KEYS TO THE KINGDOM TOUR

[Kim91]

Hi everyone! I'm looking at doing the KTTKT tour this year for the first time and in fact my first ever disney tour.

Can anyone tell me if it's worth it, if you get to see the utilidoors, how long it lasts and if food is included? I'm not actually worried about the food as I have reservations at Kona Cafe the same potential day of doing the tour.

Many thanks in advance!

 

[Kim91]

Also just realised, I've posted this in a different forum to what I wanted. Still getting used to DisBoards. Excuse the new member, sorry!

 

[Jadyreen1282]

You're excused. I am also interested but will follow the other thread.

 

[lovetoscrap]

Moved to the Theme Parks Forum

 

[johnnyblz20]

Yes it's worth it. The tour will last around 4 hours and you will start off at the front of the park and get into some rides through the back or just VIP. We did Pirates and Haunted Mansion. You will also go behind the scenes and learn about their waste disposal as well as go underground and see the utilidor area. We picked our lunch out when we first got there and ate at Columbia house. The food was there waiting for us when we arrived. The tour guide really knew his stuff and was very informative. Would highly recommend it and I actually might do it again.

 

[EastYorkDisneyFan]

something to keep in mind well you do go into the utilidors all you really see is what looks like an unfinished basement and you will stop and watch a video of what goes on behind the scenes in the laundry are etc. Also what attractions you do depend on the guider as well when I did it we did the jungle cruise and had our own boat and the guide took the mike form the skipper after we left the dock. We also did philharmagic and went back stage behind splash mountain. Lunch is usually at the columbia harbour house and you will be given a menu to choose from when you check in.

 

[roselark]

It is definitely worth it! Food was counter service stuff, but quite sufficient. On the tour I did, we did Haunted Mansion and got some really neat info on it. We did go to the utilidoors and went backstage behind Splash Mountain to see some parade floats and a recycling area. We actually walked around a bit down in the utilidoors, but that may have just been luck.

 

[Mouse of Mystery]

It's a terrific tour. You really learn a lot about the MK and going behind the scenes is every bit as interesting as I'd hoped it would be. We did a walk down Mainstreet and around the castle, Haunted Mansion and Pirates (plus a little behind the scenes there), and the utilidors (we exited these up some stairs and through a gift shop!). Columbia Harbor House was where we relaxed, had lunch, and talked more about the MK. We even got a cool Keys to the Kingdom pin for our lanyards.

Well worth the time and expense.

 

[StarDreamer]

Do you need park admission to do this? If it were just my mom and me, would we get our own guide or be grouped with other people?

 

[Magpie]

something to keep in mind well you do go into the utilidors all you really see is what looks like an unfinished basement and you will stop and watch a video of what goes on behind the scenes in the laundry are etc. Also what attractions you do depend on the guider as well when I did it we did the jungle cruise and had our own boat and the guide took the mike form the skipper after we left the dock. We also did philharmagic and went back stage behind splash mountain. Lunch is usually at the columbia harbour house and you will be given a menu to choose from when you check in.

I did the tour about two years ago, and there was no video. Is that a new addition?

 

[DisneyHardin]

We did the tour a few years ago and loved it. You do have to have park admission that day to get in and meet your guide.

Our tour was about 5 hours. We rode Jungle Cruise and Haunted Mansion. We thought it was definitely worth the money.

 

[Magpie]

Do you need park admission to do this? If it were just my mom and me, would we get our own guide or be grouped with other people?

Yes, as it says here: https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/events-tours/magic-kingdom/keys-to-the-kingdom-tour/ "Valid park admission required."

The tours are fairly popular and tend to fill up well ahead of time, so there's almost no chance you and your mom will be alone on the tour. We had about 12 people on our tour, but don't worry... You won't have any trouble hearing the guide. They give out ear pieces and receivers you hook to your belt, so you can hear everything your guide says. It works quite well, though if you wear glasses the ear pieces can be a little bit awkward to adjust comfortably.

