Bibbidi Bobbidi/Pirate League

[darthmacho]

I'm trying to decide whether it is worth it to fit in either of these activities on our vacation to WDW this year, so I decided to seek the advice of the experts.

My DD just turned 11, and now that I found out that Bibbidi inly serves up to 12yo, I fear this may be her last chance to partake in this activity. The only reason I hesitate is that it would take precious time away from the Magic Kingdom, and even though we're going for 14 days, we're doing our customary 3 day stint at MK, and always find that it isn't enough.

My questions are this:


Roughly how much time will it take?
Is it worth it?
Is it a better experience at MK than DD?
Is Pirate League a better alternative? (Depends on the kid, I know...)
If I decide to do it what is the BEST strategy for booking it? (When should I book it, and for what time?)
Finally, does the fancy hair-do and make-up create a glitter-filled/tangled hair nightmare that one needs to deal with for the rest of the vacation?


If you have any answers, it would be appreciated! :princess: :pirate:

[disneymom15]

We've never done BBB, but I would tend to think it would be a "glitter-filled tangled hair nightmare". One time while we were there, a CM sprinkled glitter on my daughters hair & it was a real mess. She was not happy because the CM took it upon herself to do it without her permission. It was several days before it was all finally washed out.

[RedSoxandPatsfan]

My kids have done both. My thirteen year old DD wanted to do BBB with her 11 yo (DN) cousin in April. She was bummed to find out she's to old.

She did opt to do the Pirate League empress package with the other two. She has done that before also and loves it too. So we'll have one princess and three pirates this trip.

I would go with the castle if you can (more magic IMO), and because of the new age restriction I would definetely recommend BBB at her age. You can always go back to Pirate league another time or even later on the same trip (14 days whoa!).

Cost wasn't too bad but that's also an opinion. None of ours in the past have had an issue with the hair being a tangled mess. One year we did get plastic gift bags at the shop next to Splash mountain. The two girls that year used them to cover their head when they went on the ride so the hair wouldn't get wet. They were able to wrap it like a towel somehow so their hands were still free for the ride.

Hope this helps. Have fun.

[darthmacho]

Thanks for the replies, and yes, it helps. I'll consult my wife, of course, for her opinion.

Being a 14 day trip, $$ is unfortunately an issue, since we've basically used our vacation budget just to make it happen, and now we're scrambling to save for spending money! :whew:

[AgentC]

I did this with my 3 year old in October. We did it at DTD so I can not comment on the location comparison.

Roughly how much time will it take? My daughter did the hair, nails and make up. She also has very long hair. It took about an hour to an hour and a half. We did not have to wait for our appointment. If they are running behind it could add time.
Is it worth it?It was worth it for my daughter. She is princess obsessed and wanted one ever since she saw a girl have one on the Disney Channel. She was thrilled beyond belief. And I am really happy with the photos and videos we took. especially of her reveal. Your mileage may vary. :)
Is it a better experience at MK than DD?Don't know.
Is Pirate League a better alternative? (Depends on the kid, I know...) Have not tried it yet
If I decide to do it what is the BEST strategy for booking it? (When should I book it, and for what time?)I called around 45 days out because that is when I found out my daughter wanted to do it. They had availability at both the Castle and DTD, but DTD was a better time for us. We did late morning which worked out well as far as wait time. However, my daughter wanted to swim between her appointment and dinner , so she took out the hair piece before dinner. :(
Finally, does the fancy hair-do and make-up create a glitter-filled/tangled hair nightmare that one needs to deal with for the rest of the vacation?It was not too bad. For two of the hair styles they pull the hair into a very slicked back twisted pony tail with lots of hair spray and glitter. I had no problem taking out the hair piece that was added. We left the pony in for an extra day. After that it was easy to wash out. The glitter remained on her scalp for a long time. Maybe even weeks, but it didn't bother her and didn't cause a problem with her hair.

Hope this helps.

[crltkcagle]

We are planning on doing the pirate league this upcoming trip. We saw several people who did it on our last trip and they all loved it. I would like to see what other people's experiences have been.

[RedSoxandPatsfan]

We are planning on doing the pirate league this upcoming trip. We saw several people who did it on our last trip and they all loved it. I would like to see what other people's experiences have been.

This will be our second time here. The kids had a blast the last time. The CMs are awesome interacting with the kids during the process. They got comments all day long at MK on how good they looked.

We are doing it again this time. It was actually at the request of the oldest child (ds 13). I thought he was going to think he was too old for it so we didn't ask. He did ask after we booked. Said it'd be really cool to do it again. Who knew?

So we asked and booked the others. One of them will be doing the Pirate for the first time. So it will be neat to see her reaction.