Hi Lorraine!
Welcome to planDisney.
It's always a pleasure to assist my fellow guests from the UK, and I'm happy to see that you have been able to secure the special offer of a Dining & Merchandise Credit for holidays in 2024.
The value of your Dining and Merchandise Credit is calculated per night of stay, depending on where you are staying, and is offered for each room reservation (not per guest). You will receive the total amount on the day you arrive at your Disney Resort hotel, and this will be emailed to you after you have checked in. You can then store it on your phone for easy access and you just need to show the bar code of your Dining & Merchandise credit at the point of sale. You can spend it any way you choose - solely for buying all your "essential" souvenirs, or spend it all on dining, across the whole Resort.
Talking about
Fantasmic! Dining Packages specifically, I don't see any reason why you can't use your Dining & Merchandise credit for this. There's nothing to pay in advance, and you settle your restaurant bill after your meal - as you would for any regular dining reservation. There are no other charges for this experience.
Making reservations for a Fantasmic! Dining Package gives you the best of both worlds - you will enjoy the meal you wanted anyway, but will receive a voucher for VIP seating for a showing of Fantasmic! later the same day. You don't need to turn up at the theater so early, either, so you have more time to enjoy
Disney's Hollywood Studios. Reservations can be made up to 60 days in advance, and you have the choice of dining at one of 5 restaurants there: Mama Melrose's Ristorante Italiano, Hollywood & Vine, The Hollywood Brown Derby, 50's Prime Time Cafe or Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater Restaurant.
You will be given your Fantasmic! seating voucher when you arrive at your chosen restaurant, which entitles you to a seat in the reserved section, on a first come, first served basis. You will not need to arrive at the Hollywood Hills Amphitheater until 25 minutes before showtime, but you can turn up whenever you want to, up to 90 minutes in advance.
Please come back and visit us again if you have any further questions, and you can
send me a direct question if you wish. We are always happy to help!
Sue