Behind the scenes

[SteveUK]

Hi;
Does anybody have any info about behined the scenes tours? Has anybody been on one and could recommend it (or not)? Me and my girlfriend will be staying for three weeks early next year so we have quite a lot of time and would like to see as much as possible.

Thanks;

Steve

 

[mkepcotmgmak]

i def. recommend the Keys to the Kingdom Tour, if you love the Magic Kingdom. I will tell you it is long, but you get lunch, and i would never tell anyone who does not want to have the magic ruined to go on it, you actually go into the utiladors, and the parade buildings and stuff like that... if you are a strong believer, then it would ruin the magic... but it is a GREAT tour!

 

[tj229er]

How much is the tour cost?

 

[ImagineerAndy]

Behind the Seeds Tour at the Land is an absolute must! You get to go behind the scenes, walk on all the areas you see whilst on the boats, and when I was there I got to plant some new plants and feed the big fish, I even got a certificate! They splash a lot. Plus, the tour is very interesting, and we got to to see some Epcot storage areas where one of the Nautilus subs was, it was the one from the MGM Backlot tour.

I loved it and must do it again when I go back.

:sohappy:

 

[The_CEO]

Originally posted by ImagineerAndy
Behind the Seeds Tour at the Land is an absolute must! You get to go behind the scenes, walk on all the areas you see whilst on the boats, and when I was there I got to plant some new plants and feed the big fish, I even got a certificate! They splash a lot. Plus, the tour is very interesting, and we got to to see some Epcot storage areas where one of the Nautilus subs was, it was the one from the MGM Backlot tour.

I loved it and must do it again when I go back.

:sohappy:

Was photography allowed?

 

[mkepcotmgmak]

Originally posted by tj229er
How much is the tour cost?

i think it was about $60.00 per person... i think

 

[Domboy]

Im doing the EPCOT - MGM - Magic Kingdom tour in three weeks time and really lookng forward to it - think the total cost for 3 adults is about $500 oro so - so fairly expensive but seems it lasts a few hours

and re photography - you cant take cameras and must have photo id

Think there is a lower age restriction also

Hurrah- cant wait

 

[SteveUK]

Domboy, that sounds ideal. How did you arrange that?

 

[BRER STITCH]

The 3-park Tour is called "Backstage Magic" and can be arranged through WDW Guest Services.

I took the tour this past Spring and highly recommend it for all Disney Fans looking for something "extra" in addition to the park attractions.

It is a full day (8-9 hours) and goes through Epcot, MGM, and Magic Kingdom. There is a bus that takes you from Park to Park via "backstage routes" but there is a LOT of walking once you get to each park.

Be warned that the tour can spoil the Magic for some people, who may regret having been exposed to the backstage workings of the World they love. Most others, however, will find a fascinating mix of backstage workings, secrets, and trivia that will enhance their future visits to the parks.

I believe it runs around $150-$175 per person and lunch is included (ours was at Mama Melrose's at MGM). The tour route and things you see may differ slightly depending on your tour guide and which attractions are closed for rehab during your visit.

Some of the things I found most interesting include: seeing the American Experience show from behind the stage, watching the Body Wars ride from outside the vehicle, touring the warehouse where they store the Christmas decorations, seeing the launch site for the MK fireworks, and touring the parade flost storage areas. There was also plenty of time for questions because our tour was small (8 people)!

Again, if you have been to the parks numerous times already and would like to know more about what you've experienced, I HIGHLY recommend the tour!

HAVE FUN!

 

[s25843]

Originally posted by SteveUK
Domboy, that sounds ideal. How did you arrange that?

For the US its 1-407-WDW-Tours

The UK might have their own Number...

 

[Domboy]

Originally posted by s25843
For the US its 1-407-WDW-Tours

The UK might have their own Number...

SteveUK - Thats how I booked it - just sub the letters for the coresponding numbers on your phone. (Sorry if thats teaching gran to suck eggs :lol: )

They were very helpful - bu you only get a confirmation number - which I find quite scary - but am taking the credit card statement and the reference number - so Im sure its ok.

but were really looking forward to it

if you want some more details of what people got up to check here which gives you loads of info

http://wdwig.com/tours.htm

Can never find any useful infor on the main Disney site though.

Thats what I used - and yes its called the Backstage Magic Tour - Thanks S25643

 

[s25843]

Originally posted by Domboy
They were very helpful - bu you only get a confirmation number - which I find quite scary - but am taking the credit card statement and the reference number - so Im sure its ok.

Don't worry about only getting the confirm #, we didnt even need it, just had to go to guest relations and tell them our names, we didnt even need to show an ID....

 

[Pippa]

I've wondered about the Backstage Magic tour many times but I think you've persuaded me Brer Stitch! If my budget can take it I'll definately do it.

 

[AkiraRaptor]

I've done several of these tours, here's a quick rundown on the ones I've done:

Backstage Magic - 7 hour behind the scenes tour of EPCOT/MK/MGM - long but very informative. Lunch included.

Gardens of the World - Tour of World Showcase's gardens and how they mantain them. Good tour, but the guide made it great.

Treasure of the World - Tour of World Showcase's architecture

Backstage Safari - Fantastic tour of the backstage area of AK. How they take care of the animals. Very good tour, highly recommended.

