Wishes Reserved Viewing--AAA Member Benefit

Wouldn’t it be great to find a seat to watch Wishes the nighttime spectacular at the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World after a long day of park touring?  I can think of only a handful of ways to make that happen one of which is the Wishes Dessert Party which we have done—click here to read more, and the other is AAA’s Reserved Wishes Viewing.

AAA’s Reserved Wishes Viewing is a member benefit for guests who purchase packages that include a Dining Plan—any of the plans including Quick Service.  A voucher for the reserved viewing comes in the package paperwork booklet.  On the back of the voucher there is a number to call to make a reservation for the reserved viewing and the voucher and reservation are required to enter the reserved viewing area.

The Cast Members at the entrance

The area for the AAA Reserved Wishes viewing is located near The Plaza on Main Street U.S.A. at the Magic Kingdom.  The area is actually half of the patio located near the water’s edge to the right of Cinderella’s Castle and the entrance to the area is located just off Main Street to the right.  The area is roped off and staffed 3 hours prior to the fireworks.  The other half of the patio is a smoking location and is fair game for all the other guests in the park.

The reserved area

We were told that the seating is first come first serve and we were fortunate to get seats when we made our entrance to the area after watching the parade from Main Street very near the entrance to the reserved viewing location.

At the entrance our names were checked for our reservation and our voucher was taken.  We were able to leave the location once settled to use the restroom—located just to the left of The Plaza restaurant.  It would have also been okay to bring a snack or something to eat or drink. 

Our seats and view!

The view of Wishes and the castle show just prior to Wishes was great!  Tinker Bell also flew right by us!

Here are some tips for getting the most out of AAA’s Reserved Wishes Viewing:

• Don’t wait for the voucher to arrive in your packet.  Have your AAA travel agent make the reservation at the same time dining reservations are made.  We have tried on two other occasions to get this reservation AFTER our paperwork arrived only to find that there were no open spots.  I counted less than 50 guests in the reserved viewing area.
• Know the time of Wishes during your stay as the time changes throughout the year.  You can find this information on any park calendar but www.wdwmagic.com has a great calendar including parades and fireworks.  This way you can determine the 3 hour window when the area is roped off and check-in during the window to make sure you have a seat.
• You could watch the parade that is typically just prior to Wishes from the reserved viewing location but you would only see portions of the floats that are taller than the people watching near the street.  I would make this trade off for a seat in a not crowded area!
• OR if there is a second parade at Magic Kingdom—which there is during peak travel times, I would take advantage of the park when people are queued up for the parade, make my way to the location for Reserved Wishes Viewing about 30 minutes before Wishes and THEN watch the second parade.

I know that we will put AAA’s Reserved Wishes Viewing at the Magic Kingdom into our plans again.

NOTE:  Reserved Wishes Viewing and Disney Story Time—click here to read more—are AAA Member Benefits and are a part of travel packages booked through a AAA travel agent.