MGM All day Questions!

[New2WDW]

My family and I (Me, Wife, DD-9, DD-6) are going to go to MGM for a day and we have only been there for half a day a couple of years ago. So I have many questions that I hope people will chime in on:

Counter Service: (which do you recommend)
Backlot Express
Catalina Eddie's
Rosies All American Cafe
Toluca Legs Turkey Co.
Toy Story Pizza Planet

Fantasmic!
Any pointers on how early to go, where to sit, etc...

Rides:
We have seen many of the child shows and want to see the following: (any input)
Animation tour - do they let the kids draw alot?
BackLot Tour - is this worth the wait? FastPass?
Is there a listing of show times for this park? (We are going the first week of October)

Last question:
Should we stay away from days that have the EMH morning or evening if we do not plan on going during those times?

Thanks in advance for any help! Feel free to add any additional info.

 

[Lanipie]

My family and I (Me, Wife, DD-9, DD-6) are going to go to MGM for a day and we have only been there for half a day a couple of years ago. So I have many questions that I hope people will chime in on:

Counter Service: (which do you recommend)
Backlot Express
Catalina Eddie's
Rosies All American Cafe
Toluca Legs Turkey Co.
Toy Story Pizza Planet

Fantasmic!
Any pointers on how early to go, where to sit, etc...

Rides:
We have seen many of the child shows and want to see the following: (any input)
Animation tour - do they let the kids draw alot?
BackLot Tour - is this worth the wait? FastPass?
Is there a listing of show times for this park? (We are going the first week of October)

Last question:
Should we stay away from days that have the EMH morning or evening if we do not plan on going during those times?

Thanks in advance for any help! Feel free to add any additional info.

Hi there. I'll bite! LOL!

CS:

I personally like Backlot express. It has your basic American fare. Hamburgers, chicken tenders etc.

BUT, since you have young kids, they might get a real kick out of Pizza Planet.

Fantasmic:

There aren't really any bad seats for this one, although the front really is quite exciting.

I'd just try to get there 45 minutes early if it seems like a really busy day. Once you're in the amphitheatre, it's really just personal preference. We try to choose our seats the same way we do at the movies.

Rides:

The only question I know my answer to is the backlot tour. If you have never been on it before, I'd definitely say it's worth it. It's not something that everyone may want to do every time, but it's neat. You'll see some cool stuff that you remember from movies and tv shows and the kids will have Catastrophe Canyon to keep them from getting bored.

EMH:

Good question. Some days the EMH can bite you in the butt by making the parks unbearably crowded. Sometimes it doesn't seem to make any difference at all. For me, it's always been kind of hit or miss.

 

[eroyee]

:wave: We went on the animation tour yrs. ago. I found it very boring. the backlot tour should be seen once. they have shortened it way up, though, cause of LMA show. Not as nice as it used to be. for the kids your age, I would recommend Pizza Planet. they would like the theming in there. have a magical day. :sohappy:

 

[BrutusNL]

We were there last week. The backlot tour wasn't worth the 45 min wait, since they shortened it so much. The Canyon is still fun, but the rest, to me, was more like a trolley making a u-turn (yes, in my perception it was that short) than a ride that shows you a lot of the backlot :-D But I agree that you must have seen it once. Furthermore, we had lunch at Rosies. It a 'nice' marketplace with american food. The only problem, but isn't that at many locations around 12.45, was the long wait before we could order and another wait before we got our food.
Don't get me wrong, we had a lot of fun and really enjoyed MGM, but I thought this info might be usefull.

 

[PSU_Princess]

It seems to me like the animation area may have changed since I was last there. I remember sitting and watching an animator draw...then off to see where the real animators work and what projects they were working on (when the were there) and seeing some cells from movies. Now I read on here about people learning to draw different characters....sounds like fun and something new to try.

As far as the counter service---we usually do pizza planet at least once during the trip. Some of the counter service areas at MGM aren't open every day. I think Backlot Express is one of the places that is not always open.

 

[disneyfromvermo]

Answers

I would agree that the backlot tour is less than it used to be but still worth doing once. As for Fantasmic, beware of the 1st 12-15 rows of seats. You will get wet. Depending on the time of year for your visit this can either be a welcome relief from the heat or a chilling to the bone experience. You did not mention Tower of Terror but that is absolutely a must see.

