Dana Stanley 00:00:00  The Magic Kingdom fireworks Desert party is one of those Disney extras that shouldn’t be worth it, but somehow I keep booking it anyway. Today I’m breaking down. Why this pricey add on drives me nuts, but also why I still recommend it. Plus, I’m answering your questions from Instagram at the end, so stick around to hear what other moms are wondering. Hello and welcome to The Laid-Back Magic Way podcast. I’m your host, Dana Stanley, creator of Laid-Back Magic. As a mom of three, I know how tough it can be to find time to plan a Disney World trip that doesn’t leave you feeling stressed or overwhelmed. That’s why I’m here to help moms like you create Disney vacations that feel even better than they look on paper. Here we’re not chasing perfection, but creating our next favorite memories. So whether you’re brand new to Disney or looking to go deeper into the details, this podcast is your go to for simple tips, mindset shifts, real life trip recaps, and expert insights to make your trip magical and manageable.

Dana Stanley 00:00:58  New episodes drop every Monday, so be sure to subscribe so you never miss a moment. Okay, let’s dive in. So if you can picture this, you’re standing in this perfect spot right in front of Cinderella Castle, glowing in front of you, and the first notes of the fireworks show song happily ever After start to play. You have a kid on your hip, covered in glow sticks, and you see that first firework pop off reflecting onto their face, like, literally in their little eyeballs. And when I think of this moment and all of the fireworks that I have watched in Disney World, this is what magic means to me. Like everyone’s oh, Disney World is magical. The first thing that pops into my mind is that moment. Exactly. Because fireworks are so important to us as a family when we’re visiting Disney World. I want to break down my honest take on whether the dessert party for the For the fireworks is worth the splurge. And how it compares to other fireworks viewing spots. Plus the little things that make it special for my family.

Dana Stanley 00:02:07  And some tips that if you are going to do the dessert party. How to get the most out of it. Now, I can’t really keep talking about the desert party without really explaining to you how I feel about the fireworks at Magic Kingdom. We’re a very fireworks family. I know other people maybe don’t care as much, but when I go to Disney World and I want to see fireworks I don’t really care about, like the boom booms in the sky, if that makes sense. I don’t know if it’s maybe because of the area that we live in. We kind of we live in like a summer beach town and get to see fireworks pretty often. So there’s three big aspects of the happily ever after show and Magic Kingdom that make it really special. One is obviously the fireworks. Two is the lights and projection like projecting images onto the castle. Third is the music. So for me to have the Disney World fireworks experience, I need to have all three of those. And I know there’s a lot of different options for avoiding crowds or having a great view, but those usually involve just the fireworks in the sky.

Dana Stanley 00:03:33  So you could visit a resort and watch from there. Or you could get a theme park view room from your resort and watch from your balcony, which is super cool. And a lot of those will actually pump music into like a restaurant or something. And you can see the fireworks and hear the music. So you’re getting two out of three. And I think that’s super cool. And I love being somewhere and getting to watch the fireworks again. But if I’m going to Disney World, I always dedicate one night like, this is our fireworks night. We’re doing it right. I want to be front and center in front of the castle. I want the whole experience and it is just always a priority for us. Now, if you’ve never seen Happily Ever After before, the show is so good. If you love Disney movies, especially the music, it has so many references to classics from our childhood and also things that I feel like aren’t represented really in the parks. So it’s almost a 20 minute show, so it packs a lot in there.

Dana Stanley 00:04:36  There’s Little Mermaid, Frozen, Tarzan, which I feel like we don’t get to see, and my favorite, The Hunchback of Notre Dame with the song, my favorite song out there, which I think is the best Disney song and everyone should watch happily ever after for that moment. It’s like my favorite part. Another reason why I love being front and center. And if your kids are around, maybe don’t let them hear this because it is a little bit of like a surprise that I love to see of Tinkerbell flying over the castle. So the dessert party that we’re going to be talking about, more of the viewing. She goes almost right past like not over your head, pretty close to over your head. You get, like, such a good view of Tinkerbell and hearing, like, the collective gasps of all the little kids when they’re like, look, it’s Tinkerbell. It is just so cool. If you can’t tell, I love this show. So once I know that we’re watching the fireworks, we want the full experience.

