driving behind the Magic Kingdom

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klineski96

klineski96

Active Member
Original Poster
After a fun breakfast at 1900 Park Fare on Saturday morning with my wife, I pulled out of the self parking lot at the Grand Floridian and turned left onto Floridian Way.

I've often looked on Googlemaps and the birdseye feature of Bings maps website and wondered what would happen if I drove back there or what I would see. Ignoring an "authorized vehicles only" sign :lookaroun I pressed on and found myself at the intersection where Floridian Way turns into World Drive and Magic Kingdom Drive turns into Center Drive.

Continuing straight through the intersection and driving slowly, I looked left at the building that houses the monorails and the trains. Very cool to see. Moments later I passed Pluto Park, then I look to the right and BOOM! the back of Space Mountain... with an open door. Too bad there was a guard gate! :)

So what's the deal? Was I really breaking any rules? What would have happened if Disney security would have seen me?

What would have happened if I had turned left on Center Drive? Or left into Pluto Park? How far could I have gone?
 
Lee

Lee

Adventurer
Nothing wrong with making that drive. It is not restricted at all.
Trust me, if a road is restricted to Cast only...you will know it due to all the signs/guardhouses/barricades, etc.

Left on Center Drive would have just taken you past Cast parking, costuming, Central Shops, etc., and eventually dump you out on Reams Rd. Easy to do, and not restricted at all. (Just don't try to go RIGHT on Center drive).

Pluto lot...you can pull in there, and depending on who is around you could park and walk around. It's not really monitored very closely (at least not in the past).
 
Rob562

Rob562

Well-Known Member
The more "possibly going where you shouldn't" drive would be to drive down Bear Island Rd near the Car Care Center. You pass by the sewage treatment plant and the tree farm. Though as a non-CM you can only make this drive from the north. When you get to the southern end at the intersection with Western Way, there's a gate. It'll open to all vehicles exiting onto Western Way, but to turn into Bear Island Rd from Western Way you need an access card. (I'm sure this is mostly to deter people from using it as a shortcut from Western Way to the MK area, though)

If you were to cross Western Way, *that* is where you'd run into the guard shack and gates, as it's the back entrance to Animal Kingdom.

-Rob
 
Lee

Lee

Adventurer
Not sure how many folks do it, but if you go the back way around Vista Blvd, past Ft. Wilderness and the golf course, it ends on the west near the MK parking lot. From there you can go around the MK, past the GF, and into the MK lot.
Pay to park? No need. You never pass through the toll booth.
:lookaroun
 
SirGoofy

SirGoofy

Member
Lee said:
Not sure how many folks do it, but if you go the back way around Vista Blvd, past Ft. Wilderness and the golf course, it ends on the west near the MK parking lot. From there you can go around the MK, past the GF, and into the MK lot.
Pay to park? No need. You never pass through the toll booth.
:lookaroun
Click to expand...

I've thought about that many a time since becoming a CM. It'd be so easy to park at MK for free.
 
Monty

Monty

Brilliant...and Canadian
In the Parks
No
Lee said:
Not sure how many folks do it, but if you go the back way around Vista Blvd, past Ft. Wilderness and the golf course, it ends on the west near the MK parking lot. From there you can go around the MK, past the GF, and into the MK lot.
Pay to park? No need. You never pass through the toll booth.
:lookaroun
Click to expand...
Wouldn't it be shorter to cut across on Seven Seas than to go all the way around MK?
 
Timon

Timon

Well-Known Member
Lee said:
Not sure how many folks do it, but if you go the back way around Vista Blvd, past Ft. Wilderness and the golf course, it ends on the west near the MK parking lot. From there you can go around the MK, past the GF, and into the MK lot.
Pay to park? No need. You never pass through the toll booth.
:lookaroun
Click to expand...

Huh? How does that put you in the Main Parking lot? Don't tell me I've missed this one for 30 years! Coming past the GF and the side of the Poly exits you onto World Drive going South past Car Care and Toll Booth. What did I miss?:veryconfu
 
unkadug

unkadug

Follower of "Saget"The Cult
Should we really even be talking about this? :lookaroun

The best way to keep it is a secret is to not talk about it!
 
NiarrNDisney

NiarrNDisney

Well-Known Member
Rob562 said:
The more "possibly going where you shouldn't" drive would be to drive down Bear Island Rd near the Car Care Center. You pass by the sewage treatment plant and the tree farm. Though as a non-CM you can only make this drive from the north. When you get to the southern end at the intersection with Western Way, there's a gate. It'll open to all vehicles exiting onto Western Way, but to turn into Bear Island Rd from Western Way you need an access card. (I'm sure this is mostly to deter people from using it as a shortcut from Western Way to the MK area, though)

If you were to cross Western Way, *that* is where you'd run into the guard shack and gates, as it's the back entrance to Animal Kingdom.

-Rob
Click to expand...

Back in May of 08' I was on a resort bus heading to DAK and they took this way, maybe due to the Strongman thing or maybe that was just the way DTD Resorts go. Needless to say it was a unmagical experience seeing the sewage treatment plant.
 
krankenstein

krankenstein

Well-Known Member
Yep, discovered the free parking thing a year or so ago on accident. Didn't need it because I was an AP, but still.
 
H

Hollywood Magic

Member
Discovered this due to a wrong turn last trip :dazzle:

I was freaking out going "AMG SPACE MOUNTAIN! AMG DISNEY UNIVERSITY! AMG THE REPAIR PLACE! AMG BUSES! AMG MONORAILS!!!" :sohappy:
 
Siege898

Siege898

New Member
The free parking thing is honestly not worth it. If you're going to go out of your way to do that, you might as well lie at the toll booth or park at DTD and take the bus to contemporary. Seriously, people can always find ways to cheat the system if they try hard enough.

Secondly, as a CM, I get a preturbed when people come back floridian way/world drive. I've actually had people ask me at cast parking where guest parking is. Its not "restricted" but the signs do say authorized vehicles only, just like the signs to backstage areas say cast members only. Respect them. If you want to go backstage, take the keys to the kingdom tour.

BTW, to all you who are thinking of going back to see what is behind MK, don't bother, there is absolutely nothing of interest.
 
mastif

mastif

New Member
No actually I know alot of people that use world drive to cut through tothe back behind MK. That's where the Disney U is,and where the monorails sleep. There is also a "Company D" store which sells outdated and all sorts of disney merchandise and discounted prices, Tho they don't advertise this, plus it's open to anyone.
 
Mad Stitch

Mad Stitch

Well-Known Member
Siege898 said:
The free parking thing is honestly not worth it. If you're going to go out of your way to do that, you might as well lie at the toll booth or park at DTD and take the bus to contemporary. Seriously, people can always find ways to cheat the system if they try hard enough.
Click to expand...

Right, if you said you were going shopping at one of the resorts they would let you through the toll booth. No sense in going backstage to avoid parking when you’re just going to be in the way of people doing their job.

mastif said:
There is also a "Company D" store which sells outdated and all sorts of disney merchandise and discounted prices, Tho they don't advertise this, plus it's open to anyone.
Click to expand...

I thought they made people show their company id to get in there? At least they did when I worked there.
 
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