We've never done an additional cost event - what's your #1 recommendation?

[DisneyWishes14]

Thank you - I think you've hit the nail on the head about why we haven't done any of these things - to me it feels like there are SO many that I can't possibly decide. And I know that many people do lots of them, so you aren't required to choose just one, but for us the "base" trip is often at the top of our budget so I just am not sure what the value-add is for an "extra."
I will add we do love food, fireworks, and the safari ride at AK so I would say a dessert party or perhaps the Boma safari experience would be most appealing, though maybe Wild Africa Trek is better for my kids' ages. I clearly can't make up my mind so I guess I'm asking for YOU (whoever replies), what was the best thing YOU did - I know that might not translate to us specifically but I'd still appreciate knowing what folks think is worth the money.

Based on this description, I would highly recommend Wild Africa Trek. It really gives you a fun, in-depth look at the safari and the "snack" the provide (it's really big enough to be a meal!) is delicious. We did this tour right after my DS turned 8 and it was a blast. The truck you go in has better access to the roads on the safari and can go "off-roading" a little bit. We went shortly after a baby rhino had been born and our driver was able to go off on a side road so we could get a better look at him. It was a great experience.

I would also recommend the HEA dessert party. We like the desserts at the party a lot, but do it mostly to have a great spot to see HEA without battling the crowds.

You may also want to consider the Frozen Dessert party in EP to say goodbye to Iluminations!

 

[holden]

I recommend the Ultimate Day of Thrills Tour. It’s well worth the money. Eleven FP+ attractions, van transportation to the parks (enter through the back entrance), etc.

 

[Wayland10]

If you like food and the safari, you could check out the Festival of the Lion King dinner package. Three course meal at Tiffins, first row seats st FOLK, and semi-private safari.

 

[Victoriasponge]

The best thing we ever did as an add on, was to book an 'adventure' with a company who specialise in organising personalised events in the parks.

They organised a treasure hunt for us that started with us 'finding' a letter addressed to my step son - I knew it was there to find obviously, but you should have seen the look on my step son's face when he just came across this letter addressed to him in the middle of Epcot! We then had to solve a clue to get the next one and so on until we finished and found our treasure. It played out over about 2 hours and was so much fun. We enjoyed it so much we did something similar on two other trips.

The company we used are not part of Disney but "work strictly within the park’s guidelines" and have been doing it for nearly 20 years. The cost depends on what kind of adventure / event you want but is probably comparable with the tours that people have mentioned.

I don't know if I'm allowed to name the company on here (?) but if you're interested, you can message me and I'll let you know. I highly recommend them

 

[Momof2Singers]

Personally we do not care for the dessert party, we did Frozen last year, and thought we wasted our money. Depending on what your kids are interested in, I would go with that. A special dining experience or after hours ticketed event would be my pick. There is also Splittsville.

 

[snappy]

We did behind the seeds twice years ago and enjoyed both very much. The two guides had different credentials/interests, one was a “plant person” the other was an “insect person.”

I also did the dine with an animal specialist twice. Also two different experiences, the first when this event was brand new with the curator of animals at both the park and the resort who has since left Disney I think. Worth every penny since I love the food at Sanaa. Finally, I took my daughter a few years ago on Wild animal Trek. We were staying at AKV anyway and saw so many animals from our balcony, so it was the perfect time to do the wild animal trek.
I liked that the food served at lunch was so healthy and that they did so good a job with a vegan meal for my daughter. I have no interest in desert parties so I won’t do those but am interested in future “experiences “ that are unique so I’ll be following this thread.

 

[kiford]

We've done Keys to the Kingdom (MK), Wild Africa Trek (AK) and DestiNations World Showcase (Epcot) tours. All were really well done, we thoroughly enjoyed them and learned lots. They're not inexpensive but a worthwhile use of time and money IMO. Even after having been so many times, we still learned so much that we didn't know. I don't know what the minimum age is for WAT, but if your kids like the animals, it's a great way to get up a little more close to them and learn a lot plus walking over the rope bridges is super fun and it includes photographs that the tour guides take and lunch/snack in a building in the middle of the savannah at the Kilimanjaro Safari area.

 

[Monykalyn]

Tours!

My personally opinion is that the Wild Africa Trek is a far better value than a dessert party, based on your description of your family and the timing I would recommend that.

Best tour we did and fabulous pictures. Soooo neat to go “behind the scenes” on the Savannah. Caring for Giants was neat too (DAK is my favorite park though )
Have done a couple dessert parties but for money I like the tours better!

 

[scionchigirl]

Ive done: Fantasmic at DL VIP viewing,Dine with an Imagineer,SW Desert Party, MVMCP,MNSSHP.We also got picked in 2012 to be Grand Marshals in 2012 for the parade,but that was free.Id say DWAI was the best.We had the art director for HS and our waiter was a Brown Derby buff.It really was special! I did it for my dd birthday in 2012, she is an artist and loved it. The event at DL was great...that was 2011 and the castmembers were so great.

