Behind the Scenes Tours

[Maggie0507]

Has anyone taken any of the behind the scenes tours, like snorkeling in Epcot or Keys to the Kingdom in the Magic Kingdom.

Will be in the world with just my husband in November (our FIRST adult trip) and was wondering if any of these tours were worth the time and money.

M

 

[stingfancb]

My son has done the DiveQuest (scuba diving) at the Living Seas in EPCOT twice. Don't know if you're scuba certified, but if so - he highly recommends it.

 

[paladin]

I have done the Keys to the Kingdom tour and the MK Steam Train tour. Both were very enjoyable and I would recommend them. I haven't taken the Segway tour in Epcot (I think there are two versions now), but have read excellent review.

 

[mickeymom55]

DH and I went on our first adults only Disney vacation in May. We took the Keys to the Kingdom tour (loved it) and we also booked the Simply Segway Experience. The Simply Segway is a one hour instructional class. There is a longer and more extensive tour through Epcot prior to the opening at the World Showcase area. After the one hour class instruction, we were sorry the 2 hour version hadn't been available. It was a blast and we wanted more time on the segway. We also joined 3 other DIS families for a WISHES birthday cruise (can't wait to do it again!). We also had an opportunity to enjoy the entertainment available at Epcot (Off Kilter, British Invasion, etc). This trip wasn't about how many times we could ride Space Mountain or Rock'n Rollercoaster. We slowed it down a bit and really took in things we hadn't appreciated before. Have a great time!!

 

[mikey13v]

Did the Keys to the Kingdom tour on a trip w/o the DS3 and DW. It was fun to be with other Disney fanatics who craved to learn everything Disney.
It wasn't so much of a learning experience, but a chance to confirm or discredit those secrets I have heard in the past.
Our tour guide was great. If you do it, be prepared with all of those questions about the secrets of Disney, the guide will tell the truth, even if it's not the type of things Disney likes people to know.
As far as value, you do get a meal out of it, and a lot of dedicatied time with your guide. For me, it was worth it for the 1 time. I walked away afterwords looking at all sorts of details in the park differently.
Hope you have a chance to do it, and enjoy it.

 

[disney queen]

we have done KTTK twice and loved it both times. another excellent tour is the backstage safari at AK. either of these would be a great choice.

 

[wildernessfamily]

my DD has done both the dolphin in the depth at Epcot, living seas, this is not a dolphin swim but you learn dolphin behavior and training tricks and you are in a wet suit waist deep with a dolphin but not a swim. She loved it and it is limited to a small number per group. She also did the safari in AK, they got to pet rhino's and got to see where they prepared food. You get a seperate safari ride on the plain. She highly recommends both

 

[Maggie0507]

My son has done the DiveQuest (scuba diving) at the Living Seas in EPCOT twice. Don't know if you're scuba certified, but if so - he highly recommends it.

We are not scuba certified but did notice there is a snorkeling tour at the Living Seas and are considering this.

 

[Maggie0507]

DH and I went on our first adults only Disney vacation in May. We took the Keys to the Kingdom tour (loved it) and we also booked the Simply Segway Experience. The Simply Segway is a one hour instructional class. There is a longer and more extensive tour through Epcot prior to the opening at the World Showcase area. After the one hour class instruction, we were sorry the 2 hour version hadn't been available. It was a blast and we wanted more time on the segway. We also joined 3 other DIS families for a WISHES birthday cruise (can't wait to do it again!). We also had an opportunity to enjoy the entertainment available at Epcot (Off Kilter, British Invasion, etc). This trip wasn't about how many times we could ride Space Mountain or Rock'n Rollercoaster. We slowed it down a bit and really took in things we hadn't appreciated before. Have a great time!!

We are so looking forward to our adult trip for the all the reasons you have mentioned. This trip will not be about how many times we can ride Rockin Rollercoaster, once will be plenty and if we don't get to it we will not care as we have done it many times before. I will look into the Segway tours, sound great.

M

 

[Maggie0507]

I read in one of the guidebooks that the *Keys to the Kingdom* tour is exhausting for it's pace and all the walking. Has anyone else found this to be true because I want this trip to be all about relaxation and ease.
M

 

[LiLIrishChick63]

i went on the Keys to the Kingdom tour 2 years ago and i had so much fun. some people complain that it might "Take the magic out of Disney" but it really didn't. you get to learn a lot of interesting facts about Disney that you never knew before, you get to go on some rides without having to wait in lines, and you get lunch with your package too. we also got to go and see all of the floats in their hanger for the parade. it was really a lot of fun. and you got to go "behind the scenes" aka under the MK park and see how it's all run. trust me, there's still a lot of "magic" that is put into Disney.

 

[Danauk]

I am doing 2 backstage tour with my husband and our best friends on our next trip. We are doing the segway tour which non of us have done before, but it looks so much fun. We are also doing the 7 hour Backstage Magic tour. Our friends did it on our last trip (DH and I went to Discovery Cove that day.) They enjoyed the tour so much they recommended it to us and then decided to join us on it as they loved it so much last time.

 

[LiLIrishChick63]

I read in one of the guidebooks that the *Keys to the Kingdom* tour is exhausting for it's pace and all the walking. Has anyone else found this to be true because I want this trip to be all about relaxation and ease.
M

anytime in any of the parks there's gonna be a lot of walking. but i don't really remember it being exhausted. it was a lot of fun. and they make stops at certain times to chat about different things in the park. and you get to go on a ride or two and no wait(usualy) so you get times to sit and rest.

 

[mickeymom55]

The pace of the KTTKT really isn't bad. They do stop and talk about the particular area of the park you are in (our guide was careful to stop in the shade every time). The lunch break was nice and we did stop for the ladies and men's room. Our tour was about 4 1/2 hours long. It depends on who your guide is and probably how crowded the park is at the time. We rode on the Haunted Mansion and the Pirates of the Caribean, so that was a break too. Our guide was David - he not only told stories about the park and the Disney Company, but he added his own experiences which made it so much more personal. There were 8 people in our group and it was the 8:30am tour. The 9:00 tour had twice as many people so you may want to book the earlier tour time. It's definitely worth the money (look for AP and AAA discounts) - and it was something out of the ordinary. Enjoy!!

 

[CinderellaPug]

I actually found Keys to the Kingdom to be more relaxing than running around the park to get on rides. We just did it yesterday, the last day of our trip, although it was an awesome way to end the trip, I would have liked to look around at some of the things they pointed out more closely. Our guide was good and also shared some sweet personal stories, the lunch was good, too. This tour was something I've wanted to do for a year now, and it was worth the wait.