are illumiNations cruises worth it?

[cheekytink]

We are considering an IllumiNations cruise at the end of the summer, hopefully before it disappears forever, but I wonder if it's worth it? What are your opinions if you have done this before?
We would be a party of 10 luckily, and it's my brother's 10th Wedding anniversary, so a good reason (excuse) to book!

[firsttimemouse]

We did it and really enjoyed it. I suppose whether it’s worth it or not depends on the individual.

You watch the firework parked up by the bridge between the U.K. and France pavilion. I guess you could be stood on the bridge just easily. However the whole thing was a very relaxing experience.

[paulac]

We did it and would do it again. You don't need park entry, so can do something else during the day if you wish. We found it very relaxing... No pushing and shoving at the end of the illuminations to get out of the park. As there are a few of you I would say it is cost effective and I believe you can take your own drinks and snacks onboard with you. Do it

[pchivvy]

Hi
we have done it a couple of times now, and its brilliant. No rushing to get a good vantage point, comfortable seats, perfect view and snacks and soft drinks are provided on board free of charge. The captain was great each time and gave us lots of background information on the fireworks too. He sailed around a little bit before the fireworks which was relaxing and took us down to the Hollywood Studios entrance which gave me an idea, so I asked him cheekily if it was possible after illuminations to go down and see the Star Wars fireworks which were on shortly afterwards, so he hoofed it down the waterworks afterwards so that we got to see two fireworks shows at once. The view wasn't great as you couldn't see the light show but we got to see the fireworks which we otherwise wouldn't have got to see. It was a lovely evening. Just remember your tip at the end.

[grumpybri]

Did it last year for the first time, 6 of us in our own little boat. Had a fantastic time.
You get a tour round the lakes into the front of Studios and could see the fireworks of Fantasmic.
We then parked up under the bridge between France and England with a couple of other boats for a perfect view of the show. The planets aligned when we did it as we had a full moon rise above the metel Earth in the middle of the lake at the start of the show. Our tour guide said that in 10 years of doing the tour he had never had this. Made it realy magical.

[BevS97]

We did it a few years ago now (like 15 years ago) and shared it with other families. At the time the cost and exchange rate made it a great deal. I don’t know what it costs now but I’d expect it’s more than I’m willing to pay.

[Gwilspeed]

Do it! We did last August and it was super, really relaxing sitting on the boat to watch the show which is a million times better than standing with 100’s of others.
We get soft drinks plus snacks on the boat and we arranged to have some beers delivered to us before we set sail.

[Milpston]

We did one in October for just the 5 of us. Really enjoyed it and would consider doing it again. With a party of 10 I would say it is well worth the cost for a nice chilled out way to watch illuminations.

[cheekytink]

Thanks everyone- booked it today for 31st August. With IllumiNations going away forever it should be pretty special, if not a bit emotional!
Total cost of $371.60, so with the $ at 1.32, that’s £281. Seems like a good option, and very VIP!

[JessBlu]

Done it enjoyed it, it’s expensive we are having 2 nights in Clearwater for the same price !