Segway Tour - anyone done this?

[Candace]

I have booked this for my son and his girlfriend. They are supposed to report to the Guest Services lobby *inside* the ticket turnstiles at the front of EPCOT. Can anyone tell me where this is? Thanks!

 

[Twende]

From the main gate you go in and head left. It is to the left side of the "silver ball". It seems to me there is a sign above the door to the building.

You are one great mom to get this tour for them. You really should go yourself too. It is a blast and one of the very best things we have ever done at Disney.

 

[Candace]

Thanks for your quick reply! Actually, I am thinking of doing it myself when I am down there in June. They will be there a few weeks before I am. It sounds like so much fun, and it looks that way too when you see the CM's scooting around EPCOT on them!

 

[windan]

From the main gate you go in and head left. It is to the left side of the "silver ball". It seems to me there is a sign above the door to the building.

You are one great mom to get this tour for them. You really should go yourself too. It is a blast and one of the very best things we have ever done at Disney.

Twende...Can you give us a little info about this tour? We saw it in Fodor's and want to book it for our trip in June.

Candace...Maybe our family's will be on the same tour

 

[Shannon G]

The Segway tour is great! My mom & I did it back in September. I think there are two different ones, we did the 2 hour one. You spend about an hour inside a classroom, learning to ride the Segway. It's a little awkward at first, but everyone seemed to get the hang of it pretty quickly. For the second hour, you then go out into the park, and the instructors lead you out into the World Showcase section of Epcot. Because the tour is in the morning, WS is not open yet, so you get to ride throught there without any crowds around. They take you through the countries, through some fun paths on the Segway - we went over the little bridge in Japan, through the maze in the UK. They also pointed out some hidden Mickeys along the way. Bring your camera, and when you get over to the open space in front of the Italy pavilion, the instructors will take your picture for you, with the lagoon and Spaceship Earth as the backdrop.

It was a fantastic morning, and I cannot recommend it enough!

 

[Twende]

We have taken it twice now and if I could I would take it again. It is so very much fun.

Like the other poster said if you take the 2 hour tour, you take the first hour in the classroom. You watch a few slide notices that are mostly legal things to cover Disney if you do have an accident. Then you get your helmets fitted and you pick a Segway.

There are two instructors for the class of 10 so you get all the individual instruction that you need. They show you how to work the key and get on the machine. It is a very strange feeling at first but it soon becomes second nature to you. The speed of the machine is controled by your body movement and the angle of your path or direction is controled by turning the handle where your hand goes. You start out just getting on and off and then progress to going forward slowly then faster. The instuctors add cones to the area so you learn to turn and spin on a dime. The also add a ramp to teach you how to go over an obstacle. They instruct you on how to duck to go under overhanging objects like tree limbs and door frames. You are much taller on the machine and you have to be careful of objects that you would normally just disreguard. Beware of walls at the ramp! My DH tried to go through the wall! We laughed so hard. He was excited and forgot to turn!

They also teach you how to go up and down hills or ramps. Then you get a short bathroom, water, put on or take off jacket break and away you go. You stay in single file at first and head out the building door. The classroom building is different than the registering building. FW is open by this time but not very busy around where you are, near the igloo - soda pop testing area. You go directly into WS that is still closed. And you bascially have The World to yourself! This in itself is incredible!

Depending on the interst level and the instructors, they talk about the countries as you go through them. We ducked in and out of gift shops and resturants which somehow felt wonderfully sneaky or illegal! No way could you do that when the countries were open! LOL!

You do stop half way around the world and I think normally a Disney photographer is there to capture your picture with Planet Earth in the backgound. This is how it was the first tour we took. The second time there was a light rain most of the tour and the photographer was not there. We had our our camera and video camera and the instructors took pictures of everyone for them. You are not allowed to take photos yourself while on the machines. DH did get off of his briefly and took more photos and videos but I stayed on mine every second and just savored the ride!

We had our family wait for us in England and the entire group on Segways waved and said hello to them as we passed. We wanted them to see us riding and we knew that we passed right by there on the tour. They had entered via the International gateway so they were able to get there easily.