 

[maelstrom]

Pizza Planet

 

[LilRoo714]

Counter Service: (which do you recommend)
Toy Story Pizza Planet - Pizza, which most kids love, lots of video games if your kids are into those and overall a fun atmosphere.

Fantasmic!
If you're going to stick around the park all day definitely go to the later show, when two shows are offered. The later show is almost always the lesser of the crowds. The first show you should arrive at about an hour or more before the show begins while you can arrive at the 2nd show with 30 minutes prior and expect to get a decent seat.

Rides:
BackLot Tour - Don't use the FP here, but do use the ride as a way to spend your time waiting for another FP time to arrive (such as for Tower or Coaster).

Every park has listings on their times guide which is available with the park maps. Online I'd check out AllEarsNet.com and other sites for showtime information. Disney only prints the Times Guides a week at a time so some things may be subject to change.

EMH:
Usually this is a toss up. I would say for parks with morning EMH, avoid them and go to the other parks which may be slightly less crowded early while everyone is at the EMH park. As for evening EMH, if you want to stay late at a park and get more done, EMH is the way to go. Again, the crowds may be just as bad or worse than during the day depending on the night of the week and the park. A good rule of thumb is that a park which has EMH on one night will be less crowded the following morning as many guests will have done what they wanted to see in the park the night before. Few make repeat visits to the park the following morning, especially if they do not have a park hopper option on their ticket. :wave: Hope that helps- have a great time!!:sohappy:

 

[New2WDW]

You did not mention Tower of Terror but that is absolutely a must see.

That's right a must NOT for my family!:lol: I am not a big roller coaster fan and I definitely don't want to be in an outta control elevator. I have trouble on regular tall elevators.....:lol:

Pizza Planet sounds like a good thing with the theming and all!

Anyone know if I can get a list of shows at MGM so I can plan ahead and around other stuff????

 

[LilRoo714]

Anyone know if I can get a list of shows at MGM so I can plan ahead and around other stuff????

Like I mentioned in my thread above, I would caution you on planning too much around specific showtimes at the park. As they change week to week and sometimes even vary by day of the week, you may be disappointed when a rescheduling hinders your overall plan.

 

[New2WDW]

Like I mentioned in my thread above, I would caution you on planning too much around specific showtimes at the park. As they change week to week and sometimes even vary by day of the week, you may be disappointed when a rescheduling hinders your overall plan.

Sorry LilRoo, I must of read over that part. Thanks for the info!

 

[ears2you]

I like the location of Rosies because around it are stores to cool down in, rides, shows and other restraunts.
I love the backlot tour so i would definately go see it.
if im with my family i usualy get to fantasmic about an hour before it starts, unless there are two shows that night. In that case i usually go in about 30 mins. before the show to see if there are any good seats left, if not i wait later.

have a great time!

 

[LilRoo714]

Sorry LilRoo, I must of read over that part. Thanks for the info!

No problem! :wave:

I just searched on AllEarsNet.com and did a Google search, but I was unable to find any current Times Guides for you to get an idea of the showtimes for events at MGM. Wish I could have been able to provide a link. :veryconfu

Maybe someone else on the boards has been able to find Times Guides on the web...:lookaroun

 

[New2WDW]

No problem! :wave:

I just searched on AllEarsNet.com and did a Google search, but I was unable to find any current Times Guides for you to get an idea of the showtimes for events at MGM. Wish I could have been able to provide a link. :veryconfu

Maybe someone else on the boards has been able to find Times Guides on the web...:lookaroun

Thanks for trying and I will not make any definite plans I just wanted an idea of show times. I just found this link http://pages.prodigy.net/stevesoares/index.htm Anyone ever seen this one? I just did some searching and found this site.

 

[december]

We LOVED MGM. My kids are 9 and 6. We didn't do Tower of Terror or RRC (kids weren't ready), but we spent a whole day there. We did Star Tours 3 times, Muppet Vision 3D, Beauty and the Beast, Backlot Tour, Journey into Narnia, Disney Animation (they taught us how to draw Stitch), Indiana Jones (my son's 2nd favorite thing at Disney-next to Soarin'), Great Movie Ride, Little Mermaid (missed LMA-timing was always off).

We ate at Toy Story Pizza Planet-food was OK/lots of it, atmosphere was great.

Don't miss the street performers. We stopped several times-the kids loved them.

