Hoop Dee Doo Revue VS Boma & Sanaa

Things to know before helping me decide: We are staying at Animal Kingdom Lodge and have a 4 yr old and 7 yr old. Thanks for helping me pick!

I am on the Disney Dining Plan and find myself with an extra TS credit. When I first started planning, my friend told me Hoop Dee Doo Revue was fantastic and we should definitely do it but I never included it in our plan. Now that I have an extra TS credit, I am reconsidering it. The days in question are our last 2 days. Monday: Hollywood Studios Day. Tuesday: head home/travel day/no parks.

If we book HDDR, it would mean I would cancel the lunch we have on our travel day at Sanaa. If we do not do HDDR, I would leave HS studios, head back to our hotel (AKL) and eat Boma for dinner and swim. Essentially, if you had 2 Table Service credits, would you take your kids to HDDR or have 2 separate meals at Boma & Sanaa?

OPTION 1:

Hollywood Studiod Day:
EMM TSL breakfast
Hoop Dee Doo Revue dinner

Final Day/Travel Day/No park:
QS lunch and swim until time to go to airport

OPTION 2:

Hollywood Studios Day:
EMM TSL breakfast
Boma at AKL dinner

Final Day/Travel Day/No park:
lunch at Sanaa and swim until time to go to airport

Our family would hate HDDR and we really enjoyed Boma dinner so no contest for us.

HDDR is a lot of fun and the food is good. It is going to take up most of your night depending on which seating you opt for. To me, it’s worth it. We’ve gone 3 times but it’s been a couple of years now and we’re dying to go back.

My only caveat about Sanaa, even though the food was great, is that I wouldn’t want to eat and then travel. The food there did a number on my digestion… :wink:

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HDDR is two credits I believe. Will you drop something else?

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@disney1974 is it similar to Indian food? My husband and I eat quite a bit of Indian food so I am wondering if we could expect the same? My kids, however, are super boring eaters. They’ll probably stick to the basics no matter what I decide.

Why does one sitting area take longer? You have me intrigued! We’re on the dining plan so I believe we have to choose Tier 2 or 3 (aka not the best one)

Yes, I have Sanaa already booked on our final day. I would cancel that and just swim & do QS at AKL in its place.

Not the seating area, the show time. I believe there are 3 - 4.30, 6.30 and 8.30 maybe.

Oh, yes. I see. We are doing the 6:15, then back to the resort for bed. Can you take an Uber from Fort Wilderness or is it closed off? I’ve never been there.

My kids will not appreciate the food at Boma or Sanaa, so it really boils down to: The convenience of eating at our resort (no extra travel time) VS The extra fun/activity my kids may enjoy a HDDR. (or will they hate it and fall asleep at the table? Who’s to say?) :slight_smile:

I don’t think uber can pick up from right outside where the show is but they can get you from somewhere there.

What about showing the kids a bit of the show on YouTube and seeing how they react? If they’re really bored then decision made, equally if they laugh their heads off decision made. I don’t know what you’ll do if they have differing opinions!

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Good idea!

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yea who’s to say. My kids even at a young age loved HDDR (and we still do) I forget how old your kids are. I would think they would love Sanaa though. It’s a tough call

Yes, Indian/African inspired food at Sanaa. The flavors are wonderful and it really is a great restaurant. I was just surprised by the distress it caused me later that evening… (too much info!).

Re the seating at HDDR: The 4:00 show will require you to start making your way to FW around 3:00. There is a check in process & photo prior to the each show. Basically, for whatever seating you choose, you need to allot 1 hour before and after for travel to and from FW. If you go with the 8:30, you will have the least interrupted day.

In my roundabout way, I’m trying to convey that if you go to the 4:00 show, plan to use the hours between 3:00 - 6:30 as travel/show time.
The 8:30 show would be the last thing you probably do that day as you won’t be getting out of there before 10.

It’s a time committment more so than most other Disney dining experiences.

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Ok, just went back an read that you’re going to the 6:15. Great choice.

Easiest way to get there is the boat from Magic Kingdom. Drops you off at the dock and it’s a 2 minute walk to Pioneer Hall.
Other than that, you can Uber/Lyft or bus it to FW and from there use the internal bus to Pioneer Hall. Every bus makes a stop there so it doesn’t matter which one you get one. Just grab the first one.

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I will add that if use a minnie van they will pick you up or drop you off right at HDDR. Thats what has been reported. No personal knowledge.

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My boys (14, 11, 9) loved HDDR. I really enjoyed it also, and I really didn’t expect to have so much fun. It was entertaining and funny. I would think that if you are staying in AK and eating at Boma, then Sanaa would be unnecessary, and HDDR would be different.

I would do Option 1. HDDR would be such a great way to effectively end the trip. A celebration of the time you’ve had.

Of note, we have done the sleep in/pack/swim/lunch/airport thing on our last day - at AKL actually - and that makes for a nice day too. Mara is great. Or, you could pay OOP if you wanted to keep Sanaa (I would probably do that personally)

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Uber can’t but Minnie Vans can!!

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I knew other people would know!

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Disclaimers: I don’t have kids and have never eaten at Boma.

My fiance and I ate at Sanaa in December for the first time and LOVED it. Honestly one of the best meals I’ve had in my life (not just at Disney). I feel bad for the person above who had digestive distress! We had no issues other than being in a very satisfied food/wine coma afterward. That being said, I am not sure younger folks would appreciate the food there. It’s not “standard” food, if you know what I mean - it’s interesting and African-inspired, not super wild but definitely a much different meal than you’ll get at most of the other restaurants.

My parents took my brother and I to HDDR twice when we were kids (8 and 11 first trip, 12 and 15 the next) and it was amazing. We had such a good time, and I have gone back a few times as an adult - it’s always a fantastic evening, and even the really little kids there get into it!

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You guys are the BEST! Thank you for all of the info!

We have decided to go with 6:15 Hoop Dee Doo Revue. I think my boys will appreciate it and it’s their first trip to Disney World (ages 7 and 4) so I’ll go with “fun” over “delicious” this time around!

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