Category: Parks & Resorts

With the Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights concluding on Sunday, Disney’s Hollywood Studios will be moving full speed ahead on clearing land for the upcoming expansion of the park to add both the Star Wars and Toy Story themed lands.

The Phineas and Ferb and Cars character meet and greets, as well as the nearby Cars merchandise cart and Joffrey’s coffee location near the Premier Theater will be shuttered on January 4th, 2016 to make way for the expansion. Early work on the removal of these two meet and greets and the Premier Theater will begin at that time. No word has yet been given on the removal of the Streets of America, the “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids” play area, or other nearby establishments rumored to be removed as part of the expansion.

The Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights (now in its final seasons as prep work begins for the Star Wars themed land at Hollywood Studios) was scheduled to end its run tonight, however, Walt Disney World has now extended the run, and park hours, though Wednesday, January 6th, 2016.

Disney’s Hollywood Studios will now be open until 10PM the next three days, with the lights running from dusk until 9PM. The Symphony in the Stars fireworks will be presented an hour later at 10PM, park close time.

The extension is likely to subdue the large crowd expected this evening, however, it does negate the farewell meal packages that were sold to guests for this weekend which no longer mark the absolute end of the 20 year run of the Spectacle.

Last night, I attended the very first “Symphony in the Stars: A Galactic Spectacular Dessert Party at Disney’s Hollywood Studios”, which might be the longest named special event in Disney history. Regardless, the event is very much in the same vein as the FROZEN fireworks dessert party that has been offered in the past, but now themed to Star Wars to match the remastered Symphony in the Stars fireworks show that debuted back on December 18th.

The party is $69.00 for adults and $39.00 for children ages 3-9 and advance reservations are highly recommended. The event is hosted nightly from January 5th through March 19th, 2016.

Check-in starts sometime before 7PM (we checked in at around 6:20PM) and the party actually opened a little before 7PM to those already checked in.

Once entering, we were greeted with the Freeze-fried Nutella Truffle station, which is how I prefer to be greeted anywhere I go. This was really fantastic. The addition of the choice of raspberry or chocolate sauce was a nice touch and I felt like this was unique and a good fit for the theme of the party.

Alcoholic beverages are included with the price, probably why adults cost $69.00 per ticket. Of the 4 drinks, I tried 3: The Force, the First Order Finale, and the Corellian Smuggler’s Coffee.

The First Order Finale was my personal favorite, but I’m also a big fan of coconut rum. It wasn’t too sweet and had just the right amount of alcohol in it for my taste.

I hate to use this, but it’s very true… “The Force is Strong with This One.” The Force was easily the strongest drink I’ve ever had in a Disney theme park. It wasn’t bad, but you could smell this thing from the forest moon of Endor (which is in a galaxy far, far away for those who don’t understand Star Wars).

The coffee was nothing out of this world, but on a cold night it was everything I could I have wanted. It had just the right mix of alcohol and coffee and if I didn’t need to review other “specialty” drinks that aren;t just coffee and Bailey’s, I would have probably just had 4 of these.

For those adverse to alcohol (and for younger padawans), there are specialty non-alcoholic drinks as well, Padawan Punch Blood Orange Lemonade and Ewok Juice Green Apple Lemonade. Water, coffee, and soft drinks are also readily available.

The desserts were spectacular. If you’re a fan of the larger Star Wars cupcakes in the park, you’ll find mini-versions of the BB-8 and Darth Vader cupcakes here and you can have your fill of them. There is also a bite-size portion of the Blue Milk Panna Cotta. You’ll find a smattering of unique desserts not offered in the parks as well.

Darth Maul eclairs anyone?

I have a weakness for crispy rice treats myself…

My personal favorite was the Galactic Size Warm Space Debris Bread Pudding, which is as big as it’s name. This was really great, tasty bread pudding with a galaxy of special toppings such as M&M’s, chocolate chips, pretzel sticks, and some things I couldn’t even identify in the wreckage. You could even get a big scoop of ice cream to go with it at the next station.

The ubiquitous generic Disney ice cream snacks are also here in case you have a rebellious picky-eater in your group. Although, sometimes in life you just need a Mickey Premium Ice Cream Bar, right?

I was most surprised to see some items I would not classify as desserts among the available spreads, including scorched pesto crisps and the smoked sea-salted “quarter ration” biscuit. The soggy crisps weren’t great, but I probably could have eaten an entire tray of the biscuits which were soft and had a great flavor.

There were also fruit-sabers for those who enjoy a healthier option.

With the food and drinks out of the way, let’s talk about the viewing area. It’s located on the left side of what is now called “Center Stage” in the hub of the park. This is not a bad viewing area by any means… as long as you are not behind trees.