Wild by Design - Another good AK tour. Tour of Asia and African areas about the architecture of AK. You even get a small breakfast.

Behind the Seeds - Walking tour of the Land's boat ride tour. Nice cheap one too.

Sunrise Safari * ( requires concierge at AKL) - Great tour. Takes about an hour, you ride the regular AK Safari ride, but they stop and talk about all the animals, followed by a fantastic breakfast buffet. If you stay AKL concierge, you must do this one.


And this year we will be adding Undiscover Futureworld to that list when we return in October.

If you want anymore detail on them, let me know. If you want to know the ones I think are the best, here is fovorites ordered: Backstage Safari, Backstage Magic, Sunrise Safari, Gardens of the World, Wild by Design, Behind the Seeds, Treasure of the World.

Have fun!

 

[Eljay]

Isn't it a fact that most tours require park admission as well as the tour cost? I believe the full day, 3 park tour doesn't require admission. I recently did the Keys To The Kingdom and that did require admission. Since I have an AP, I got a discount on the tour as well as no extra charge for admission. BTW, it was great.

 

[s25843]

Originally posted by Eljay
Isn't it a fact that most tours require park admission as well as the tour cost? I believe the full day, 3 park tour doesn't require admission. I recently did the Keys To The Kingdom and that did require admission. Since I have an AP, I got a discount on the tour as well as no extra charge for admission. BTW, it was great.

Yes Every tour (Except Backstage Magic) requires Park Admission... I have an AP also, however last month when I went on the UnDisc FW tour I entered from the Intl Gateway entrance she just let me walk right through the gate without scanning my ticket

 

[Mission: SPACE]

I went on Keys to the Kingdom July 16 this year for my birthday, and I have to say that although I've been going to WDW my entire life, this was my best trip EVER to WDW... The tour was great and informative, I only wish it was longer...

On our tour we started at the flagpole and walked down Main St. after park opening, talking about the significance of the names on the windows. We then went to Adventureland and went on Pirates, while Brick (the tour guide... did an excellent job) pointed out little details... then we went backstage to the parade float area, and got to see SADCT and Spectro up close, as well as the Electric Water Pageant (you wouldn't believe how low tech this is!!!). From there we went and ate a Columbia House, which is now my favorite fast food restaurant at MK... fast service, but not typical fast food (a.k.a. cheeseburger). From there we went on HM and talked about the Gracey story and saw all the little details on HM... then we walked to the Emporium and I learned that there is just one tiny space that separates onstage from backstage there... (next time I might jus try and go back there... :drevil: ) Next we went upstairs to the facilities above Main St... (I'll leave it to you to figure out what's up there) and after that we went down into the Utilidors and walked from the new section of Emporium to Expo Hall... At that point the tour was over, but since my tour group was so small (origionally 3 of us, then 2 others joined up a few minutes after we got started), the first 3 of us met back by the beginning of the parade route at 2:30 to be grand marshalls... That was definately one of the best things I've ever experienced at WDW... Doesn't seem like much, but it was fun...

Sorry that took me so long, but sometimes I just get excited like that... . My point is, Keys to the Kingdom was a fantastic tour. Even I learned stuff that I never knew before, after all my reading and all my knowledge on the place, I still got new stuff from it...

It was kind of comical though, because Brick would always look at me and another guy for the answers because he knew we were full of useless Disney Trivia... :lookaroun ...

 

[BRER STITCH]

Originally posted by Pippa
I've wondered about the Backstage Magic tour many times but I think you've persuaded me Brer Stitch! If my budget can take it I'll definately do it.

Hey PIPPA!:wave:

COOL! I hope you can do it! There were so many memorable sights and pieces of information! We did LOTS more than I listed in my post, but those were MY favorites!

The tour helped to enhance our next visits to the parks, as it was fun recounting all the stuff we saw and learned on the tour.

HAVE FUN!

:sohappy:

 

[kverdon]

We did the Backstage Magic Tour last year and LOVED it. It's an 8+ hour jaunt but you learn TONs of information about how WDW works. We got a good look at some of the rides from backstage, went thru costuming, parade floats, the Christmas Decoration Warehouse just to name a few of the highlights. Spendy but well worth for the dedicated Disney nut. :animwink:

We also did the Steam Train Tour. This is a EARLY morning (7am) tour that takes you on a tour of the steam trains of WDW. You get to tour the trains, got to the roundhouse, ride the train and get every question you ever wanted to know about how steam trains work answered. If you are a train buff DON'T miss this.


Now I have a question of my own, We were interrested in the Keys to the Kingdom tour at MK. Is this different from the MK part of the Backstage Magic tour or would we just be going over the stame ground?

Being a mechanical nut and a computer geek, learning how everything works hasn't ruined the magic for me (or my wife). Quite the opposite, its made us appreciate more the magic that goes into the "magic". The hard work, dedication and immagination that makes Disney work comes to live with these tours.

best,

Kevin

 

[AkiraRaptor]

Originally posted by kverdon
...learning how everything works hasn't ruined the magic for me (or my wife). Quite the opposite, its made us appreciate more the magic that goes into the "magic".

This is the same for myself and my wife. We just love these tours. Even after you know how they do it, you're still in awe that they even thought it up.