdom
Welcome Show - This show is performed just before opening every day. Since the park opens 15 minutes before the published time, the show is actually 20 minutes before the published opening time. To get a good view you need to be through bag check and the tapstiles, so it's important to arrive in plenty of time (it took me two attempts to arrive in time). The show is performed on top of the train station, so you need to stand behind the floral garden to see it (which means sacrificing being at the front of the rope drop pack). The show is fun and worth seeing once but I wouldn't need to see it every time I went to Magic Kingdom.
Main Street, U.S.A.
Celebrate the Magic - This is a castle projection show which is shown before Wishes. If the park is open after Wishes, it's also shown after Wishes. Some of the effects are pretty amazing. If you can get a spot for Wishes with a good view of the castle, it's easy to watch the projection show while waiting for the fireworks to start. If you can't see the castle while waiting for Wishes, Main Street clears out after the fireworks and it's easy to get a good spot for the second Celebrate the Magic.
Festival of Fantasy Parade - This parade is new since the last time I was in Disney World and was pretty awesome, especially the steampunk fire-breathing dragon. I like the daytime parade because it's an opportunity to see a lot of characters in a short period of time. Compared to Disneyland, it was really easy to get a spot for this parade - I showed up 15 minutes before the parade start and got a nice spot on the curb.
Main Street Electrical Parade - The nighttime parade hasn't changed since I last saw it in 2010. It's fun but I think I prefer the Festival of Fantasy parade. When there is only one parade, the parade route gets pretty crowded, but I was able to squeeze into a spot near the Liberty Bell at the last minute. When there are two parades, the park clears out after Wishes and it is easy to get a spot on the curb on Main St for the parade.
Move It! Shake It! Dance & Play It! Street Party - I only caught the end of this parade. It was another opportunity to see some characters without having to wait in line for them, but it isn't anything like the Festival of Fantasy Parade.
Wishes - I love these fireworks. They always make me cry. Tinker Bell flying is especially magical. The first time I saw the fireworks on this trip though, Tink didn't fly so I would always try to schedule Wishes a couple of times in a trip just in case (plus I'm more than happy to see it more than once). In the first part of my trip it was pretty easy to find a great spot on Main Street about half an hour before the Wishes, especially as I was by myself. Once the Halloween party started though, and regular Wishes was only shown a few times a week, it became very packed and the decent viewing area on Main Street was completely full half an hour before the fireworks. We had to stand off to the side on the hub, where the view was blocked a bit by trees and the fireworks were off-centre.
Main Street Trolley Show - This is a short show with the performers travelling down Main Street on the trolley. The song they sing appears to be seasonal as they were singing about autumn in the show I saw. I wouldn't go out of my way to see this again.
Adventureland
Captain Jack Sparrow's Pirate Tutorial - This show was mostly aimed at kids but it was also an easy way to see Captain Jack Sparrow without waiting in a line. There were some funny moments in the show too.
Fantasyland
Dream Along with Mickey - Although it's not as flashy as some shows, I really love this. I especially like the original music, including Join the Party and Anything is Possible. And something about the whole show just puts a smile on my face. My biggest complaint is that you have to stand in the sun to watch it - especially since the first week I was there the earliest show was at 11:40am.
Epcot
World Showcase
Illuminations - I don't have quite the sentimental attachment to Illuminations that I do to Wishes, but it's still pretty awesome. My main complaint is that the images on the globe are difficult to see even if you get a spot with a great view of the fireworks, and if you can't see the globe well then certain parts of the show are pretty boring. The balcony above Mitsukoshi in Japan (in front of the table service restaurants) was a nice last minute spot (got a spot on the railing about 15 minutes before Illuminations). On our last night we got a FastPass Plus for Illuminations which meant sacrificing one for Soarin', but it was completely worth it - the view from the FPP area was absolutely amazing. It was almost like seeing a different show. This will definitely be a high priority FPP for me in the future. We entered the FPP area when it opened about half an hour before the fireworks but since everyone sat down I think you could have got a great view showing up a bit later.
Canada
Lumberjacks - A lot of people have been unhappy that a lumberjack show replaced the band that used to play in Canada, but having never seen a lumberjack show before I enjoyed the opportunity to see one. It was fairly corny and I don't need to see it more than once, but it was mildly entertaining and I'm glad I got to see it.
United Kingdom
British Revolution - There used to be a Beatles cover band playing in the UK but the current band plays songs from a range of British bands (Beatles, Oasis, The Who, etc.). I wouldn't go out of my way to see them play but they are entertaining if you are in the area.
Morocco
B'net Al Houwariyate - This group plays Moroccan folk music. I liked it for the first couple of minutes but it quickly became monotonous. It would have been nice if they had stopped to talk about the instruments they were playing or translate the lyrics into English.
The American Adventure
The American Adventure - I like parts of this show; the animatronics in particular are quite impressive. But a lot of it is overly patriotic and I think overall the show is a lot longer than it needs to be. Plus the air-conditioning is a bit on the cold side.
Voices of Liberty - This choral group sings in the lobby of the American Adventure before the main show. I'm not a huge fan of the singing style or the choice of songs but the acoustics are amazing. They don't perform before every showing of The American Adventure so check the Times Guide.
No comments:
Post a Comment