Arabian Knights: Home of the American Princess

When I took Angeline and her cousin to the Orlando and Kissimmee area last week, I knew we had to begin the weekend festivities with a bang. It was going to be a short trip and I wanted to pack as much fun into our two days as possible.

What do you do when you want to show two teenage girls a good time when the theme parks are already closed on a Friday night?

You take them to the Arabian Knights dinner show in Kissimmee!

The current featured production at Arabian Nights is The American Princess, an adventurous tale of romance.

On her 21st birthday, an all-American girl and champion rider discovers that she is the Princess Scheherazade. Along with her genie Abracadabra, Princess Scheherazade takes the audience on a journey around the world to find her prince – who must love horses as much as she does.

We were fortunate enough to receive three VIP passes, and arrived in time for the preshow, which consisted of free appetizers (chips and salsa and pasta salad) and a belly dancing show.

Now, I know my belly dancing. My best friend is a belly dancer and I've been around her professional belly-dancing friends for years.

I know a good belly roll when I see one!

The belly dancer at Arabian Knights was actually a good belly dancer and she really did a fantastic job of getting the kids excited and involved. She even brought a few of the little ones onto the stage to dance with her!

After the belly dancing show, we were ushered into the Arabian Knights arena, where we had the opportunity to climb up on one of their horses for a photo opportunity. We were all wearing dresses, so we decided to take a pass on flashing the audience.

You're welcome.

I have to say that my niece's favorite part of the evening was what came next...

Going into the stables!

While most of the horses were in their pens, Arabian Knights did have a few out for petting and photographs. My niece loves horses and has one at her grandparent's farm. She was giddy with excitement at being able to pet one that reminded her of her own baby!

I found out that Arabian Knights also offers the option of having a private tour of the stables after the show for a fee of $200.00.

I don't love my niece quite that much, so she had to make due with the public tour.

Sorry, Brit. 

There was a couple sitting next to us that were celebrating a birthday and they did sign up for the private tour...I bet that was a birthday that will be remembered for years!!

One of the things that I love about Arabian Knights is that you are served your dinner before the show begins, so you can really enjoy your meal and not miss any of the action while you're eating.

And the food?

Well, it's pretty awesome! Unlike some other dinner theater attractions in the Orlando and Kissimmee area, Arabian Knights allows you to choose your dinner from a menu, and you are served with real utensils.

Mama doesn't like eating with her hands. 

Also? Wine with dinner. Need I say more?

Now, it's a little difficult to impress the full effect of the Arabian Knights show simply with words...so I have to share some photos!

The story begins with a lovely young horse rider who has come to Arabian Knights to enjoy the dinner and watch the show. As she descends the stage to find her seat, she is approached by a genie and finds out that she is actually a princess from a far off land! The genie explains that it is time for her to find a husband.

As the princess loves horses so much, each type of man she thinks of is some type of horse rider...

She goes through each stage in history, recalling the difference horsemen of the time.

I'd have to say that the gypsy horse riders were my absolute favorite. They did a ton of tricks, rode around standing on the horse's back and really, they just took our breath away!

After the gypsies finished their round of tricks, a guest was pulled from the audience (she volunteered, don't worry!) to try a trick herself.

Now, I am not sure if this was staged or if this was really a random member of the audience...

She had a hard time getting up on the horse, which was incredibly comical. The entire audience was hysterically laughing as she kept falling off and went flying through the air!

But then something really embarrassing happened.

She split her pants.

I am dead serious!!

See that pink spot on her behind?

Yup...she split her pants.

After the ring leader told her what happened, she ran off stage and we didn't see her again for the remainder of the evening.

Note to self: never volunteer for anything, ever. 

At the end of the show, our Princess found her Prince Charming and together, they defeated an evil villain.

A fun show, a good meal and plenty of laughs - what more could you want on a Friday night?

I received complimentary admission to Arabian Knights dinner attraction to facilitate this review, but all opinions are my own.