I’m planning our MK touring plan for a CL7 day on a Sunday after a marathon weekend. It says we only need 20 min of wait time to see HEA. Is that right or should we get there earlier? Any tips or tricks on where to watch (we will be coming from Tomorrowland or Fantasyland) and it’s our first time seeing it. I’m a crowd-a-phobe, so would rather not be shoulder to shoulder for a long time unless it is very last minute to the show start. We will have a 7, 11, and 13 year old with us (so not as tall as an adult, but too big to hold). Would love the dessert party, but out of our budget!
When we saw it in July on a CL5 day, we got there an hour early and stood in the garden opposite of where the dessert party takes place. If you are standing on Main street looking at the castle, the dessert party is in the garden to the right. However, the garden to the left (in front of Crystal Palace) is open. We stood in there up against the front rail. It gave enough distance between us and the people in front of us to be able to see. We are both short, like only 5 ft. short, so this was a great spot. The garden filled up well before the show began, but I couldn’t say when exactly that happened time wise. I would suggest if you don’t want to fight the crowd to get to a spot, get there earlier than 20 mins. before the show starts.
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Thank you for your suggestion! Can you bring a blanket to sit on while waiting, or is everyone standing by then? I hate having to wait so long and give up ride time, but hoping we can make it fun with a snack or game.
I would fully expect for most everybody to be standing, especially with projections playing such a prominent role in the entertainment. We sauntered up about 15-20 minutes before HEA on a CL 7 day in June, but the weather was iffy at the time. We were to the left of the partner’s statue. As things were delayed we moved forward as people moved on. A few night later, we watched from down Main St. I prefer the view from a closer perspective. It can get downright crazy trying to move forward to see OUAT fro that distance. We booked the Garden View Dessert Party for our anniversary weekend next week.
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Bit long winded review of where we stood. Probably the place to try if you haven’t bagged a spot by the Partners Statue or in the garden. But we loved this spot and would do it again especially as we only turned up 15min before the start.
We had a meal at MK that over ran a bit just before HEA so we only came out to get a viewing space about 10 mins before it started
This was July
It’s crowded regardless but people just find a spot and it’s pretty fluid. We got decent views and tbh we probably got same views as people who may have been waiting for 30 mins plus as you just all blend in together
People still arrived after us and move in front of us
People just get away with what they can tbh
You can’t pick a space and then stop others coming into that space after you even if you might want to do that
You could turn up one min before it starts and get a similar view to people who’ve been there many many minutes earlier
That’s my take on HEA
We had a 17 year old short girl and a 13 year old with us and they just found a place that worked for them as well
Smaller kids you could hold in your arms etc if needed
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THE WORST TIME EVER!! My adult son and his wife are the type that don’t want to miss any special event and will endure almost anything to see it. It was almost time for the nighttime show and fireworks to start and we were in Tomorrowland. My adult daughter decided to use the bathroom (exactly at the wrong time) which delayed our moving to the large courtyard in front of Cinderella’s Castle until just before the show started. We were barely able to cross the bridge and then everything came to a complete stop. People pressed up together without an inch between us. After 5-10 minutes, I realized how unsafe this was and decided to go back, yet IT WAS IMPOSSIBLE TO MOVE!
One girl had a panic attack and couldn’t even move. It was EXTREMELY unsettling and I believe was incredibly unsafe. A few of us decided to GET OUT. I put my grandson on my shoulders and pushed our way back to Tomorrowland. It was horrible! People wouldn’t move. No Disney employees trying to open up pathways. (Except for one guy where we were first stuck who would shout “go back” to which NO ONE responded.) He didn’t seem to have a clue of what to do except to shout “go back!”
After the fireworks, it took at least 45 minutes for my family to reach me near the Carousel of Progress, which was just across the bridge.
Yes, you can bring a blanket. I have a little blanket that’s made out of windbreaker type material that folds up really small. I carry it in my backpack. Kinda like this…
You could have someone sit at your spot while you go get snacks. It’s worth getting there early and staking claim to a spot if you want to be able to see the projections on the castle. Plus, the rails around the garden protect you from an experience like hollowayb’s. Another nice aspect was that CM’s were keeping the sidewalk right in front of the garden clear for traffic flow. People were not allowed to lean up against the rail on the outside of the garden. Can’t guarantee they will be there again to clear that side of the sidewalk, but it’s worth a shot since the kids are too big to put on shoulders.
Yikes! That sounds awful! I’m sorry that happened to you. You would think a place like Disney would have more things in place at these events to keep people safe.
Thank you for everyone’s thoughts and ideas! I will make sure to leave at least an hour free in our plans leading up to HEA and go from there. Crossing fingers people making up a CL7 are all tired from the marathon that morning and head to bed early!
That’s a great idea! I think I will plan to move us over to main street 30-60 min before to scope it out and miss the bridge issues. We can shop or go visit Tinkerbell, grab an ice cream and hopefully do something similar to this! I searched the threads before posting but must have missed this one. Thanks! I think we will aim for here or near the fence as others suggested.
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