Due to a recent addition at Animal Kingdom, every theme park at Walt Disney World now enjoys a nighttime theatrical show. As everyone who has ever visited the parks realizes, there can be tremendous aggravation in trying to attend one of these affairs. Since proper time management is the key to any theme park visit, nobody wants to waste precious hours standing in line (or wasting a FastPass+ selection) for a nightly event that proves to be overly crowded and less than entertaining.
Have no fears. Theme Park Tourist is here to identify how prioritize the various evening events at Walt Disney World!
4. Illuminations: Reflections of Earth
The placement of Illuminations at the bottom of the list reinforces the thought process that all shows at Walt Disney World possess a great deal of merit. EPCOT happens to be my favorite Disney theme park. I greatly enjoy the combination of world class restaurants at one end of the park coinciding with several exciting yet somehow educational rides at the front of the park. Plus, there is booze everywhere onsite, which is never a bad thing for the average adult tourist.
Still, Illuminations does not do a lot for me because of the aggravation involved. In order to acquire decent seats, a visitor must either burn a FastPass+ selection, a top tier one no less, or stand in line at the designated area roughly an hour prior to the start of show. If a person’s choices are reduced to Soarin’, Test Track, Living with the Land or Illuminations, even Living with the Land looks better on paper.
With the FastPass+ option removed from consideration, Illuminations becomes a 75 minute affair including the time spent waiting for the event to begin. Since park visitors are not in charge of crowd control, there is also no way to guarantee that the person standing in front of them will not put either their child or their girlfriend (no, really, I have seen this) on their shoulders at some point during the show. For all of that aggravation, Illuminations had better be worth the trouble. It simply isn’t.
Illuminations is a thematic fireworks display that features an in-water globe. Said globe is used to project geographic imagery into the sky. Via the clever use of holographic photography, people can watch horses frolic through African countries, trains cross America’s frontier land, and an Olympic torch passed through multiple locations. It’s nice. I mean that.
My problem with Illuminations is the opportunity cost. As other people head to the (limited) area of the park providing a great view of the Illuminations globe, lines for actual rides dwindle to nothing. A clever park patron could ride all of the major rides at EPCOT – remember that there are only half a dozen that ever have a wait of more than a few minutes – as the herd heads toward the fireworks. Better yet, someone could ride Soarin’ or Test Track repeatedly during that hour when people are gathering for the show. During peak visitor periods, this opportunity only presents itself during Illuminations. Even the rope drop sprint has become less effective now that FastPass+ is in place. If you have never watched Illuminations before and want to do so, you would do just as well to google the video as to see it live. Your view of the globe is likely to be better, and there is no fear of other park visitors interrupting your enjoyment.
3. Harambe Nights
Harambe NightsThe showcase event at Animal Kingdom – Image © Disney
This concert is the newest nighttime event at Walt Disney World. It is a musical celebration of the 20th anniversary of The Lion King, Disney’s most popular movie release of all-time until very recently when it was overtaken by Frozen. This Animal Kingdom event is different from the others on the list. It is currently a limited time production, meaning that if you do not plan to visit Animal Kingdom anytime soon, you are never going to get to watch it. More importantly, it is also the only event listed that is not free.
Harambe Nights carries a stiff fee of $120 per person for general admission or $135 per person for “premium seating”. The good news is that it is effectively a buffet with alcohol purchase included. So, if you are a hungry lush with a big appetite and an accommodating liver, the price tag suddenly looks somewhat less objectionable.
As for the selling point of Harambe Nights, I can describe that in simple terms. The musical version of The Lion King is a Broadway legend. Even today, tickets sell out in advance and the cheapest ones sell for $150 per person. Keeping that information in mind, the idea of watching a variation of that performance at a Disney theme park with food included suddenly seems like a decent deal. The other good news is that since the performance is hosted in a smaller indoor area with appropriate seating, crowd control is better than any of the other three events. If the sticker shock does not immediately discourage you from enjoying the event, Harambe Nights is a solid option for most families. It is a must-see gala affair for fans of The Lion King.
2. Wishes
WishesFireworks display at Cinderella Castle – Image © Disney
I expect Walt Disney World fanatics to boo and hiss over this ranking. Wishes is undeniably the centerpiece event for the most visited amusement park in the world, Magic Kingdom. And it is wonderful. Innumerable franchise characters from the Disney library are on full display during a show broadcast over and upon Cinderella’s Castle. It is one of the finest permanent fireworks performances in the world. And the implementation of the majestic centerpiece castle as a backdrop as well as a projection screen for amazing holographic imagery is a brilliant idea. The special effects for Wishes will legitimately take a Disney fan’s breath away. And in 2014, they even added Let It Go for the timeliest possible musical accompaniment.
In reality, the primary reason Wishes is not ranked number one is something beyond any Imagineer’s control. Since Wishes is located at Magic Kingdom, crowd control is a nightmare. It is an inescapable logistics issue that the most popular theme park in the world’s linchpin event will be teeming with tired, cranky strangers, many of whom will selfishly prioritize their own viewing pleasure over that of their fellow park guests. Wishes is still well worth the aggravation. I would strongly recommend the usage of a FastPass+ selection to maximize enjoyment while reducing aggravation.
1. Fantasmic!
Fantasmic!Mickey Mouse fights a dragon – Image © Disney
Out of the four theme parks at Walt Disney World, I rank Hollywood Studios third, ahead of only Animal Kingdom. With regards to nighttime showcases, however, Hollywood Studios dominates the conversation. It features the longest, most entertaining event. It also seats the most guests comfortably while negating the concerns regarding shoulder-riding. Simply stated, there is no true negative to the Fantasmic! experience.
The positives to Fantasmic! are innumerable. The show includes a virtual who’s who of Disney characters, concluding with an entire ferry full of them just to ensure nobody is excluded. Most of the action takes place on a stage across the river. On it, Mickey Mouse battles countless Disney villains trying to usurp him for some reason that I probably shouldn’t dwell on for too long. Let’s just assume they all suffer from musophobia (I’ll save you the Googling: it’s a fear of mice).
Anyway, Mickey Mouse and his team of heroes employ the power of song, fireworks, fire water (in a literal sense) and some good old-fashioned mouse magic to counter the villainy. Apparently, a Disney medley of Beauty and the Beast combined with some action sequences from Peter Pan is more than the forces of evil can stand. Look, don’t think about it too hard. Just lean back and enjoy the festivities as Disney flexes its intellectual property muscle by unveiling scores of your favorite characters, many of whom receive musical accompaniment. And in the end – spoilers – the celebrity mouse wins.
The beauty of the celebration cannot be described in words. I fervently believe that my wife, a huge Disney fangirl, did not breathe once during the entire half hour production. It is truly that magical, especially to diehard Disney fans. Fantasmic! may not be on display at one of the better parks but it is undeniably the best show.