Honestly, our spot was the best one I’ve had for fireworks in the park, though typically I stand far enough back that my video camera can pick up the full view of all of the launch points, so I don’t necessarily always try to stand this close to the show. I can’t imagine the people a few table in towards the tree had as good a view as we did though. My main problem with this is that there are just too many tables in a rather confined space. I don’t think the event is overcrowded, the the amount of tables and the layout doesn’t function. You could see every guest toward the rope line having a really hard time getting to the food and drinks on the opposite side, just because the tables (which now had people around them) were so close together. Not having to fight through people to get to the tables and bars would have improved my experience. Maybe sell 5-10 less tickets and pull 3-4 tables out to make aisles?

My biggest issue, and this might be kind of silly, but it’s the tablecloths. Not only are these the icy blue cloths they used for the FROZEN dessert parties, but they are too long. With the tables pushed so close together and the table cloths dragging on the floor, I can’t even begin to tell you how many times I either almost tripped on a table cloth or saw someone almost pull everything off of a table. Please Disney, use the profits of the first few parties to buy Star Wars themed tablecloths that are actually the proper length. Maybe get the Star Wars centerpieces from last year’s Rebel Hangar lounge and spruce up the tabletops a little too…

In the end though, we had a great view of what is a really phenomenal fireworks show (and one that will be getting better in the coming months, but that’s  a story for another post).

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrdJrOOExqU?rel=0&showinfo=0]

As a parting gift, guests were given a souvenir Chewbacca stein as they exited (the same ones you can buy around the park for $8, but a nice gesture).

So, was it worth $69.00? Maybe. I’m definitely on the fence about this one. I’m a pretty hardcore Star Wars fan, so it’s hard for me to not have a good time surrounded by Star Wars-themed desserts and fireworks. During the busier weeks like President’s Day or Spring Break, I definitely see the value here. A reserved fireworks spot with a nice, clear view and not having to fight crowds is really great. If you will have 3-4 alcoholic beverages and eat plenty of the snacks, you will probably find your value here. If it was priced at $49.00, I would say it was a no-brainer, but $69.00  a person is a lot of money for 1 hour of unlimited food and drinks. I definitely don’t see a $39.00 value for children though. Again, I don’t think I can clearly define if it is worth the price I paid, but I think the crowd will be split between those who enjoyed it and those who felt it wasn’t worth the price point. If you have Star Wars fans in your group, they’re going to have a good time, but otherwise, there are probably better ways to eat and drink for $69.00 a person at Walt Disney World on a night where the park isn’t crowded anyway. If seeing these fireworks the right way is a priority to th you and you’re coming during a busy week, book this. If not, it’s just going to depend how strongly The Force is calling to you.

Last night, the Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights finally faded away after an incredible 67-night-long final season. The lights were originally supposed to end on Sunday, January 3rd, but were extended 3 more nights to accommodate the thousands of guests and off-duty cast members who wanted to say goodbye.

The lights turned on around 5:50PM, this was the scene just ten minutes before that. All of the Streets of America were packed with guests who wanted to see the lights turn on one last time. Around this time, the Hollywood Studios parking lot was forced to close and the area surrounding the lights was pretty much gridlocked and stayed this way for quite some time.

The actual end time for the lights was unclear based on the previous two nights, but the lights ran until 10PM. By 8:45PM, the crowd began to calm down and what was left was a sizable crowd of die-hard fans who would remain until the lights were turned off. To close out the Walt Disney World holiday tradition, the new dancing light song for this season performed last, followed by a few heartfelt words from Donnie and Annie on WJBO Radio, the fictional radio station that provided some commentary between music over the last 10 years of the event. When they were done, the lights danced to the Mickey Mouse Club sign-off, and slowly, section by section, the Spectacle of Dancing Lights faded away forever:

A darkened New York Street signified the end of a defining piece of the history of Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Not only are we saying goodbye to the Spectacle of Dancing Lights, but also the Hollywood Studios we have known for almost 27 years. The Backlot Tour, the Magic of Disney Animation, the Streets of America, the Premier Theater, and the Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights are all gone. It seemed as if we had talked about a makeover of Disney’s Hollywood Studios for well over a decade and now we are at the start of what may be the largest undertaking in over three decades for Walt Disney World.

A 14-acre land filled with Star Wars, new shopping, dining, and attractions from the world of Toy Story, and much more await, but first we had say goodbye to so many attractions that we have enjoyed for over 20 years. While Star Wars land and all of the other great projects for the park will surely amaze, it is sad to see so much that we love vanish, but probably no lost Studios offering hurts as much as the lights. The good news is it seems this will be our last loss before construction begins on those new additions, however, the holidays at Walt Disney World may never be quite the same again. Maybe we will see the Spectacle of Lights once more someday, but for now, and possibly forever, we say goodbye to one of the most awe-inspiring and memorable offerings in the history of the Disney theme parks: the Osborne Family Spectacle of Lights.