Another highlight of the trip for us was the River Belle Terrace Fantasmic Premium dining package.
We love Fantasmic at
Disneyland but we have traditionally either found a “free spot” somewhere or gotten a normal fast pass. We wanted to do something different this time, and we read good reviews of the River Belle premium package.
We booked it exactly 60 days out. On the day of, I arrived very early - around 7pm - and was directed to wait at the small exit area from the outdoor seating into the pathway right near Tarzan’s Treehouse. I was assuming that whoever checked in first would get priority for the seating right on the rail overlooking the walkway around Rivers of America. So we waited in line while the CMs set the outdoor seating area for the Fantasmic dining package. When they were done I noticed what looked like name plates on the tables, so I squinted to see if I could pick out our name, and sure enough there we were at a table right next to the rail, just to the right of a lamp post, really in a perfect viewing location. So the lesson learned here is that arriving for early check in really has no bearing on where you get seated. I assume we got such a great table because we booked early - as early as we possibly could. Others in line who booked that day had tables further back.
As for the dining itself, it was really good. It is a fixed menu. I got the pork ribs which were amazing but very filling. The others seemed to enjoy their food. It was certainly not the best meal we had in our week but it was up there. Dessert was very interesting - the Maleficent dessert in particular was very unique with just a little bit of kick in it.
And as we suspected, we had wonderful seats not just for the Fantasmic show, but to our surprise the fireworks as well. We had no issues with CMs or guests blocking our view, and it is just elevated enough that you can see over everyone. And we found the chairs comfortable enough for us in the 1.5 hours we were seated there.
All in all a truly great experience at Disneyland and we would not hesitate to do it again in the future!