Dana Stanley 00:05:38  I know my options. There’s really comes down to these three options. I could go to Magic Kingdom and claim a spot on Main Street right in front of the castle at least an hour, probably two hours before the show. And just hope that like, no one super tall stands in front of me because I’m five one now. If I didn’t have my kids with me like it was just me and my husband or me and a girlfriend. I have no problem with that. I would get some ice cream and sit there on, maybe like a little blanket and hang out, like and just soak in the mainstreet vibes. That sounds very magical with three kids and then also other crowds doing the same thing and the stroller. It’s just not happening. Now, to avoid the crowds, I could watch from like Fantasyland, where it’s pretty empty and we would get to hear the music and see the fireworks. But again, I’m not getting those projections. So to get the whole experience that leaves me with booking a dessert party for a reserved viewing area.

Dana Stanley 00:06:45  And plus, as a bonus, I get some sweet treats and drinks. So that last option, the dessert party, has really been our go to since my daughter was like two years old, and once I booked it, I kind of booked it on a whim. I think happily ever after was like fairly new, maybe a year old, and I have not had our dedicated fireworks night without a dessert party since. It makes the experience so much less stressful for me. And again, like, I really prioritize the fireworks, but I also get very easily stressed out with crowds. This is not going to be a full episode where I read from Disney’s website about how much it costs and the cancellation policy. I’m going to leave the website in the show notes so that you can see the fine print, but a very quick rundown of what you do need to know is that it’s not cheap, and it is on top of your regular park ticket. So for my family, it comes to about $350 depending on the night.

Dana Stanley 00:07:47  Kids under three are free, which is a plus. So our family of five. I’m technically only getting two adult tickets and two children, and then my baby boy is free. You’re going to need a separate ticket to go to this event that is hosted in Tomorrowland Terrace. That’s where all the dessert is going to be happening. And then you also get a reserved viewing spot called the Plaza Garden for the Happily Ever After show. And there are three different dessert parties that you can choose from. The first one is called the pre-party. So this is where you eat dessert first, and then you move over to the Plaza garden to watch. The second is called the Post Party and it’s how it sounds. You’re going to watch the fireworks first and then go to Tomorrowland Terrace for dessert. And third is called Suites and Seats. Say that five times fast. And this is where you are not going to go to the Plaza Garden. You’re going to stay at Tomorrowland Terrace, on the actual terrace part of the restaurant, and have a designated table assigned to you.

Dana Stanley 00:08:54  You’re going to stay sitting at your table the whole time and have your desserts at the table. So what are these desserts? There is a bunch of different hard cheeses, devil chocolate pudding. And these are all like miniature versions. They’re like very 1 or 2 bite size treats. Chocolate covered strawberries, chocolate silk pies, cookies and cream cheesecake mousse. And then they rotate between a few things. Like one time they had crepes, another time they had like Firehouse Donuts with a dip. Rice Krispie treats. There was only one time where they didn’t have this for some reason, but normally they have a decorate your own cookie station, so it would be like chocolate chip and sugar cookies, I believe. And then I’ll have different frostings for the kids, like in squeezy bottles. And it’s a mess if you can imagine. And sprinkles. My girls love to do that. And for drinks you have alcohol and In non-alcoholic beers, you have Blue Moon Bud Light champagne, which I think is actually like a cava.

Dana Stanley 00:09:57  Two different white wines, a moscato or Chardonnay. And they also have like a red wine blend. And they’ll have these already in glasses that you can just like walk up and grab one, which is really nice. Or if like something isn’t in a glass, you can ask a cast member and they’ll pour it for you. And then non-alcoholic, you have sparkling cider, which comes in like a plastic champagne flute. This is the highlight of my girl’s entire trip is the sparkling cider. They have lemonade, strawberry lemonade, iced tea, coffee and tea. And they have POG juice, which is popular from the Polynesian Resort. It’s guava, orange and passion fruit juice. So which dessert party should you pick? What is better pre post? And the last one that is really hard to say. Sweets and seats. So the pre-party is what I book. And I think this is great for families with younger kids who need to kind of head out right after the fireworks. I don’t necessarily like rushing out of the parks when they’re done, but I have little kids and we’re really tired.