And the characters! We got tons of autographs-Power Rangers, Incredibles, Kim Possible/Ron Stoppable, Robin Hood, Toy Story, Monsters, Inc, etc.

Fantasmic was the best show of the week. We did the 2nd show, went about 40 minutes early and got great seats in the center about 5 rows up. Of course, in July the little bit of water that splashed on us felt good.

(Of course, it was our first trip so we loved everything!

 

[amykissangel]

Toy Story Pizza Planet - good food, (pizza, salad, breadstix), fun atmosphere, quick service. If you want some fun, check out the Sci Fi Dine In. The kids will think it's so cool!

Fantasmic - We've found that they VERY best seats are the back. You get the ENTIRE picture that way. (It's like a movie theater...some people don't mind sitting way up close and tilting back to see the whole screen. I like to be in the back way up high to see EVERYTHING. There's nothing you need to be close to see...all the action is up high on the mountain, or spraying high in the air...) During spring-break and holiday times, with only one show available, get there about an hour and a half early. Go to the 2nd show if there is one. Get a snack and eat it while you wait. Bring card games for the kids.

Early openings: We usually choose the park with the early morning, hit our favorites, then hop if it gets busy. We always wait and see, because some people think it will be so busy and they all leave, and we're left with a non-crowded par all day :~)

HAVE FUN!!!

 

[brich]

My family and I (Me, Wife, DD-9, DD-6) are going to go to MGM for a day and we have only been there for half a day a couple of years ago. So I have many questions that I hope people will chime in on:

Ok, just an observation that I found funny actually... So New2WDW, you've been a member for a year and a half and have over 1800 posts... Your asking fairly newbie type recomendation questions here (no insult) so it begs the question, with over 1800 posts, what the heck have you been talking about? :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

On a serious note, I prefer the Sci Fi to counter service and I really enjoy the relaxation aspects of the backlot tour. But then again, I've never really had to wait more than a half hour and to me, it's worth the wait just so the kids can see the Canyon scene...

 

[New2WDW]

Ok, just an observation that I found funny actually... So New2WDW, you've been a member for a year and a half and have over 1800 posts... Your asking fairly newbie type recomendation questions here (no insult) so it begs the question, with over 1800 posts, what the heck have you been talking about? :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Newby questions I know, but this will be really our first run at MGM all day and I wanted some fresh opinions on these questions. Thanks for all answers, and I have read many other threads, menus, etc. As far as my posts....I am usually just answering questions on saving money and Magic Kingdom stuff since I have looked into plenty in those areas since 2003. See ya round!

 

[Aurora_25]

I agree with everyone about Pizza Planet- really great place for the kids (and the food isn't half bad either )

A must see for me and my family is the street performers. We once asked one of them what were the times for their shows and they really don't have a set time, but they come out about every 1/2 hour or so after 12 noon- one day my DH and I were there and just went from one street performance to another. They didn't overlap time wise, but after one was over it seemed that another one was about to start. They end about 4ish from what I can remember- but that was also during November so it may be different in different times of the year. To me, they are not to be missed- at least one show

Also, Beauty and the Beast is a good show to go see- not the Broadway quality show, but it is great

 

[Disneyfanman]

I have never seen an accurate show schedule that I could get before the visit. You get a list when you arrive. Little Mermaid is continuous (every 30-45 minutes so you just show up), Sounds Dangerous the same. The Disney Kids Show (I forget what it's called) is about every hour. The animation tour and backstage tours are continuous. Animation has been really changed! Indy, Beauty and the Beast, and LMA have 3-4 shows per day depending on the day and the season. WWTBAM is closed. Fantasmic and the parade are posted on the website and those are available in advance.

We also eat at Pizza Planet or Backlot Express. I like Express better because they have a wider selection of food. They are open "seasonally", but I have ALWAYS seen them open! Not sure what that means. We usually eat one full service meal when we are at the park (Mama Melrose's or 50s prime time) and one very light meal.

I always recommend avoiding the EMH days unless you are park hopping. Go on a non-EMH day and stay for the duration.

On non-EMH days, 45 minutes is fine for Fantasmic if there is only one show. If there are 2, go to the later show 30 minutes early. Sometimes you can get good seats as little as 15 minutes before it starts, but I would never even chance being in the Standing Room Only section. Nothing is worth that to me!

Have a great time! I am heading down there in October.