All in all it is great fun. We have heard rumors that another tour is being discussed and it will be off road in Fort Wilderness campgrounds. That would be great fun too!

Make sure you sign yourself up for a tour! You will love it. AAA memebers get a discount, too. You also get a little surprise gift at the end! ENJOY!

 

[chanty]

We are thinking of taking this tour... but i'm the clumsy one who's balance is off track lol Will I be ok? My DH is such a great athlete... I can see him twirling around me! It shouldn't be that bad...right?

 

[DisnutDave]

Chanty- DW and I did this last year and had a ball!

DW would be the first to admit that she is not very coordinated (she has trouble staying up on a bicycle, in fact!). About 1/2 way into the 1 hour training she was about to give up. But the instructors were patient with us and she saw everybody having such a great time with the Segways that she hopped back on and was able finish the class and join the tour of WS. Neither she (nor anyone in our group) had any spills or problems.

The fact is that the Segways do virtually all of the balancing for you, it's really amazing. We had a wonderful time, and both of us want to do it again in the future.

 

[windan]

Wow! After reading Twende's post our family cannot wait to take this tour in June

Danny

 

[Disney Crazy Debbie]

My DS and I are doing th Segway tour this August. Everyone's review and description make me so excited - I can't wait!

 

[antmaril]

My husband, son and I did the Segway Tour last year. It was the most fun we've ever had at WDW. I was worried I wouldn't be able to do it, but it was not hard and I got the hang of it right away.

I highly recommend. I paid $68 per person with AAA discount.

Have fun!

 

[mouseRD]

We're staying outside of Epcot. Will we be able to enter through the International Gateway & walk through Future World to the main entrance?

 

[jenelope]

I went on it last fall. One of the people in my tour group was taking his fourth Segway tour at Epcot, that should tell you how fun it is!

I have scoliosis and my entire body is unbalanced, but like others have said, the Segway balances for you. Your feet sometimes get a little tired from being in one position for a long time, but while you're stopped you can flex your feet a little. I spent quite a bit of time in the Training Center doing the so-called "Segway Shuffle" but it's actually pretty easy to get the hang of it.

I did have one leeeeetle problem shortly after leaving the training center. I picked up a little too much speed and the Segway started doing something odd. I started to get this feeling like I was sinking backward and started to panic. In fact I panicked so much, I tried to bail (forgetting that it won't actually shut off if you have at least one foot on the platform). Our guide explained it afterward. The speed governer kicks in and that tipping feeling is its way of telling you to slow down. So if you come down a little hill and start feeling like you're sinking, don't panic, just slow down!

I had a great time after that brief moment of pilot error and would love to do the tour again!

 

[jojosmom]

Is there a height/weight limit on these? DH is 6 ft 8 in and about 270 (before the dining plan ). Just wondering if he could do it.

 

[DisnutDave]

MouseRD- Unless they have changed it since last year, that is the one tiny problem with this event. You have to enter through Epcot's main gate. This isn't a problem if you have a car, but as you probably know there is no bus service to Epcot's main gate from the Epcot resorts.

jojosmom- yes, there is a weight limit, I believe it's 250 pounds, though you may want to double check that.

 

[RebelHawk]

Officially the weight limit is 250 pounds. I called and booked the Segway tour for our upcoming October trip. I have about 15 pounds to lose so I can do the tour. I think I have a pretty good incentive!

-Tom in SC

 

[chanty]

there is no bus service to Epcot's main gate from the Epcot resorts.

We are staying at BWV....is there a path to walk to Epcot main gate? Is there a bus running from the Swan or Dolphin or it's the same for them?!?!
HELP!

 

[dgaston]

This is DH's favorite tour of all the backstage tours we have done. Remember there are discounts with Disney Visa, AAA, AP, and DVC. I thought I might be the klutzy one having trouble with the Segway, but picked it up in about two minutes. It is fun! It's just afterwards in your stay you really wish you had the Segway again at Epcot