First of all, I would like to thank US Family Guide and Medieval Times for their partnership in sponsoring this blog post!
This past week was Spring Break for Elena’s school and we had planned a belated birthday adventure for her in Kissimmee, Florida. Our family believes that experiences and memories are more important than physical gifts like toys.
Her family and friends contributed to her trip instead of buying things she would outgrow or only play with a few times. The result was amazing and will be talked about in future blogs as well.
Let’s start off with our experience this past week at Medieval Times in Kissimmee. Our show was scheduled to start at 6 PM and we were instructed to arrive at least an hour early to ensure we were seated in time for the show. We were provided with basic tickets, but for Elena’s birthday, I opted to upgrade to the celebration package for an additional $18 per person.
This package included:
- Priority Castle Access
- VIP seating
- Priority Seating Access
- Cheering Banner
- VIP Lanyard
- Group Photo for Each Member of the Party
- Slice of Birthday Cake for Each Member of the Party
- Personalized Announcement During the Show
Our Arrival:
When we arrived to check in, we were asked if we wanted to upgrade again to the Queen’s Royalty VIP package for an additional $4 per person. This upgrade added first row center seating and frames for our pictures. I decided that the upgrade would be worth it and accepted. We were ushered towards the hallway for photos where we were given our crowns and then posed for a family photo, a family photo with one of the cast members, and finally a photo with Excalibur, the sword in the stone.
From there, we moved into the main waiting area with tons of souvenirs for sale and a bar to get drinks both alcoholic and non-alcoholic. It would have been very easy to get caught up in buying these items, but we made an agreement beforehand to put our focus on the experience rather than trinkets. The main area was very cramped and there were a LOT of people pushing and shoving to get where they wanted to be. When they started making announcements for seating, it was difficult to hear and understand at first.
When it was our turn to be seated, we were walked in and saw that there wasn’t a lot of room in between each person. While I understand the need to maximize their seating, it’s not exactly a comfortable situation practically sitting on top of a stranger with no where to place your belongings. We were given a choice of Pepsi, Sweet Tea or Water as a drink but somewhere along the way, our server, Albert, became confused and we ended up with a mixture of pepsi and sweet tea.
All About The Food:
The first course arrived in the form of tomato basil soup and garlic bread. Our server joked that it was dragon’s blood and Elena loved it. The soup had a great flavor and was moderately warm. This feast is “hands-on”, meaning no silverware is provided. We drank the soup straight from the bowl, which Elena found hysterical and asked if she could always drink her soup!
The main course was a half of a roasted chicken, half of a herb-basted baked potato and a piece of buttered corn on the cob. I was pleasantly surprised at the crispiness of the chicken skin, seasoned well and the meat was tender and juicy! It was a very generous portion and would have easily been enough without all of the side dishes. The potato had just enough bite that it didn’t fall apart while still being a well cooked flavor bomb of herbs. As for the corn, it is a flavor I can’t wait to replicate at home as it was buttered with hints of cayenne and paprika for a sweet heat that tingles on your tongue.
The Negatives:
Unfortunately, because of the cramped seating, when we were trying to assist our daughter with her meal, her drink was knocked over onto her plate and her entire meal was drowning in sweet tea. It took 15 minutes to flag down our server and he told us not to worry and that he would bring us napkins and another plate of food for our daughter.
Albert came around again, this time with prepackaged wipes for after our meal, as if nothing had happened. We again requested napkins and another plate for Elena. He apologized for forgetting, handed us a few napkins and then disappeared again. Jason and I were grateful that the portions of chicken were so large, because we ended up sharing ours with her instead of waiting any longer for a plate that was obviously not coming.
It was then time for dessert. Since we had the celebration upgrade, we received an additional piece of cake with the dessert on the menu, a cup of ice cream with caramel sauce, served with a wooden spoon. The cake was vanilla with a white icing and sprinkles. It was a bit dry and the icing seemed to be still frozen, but Elena was so hungry she ate hers and mine as well.
All About The Show:
The Queen, Doña Maria Isabella, has taken over for her late father (presumably the king from the previous show). She presides over a tournament to find the best knight in the land; drama ensues when a knight who has been acting dishonorably challenges her authority.
Mixed in to the show are various performances of the horses doing tricks, the flight of the falcon and other well choreographed horse and rider triumphs in the arena. We were enthralled throughout the show! Elena was even chosen by our knight to receive his ribbon! She excitedly wore it for the remainder of the night.
Final Thoughts:
This is when I really got upset. Albert came around again with a credit card plate and a card. This card thanked us for being there and informed us gratuity was not included in our tickets. When we declined because of everything that had occurred, he mentioned at least 4 times to request we leave something, even attempting to prevent us from leaving without an explanation. At this point, we were so frustrated by the experience, we just wanted to get home.
Overall, the show was a lot of fun and we had a pretty great time. It’s not necessarily something I would do more than once, but the upgrades were worth it. That being said, if I had paid the full amount of over $80 per person and my daughter didn’t even get to eat her full meal… (I understand that a drink spilling isn’t exactly their fault, but with the amount of money spent, any additional effort of kindness would have been appreciated.) we did feel some frustration.
However, I still recommend visiting Medieval Times if you are in Kissimmee or
Additional Information Direct From Medieval Times:
Experience North America’s most popular dinner attraction. See our electrifying show featuring heroic knights on magnificent horses displaying the astounding athletic feats and thrilling swordplay that have become hallmarks of this unique entertainment experience. Enjoy a “hands-on” feast as the dynamic performance unfolds before you. A sweeping musical score and brilliant lights provide a fabulous backdrop for this spellbinding experience that blurs the boundary between fairy tale and spectacle!
Audiences of all ages gather to cheer for their knight! Medieval Times is the perfect place for any occasion: family fun night, birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, date night, and more!
Experience the New Show | Tickets 40% OFF Adults/20% OFF Kids – For the first time in Medieval Times’ 35-year history, a Queen has taken the throne. Her Majesty Dona Maria Isabella presides over a tournament of knights who gather in celebration to test their skill against one another in a series of games, jousting, and combat.
The new story brings a series of changes to the show including new costumes, custom-designed and handmade armor, fight scenes, and musical score composed by Dr. Daniel May, who directed and recorded the composition in Kiev with the National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine. Be among the first to experience the debut of our new show.
Save Money On Your Tickets!
Click HERE and enter PROMO code RF4020 at checkout for your discounts!