 

[mom2grace]

I will add we do love food, fireworks, and the safari ride at AK so I would say a dessert party or perhaps the Boma safari experience would be most appealing, though maybe Wild Africa Trek is better for my kids' ages. I clearly can't make up my mind so I guess I'm asking for YOU (whoever replies), what was the best thing YOU did - I know that might not translate to us specifically but I'd still appreciate knowing what folks think is worth the money.

I would do lunch with the Animal Keeper at AKL - Sanaa. Super cool & your kids are the right age.

 

[Rowlf the Dog]

I really enjoyed AH, especially at HS (I could ride ToT and RnRC every day) but also at MK (almost all rides in one evening), at AK although it's my favourite park not so much because of only EE and FoP as my main-interests (Safari not open). My mum and I also loved Keys to the Kingdom, so interesting.
I was one time at MVMCP and will do it this year again and MNSSHP will be this year the first time for me, but both mainly because of the characters.

 

[kniquy]

It does kind of depend on what you are interested in or which park or ride might be your favorite. I will tell you my family has done 2 dessert parties (MK and Epcot) -- our favorite and the one we felt was well worth the money was the frozen dessert party, from the section of apps, desserts and drinks to the assigned seating and then finishing off with a ride on Frozen -- it was the best experience. The topper of the evening was being able to stroll out of Epcot with absolutely no one around. We purposely were one of the last ones to ride Frozen just so we could soak up more of the event.

If your goal is to ride rides and lots of them then i would pick one of the EMM or after hours - to me it seems like the after hours does provide more time in the park and if you skip any shows etc then it lets you power through lots of rides.

 

[revdon64]

Of the ones I've done in favorite to least favorite order:

Keys to the Kingdom Tour - Outstanding!
Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party - fun, but a bit too crowded for an extra
Extra Morning Magic @ Magic Kingdom - personally had a bad experience with this one, but it's worth the money if everything works as intended.
Happily Ever After Fireworks Desert Party - deserts were tasty. view was decent. people in viewing area were pretty rude.

 

[TinkSassy]

That time of year I would pick EMM for ToyStory Land. It is so hot in that land so you don't want to stand out for hours. I did this last year - rode all the rides many times, got pics with all the characters and had a very nice breakfast. I thought this was a better value than the dessert parties (better food, more food and more to do)

 

[foodiddiedoo]

Magic Kingdom After Hours was amazing when I did it last year. I have heard that the AK ones are even less crowded but the safari isn't open, so maybe wouldn't be a great choice for you.

 

[NickC]

We are excited to try the DAH events, but the dates haven't been released for our upcoming trip. I'm not sure there will be any while we are there, since SWGE is opening a few weeks before, and the Christmas parties starting.

 

[skuttle]

MK after hours! We’d do it again in a heartbeat! And for five of us it isn’t cheap, but totally worth it!

We also did AK after hours, but I’m not sure we’d do that one again.

 

[DisneyCowgirl]

We have done several upcharge events at the parks, but never one of the tours. The one I always suggest is the Happily Ever After dessert party, especially if it is going to be first time to see those. I got this for my mom as a Christmas gift (for a trip in March), and she said it probably was the best gift ever (and one year when they were still pretty new, I gave her an iPhone, so that's saying something)!

The after hours are super great for getting in tons of rides. This is especially beneficial if (1) you have short trip and can't do rope-drop or (2) you do this on an evening where you don't otherwise use a park ticket (makes the cost not so crazy).

If you happen to have the dining plan, you can do the Lion King show seating thing with Tusker House and it's still just one credit. That was a no-brainer for us the one trip where we had dining plan.

We're usually not early morning people, but for a summer trip, the early morning magic is great for getting in some headliners, then hitting some other big rides right at opening, and saving the FP+ for later in the morning. Then get out of there when the heat gets out of control.

 

[anonymousegirl]

My husband isn't into Disney, so go alone (and love it!) This September I am doing AH MK, MNSSHP, and HEA dessert party. I don't eat many desserts, but I love the viewing area. beign just one person makes it less of a hit on my wallet.
In the past, I have done MNSSHP, MVMCP, Frozen Dessert party (prior to the ride opening) Star wars dessert party and fireworks, WISHES dessert party, and Backstage Magic 7 hour tour. The backstage tour was awesome, but is restricted to over 16s, and is not that kid friendly--lots of behind the scenes areas like the costume shop, the laundry (Mickey has over 200 costume changes!) and the monorail depot.

 

[BigBadDisneyDad]

Wife and I did the Backstage Tour a few years ago. A little on the pricey side, but totally worth the splurge if you’re a Disney addict!