Insider Tour Ending at DLand 12/23

[Sora Necross]

Will we still be able to buy stuff for our character in the park? ( I've been waiting FOREVER to go and buy magic but I don't got until at least March and I might not get to go! )

 

[robinb]

Does anyone know if this is for Disney World too?

 

[tolkien7]

This is very upsetting - especially the thought that VMK could close forever!

P.S. Robin - is that your daughter? She is just about the cutest thing I have ever seen! I could take a bite out of her!

 

[lovethattink]

Does anyone know if this is for Disney World too?

When I talked to another DIS this weekend, he said he was handed the pirate tour cards and told the tour was cancelled for December.

 

[4fosterkids]

The cast member I spoke to the 2nd time yesterday said he thought WDW had stopped their tours already but he did not know for sure. Dland will continue daily tours until 12/23 as far as I was told. And the tours were full for the day when I asked.
I have quite a few tour cards already, which I was saving for WDW next week.

I think if everyone sends their concerns in to City Hall, maybe it will open some eyes. I know I will be stating some facts that it has helped my disabled son alot (who has a difficult time playing games like this), taught my youngest daughter some social & life skills (and shopping skills too!), is a game the entire family can enjoy at home as well as in the park. I will try to keep mine positive so they realize we are not just virtual families whom they can delete with the big white glove.

Mal, thanks for posting the contact info.

And a small side of me is hopeful that this change means some fabulous new change is coming to replace it....

 

[robinb]

P.S. Robin - is that your daughter? She is just about the cutest thing I have ever seen! I could take a bite out of her!

Yes, that's my DD . The picture was taken at our last trip in August. Thanks for the compliment!

Back OT ... I thought that the WDW tours were going to be reinstated in January after the holidays. I was looking forward to doing one at the end my my next trip. I went on the DL tour in October and it was a blast. Even my non-VMK husband answered some questions to get prizes.

 

[Califgirl]

I'm thinking that they may be paving the way to have a charge for the VMK tour. The tour guides who do this tour also do other (paid) tours in the park. Because this tour is free, they probably hardly ever get tipped, and they work just as hard doing this tour as any other tour. So I'm thinking the guides probably don't much like doing the VMK tours unless they are a VMK player.

Just a thought. If I had to pay, I would probably still do it. I like being backdoored into the rides.

 

[VirtuallyMe]

I do really hope these tours aren't ending- DH and I have a trip planned mid-January and the tour was going to be a hilight of the trip...

I did hear from a friend who is in WDW almost weekly that the tours are continuing at this point- but that during the Christmas season there are some days that they are not being done because they don't have CM's to run the tours... so you may show up and not be able to get a tour on the day you want it- but that probably has always been so...

And yes I'm being optimistic for my own trip next year lol

 

[surferrat]

Hi everyone...Just got back from WDW for the Turkey Day Holidays, and The VMK tour was not going on and the only thing they could say was that there was a possibility that the tour may start up in December...

The did hand out the Pirates tour quest cards in lieu of the tour. The Haunted Mansion cards from the tour were not given out....I was told to go to to City Hall and The cast member informed me that IF the tour was to start again, the series 2 cards would be distributed....

 

[marypops!]

i hope that's not true

if so i hope my aunt phones today since she's out there

Must Get Pirate Quest Stuff Now!!
oh and the other quests too but still.. Pirate Quest!!

 

[Mcbain]

Nooo! Ironically, I have a VIP tour card that expires 12/31. I was going to try and find out if there was a way that I could still use the card if I'm going to be at WDW over MLK weekend, which is 2 weeks after the expiration date. I was really looking forward to the tour if I could talk them into letting me do it. So much for that idea. Maybe I can talk a CM into giving me inferno and a bunch of other things in exchange for my heartache caused by no more tours (I managed to talk a CM into giving me some rare cards and the cards you can only get by buying items since the tours were already filled up for the day I was there). Its worth a shot

 

[Major.Nelson]

I think that the tour should no longer continue but they should still give out the prizes but if staff hate to stand at a desk and hand people cards then they should make card vending machines just put the Insider Tour Card in then type in the number under the card u want and then those weird twirly things spin then the card falls into those caustraphobic boxes at the bottom of the machine.

 

[cat_herder]

OH GREAT, No tours for December, did you say cancelled, I am always a day late and dollar short!

