Dinner at Yachtsman and illuminations afterwards?

[sophie131]

Hi all,

We are set to have dinner at the Yachtsman around 6pm and illuminations is at 9pm. Is it possible to park at the Yachtsman for dinner and then walk to Epcot afterwards or is there a limit on how long you can park your car for at the resort? Also, is the international gateway still open after the park closes?

Thanks

 

[Wood Nymph]

Hi all,

We are set to have dinner at the Yachtsman around 6pm and illuminations is at 9pm. Is it possible to park at the Yachtsman for dinner and then walk to Epcot afterwards or is there a limit on how long you can park your car for at the resort? Also, is the international gateway still open after the park closes?

Thanks

The International Gateway stays open for a while after the park closes. People use it to get back to their cars in the Epcot parking lot if they have dined in the resort area.

 

[Shellyb84]

I think it's a 3 hour limit for parking at a resort with an ADR so I would think that your plan is close enough.

 

[Dr.Mickey]

There are quite a few discussions on here about a 3 hour parking limit at resorts - however, if you have a reservation at a restaurant, and you are not parking at the Poly or Contemporary, you will be fine. We have stayed at the BC many times, and I've never seen a car towed out of the lot. I have never heard a security guard state the 3 hour time limit, and we resort hop in our cars all the time. When you pull up, just say you have a reservation at Yacthsman, and they will happily point you in the right direction. They will NOT say "And be sure to move your car in 3 hours", unless you bring up the question. I wouldn't ask.

I will say this, I did not know that guests could enter the international gateway after 9pm. We are always in for Illuminations, or out for good at that time of night. That's pretty cool, Sophie131. I learned something new.

 

[Mark Cameron]

Can you see Illuminations from the Yachtsman? I have ADR for February 1st at 6 and was wondering if there is somewhere around there that I could see the fireworks?

 

[natebenma]

I will say this, I did not know that guests could enter the international gateway after 9pm. We are always in for Illuminations, or out for good at that time of night. That's pretty cool, Sophie131. I learned something new.

You can exit EPCOT using the International Gateway after 9 pm (or park close). I don't think you would be able to go the other way- Once EPCOT is closed, they shouldn't be letting you into EPCOT. This would be a problem for someone who parked in the EP lot and was at one of the resort restaurants or bars past 9 pm.

 

[natebenma]

Can you see Illuminations from the Yachtsman? I have ADR for February 1st at 6 and was wondering if there is somewhere around there that I could see the fireworks?

You can see the high fireworks from Illuminations from various places at the resort, as well as some of the fireworks from Hollywood Studios.

From the Yacht & Beach Club FAQ thread:

an you see any of the Illuminations fireworks from places around the resort?

There are a few places where you can view some of the high fireworks from EPCOT's Illuminations show. Many people recommend watching the fireworks from the bridge between the Beach Club and the Boardwalk resort areas. You can also see some of the high fireworks from the Beach Club beach or from the Stormalong Bay pool. Wood Nymph recommends the Yacht Club boat dock. Another suggestion (EagleScout) is to view the fireworks from the bridge connecting the YC and Swan resorts.


From bridge between Beach Club and Boardwalk (photo by pixarmom), from the beach (photo by creativeamanda) and from Stormalong Bay (picture by natebenma):

Check this out!!!

So I'm going to try an experiment here. I shot these using my remote shutter through the Nikon app. When I do that it also saves the images (as jpegs) to my phone and then my phone automatically uploads to Google Photos. I messed around at the airport on the way home and created a nice little animation with it using the jpegs so I'm going to try and post that. I did edit the RAW files so these aren't my "edits", and some of the shots didn't turn out great, but the animation was pretty cool and should give you a good idea of what to expect. Lets see if I can pull this off.

Here's a link from my August 2014 trip report with pictures of the Illuminations Fireworks and the Summer Frozen Fireworks from the Boardwalk Bridge.

Fireworks as Far as the Eye Can See
​

 

[Kimberle]

During my YC stay in Dec. I could see both the HS and Epcot FW's from my window. (Not all, but the high parts.) HS was at 9 and Illum at 9:30. If you are looking to see FW's and not just a "show", you could watch from the BC/YC beach. Enjoy your YS meal. I ate there last trip, and it was probably the best meal (and most expensive) I've ever had. Go there starving cause the portions are large.

 

[JerseyJanice]

Like @Kimberle, my last meal at the Yachtsman was one of the best restaurant meals I ever had in my entire life. Truly fantastic.

Our meal did take over 2 1/2 hours for 3 courses so make sure your ADR is about 3 hours before Illuminations. When you’re done at the restaurant, it’s a short walk to the International Gateway.