Which is the lesser evil -- scheming to see Spectro

[branvy]

Say a person (two adults) visiting WDW over Mother's Day weekend wants to enter MK in the evening just to see Spectro and Wishes....but absolutely cannot enter until 8:30 pm (Spectro is at 9 and 11, Wishes at 10). No expectation of getting particularly good viewing position, but would just like some view from any area facing the front of the castle. Which of these would be the lesser of mass chaos:

Thursday night -- which just happens to also be a morning EMH day

or

Saturday night -- reputedly a bad MK day

(and no one gets to see Wishes/Spectro on Friday b/c it's a P&PP).

Thoughts?

[RobWreck]

Go Thursday, aim the 11 pm showing of Spectromagic... stake out a good spot in Frontierland/Liberty Square. Many of the guests that take advantage of the EMH are going to be too wiped to stay for the 11 showing when there's one at 9 pm...
Rob

[Jasper]

Go Thursdays the crowds will normally be less intense. Of course, there is no guarantee that I am correct because there are so many combinations of situations that can work for or against you depending on the particular day you happen to be going. And even though you won't get the front row for the parade I suspect you will find a spot somewhere on Main Street that will give you reasonably decent viewing, you will just have to look around and maybe walk up and down the street a little to find just the right spot.

[FlaTinkRAMESAM]

Thursday for the 11p one. the 2nd showing is (usually) less crowded and you can much more easily get a seat with a view of the castle. And it'll be even easier since there are just 2 of you. It will be more crowded since it is Mother's Day weekend, but it shouldn't be a huge issue if you get there early. Have fun!!!

[CaptainJessicaSparrow]

As others have said, try to catch the second Spectro. It typically empties out a lot after fireworks since the little ones need to get to bed. It's always a lot less crowded than the earlier shows, especially on the Frontierland/Liberty Square side.

[branvy]

thanks everyone!

[Meteora]

Just one more thing to keep in mind--if you are entering the park around 8:30 and there is a spectro at 9, make sure you give yourself enough time to get through the gates and to wherever you'd like to be during the first parade (rides, fireworks viewing spot, etc.) before it starts. Once spectro begins, you basically won't be able to move from the entrance to anywhere else in the park until it has finished in that section of the park. It's very easy to get stuck.

[Marker]

For Wishes, a location where I've had good luck finding a decent last minute viewing spot is on or near the bridge that goes to Liberty Square. I've wandered up and found a spot right at show time before.

For SpectroMagic, look further down the parade route. I've often found a decent last minute spot back around the Country Bear Jamboree, or the Golden Horseshoe.

Places I'll look for a last minute spot are near or around a post, or beside a trash can.

[Young@Heart]

Just one more thing to keep in mind--if you are entering the park around 8:30 and there is a spectro at 9, make sure you give yourself enough time to get through the gates and to wherever you'd like to be during the first parade (rides, fireworks viewing spot, etc.) before it starts. Once spectro begins, you basically won't be able to move from the entrance to anywhere else in the park until it has finished in that section of the park. It's very easy to get stuck.

This happened to us in 2006 and it was the worst experience of that entire trip! :( There were 5 of us trying to get through (with a stroller) to HM and BTMRR. It was a nightmare and something I hope to never, ever repeat!

[kakn7294]

When we've had it happen that we couldn't get through on Main Street due to crowds, we've just ducked into any shop entrance on the Emporium side - they connect from one end of the buildings to the other and it makes it much easier to get through. I agree with everyone else, catch the 11p Spectro from somewhere in Frontierland / Liberty Square. The crowds will thin significantly after the first Spectro and even moreso after Wishes.

[CaptainJessicaSparrow]

Ducking through the Emporium won't help if they are on the wrong side of the street.

Trust me, I watch it every night.

I think the best bet is to go up the East Side (Confectionary, Art Store, etc) because you can get to all the bigger sections such as Tomorrowland, Fantasyland as well as Liberty Square and Frontierland if you go around the backside of the castle where the Rose Garden is at instead of trying to cross Liberty Square Bridge.

[kakn7294]

Ducking through the Emporium won't help if they are on the wrong side of the street.

Trust me, I watch it every night.

I think the best bet is to go up the East Side (Confectionary, Art Store, etc) because you can get to all the bigger sections such as Tomorrowland, Fantasyland as well as Liberty Square and Frontierland if you go around the backside of the castle where the Rose Garden is at instead of trying to cross Liberty Square Bridge.So true. I guess that I didn't take into consideration where they might want to go. We always just head to Adventureland first so going through the Emporium makes sense for us. I guess if you want to hit anywhere else, you'd have to go up the opposite side!

[Ian]

Go Thursday ... if you go to the 11PM showing you should be able to find a spot no problem.

I've actually found that if you go up to the train station you can see pretty well even if you're 2 or 3 deep from the railing.

[katzctkpt]

Go Thursday being EMH morning chances are the park should be lighter and plan to see the later parade.