2nd Fantasmic Show Question

[kelleykevin]

Hello all - I hope some of you can provide an answer for me. My wife and I will be heading down to WDW on July 13th for eight nights and I have a question about Fantasmic. We have seen the show numerous times, but, have always attended the first showing. This time, when we go, we were considering attending the second show of the night but we were unsure as to if it is more crowded or if you have to get in line early or if it is easy to find a seat.

When we go to the early show, we always arrive an hour early and wait it out with everyone else and both of us were hoping that we could spend more park time and hit the late show with less of a wait.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

 

[dave2822]

The second show is the superior show in terms of crowd level. The first show is always booked to capacity, and as far as I remember, that theater holds 9,000 people, so that's also 9,000 people exiting at once, after a while you start feeling a lot like cattle.


Went to Fantasmic late show (10:30) on 6/14 and 6/15, and both times it was about 60-65% full. If you want a dead center seat, I still suggest getting to the 10:30 show no later than 9:45. But if you just want a seat, there is plenty of room right up until the start of the show usually.

 

[imagineersrock]

Dave is totally right--- I know I personally go to nothing but the 2nd showing of Fantasmic. Why wait for over an hour to get a mediocre seat when you can walk in 20-30 minutes before showtime and get an awesome seat. I consider the second showing of Fantasmic one of the great WDW secrets.

Also, as far as what Dave mentioned... that actually sounds like 2 somewhat busy nights for the 2nd showing. From my experience, If you get there by 10:00 you can get a great front-and-center seat. But as he also stated- you can walk in right at 10:30 and pretty much be guaranteed a decent seat. Again, from my experiences--- with how spread out everyone sits, the empty rows, and not to mention usually a few entirely empty sections of the ampitheater I'd estimate the 2nd showing usually is at about 50% capacity... maybe 60% on a rather busy night.

*Oh! Just remembered something--- I would avoid EMH evenings at the studios if you are trying to dodge crowds! Infact, I avoid EMH days at any of the parks whenever possible (unless ofcourse I am staying on property and taking advantage of them :animwink: )

 

[T-i-doubleguher]

The 2nd show! THe crowds greatly improve . This year I went on the first show and had to stand in the back. None the less it was a spectacular show!

 

[Pioneer Hall]

As with most night time entertainment at Disney (well really Fantasmic and Spectromagic) the second showing is usually much less crowded. By going to the later show you are also able to ride the attractions when all those people are in the first show. That would mean that RnRC and ToT would be a lot less crowded.

 

[Since1976]

A related question: I will be going to WDW in early November. Would I be correct in assuming there is no second show in the off-season? Is Fantasmic filled to capacity even at this time of year?

 

[imagineersrock]

You'll just have to keep an eye on the entertainment schedule as your trip gets closer. If I remember correcty, there sometimes still are 2 showings of fantasmic even during the slower season but only on select nights. Most of the slow season usually only sees one showing of Fantasmic at park close, and whenever there is only one showing (regardless of time of year) It is pretty much full.

 

[kelleykevin]

Thanks all for your input. You have made our decision a much easier one indeed.

Thanks again

 

[marni1971]

I`ve been to the 2nd show and it was madness. We waited 90 minutes (standing) on the Hollywood Hills path to the ampitheatre for the first show to finish, then watched 9000 people walk down the hill towards us and off the their right towards the ToT. Once we were let in it was madness. CM`s were going crazy, strollers went everywhere, it was a riot.

Got that perfect seat mind