I am leaving for WDW on December 17, and will be headed home on January 1. I/we were looking forward to the tour, this is just awful.

Thank You Mal, I will contact them, hopefully they change their minds.

I would appreciate any news, anyone has on this asap.

Don't feel alone. We have been working and saving like mad all summer to go to WDW. The only reason -- the only real reason, is to get the stupid cards so I can have some of the rare stuff that everyone else has. I have spent so much time and energy on this vacation - you wouldn't believe it. We were trying to go in December too. Please let me know if you get an answer from them.

 

[rangebob]

Hi Gang,

I just talked to the WDW Tour Garden to find out what is happening with the VMK tour. The cast member that I spoke with said that the tour is going on today. She did say that during Thanksgiving they cancelled the tour. She also said that during December they won't offer it either, I asked the whole month and she said that it was the week between Christmas and New Years only. I plan on being there on Friday for the filming of the Christmas parade so I will see if it is offered then.

 

[BriarRosie]

I'm thinking that they may be paving the way to have a charge for the VMK tour. The tour guides who do this tour also do other (paid) tours in the park. Because this tour is free, they probably hardly ever get tipped, and they work just as hard doing this tour as any other tour. So I'm thinking the guides probably don't much like doing the VMK tours unless they are a VMK player.

Just a thought. If I had to pay, I would probably still do it. I like being backdoored into the rides.

Tour guides are not tipped, but salaried cast members. It doesn't matter
to them whether the tour is a paid tour or not. But Disney probably
will want to make it a paid tour, since it is so popular.

 

[PrincessDonnaT]

Well we did the VMK tour last week at Disneyland and this was the story that I was given. That they were unsure at the time if the tour would resume after Christmas. VMK itself would not end....and that the game itself was getting more and more popular.

Here were some reason behind possibly ending the tour...
1. The tour guides were getting verbally abused by some of the people in the tour. IE- if the tour guide asked a question and a person was not picked, the tour guide would get yelled at. The guide also told me some of the tour takers were EXTREMELY competitive among the other players and it got pretty nasty.
2. You cannot make reservations for the tour and it only takes so many people per day. That means you have to be there when the park opens to sign up and the tour is filled usually with in 15 minutes. People were getting angry about the tour filling up so quickly and not being able to get in...so that in turn caused a lot of problems at the VMK booth with angry people once again verbally abusing the VMK staff working at the booth.

Luckily the group I went on the tour with were good sports and everyone had a great time. One bad thing is that a group that had signed up for the tour (there were 6 of them) showed up to get their badges 15 minutes before the tour and then left to grab a bite to eat. They didn't make it back in time for the tour so we left without them. Very sad since they took up 6 slots that were now not being used since they didn't show up. They finally showed up at the end of the tour and wanted to re-schedule their tour for the next day.
It's sad that a few bad apples have to spoil it for everyone.
PS. You will also get different stories from different VMK booth workers. It seemed like every time I had a question I would get different answers from the various workers....they switch booth workers a LOT and no one seems to be on the same page.

 

[4fosterkids]

Well that is pretty sad, and I don't blame them for ending the tours if people were so mean to the cast members. We wanted to hug our tour guide (right Caligirl & Jelly?), he was very nice.

Hopefully they can come up with a way to continue the tours with out people getting so bent out of shape.......

And you are sooo right about getting different answers from different workers...some are very nice & informative, others are just covering until the next person shows up...and it shows!

 

[Califgirl]

Well that is pretty sad, and I don't blame them for ending the tours if people were so mean to the cast members. We wanted to hug our tour guide (right Caligirl & Jelly?), he was very nice.

He was a really nice guy, and I did tip him, like I do all my tour guides!
(no, no extra cards for me, it was a tip, not a bribe!)

 

[kaitykatz7]

Where's my pitch fork!?!?!!?!I am going on spring vacation!No fair! *pouts in corner*!Quick everyone..... go to trade rooms and offer junk for pirate and other quest stuff!Sorry everyone for this bad news,thanks Mal for the address and e-mail! I will surely be sending in!If anything, I'd PAY to go on the tour!!!!!

 

[Major.Nelson]

I just heard news from VMK_Red that the tour is only closing for the holidays and she also said not to worry it wont close for good.