DVC members who've done backstage tours

[mb4cy]

I'd love to hear from any DVC members who used their discounts on a backstage tour -- which one(s) you did and what you thought. We're going to WDW in December to celebrate my mom's retirement and I'd like to find something extra special to do during our 10 days.

 

[flyerron]

I want to know too. We did a tour about 25 years ago, but I don't remember much.

 

[puggymom]

I'm recent purchaser to DVC, but have used the AP discount (which from I read is the same 15%).

I did KTTK last September and LOVED it! Even if you know a lot of WDW trivia, it is a great tour, get to see the Utilidors and go backstage at a couple of attractions.

A few months ago I did the Backstage Magic Tour and loved it, but it is a long day. You get to see parts of WDW that you had no idea about. I loved the warehouse where they keep the Christmas decorations.

I am trying the Segway Tour in October and thinking of the Backstage safari at AK with Mom in February.

If you have any specific questions I will try to answer them.

 

[SuzanneSLO]

My DH and I have done the following tours: Backstage Magic (x2); Undiscovered Future World, Gardens of the World (x2) and Wild by Design.

We liked all of them, and we very pleasantly surprised by the Future World Tour. It is relatively inexpensive, although no snack or lunch is included. It lasted for almost 5 hours and took us backstage in numerous areas. We also received an invite for preferred viewing in Italy for Illuminations.

Recently, the best discount has been by charging it to your Disney Visa card (20% off). Since there is no annual fee for the card, we feel like it is worth it just for the tour discounts.

Of course, when we took the Backstage Magic tour the first time, the best discount was with our American Express card, But then, that was when the tour included the Animation Studio at the Studios!

-- Suzanne

 

[travelbug]

I did KTTK Tour with my DVC discount a few years ago. I had arrived a couple days earlier than the rest of my group, so I decided to treat myself to a tour. It was great! I learned a lot and loved going behind the scenes.

I'd love to do the Segway Tour sometime too.

 

[ebenmax]

We did the Backstage Safari at AK. We had a wonderful tour guide (Paul) who was a retired science teacher. You visit some of the animal barns (maybe pet a rhino) and where they prepare the animals' food (very interesting) Then at the end they take you on a personal tour of the Kilimanjaro Safari - no little story theme - slower paced and they show you some of the safari secrets. Snack and water provide (no lunch).

It was supposed to be walking tour but we drove in a van since it was so hot.
There is NO WAY I would have wanted to walk it.

It was a great tour. I recommend it depending on your personal interests.

There is also supposed to be one only at the holidays that takes you to the resorts and explains the Christmas decorations/how they are done. That might be special for the time of year you are going. We have not done this one yet.

HTH

 

[dgaston]

We too like to use the Disney Visa discount as it's the deepest. We've done KTTK, Undiscovered Future World, Hidden Treasures of Epcot, Segway, Backstage Safari (x2 for me), Epcot Garden Tour during F & G and Yuletide Fantasy. DH will tell you his favorite is Segway, while I think I liked Undiscovered Future World (with Robert) the best. We didn't even get a pin for the Hidden Treasures of Epcot, have to write Guest Relations about that.

 

[byoung]

KTTK is a great tour.

 

[starbox]

We all did the very-briefly offered VMK backstage tour and it was VERY cool - lots of neat information about Disney. DH did the Segway tour and loved it - although he said there was not much behind-the-scenes info - just lots of cool Segway riding time!

 

[DVC-Don]

We've done the KTTK tour a couple of times and an Epcot Garden Tour. We enjoyed the KTTK but the garden tour was a big yawn. We'd like to do the Segway tour in the future.

 

[Uncleromulus]

We've done Backstage Magic, Keys to the Kingdom, and Backstage Safari. All three are good. Magic is a full day tho, and parts of it (now that they no longer do animation) were a bit boring.
Keys or the Safari would be my suggestions--Safari if animals interest your group, or Keys if the Magic Kingdom is of special interest.

 

[yapper79]

My husband and I have done Keys to the Kingdom (KTTK) and the Segway Tour in EPCOT World Showcase.

KTTK was great and we still talk about all of the neat Disney trivia that we learrned. My DH isn't a Disney fanatic like me, but still enjoyed seeing the utilidors and learning how Disney deals with problems like trash and employee parking.

Segway was fun for the ride, but there was very little Disney trivia, etc. It was just a cool experience to ride around on the segways!

 

[Wigit12]

We thought the Backstage Magic was the best value since it does not use one of your Park Hopper Days (of course, this doesn't apply if you have an AP). It was a long hot day so we just had a nice swim when we were done and had a relaxing dinner in a resort.

Most of the other tours require park admission.

We loved the tour--and I agree--the Xmas decorations were my favorite

 

[n2mm]

We've done KTTK, Backstage Magic, Undiscovered Future World and Wild by Design. I think choosing a tour for your mom depends on what she likes. If it's just a curiousity for secrets to Disney/MK, then the Key to the Kingdom tour would be the best tour for her. It's a nice tour and takes you to places that regular folks can't go and it includes lunch at Col. Harbor House. Wild by Design was nice and included a coffee and pastry break and talked about the making of the AK, hidden mickeys, and secrets about the animals. It was a fun tour also. Lots of walking on most of these tours. However on the Backstage Magic tour you are bused from place to place. This was a good tour, but did overlap with the MK and EPCOT tours we had taken previously and at times did drag a little. Lunch was included at Mama Melrose and as someone mentioned it did include park admission, which could be a plus for some folks.

 

[bfila]

We've done the Segway tour at the WS and Epcot DiveQuest. Both were great!!!

 

[macman752]

What a timely thread! DW and I will be going Home in early September and we've been mulling over either BM or KTTK. We did the Backstage Safari last year and enjoyed every minute of the day.

Based on what I've read here I'm leaning toward KTTK. For those of you that have been on this tour does it include the Haunted Mansion? If it does I wonder if it has been modified because the HM is closed through mid September for refurb.

Thanks!

 

[Jynohn]

Does anyone know how quickly these tours book up? My husband and I were considering doing the Backstage Magic tour for our anniversary trip this October, and I didn't know if this was something I needed to book right away or if I can hold off a few more weeks.

 

[mlill]

We did the Magic Behind the Steam Trains Tour last October. It was great and lasted about 4 hours. I used the Disney Visa 20% discount. Here is a link to my trip report that has pictures of the tour...

Magic Behind the Steam Trains Tour

-Michelle

 

[1000th happy haunt]

Both Keys to the Kingdom and Backstage Magic will take you down to the Utilidors. When we did Backstage Magic, we got to see Mark Twain without his hair. The tour starts in Epcot and we went backstage to The American Adventure. I recommend both of these tours.

We're doing Backstage Safari in October.

KTTK does include the Haunted Mansion, but not a backstage look at the Haunted Mansion. But we did get to enter through the VIP entrance.

 

[mb4cy]

Thanks for the posts! Here's the kicker - Mom doesn't want a tour that will spoil the "magic" so she doesn't want to see too much of the inner workings, i.e. utilidors. The scavenger hunt at MK sounds like a ton of fun, but I wonder if it's geared to little ones, not "big" Disney kids.

On the segway tours, do you need to have good balance? I have a balance problem, so I'm not sure if I could drive one!