Advise needed from Kevin

[cdotla]

Kevin - I apologize if you have already offered advise on this.

I just read your review of the Backlot Tour. You indicate in that review that you had already done the Keys to the Kingdom Tour when you took this Tour.

I will be coming to Disney June 4-8 for a convention. I will have one "play day" to spend all by myself and I am pondering doing a Tour.

I have never done a tour before, and since I am normally in Disney with my 2 toddlers, I may never get a chance to do a Tour again for a long time.

My question: given that I have never done a Tour before, which would you recommend? I am leaning toward the Keys to the Kingdom Tour but would appreciate your thoughts.

TIA

 

[DisneyKevin]

The Keys to the Kingdom tour takes place entirely in the Magic Kingdom.

It starts early, includes lunch and involves a great deal of walking. You learn a great deal about the Magic Kingdom, get to go downstairs into the Utilidors and get to see some really great stuff. It's about 4.5 - 5 hours long.

The Backstage Magic Tour is about 7 hours long, takes you to three parks and there is far less walking. You get to take a motor coach almost everywhere you go. You also get to backstage in many different areas.

This tour also includes lunch.

While I have done and enjoyed both.....I learned a great deal more on the Backstage Magic Tour. I thought is was more comprehensive and you get to see some amazing things that I had never seen.

You get to see the costume shop, the animatronics shop, the ride vehicle shop, the Christmas warehouse...amazing stuff.

There is also a large difference in cost. The KTTK Tour is $60 but requires park admission so that cost must be factored in.

The Backstage Magic Tour is $199 but requires no park admission.

I have friends that recently took the Backstage Magic Tour (January) and they tell me that the itinerary has changed. You no longer visit the American Adventure attraction...it's now the Tower of Terror. You no longer have lunch at Mama Melrose's...it's now Whispering Canyon Cafe. They also didnt visit the Christmas Warehouse....but it was right after Christmas...and that may be why.

Also...keep in mind that June can be HOT. The KTTK tour might be strenuous.

I liked both very much, but if I could only do one....it would be the Backstage Magic Tour.

I hope this helps. I realize it's all over the place...but it's late.

Kevin

 

[wishspirit]

We have done the KTTK tour in June/ July, and it was HOT!

It is also a lot of standing around/ walking and listening (although you got these cool headphones so you could hear the guide properly). Although i did get some cool mickey stickers cause thanks to this board i knew all the answers to her questions!

My sister really couldn't handle the heat, but the walking was fine, so if you are really sensitive to the heat, dont go on it in June.

Me and my mom are planning our 2009 trip to do the backstage magic, then again we are going out of peak season...

Best of luck in you choices!

 

[Disneybridein2k3]

We did the KTTK tour, and thanks to the boards, I knew quite a lot of the trivia we were told on the tour. I think it annoyed the tour guide. At one point, he (tongue in cheek) offered me his job - that part didn't seem very Disney of him After all, I was only answering his questions and he didn't say the questions were rhetorical. But it was fun and if you haven't been around the boards much to know how many bricks are in Cinderella's castle and questions like that, you should be in for a great time. DH and I plan on taking the Backstage Tour when we go down for the podcast cruise - I'm looking forward to that one!

 

[3DisneyKids]

I see the tag fairy took Jon's advice! Very fun tag!

 

[nenner1]

I see the tag fairy took Jon's advice! Very fun tag!

i was just going to make a remark about that............too funny.......

 

[cdotla]

Kevin - thank you so much. (And thanks to everyone else for posting your thoughts as well!)

Kevin, literally right after I posted last nite I regretted it. I figured that I *should* have either done a voicemail or email to the show as opposed to posting here. Of course, I only thought of that after I had posted and had no idea how to delete the post.

I fully expected that you would not even notice the post and was planning to email or voicemail the question to you using the podcast email/voicemail.

What a shocker when I come back on the site and look and find out that you had answered an hour after my post! No wonder this pod crew rocks!

Thank you so much!!!

 

[camdensmom]

I see the tag fairy took Jon's advice! Very fun tag!

...or maybe John IS the tag fairy!

 

[3DisneyKids]

I think that Pod Squadders should get super-special secret tags, don't you?