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View Full Version : Ariels Grotto Closing For Dinner Seatings For World Of Color/Possible Premium Seating



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ogold72
04-24-2010, 10:40 AM
Ariels Grotto (soon to be renamed to Princess Palace) has stopped taking dinner reservations starting May 1 in response to the World of Color show. Currently, they will stop serving at around 4pm. The outdoor dining is probably going to be a good place to watch the show and Disney is trying to figure out how to deal with those who want to dine and watch the show. They are considering about whether to make this premium seating option, whether Princesses will go outside (apparently guests might feel the mist from the show because of the outdoor dinings proximity.

If you were planning to go to Ariels Grotto in the evening after 1 May, I suggest calling back often to see if the status has changed. I suspect it will as we get closer to the shows debut.

I was not able to find out when the show will actually start though. Does anyone know?

Toocherie
04-24-2010, 11:32 AM
World of Color is set to officially debut on June 11. Se thread here:

http://mousepad.mouseplanet.com/showthread.php?t=145089

Likely they will close Ariel's Grotto May 1 because of run-throughs and soft openings of the show.

Where did you get the info about Ariel's?

ogold72
04-24-2010, 11:53 AM
I called Disney Dining and CM gave me the information. CM stated they partial closure was to decide what to do with the outdoor space with respect to the new show

houseofmouse
04-24-2010, 12:12 PM
They need a month to do that? I am thinking they will have more previews durning that time testing the seating there to see how it is.

Toocherie
04-24-2010, 12:45 PM
I am thinking they will have more previews durning that time testing the seating there to see how it is.

HOM I think you're right! Honestly, doesn't anyone think of these things in advance? With the popularity of the Premium Seating for Fantasmic you would thought the planners at DCA would have thought of this ahead of time and built some special place for Premium Seating for WOC. Instead of putting a square peg in a round hole at the last minute .. . .

DizneyMommy
04-24-2010, 01:45 PM
Seems odd to me... that is a LOT of money down the drain if they close for dinner for a month and a half - May 1st through June 11th?

3Princesses1Prince
04-24-2010, 05:02 PM
They already rescheduled our ressies for June 19.

cstephens
04-24-2010, 08:21 PM
I still don't really see how premium seating at Ariel's Grotto would work. The angle seems less than ideal to me, not to mention I would expect there's a good chance of getting wet there from the jets used in the show.

SigalTchelet
04-24-2010, 09:01 PM
I have reservations for breakfast on the 24th of next month. Do you think they will be affected?

ogold72
04-25-2010, 12:23 PM
Breakfast and lunch are not to be effected. I dont understand why they started May 1 either. Maybe they are using the time as an opportunity to do work on the retheming from Ariels Grotto to Princess Palace, but that is purely speculation. I think that once they have things right in their heads, they will open it up for dinner again, so I would call back often to see if they opened reservations back up

MammaSilva
04-25-2010, 01:03 PM
don't be so confident that they'll reopen the location for dinner service. If they can convert it to a premium viewing location like they do on the Rivers of America they can make significant money without the overhead of the staff and characters that they currently have. A simple dessert box handed out by the 'usher' CM's would be a huge profit margin over full dinner service.

bombardon3
04-26-2010, 01:06 AM
Maybe they are worried about people dining outdoors getting wet during the show?

olegc
04-26-2010, 05:11 PM
HOM I think you're right! Honestly, doesn't anyone think of these things in advance? With the popularity of the Premium Seating for Fantasmic you would thought the planners at DCA would have thought of this ahead of time and built some special place for Premium Seating for WOC. Instead of putting a square peg in a round hole at the last minute .. . .

To me - it's going to be closed for a month so they can exactly test how some sort of dining, dessert, or other offering can be handled by CMs. Remember - any remaining testing still has to be done after park closing. By having the restaurant close at 4 - the entire staff cleans up and preps for the next day's park opening. After all is said and done (maybe by 6 or 7) planners and DCA Foods can start to figure out what to offer, how to handle traffic flow and seating, and what kinds of changes they need to make in order to ensure every guests' experience is a good one. Yes - that takes a month (and no they would not use weekend days to try this out, weeknights only).

