Illuninations Firework Cruise Help

C

cemeb4dk

Member
I see they have a few options the basic 10 person pontoon boat I believe and the "Breathless" wooden Cris Craft boat. The price is near the same with the Breathless only holding six and no drinks or chips fom what I have read and its a little cheaper.

My question is have any of you done either? There will just be three of us, myself my wife and my 4 1/2 year old daughter. So I am thinking the Breathless maybe a little better for us since its smaller.

Any thoughts on either cruise, Thanks
 
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lumpydj

lumpydj

Active Member
We did the pontoon boat - but only because there were 10 of us. Both sounded like a lot of fun. The pontoon boat puttered around and we toured the lake, DHS & the Boardwalk area. It was a nice "cruise". We loved it! We went in November, and it was a little chilly - so be aware! I'm not sure when you're planning on going...Remember that these book up right away. We called exactly 90 days out and right at 7am. We were lucky to get one. Good luck with it! :wave:
 
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Master Yoda

Master Yoda

Pro Star Wars geek.
Premium Member
We are back from our Fireworks cruise...As I mentioned before we did the pontoon boat and I can say that I thoroughly enjoyed it. As to the OP's question Which is better, Breathless 2 or the pontoon boat, I would give the edge ever so slightly to the pontoon boat. There is no question the the Breathless 2 is the cooler of the two vehicles but you are confined to a seat for the duration of the cruise where as the pontoon boat does give one a little space to stretch out. Also the pontoon boats seem to put you a little higher that the Breathless 2 does. The pontoon boat also has a greater guest capacity so even though you are only a party of 3 if you have friends or family that are in the area you can invite them to join you. This is how we were able to take part in the cruise and I can tell you that the friend of ours that selflessly invited us to join them on the cruise now rank in the top three on Master Yoda's greatest people on the planet list.

The cruise itself was great....something I would highly recommend to anyone. I have seen Illuminations more times than I can count and the cruise would rank up in the top two of those countless times. The only viewing of Illuminations that would have beat last nights viewing would have been the private viewing in Italy we had for Epcot's 25th anniversary. The view you have is not the absolute best view to be had but it would make the top 3. You have a perfectly clear and unobstructed view of the center of the lagoon and the fireworks as well as great audio but your view of the globe as is starts off in front of America is completely obstructed. It will come into view roughly 1/3-1/2 way through its journey to the center of the lagoon. The only other con would be wind direction. When staking out a spot along the edge of the lagoon you can make adjustments based on which way the wind is blowing. With the cruise that flexibility is gone but it is hardly a reason not to do it. The biggest plus for this cruise is that there are no other guests to deal with. All of us have had to deal with staking out a viewing location for a show an hour or more prior only to have some obnoxious family try to weasel there way into your spot 5 minutes before showtime. That problem is completely removed when you book the cruise. Not to mention camping alongside the lagoon for an hour plus is about as exciting as watching pain dry and w all know how little kids just love to sit and do nothing while waiting for a show. :rolleyes: With the cruse you arrive about ten minutes prior to the show after about a 45 minute cruise past DHS, S&D and the Boardwalk. Refreshments consisted solely of bagged chips, canned soda and bottled water but it is my understanding that you can additional items for a fee.

The Readers Digest version is the cruise removes all the headaches from watching Illuminations and plusses the Illuminations experience.
 
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mm52

mm52

Member
cemeb4dk said:
I see they have a few options the basic 10 person pontoon boat I believe and the "Breathless" wooden Cris Craft boat. The price is near the same with the Breathless only holding six and no drinks or chips fom what I have read and its a little cheaper.

My question is have any of you done either? There will just be three of us, myself my wife and my 4 1/2 year old daughter. So I am thinking the Breathless maybe a little better for us since its smaller.

Any thoughts on either cruise, Thanks
Click to expand...

We did the cruise on the pontoon boat a few years back to celebrate our 25 anniversary. I surprised my husband with the cruise, it was just the two of us and operator. It was worth every penny. The operator of the boat was great, she gave us a tour up and down the river between DHS and Beach/Yatch club, had a great view for the fireworks and it was a really magical experience for us. I know the price went up a little since we did it but if you have the money and time it's great!
Enjoy!:sohappy:
 
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C

cemeb4dk

Member
Original Poster
Thank you Master Yoda, your review was perfect. So I think I will do it, now just to pick a boat but I have plenty of time. It will be definitely just the three of us so I'll just have to pick. Thanks again.
 
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bugsbunny

bugsbunny

Well-Known Member
Master Yoda said:
The Readers Digest version is the cruise removes all the headaches from watching Illuminations and plusses the Illuminations experience.
Click to expand...

Agreed. Did the pontoon boats in early December this year. Our driver was a Lt. in the Reedy Creek FD. I'm a firefighter and my wife is an EMT, so we were able to talk shop. He was a great guy and it was a great insight on how public safety is handled throughout WDW. The cruise was a great way to watch the fireworks, but would NOT ever do it again unless I could split the cost with more people. MIGHTY EXPENSIVE for a family of 3, IMHO.

And only other consideration with the cruise is the "after" transportation. After you get dropped off at the Yacht Club, you need to plan in advance how you are going to get back to your hotel if you aren't staying at the YC. We stayed at CB, so we did a nice leisurely walk to the International Gateway, through Epcot, and then to the Epcot bus stop for CB. Even with that 45 minute total trip, we still had to wait for a bus!

Regardless of my wait, plan this part out accordingly if you have little ones. They will most likely be asleep and lugging them around that far is not fun. I've heard other people take a bus from the YC to DtD and then from DtD to their hotel. I'd rather have my fingers crushed in a vise than go that route!

At that point, if you spent $300 for the Illuminations Cruise, you might as well just spend $20 for a cab ride from YC back to your hotel. I wish I would have done that!
 
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swimmom

swimmom

Well-Known Member
We did the Illuminations Cruise on the pontoon boat about 5 years ago. It was just three of us and I also prefer the pontoon boat over the Cris Craft. I was glad to be on the pontoon boat when it started to rain bacause we were able to stay dry under the canopy. There is a little more freedom on the pontoon boat and your daughter will probably not be able to see much without sitting on a lap in the Cris Craft.
 
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