How do you all do it? I’m hearing to get there an hour early to get a seat, then seated throughout the show…isn’t that almost TWO HOURS of sitting on concrete? I have trouble sitting on the floor in general (absolutely cannot sit criss-cross) and sitting on cold concrete sounds like absolute torture! Maybe West-coast fundaments are just hardier than Midwestern ones? Please, give me all your tips, all-knowing ones!
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I’ve not been to Disneyland, but this seems like a situation where an inflatable seat cushion could help. I take mine on airplanes.
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You could book a Fantasmic! Dining Package, and choose one that meets your needs. The River Belle Terrace - Premium Package lets you watch the show from your table on their outdoor patio. I don’t know if the Blue Bayou is still doing this, but they used to give out a cushion to sit on since the viewing area is separate from their dining area. The Blue Bayou and the River Belle Terrace - Standard Package both let you view from a separate reserved viewing area. You wouldn’t have to stake out a spot so far ahead of time. The show itself is only 27 minutes long.
And Hungry Bear. Blue Bayou did not give out cushions when I went in November. And neither does Hungry Bear. The dining packages guarantees you a viewing spot so you don’t need to stake it out way in advance.
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Thanks for mentioning Hungry Bear. I saw it listed and opened it in a separate tab, but neglected to mention it. It’s QS, while the other two are TS. Thanks, also, for the update about no cushion.
Maybe in a year or two I’ll get to DLR, and I will definitely keep this big difference from WDW in mind!
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I know that our West Coast Liners prefer Fantasmic at DLR because you are close to it. But I much prefer the amphitheater at HS where I’m not sitting on the ground and there’s no railings in my way. And I am a West Coast Liner! 
I might get kicked out of the West Coast Liner group.
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I’m an easy coaster who prefers DLR show.
So. Close!!! 
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I haven’t done Fantasmic in years because I can’t sit on the ground and don’t want to have to stand for hours to keep a spot in standby. And the River Belle Terrace premium dining package is extremely hard to get and I’ve never been lucky in securing one.
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Is this typically only on weekends, even through Spring Break weeks? At this point, it’s on the calendar just on weekends through the weekend right before the weekdays I’ll be there.
So not sure if there’s a chance it could be added yet, or if I should assume it won’t happen. Not really a big deal, as the waiting and sitting on concrete sounds pretty annoying.
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Thank you for saying out loud what I have been thinking for years!
I am glad I saw the updated WDW one recently (love!) So I don’t have to worry about it on my upcoming DLR trip. The last time I tried to watch at DLR I was in the FP section behind a tree.
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I saw people who brought blankies….smart
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So the reserved dining sections require you to be seated (on cold & not completely level cobblestone) but you can show up just 15-30 min. before the show and wait to sit down until they tell you a few minutes before showtime. You’ll be closer to the back of the viewing section, but you’ll have a spot you don’t have to stake out & you’re still SO.CLOSE! that it won’t be an issue to be at the back.
In the standby sections, people will start lining where CM’s tell them to & by about 6:30pm. They usually open up the standby viewing areas ~7pm (or just slightly after). I haven’t confirmed where the current location to line-up for standby is but it used to be the Mark Twain/Columbia loading area. I want to say they moved it across the way to somewhere near where the Tom Sawyer island rafts launch or somewhere just across from Haunted Mansion, but I’m not 100% on that at all so definitely recommend approaching a CM for the best info. Those who do line up that early (usually local/regulars) tend to bring a blanket for one/some of their party to sit on & will stay sitting until they are asked to stand up (once the section gets full enough that they need everyone standing or ~20-30 min before showtime whichever comes first). The rest of their party will join them closer to showtime, usually by 30 min before. The standby viewing sections all require you to stand for the show. The time commitment to have a good view in standby is a huge time-suck AND showing up closer to 60-45 min before showtime hasn’t been ideal for us who need to hold one or two of our kids for the 27 minute show to be able to see over other people’s heads, so if we want to watch it we will pay for at least the Hungry Bear Dining. Or try for the later show standby.
ETA: We have done the River Belle Terrace viewing section once & it was a fine view & very nice to sit. BUT we have never done it again because the tables up against the railing are the view I want if I’m going to pay for a premium section but it wasn’t at all guaranteed so we’d just as soon rather get the Hungry Bear and be up close & personal to it.
ETA2: Looks like my edit somewhow created a dup post with the edit so deleted the dup.
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I prefer the show scenes & the view at DLR but I did LOVE having a seat in HS and that alone made up for the less than stunning views in HS. I also haven’t seen F! in HS since F! was updated so maybe I’d feel differently (and especially now that as I’m winding into my late 30’s it’s harder to sit criss-cross on the ground).
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I’m in my 50s. I sat on the concrete, hugging my knees! I had the BB dining package in November. While I appreciated a reserved spot for the second showing after I watched fireworks, I hated sitting on the ground and felt the railing was in my way! I wasn’t even sitting in the front and there weren’t that many people around me.
I had a regular BB ADR and asked if I could upgrade when I arrived.
For WDW, my reserved seat was still a concrete slab but at least I wasn’t on the ground! It was a center view without railings in my line of vision!
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DLR seems to have issues bringing everything back! When I went in November, fireworks and Fantasmic were only Friday-Sunday.
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