Dana Stanley 00:11:02  It’s already going to be a late night with fireworks. And I am actually an old woman and like to be in bed as soon as possible. The downside of this that some people mention is because you need to check in 90 minutes before the show starts. It could be seen as cutting into your park time. I disagree because if you want like that good spot in front of the castle, you’re going to be staking out a spot about 90 minutes before anyway, whereas this is just a guaranteed more relaxed version of having a spot. But that is something to keep in mind for the post party. I do think this is a solid option if your kids are older, or maybe you’re just like an adults only trip. The only thing about the post party, like when my kids are older and the fireworks end if the park’s still open, I probably want to get on some more rides. So with the post party, if you’re not in a rush to head out anyway instead of eating desserts, I feel like it’s almost like a better time to get on some rides with low weights and just enjoy the magic of Magic Kingdom at night.

Dana Stanley 00:12:06  So there’s like pros and cons to both of those. Now for sweets and seats where you’re sitting down, the view isn’t as good. Last year I went to the bathroom like mid fireworks show with the baby, and when I came back, a cast member kind of let me just like check out, like the view from that vantage point. And there is like a tree or two that blocks like the bottom left of the castle. So you’re missing like those bottom projections. And I know I sound like I’m like, being really nitpicky here, but that’s something to keep in mind. You get a great view of the fireworks in the sky and you have the music. I think this would be really good for like if you were going with your in-laws or someone with like mobility issues, and they’re better to be sitting down for 20 minutes because it’s not like a short show, you have to be able to stand up for that length of time. So I think that’s a great option for that. The terrace is like a horseshoe layout, so there’s tables along the railing and then they kind of go in a little bit.

Dana Stanley 00:13:08  So depending on what table you get to, you could have a better or worse view. If you are going to do suites and seats. Make sure you’re getting that reservation like right 60 days before at 6 a.m. because those sell out faster because there’s like very limited amount of tables versus the pre and post party, which can fit more people because it’s standing room. So from the Plaza garden for the pre and post parties, what does that view look like. And this is a good time to talk about. The thing that drives everyone bonkers, including me, is if you can picture the Plaza Garden, there are going to be two groups that are heading down there and that’s the pre-party people that are eating desserts first, and then the post party that are watching fireworks first. So while everyone’s eating desserts for the pre-party, those post party people are able to show up earlier. So let’s just, for example, say that you’re going to the pre-party. You eat your desserts, you head down to the garden.

Dana Stanley 00:14:07  The cast members will specifically tell everyone to sit down until the show starts. So when you walk in, let’s say 30 minutes before the fireworks, it looks really crowded, like it looks packed. And this is because everyone is sitting down and they, like, lay their legs out and arms out like they’re kind of sprawled out. So at first you’re like, what the heck? This is supposed to be my reserved viewing and it’s completely full. How did these people even get here before me? Those are the post party people. And I’ll be honest, some of the people that get there very early, they want to be like in the front of the front of the plaza garden where there’s a railing. I don’t think that’s necessary at all, because when the show starts, the cast members will remind everyone to stand up. As soon as everyone stands up. Everyone shifts around. No one is in their designated spot that they’ve been sitting in for the past 30 minutes. Like, the space really goes from 100% full looking to 50%.

Dana Stanley 00:15:12  The Plaza garden is physically. It’s right in front of the castle and a little bit to the right. And if you go to the show notes, I have a little map of where the viewing area is. It’s about a 32nd walk down from Tomorrowland Terrace where you’re going to have dessert. So two dessert parties ago. I had a very rough night. I had a seven week old baby boy, and this was in December when there was a lot of Christmas parties. So just a little side note from August through December. Magic Kingdom will close early for Halloween and Christmas parties. Happily ever after will not show on those nights. So on the nights where there is happily ever after, you have a lot more people. So if you’re considering going to Magic Kingdom from August to December, really consider the dessert party. This night, when I was having a rough night with my baby, it was packed. It was one of the only few nights that week that had happily ever after at all. Which is why we were there, which is why everyone else was there.

