Keys to the kingdom tour?

[Maleficent Dragon]

I did not enjoy this tour. I've done almost every tour Disney has to offer, but this is the one I did not like. The format of the tour guide asking questions and the guests answer was not entertaining and a little condescending (if you get something right you get a sticker! YAY!) To me it seemed like she was making us do her job, and more, if no one knew the answer you were standing around waiting until someone guessed right.

There was a lot of pre-explaining for the rides. She spent 10+ minutes going over what to look for on a ride. Call me crazy, I could have looked that up in a book. To me, the point of the tour is supposed to be getting the information as it happens.

Be prepared to be called "Sugar" or "Sweetums" (and, I kid you not: Maple lump) repeatedly, despite having name tags on, throughout the tour if you get Maureen. Admittedly, that was probably the most entertaining part of the tour, seeing how many unique pet names she could come up with for a 6'6" inch man. By the end of the tour I could see a vein throbbing in his forehead.

If you've done any amount of research on Disney, and know any history, most of this is going to be rehashed, and some of it is blatantly not true, or obviously spun to be more than it is.

Quite a few people enjoy this experience, and I can see why, but if you're expecting a guided museum tour or even a tour guide tour, that's not at all what you are getting. I suspect most of my disappointment came from this. I definitely was not expecting a quiz bowl type tour, added to that the grating personality of the tour guide, and the complete lack of timing, and the entire thing was a wash in my book. That being said, I got to see them practicing the Christmas parade and the utilidoors tour is priceless. But only if you can stomach the rest of the tour. I wish they would do another tour of the backstage area that you didn't have to go through all the other crap, heck I'd pay the same price for a quarter of the length of time.

curmudgeon

 

[DLo]

we are going next sat 9:30. can't wait. ds turned 16 in jan so he can finally go .

quick question - are we crazy to sqieeze in some rudes after ? i have a fp fir 7dmt - i made a couple of hours after we will probably be done. didnt want to cut the time close just in case .

 

[mancub]

How strict are the age restrictions - i have this tour booked but my daughter will be a few months shy of 16 ( fibbed a little about her age). Will they really make her show a photo i.d.- she is a big girl, looks every bit of 16, or should i cancel and not take the chance. Has anyone had any similar experiences. There will be 4 of us - myself, wife, 17 year old son, and almost 16 year old daughter.

 

[Dan Murphy]

They will check the ID, and they are strict. I would cancel and do it next trip.

 

[mancub]

Thank you. I wiill definitely take your advlise and cancel.

 

[TwinPrincessMermaids]

Is the age limit so that you are past the so called age of "Magic?"

 

[shyjade]

Is the age limit so that you are past the so called age of "Magic?"

Yes

 

[georgina]

we are going next sat 9:30. can't wait. ds turned 16 in jan so he can finally go .

quick question - are we crazy to sqieeze in some rudes after ? i have a fp fir 7dmt - i made a couple of hours after we will probably be done. didnt want to cut the time close just in case .

You've probably already done your tour, but I had FP for after the tour, worked out great. I had Space Mtn for 1:00-2:00, Splash for 2:00-3:00, and BTMRR for 3:00-4:00. Left after that and went to Epcot.

I loved the tour. Had Alex as a tour guide and learned many things. Some previous posters said they knew much of the info already, I certainly didn't. I guess if you are a super Disney fan you may already know these things.

 

[georgina]

I am taking the 8:30am tour in July. I'm staying at CSR. What time should I arrive at the MK? Will there be buses running early enough to arrive in time for the tour?
Thanks

I got to the El Centro bus stop at 7:10, had to wait a bit for the MK bus (came at 7:25) and was at MK by 7:45. The photographers were out on Main Street so I wandered around and had several pictures taken after I checked in for the tour.

 

[snow white 95]

I have booked to do the tour as I am a huge fan of the kingdom keeper books and within them it explains about the utilidoors and so on I am so excited.

 

[richmo]

I have booked to do the tour as I am a huge fan of the kingdom keeper books and within them it explains about the utilidoors and so on I am so excited.

The beauty of the utilidors isn't actually what you see. Basically, they're a bunch of underground hallways where they've put up some pictures to show you, otherwise, it would really be barren. The beauty of the utilidors is to realize what you don't see: you're underneath the Magic Kingdom...mostly the Main Street area.

Its a fun tour...I hope you enjoy it!

 

[SnapesGirl]

Yes

Actually, I had read somewhere ( I think on here) that the age restriction was due to insurance reasons. I could be wrong. Strangely enough, not one of us was asked for ID, but then again, I guess none of us looked 16!