We rode the Haunted Mansion with our guide and were shown some "secrets" of the ride. We also got to see the back of Splash Mountain (amazing!). The guide is an absolute fount of cool information - she totally changed our perspective on the park!

 

[StarDreamer]

I should've checked before I asked, lol. Thanks

 

[richmo]

We did this tour in 2013 and really enjoyed it.

I believe they run 3 a day: I believe 8:30, 9:00 and 9:30. I would encourage you to show up early...you'll be able to enter the Magic Kingdom before it opens (entrance gate on the left side). You'll check in at City Hall, also on the left. At that time you'll also choose what you want for lunch -- I believe they're still using Columbia Harbor House. You pick from their standard menu. (Lunch is included as part of the price of the tour).

I believe the tour goes about 5 hours. I think we did the 9:00 and finished up about 2:00.

You do go downstairs into the utilidors and walk around a bit. This isn't for a long period, and frankly, there isn't a lot to see down there. It's more the concept that you're under Main Street and you'll see cast members from other "lands" walking around in costume, which you would never see onstage. Outdoors you get a lot of insights into the details that are easily overlooked and things to look for on some of the attractions. You'll do a couple rides: in our case it was Jungle (Jingle) Cruise and Haunted Mansion and you'll have a pretty good amount of time for lunch, served in a reserved area upstairs at Columbia Harbor House (I think our lunch was around 11:30-12:00)

I definitely recommend it...and yes, you need regular park admission for that day. And someone else asked if the tour was private...no, I'd say there's about 16-20 people.

 

[ariane37]

We just did the tour on March 7th and pp's have pretty much covered the important points. We did the 8:30 and were finished about 1:15; rode HM and JC, lunch at CHH. We also went behind Splash Mountain which was definitely cool! We also happened to be "backstage" as the Move It, Shake It parade was finishing up so we got to see the performers after they "crossed the line" and technically weren't "onstage" anymore . Utilidors are part of the tour but we didn't see any video. Our guide Kelly happened to be giving her very first tour, and you never would have known!! There were 20 people in our group; initially from reviews I'd read here I thought we'd have less and was a little disappointed it was that big, but really it was fine. DH and I both agree it was worth the $$ and look forward to bringing DS13 when he's old enough. FYI this was our first Disney tour, too.

OP if you decide to do it, enjoy!

 

[mjstant]

How far in advance did everyone book? Thinking about doing this in September but not sure what day we will be going to the parks.

 

[richmo]

How far in advance did everyone book? Thinking about doing this in September but not sure what day we will be going to the parks.

I think I booked ours about a month ahead.

If I remember correctly, and I might not be, they're unofficially OK with you changing your time/date as long as there is space available for the slot you want. No refunds though and the earlier you let them know, the better. (For example, you might not have much luck calling them today to get your tour changed from tomorrow to sometime next week...that doesn't give them much of a chance to sell your current slot...plus people would be trying to move away from a predicted rainy day, etc.)

 

[Fantabulously Cherry]

I highly recommend it! Seeing the utilidoors and hearing stories about the rides as you ride them is very fascinating. We did the tour on a Monday in November 2012 and it was not close to selling out. We did book a couple months in advance. The lunch provided at the Columbia House was pretty good. Hope you enjoy!

 

[OhThePain]

My wife and I did the tour a few years ago and enjoyed it. Our guide, Mathew, was awesome. He was knowledgeable, funny, a bit of a diva. He made the tour. You get a lot of history about Walt and WDW (which if you have looked into it before, it can be repetitive). You see some of the backstage areas and sneak on to a ride or 2, have lunch and just talk Disney. We have done 3 or 4 tours (KTTK, Backstage Safari at AK, UnDIScovered FW at EC and the Wanyama Safari, if you count it as a tour, at AKL) and while we have never taken a tour we didn't like, enjoy or feel it was worth it, KTTK has dropped to our least favorite of the bunch.

 

[champagneandgummybears]

OhThePain , as someone looking into all the tours at WDW which was your favorite? I've heard from others KTTK but have a feeling it might be a lot of info I already know and places I've already been as a long time Disney Parks fan.