Dana Stanley 00:16:17  And I don’t even know if I had maybe a bite of dessert and maybe, like, a sip of champagne. I was baby wearing him and he was arching his back and just screaming. It was just not my best night. When I tell you how many times that night, I said, thank goodness we booked a dessert party for tonight. It was just so jam packed. Even getting to the dessert party and seeing people holding spots already two hours before, but not even that during the actual fireworks. I had to eventually, just like, kind of go to the back of the plaza garden and sit down and nurse him. And my mother in law was kind of like standing behind me just to, you know, make sure no one, like, bumped into me. But when I tell you, no one was around me, like, I could have spread out my arms and, like, spun around and not hit anything. To give you an idea of how much room I had, and if I had been on Main Street, I guess I would have just had to leave.

Dana Stanley 00:17:15  I don’t even know the alternative of what I would have done, and the whole family essentially would have probably missed the fireworks. And even though I didn’t have the most amazing view because I was sitting down, I still was able to comfortably sit in like a safe place without a lot of crowds or feeling even just like unsafe with my baby packed with people. And I have done that in years past where depending on the age of my kid, maybe we have to go like a little bit further back and they need to run around while they’re waiting. Or they’re hyper because they just had all this sugar. You have some breathing room. Just something to keep in mind of when you first walk in. I don’t want you to be shocked when you’re like, why are all these people here? It will feel a lot more empty once everyone stands up. There are some speakers and like lamp posts that I guess you could say, obstruct your view a little bit. They don’t bother me because if something is in your way, I mean, we’re talking like you could like move your head two inches to the left or two inches to the right and it’s like a perfect view.

Dana Stanley 00:18:17  And again, in the show notes, I have some pictures and videos where you can see kind of my kids running around and how much space they have, and the view of the fireworks directly, including the light posts so you can see the view. All right. So the question that we’re all here for. Is it worth it? So I want to be super clear. If you’re booking this for the desserts Then? No, it is not worth it. These desserts are fine. If you got these desserts at Costco, they would be, I don’t know, maybe $10 to fill your plate. They’re not worth $100. I think this is important to touch on because value in Disney we have to get a little bit of perspective. Take a bottle of water like Dasani. It’s going to be one price if I buy that at the airport, and it’s going to be another price. If I buy it at target and it’s going to be another price if I buy it at Costco in bulk. So really what you’re paying for is the value of having that spot in the plaza garden.

Dana Stanley 00:19:20  To me, that is what I’m paying for. And the desserts are just this like extra thing. I can get a couple glasses of champagne, which is a perk. My kids love the cupcake and the sparkling cider. It makes it feel extra special with the desserts, but you cannot put a value on the desserts like no, of course they’re not worth $100. Another reason why the party might not be worth it is if you don’t care about the fireworks. Or maybe your kid is scared of fireworks, I would skip it. You really want to be committed to sitting there for 20 minutes and watching the show? If your kids are little, let’s say 2 to 3 years old, I do think that it holds their attention. My kids have not, like gotten stir crazy or anything like that while watching the show, and I have a few tips to hold their attention while they’re waiting for the show as well. But if you really want to watch this for one night, and you want to avoid the stress of crowds and claiming a good spot on Main Street, then this is definitely worth it.

Dana Stanley 00:20:18  Here are a few tips to help you get the most out of this dessert party. If and when you book it. So first is to not book a dinner reservation the night of your dessert party. You want to do something easy? Maybe a quick service. If you take a break in the middle of the day, I would grab something at your resort before heading back into Magic Kingdom. You don’t want to be too full. There are a lot of, like, cheese and fruit and crackers and things that you can snack on, even just outside of desserts. So you don’t want to be like, super full and go down and have like a two hour sit down dinner before going to the dessert party. Disney suggests that you check in 90 minutes before the fireworks start. So let’s say the fireworks are at eight. Then you would check in at 630. I would recommend getting there between 6 and 615 if you can. The line gets kind of long when everyone shows up at the same time 90 minutes before.