MadasaHatter
04-27-2010, 10:54 AM
ABSOLUTELY OLEG C,

They could also be using that time to refurbish the place if it is getting a name change. I would want the restaurant to be up and running BY June 11th and all kinks worked out. I am very excited about the new show and I for one like to do premium seating the first time I see FANTASMIC but after I have seen the show I like to spend my money elsewhere and just stand like everyone else. SO if you have a crappy view from there or get wet I wouldn't care to sit there. SO EXCITED for WOC!!! Of course I am mad.....

Disneyland1955
04-27-2010, 11:42 AM
i am going down in may and i have reservations for 5:10 for dinner on may 12th because the park closes at 6 and that is the last reservation. and as soon as i saw this i called to confirm and they said my reservations were still good. so now Im confused.

houseofmouse
04-27-2010, 01:49 PM
Is your reservation for inside or outside?^^^

cnonnahs
04-27-2010, 08:16 PM
I have reservations for May 23rd at 4:50p.m. Should I be calling?!? Should I call and request outside seating with the possibility of seeing some of WOC?

olegc
04-28-2010, 08:50 AM
well now that it appears there is some question as to whether it's closed or not (one poster said yes, another was told that the ressie as still good) I would recommend everyone who has reservations late in the day from May 1 on to call and double check. even maybe a couple of times before you arrive.

Toocherie
04-28-2010, 10:26 AM
we checked out the outside area of Ariel's the other day--the angle is really bad for what I know about WOC--I don't think it would be a great location for viewing.

3Princesses1Prince
04-28-2010, 01:20 PM
I have reservations for May 23rd at 4:50p.m. Should I be calling?!? Should I call and request outside seating with the possibility of seeing some of WOC?

It won't show that early...it'll still be daylight.

foolishmortal
04-28-2010, 09:03 PM
I still don't really see how premium seating at Ariel's Grotto would work. The angle seems less than ideal to me, not to mention I would expect there's a good chance of getting wet there from the jets used in the show.

See that is what hit my mind. That because of the spray from the show that dining outside at that time would pose all kinds of trouble. Like guests and servers slipping on the wet cement.

I think it is more to determine the risk of guests being in that area during a show then for P. seating.

They maybe doing lots of run through to test what will happen in that area before they let seating resume. I'm sure the safety lawyers are in on this one.

I'm betting that P. seating goes along the new wooden board walk area instead. Or right over the water play area?

Has anyone else noticed that the new trellises will block a lot of the viewing area when the plants get all the way over it?

A bunch of us commented on that last Saturday when we were in the park.

mechurchlady
04-29-2010, 01:15 AM
If I was paying $50+ for priority seating then I would want something like Fantasmic where I had a good view. Maybe they will extend the trattorria out a bit but really the best spot is in San Francisco area. They could redo the San Francisco area to have balconies with views though I prefer the current facades.

AJDerrick
04-29-2010, 06:35 AM
I called for F! PS yesterday and asked the CM if they had any details about possible PS for WoC. He said they're planning on doing something, but no word yet on what. Which is ok by me, we're going at the end of May to avoid the WoC rush (hopefully). We'll go back in the fall to see WoC when they have some of the crowd control issues worked out and when we know if the PS is any good.

3Princesses1Prince
04-29-2010, 09:30 AM
See that is what hit my mind. That because of the spray from the show that dining outside at that time would pose all kinds of trouble. Like guests and servers slipping on the wet cement.

I think it is more to determine the risk of guests being in that area during a show then for P. seating.

They maybe doing lots of run through to test what will happen in that area before they let seating resume. I'm sure the safety lawyers are in on this one.

I'm betting that P. seating goes along the new wooden board walk area instead. Or right over the water play area?

Has anyone else noticed that the new trellises will block a lot of the viewing area when the plants get all the way over it?

A bunch of us commented on that last Saturday when we were in the park.

Good point, but they could still do inside seating for dinner then...

KarenW2
04-29-2010, 11:52 AM
While I don't think the "sight lines" for WoC from Ariel's will be good, they may do something along the lines of what Epcot did for the Candlelight Processional package people last December when we went, to be able to see Illuminations that night. It wasn't a seating area, but a Priority VIEWING area.

You had dinner at the restaurant for your package, watched the CP, then went to a special roped off area, to see Illuminations. You had to show them the sticker they had you wear for CP to enter that area.