Buffalo Bill's Wild West Dinner Show: Is This Disneyland Paris Experience Worth It?

While visiting Disneyland Paris we had purchased a Premium Dining Plan. This plan allowed us access to more restaurant options and some special experiences like character dining not included with lower level plans. One of the options available happened to be for a dinner show located in the Disney Village area called “Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show... with Mickey and Friends: The Wildest Show in the West!” We had heard many people loved it and figured we should check it out one night. Was it worth ponying up one of our meal plan credits? Well saddle up and read on to learn more…

Booking the Show

A ticket to Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show includes the following:

• Dinner Show (about 1.5 hours)

• 3-course Western themed meal

• Choice of Beer or Soda as well as Coffee or Tea

• You also get a fun Cowboy hat

Since the show is quite popular it is recommended to make advance reservations. You can book as early as 2 months before your trip. (If you are in the U.S. you must call to make this reservation.) The show is offered Fridays–Tuesdays with two showtimes per night:

• The first show is at 6:30pm (Guests are suggested to arrive at 5:30pm)

• The second show is at 9:30pm (Guests are suggested to arrive at 8:30pm)

There is also an option to choose your seat category:

• Tier 1 is $96.76 per adult

• Tier 2 is $78.62 per adult

Our plan included Tier 2 tickets but we had the option to pay extra for “better seats.” We stuck with Tier 2 and our seats were great, there was no need to pay for a closer view. (we were in the yellow section close to the blue icons on the map below)

Enjoying the show in our new hats!

An overview of the arena with Tier 1 & 2 sections.

The Pre-Show and Our Seats

After checking-in promptly at 5:30, we collected our cowboy hats and cards that indicated what section we were seated in. We then walked into a larger common area that included a bar, a few picture opportunities, and stage. While beer is included with the show, all drinks in this pre-show area were for purchase. (It was kind of funny to see all the Europeans getting a kick out of wearing cowboy hats and drinking American beer.)

This Mickey is at the entrance of the show building.

Guests receive cards to help find their arena seats.

About 20 minutes prior to actual showtime, three cowboys came out on stage to sing a few songs and tell a few stories/jokes to get the crowd exited. They were also joined briefly by Cowboy Goofy who is always fun to see. Right after the stage show was wrapped up, guests were directed to the entrances to the arena based on the color of their section. While you are assigned to a certain section, you aren’t assigned to a specific seat. Once in the arena guests are sat in the order they walk in. We ended up being seated pretty high (the second from the top) but were looking right down the center of the arena. Even though we were higher up, the seats were good and we didn’t have any problems seeing the show.

Note: there is an allergy warning for people sensitive to dust and horses. If that is a concern we would also recommend choosing Tier 2 as well to be further up from the action.

The three cowboys playing some folk tunes.

Howdy Goofy!

Our Tier 2 view was pretty great!

The Cowboy Grub

Being a big arena dinner show we didn’t go in expecting anything too high-end. But all in all, we were pleasantly surprised with the portions and the taste. The food was themed with the show and was served while watching the action.

Starter: Corn Tortilla Chips
Upon sitting we noticed that between every couple of people there was a basket filled with chips. There was no salsa or anything, but it was nice to munch on something before food service officially began.

Drinks: Beer or Soda
Everyone had a glass and when the server came by you could choose to fill it with water, Coke (and we think Diet Coke as well), or beer (it tasted like a Bud Light or something similar). There were two refills throughout the show for a total of 3 glasses of your beverage of choice.

Appertizer: Cattleman’s Chilli
This beef and bean chili had a little corn too. It was actually really good. It came with a piece of cornbread as well.

Cattleman’s Chili and Cornbread

Main: Texan Skillet
We were served a tray with a quarter chicken, sausage link, two ribs, and a few small potatoes. Even though simple BBQ food, it was good and a hearty portion.

The Texas Skillet main course.

Dessert: Apple Crisp
This warm apple dessert was topped with vanilla ice cream. It was good, nothing too special, but was perfect for the theme.

Drinks: Coffee or Tea
With dessert you had the option for a simple coffee or tea as well.

Warm apple dessert.

Coffee and tea.

The Main Event

“Saddle up and witness how the West was won in this spectacular, gun-slinging live arena show. Hosted by the legendary Buffalo Bill, famous faces, such as Chief Sitting Bull, Annie Oakley and the Rough Riders, re-enact fabled moments from the frontier through stunning shootouts and sensational stunts. Plus there are special appearances by Mickey and Friends to help you cheer on all the action.”

Let the Cowboy games begin!

Of course any show at Disney is going to have the main goal of being great for families and entertaining for kids. But even as two adults we still enjoyed ourselves. The Buffalo Bill Wild West show is inspired by traveling Cowboy shows from the past. The costumes and set design are historical inspired. There is a heavy use of horses and even some real steer make an appearance. There are some riding tricks and use of props like flags, lassos, and guns. There is a storyline throughout that features different characters such as Native Americans and stage coach robbers. In addition to live actors portraying Buffalo Bill and Annie Oakley there are some appearances by Disney characters in western gear too.

Each guest section has a designated character that they cheer for during the various contests. There was a lot of crowd interaction including chanting and utensil banging on the table. Similar to other dinner shows there is some campy humor but we tend to enjoy this kind of thing once in awhile and appreciate the corniness. We found we were most impressed by a lot of the animals and stunts more so than the story. We found that the duration of the show was just right. We felt like we got our value of time and weren’t rushed, but it also wasn’t too long to start to bore people. It was also interesting to see something so “American” in another country. We imagine this show may not have the same draw if located at a U.S. park but people really seemed to love it here. We thought it was something fun to throw into the mix while we were visiting.

A group of Cowboys and Native Americans.

The main star: Buffalo Bill.

Check out the authentic steer and stage coaches.

Annie Oakley played a strong role too.

Mickey & friends making an appearance.

Service

Being a large arena show the service is different versus being at an individual table. Everyone was friendly enough and everything seemed scheduled and fairly prompt. We did notice our server was working a rather large section and would also have to stop their duties every so often to help participate in the show as well. We would have loved maybe one more drink refill throughout the show, and we found our dessert and coffee arrived too far apart to enjoy together. But overall we found the service sufficient.

Final Thoughts

The night we attended was very busy and we can see the draw of why people love this show. Of the five sit down meals we had in Disneyland Paris, this would rank fourth overall on our list. We found that the value was really good. To get all that food, plus beers, and a show (plus souvenir hat!) seemed like a great option compared to what the prices were for most table service restaurants on property. The food wasn’t fancy, but it was good and filling. Plus it was super fun to throw on a hat and be transported to the time of cowboys. The entertainers and animals were very skilled and impressive to watch. If you have enough time while visiting Disneyland Paris to fit in Buffalo Bill’s Dinner Show we recommend to check it out. Now that we have done it once we aren’t sure if we do again (as we would most likely try something new) but we found this unique experience very worthwhile and were glad to experience it.