Dana Stanley 00:21:15  And this is what I like to do. And this is to take advantage of the fact that you can have access to Tomorrowland Terrace and leave. A lot of people don’t realize this. So what we like to do is get there as early as possible. They’ll ask your name and they’ll give you each wristbands. The adults will have different wristbands that show that they’re over 21. You’ll be escorted to a designated table and then you have access to the buffet. So if you get there early, there’s like no line to get the desserts. Things aren’t even picked through at all. So you can get your desserts, sit down, start eating. And then me and my husband will take turns sometimes leaving and riding another, like Space Mountain or Tron. Sometimes one of us didn’t get to ride from the days before, but you could all potentially have your desserts in 20 minutes. Use the bathroom and go ride, you know, some Fantasyland rides and then go to the Plaza Garden. You don’t have to go from Tomorrowland Terrace to the Plaza Garden.

Dana Stanley 00:22:14  You could just walk there. Just make sure you like know where it is. I’ve done a wide range of times of when we actually get to the Plaza Garden. I’ve gotten there 30 minutes before and I’ve gotten there five minutes before. Obviously, if you get there a little bit sooner, you can get situated. You’ll have an easier time finding a spot to sit on the grass. It’s fake grass, by the way. I don’t know if I should mention that. I’d say 30 minutes before is like a solid time to get there. We’ve had nights where maybe I’m taking one kid to the bathroom, and I tell my husband to just head down. I’ll meet you there, or I want to run and ride Space Mountain and I’ll meet you down there. So different things that you can do. Another suggestion is to definitely bring the stroller with you. You’re going to bring your stroller to the Plaza garden, and when you walk in, kind of park it on the back left. You won’t have it next to you while you’re physically watching the fireworks, but you can see it so you don’t have to worry like I’ve left my bag in there.

Dana Stanley 00:23:16  No problem. Another tip is to bring glow sticks or some type of light up toys for your kids. I like bringing a big pack of glow sticks, like the bracelets and the necklaces, passing them out to all the kids. The kids like instantly make friends with each other and make this like big kid firework, glow stick, party horde. It’s really cute. One last tip for the dessert party, if you’re going to go this route, is to really take a break in the middle of the day, like real rest, so that your kids are able to hang that late at night. So I love taking a midday break on a fireworks night to take my shower for the day. I give the kids a bath at like 2 or 3:00. I will lay out their pajamas, or you could even just bring their pajamas, put them in their pajamas to go to the fireworks. Kids think that is like the most fun thing in the world. Like what? I get to wear my pajamas out.

Dana Stanley 00:24:12  And then that way when you get back, your room is set, everything’s ready for the next day. You don’t have to shower. You can just, like, plop the kids in bed and be ready for the next day. I wouldn’t plan an early breakfast or like a rope drop morning for the following day and just kind of keep it chill. This is why my members always are sketching their trips before they book anything, because these are just like the little details that can add up to make either a relaxing trip or a really exhausting one. At the end of the day, it’s not about the desserts, it’s just about the experience. If I think of like, my top five favorite Disney World memories with my kids, I think three of them are involved with the fireworks or like waiting for the fireworks to start. And every year I ask my oldest, you know, should we do the dessert party again? And she says, she looks at me like I’m crazy. Like, of course, like we have to do that.

Dana Stanley 00:25:06  So if that’s any indication, it’s definitely an experience we’ll be booking again. Now for your questions from Instagram. About half of the questions were all along the same lines of is it worth it? Is it worth it for a five year old? Is it worth the cost? Is it worth it for like, a mommy daughter trip? I think I’ve made it obvious that to me personally, Dana Stanley, 100% think it’s worth it. So the first question. Allergy friendly with gluten and dairy. Now the actual buffet. They do not display any allergies or allergy friendly things. So when you check in. You can let the cast member know that you have allergies. They will bring you a special. Allergy friendly plate. We don’t have any allergies, so I haven’t done this personally, but I’ve seen while I was at the dessert party what this looks like. And they’re the treats from Erin McKenna’s bakery. So she has a spot in Disney Springs, so she has vegan and gluten free desserts. So like a vegan cupcake.

