Has anyone done the "Innovation In Action Tour" for DVC members

[thelobstershanty]

I just received an email from our DVC guide regarding our upcoming trip. 10 more days--Yay!! The email was talking about all the new DVC member perks and one thing mentioned was a new tour called "Innovation In Action" it is being offered for DVC members for certain dates in Sept/Oct. The tour cost $89.00 per person and runs from 9-12.
Has anyone done this? If so how was it? We are thinking of signing up for the Oct 19 tour.
Thanks

 

[DISNEYDUET]

My husband and I did this. It was ok. I don't feel it was worth spending $89 pp. We went to some very common areas backstage that if you have ever watched some of the travel channel specials you have either heard or seen them. I also guess that some of the magic was lost for us because I am a former cast member and have seen most of the backstage areas. If you are interested in the ins and outs of daily upkeep for WDW you will enjoy this. If not, I advise another tour. As a side note the only thing that kept this tour upbeat and funny were our guides! They were great!

 

[famcruisefun]

Wondering what other tour-type DVC perks there might be. We are on the cusp of buying, and I know both of my teens have talked in the past of taking one of the backstage tours. Are there any others just for DVC members? Are there any other tours you would reccomend for 2 teens - one of whom is very interested in theater, music and one of whom is very interested in art, architecture? Thanks!

 

[thelobstershanty]

My husband and I did this. It was ok. I don't feel it was worth spending $89 pp. We went to some very common areas backstage that if you have ever watched some of the travel channel specials you have either heard or seen them. I also guess that some of the magic was lost for us because I am a former cast member and have seen most of the backstage areas. If you are interested in the ins and outs of daily upkeep for WDW you will enjoy this. If not, I advise another tour. As a side note the only thing that kept this tour upbeat and funny were our guides! They were great!

Thanks for your reply. We have already done Kings to the Kingdom 2x, Undiscovered Future World, Behind the Seeds, and one of the WS Country tours.
After doing all of the above tours, do you think the Innovation In Action Tour would be a waste? We also have friends that are CMs so have been backstage quite a few times. I guess we should pass on this.
What do you think?
Thanks

 

[castleri]

My husband and I did this. It was ok. I don't feel it was worth spending $89 pp. We went to some very common areas backstage that if you have ever watched some of the travel channel specials you have either heard or seen them. I also guess that some of the magic was lost for us because I am a former cast member and have seen most of the backstage areas. If you are interested in the ins and outs of daily upkeep for WDW you will enjoy this. If not, I advise another tour. As a side note the only thing that kept this tour upbeat and funny were our guides! They were great!

were you on the 9/28 tour?

some of the interesting things were lost because of arriving at the last location at lunch time with nothing going on in the building except an employee thank you lunch in the animation area so didn't see them actually working on the animatronic figures etc. (there was some confusion about the times and pick ups that morning so we got a late start) We had seen this area on the all day behind the scenes tour last year so it wasn't a total loss. The points of interest for the day were the laundry facilities where they do the hotel and pool linens, the topiary prep area and the general shop where they make and repair ride vehicles, animatronics, and other props. It was not until we were leaving the area that anyone was actually starting to work on the topiary figures either. I enjoyed the tour but enjoyed the one last year more. I agree the guides were great.

 

[RobDoc]

I would agree that if you are a CM or have visited the backstage areas frequently, this tour will not offer much not already seen.

However, if you are not someone who has had prior access to these areas, this tour is very well priced and offers a glimpse of WDW not seen by the vast majority of guests. The tour is similar to the Backstage Magic tour (cost for that was $160 per person) and covers many of the same areas. It will not be a duplicate of Keys to the Kingdom, Behind the Seeds, Future World and other WS tours.

We will be taking the Innovations tour soon and are really looking forward to it.

As for other tours as DVC perks, in the past DVC has had discounts on a number of tours including Dolphins in Depth and the Segway tour at Epcot. The specifics change frequently and these are not always available, but DVC members often have the opportunity for tour discounts.

 

[castleri]

I would agree that if you are a CM or have visited the backstage areas frequently, this tour will not offer much not already seen.

However, if you are not someone who has had prior access to these areas, this tour is very well priced and offers a glimpse of WDW not seen by the vast majority of guests. The tour is similar to the Backstage Magic tour (cost for that was $160 per person) and covers many of the same areas. It will not be a duplicate of Keys to the Kingdom, Behind the Seeds, Future World and other WS tours.

We will be taking the Innovations tour soon and are really looking forward to it.

As for other tours as DVC perks, in the past DVC has had discounts on a number of tours including Dolphins in Depth and the Segway tour at Epcot. The specifics change frequently and these are not always available, but DVC members often have the opportunity for tour discounts.

Good point about the discounts - I had two tours booked this past trip (Innovations in Action amd Segway) and have booked the Dive Quest for my DGD for Christmas and each time asked the CM to check for discounts - based on DVC member, AP holder and Disney Visa card holder. I think I ended up with two on the DVC and the other on the Visa card so be sure to ask if you have any of the above.

 

[dianeschlicht]

The Backstage Magic tour is our favorite. It takes the better part of a day and includes backstage areas in 3 parks. We have done it 3 times, and it has been significantly different each time. Well worth the money, and they give you lunch as well.

 

[thelobstershanty]

I would agree that if you are a CM or have visited the backstage areas frequently, this tour will not offer much not already seen.

However, if you are not someone who has had prior access to these areas, this tour is very well priced and offers a glimpse of WDW not seen by the vast majority of guests. The tour is similar to the Backstage Magic tour (cost for that was $160 per person) and covers many of the same areas. It will not be a duplicate of Keys to the Kingdom, Behind the Seeds, Future World and other WS tours.

We will be taking the Innovations tour soon and are really looking forward to it.

After reading your reply, I think we are going to book it. We have never done the Backstage Magic tour, so this will be something different. Even though we have been backstage many times (we LOVE going to the Character Connection CM store), we have still enjoyed all our tours. They are even more fun when we go with our CM friends because it is like we have our own personal tour guide!
Not everyone in our group is interested in this tour, so I guess we will just split up that day!
Thanks!

 

[Moonmom]

Has anyone done this? If so how was it? We are thinking of signing up for the Oct 19 tour.
Thanks

For anyone that's done it.. how long did the tour actually last? I'm a little confused; since it says it's from 9am to noon; but it also has two pickup locations.

Regardless.. I DID sign up, that'll be our last night there... I've done Keys to Kingdom a couple of times; one of the World Showcase Tours, (can't remember what it called),, I've enjoyed those but thought that since this was something that wasn't offered regularly I'd give it a try.

So,,, Lobstershanty... did you sign up for the 19th??

Linda