Dana Stanley 00:26:10  I think there’s a gluten free brownie. I’m not sure exactly what is on the plate, but you can let the cast member know when you check in. And you can also email Disney World ahead of time to let them know. And I’ll leave the email address in the show notes so that you can reach out to them. But if you’re really concerned about allergies, definitely reach out to Disney first. And when you check in, they’re so good about allergies and we’ll give you alternatives to the buffet that everyone else is getting. And if you finish that plate, they’ll give you another plate. I know Erin McKenna’s is like not cheap. So in terms of value there, it’s probably even better than the desserts that they’re serving. Question number two is it easy to leave once the fireworks start? I have a kid who can be hit or miss with fireworks, so it is fairly easy to leave when you walk out of the Plaza garden. It goes right into the walkway that Disney keeps clear for people that need to move around the park.

Dana Stanley 00:27:07  So what I would do is just head back kind of towards Tomorrowland Terrace. It’s more enclosed and you could just hang out there or like, take them to the bathroom for a break and reconvene, but don’t feel like you’re stuck and can’t leave. A cast member would definitely help you. Question number three for the pre-party. Do you need to arrive the full hour and a half before the fireworks start? So I would definitely arrive the full 90 minutes before to check in. Get your wristband and get settled, but then don’t feel like you have to rush to the Plaza garden. Again, I would say 30 minutes before the fireworks is good. If you show up at the last minute, you’re going to have a spot. That’s what’s so great about the dessert party. Question number four. Can we stay seated at a table or do we have to go out into the grass? So short answer is you don’t want to stay at your table because you’re not going to have a view of the fireworks from where the post or pre-party is.

Dana Stanley 00:28:04  Obviously, I’m assuming you’re not talking about the party where you’re sitting down the whole time. So the pre-party people, they’re expecting everyone to be out watching fireworks so that they can kind of turn over tables and clean things up. So I don’t know if they would like, physically kick you out, but you definitely want to be out to watch the fireworks anyway. Question five does it take away from the magic of being outside the castle? And I asked her to confirm this. She means does it take away from the magic of being out on Main Street watching, you know, front and center, I guess. Like in the crowds. No, it doesn’t take away from the magic at all. If anything, it definitely adds to it. Six pre versus post and how to choose which one. Again, if you have little kids and you really want to head out right away and get home, get to bed. I would do the pre-party. If your kids are older or you’re doing like an adults trip, I could be convinced of doing post.

Dana Stanley 00:29:00  Seven is the view and crowd really any better with the pre dessert party than just staking out a spot on Main Street? View is not necessarily better. It’s as good as like you could even get more front and center to the castle if you stake out a spot, because the plaza garden is like a little bit to the right. But in terms of crowds, yes, it’s a lot better crowd wise. When I think about the fireworks dessert party, I don’t just remember, like the treats and the snacks or the champagne, I really always remember the feeling with my kids and as a parent, just the relief of not having to stake out a spot an hour early, the excitement of watching the fireworks without being stressed about it, and the way that those little choices can completely change the tone of your trip. I hope this episode was helpful for you in deciding if the Magic Kingdom Fireworks Desert Party is right for your family. Thank you so much for joining me on this episode of The Laid-Back Magic Way podcast.

Dana Stanley 00:30:03  If you enjoyed today’s episode and it was helpful for you, it would mean the world to me if you’d write a quick review. Your reviews help more moms like you find the show, and I read every single one of them. Seriously. Thank you in advance. You can find me on Instagram @somewhereworthwhile and I’d love to hear from you there. DM me if you have any questions about this episode or what you’d like to see in future ones. Until then, keep planning for your next favorite memory and I’ll see you next time.