Segway Tour at CA

[minniefaye]

Has anyone done this? What was your opinion? I'm looking for something "different" to try. thanks

 

[scanmom]

I have not done the one at CA, but DD and I did the one at Epcot's World Showcase. We had a great time! It was well worth the money. The only thing I would have them done differently is have less time spent in the training session. The Segways are easy to learn to ride, and we were ready to go a lot sooner than we did. That being said...from all I have read, I believe that the tour at CA is longer time-wise than the one at Epcot, so I would probably have liked it as well or better!

 

[Califgirl]

I've done this at DCA twice (and Epcot twice and the offroad tour at Wildnerness Lodge too). It's very fun, and the Segways are easy to ride. The last tour I was on at DCA had a man in his 70's (at least) and he did great. There are age and weight restrictions (must be 18 and weigh between 100 - 250, I think it is). but it is really fun. I especially enjoy seeing the park without people. It's pretty wonderful.

 

[spokanemom]

I took the tour in November and I LOVED it. It was the highlight of our trip. I recommend it!

 

[Armadillo4]

Here's a review I posted on another site about the DCA Segway tour (Dec. 07). It was a blast and I highly recommend it!

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I'm not a morning person at all, so getting to DLR for a 7:15am meeting time was not the easiest thing in the world, but somehow I managed to make it. Tour participants had the option of parking at DTD for complimentary parking. The brisk walk from the DTD parking lot to the entrance to DCA sure woke me up. According to my car's outdoor thermometer, it was a balmy 46F outside.

One of our tour guides met us at 7:20am and took us to a room behind Guest Relations at DCA. There was coffee (sweet nectar of life!), assorted juices, pastries and fruit. After some introductions, signing the waiver absolving Disney of any responsibility for your lack of coordination and some general small talk, we all watched a brief Segway training video. Our tour group was a full complement of 12 guests, and a second tour guide joined us shortly. There was a Segway in the room itself and the guides went over the basics of how it functioned.

After the video was over, we walked over to the Hollywood Pictures Backlot area for training. We split up into two groups of six and learned how to ride our Segways. Including myself, only three of the 12 guests had ever been on a Segway before, but everyone picked it up really quickly. The training consisted of several components: stepping on/off a Segway, rolling forward and turning, walking your Segway over speed bumps, a slalom course around cones, how to limbo under a plastic lightsaber (e.g. ducking under obstacles), and finally going up and down inclines. Once we had mastered all of these skills, it was time for the Tour to commence.

As our guides led us around the park, they would stop at certain points and provide us with various bits of trivia and facts about DCA. Not surprisingly, most of us enjoyed having hidden mickeys pointed out more than anything else.

One of the guides said that after a slow start, the tours are pretty much at capacity every weekend. I enjoyed the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail the most. We had a 15 minute "free time" segment in Paradise Pier, but due to the construction of Toy Story Mania, our boundaries were more limited than before the construction walls went up. Everyone seemed to enjoy the tour with comments like "I don't want it (the tour) to end" and "I want one of these (Segways) for myself" being uttered quite often.

I definitely had a wonderful time and highly recommend this tour if riding a Segway holds any interest for you. But how does it compare to the Epcot version? Both tours are great but each version does certain things that I like better than the other.

* The initial training period at Epcot is much slower and drawn out than the DCA version. A lot of this is predicated on the limited amount of training space in the Innoventions pavilion versus the wider outdoor space at DCA. But the end result was that there was slightly less "riding time" vs. "training time" with the Epcot tour.

* However, once we got rolling in World Showcase, I enjoyed the "tour" aspect at Epcot more than the DCA version. Maybe it's because I'm at DLR about once a month vs. once every 15-18 months at WDW. But I definitely found the information, trivia and facts presented by our Epcot tour guides to be a lot more interesting.

* The DCA tour is more expensive than the Epcot version ($99 vs $85, discounts for APs, AAA, Disney Visa). However, with the additional cost, you get a free group PhotoPass picture at DCA as well as the light continental breakfast.

* At the end of both tours, you get a special tour pin. Both pins are very cool and feature a little sliding Segway, but I like the Epcot version better.

I truly enjoyed both Segway tours. They're certainly not cheap, but I felt it was money well spent. The combination of riding a Segway *at* a Disney theme park is just lots and lots of fun. I highly recommend it!
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[Mouse13]

Does anyone know how many days in advance you can book this tour? What number to you call? I really want to try this on our upcoming trip!

 

[Pooh_Friend#1]

Sounds like a lot of fun.

 

[ScooterL]

Tour reservations can be made up to 30 days in advance by calling 714-781-4400, from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Pacific time. If you qualify, ask about Passholder, Visa cardholder, or AAA discounts.

I did the Segway tour at DCA in September (I've done the Epcot tour twice) and had a great time!

 

[lvstitch]

Thanks for the info. I have been wanting to do it in Epcot but it doesn't look like I'm getting there anytime soon We are going to DL at the end of May, this is on my must do list.

 

[NWPrincess]

What was it like to ride a Segway?

 

[minniefaye]

thanks for all the info everyone!! I think I'm going to try this in October and have my mom watch the kids so I can have "me time"!!

 

[djblu883]

I did the segway in Epcot...was a blast...I'd sure do it again...but with so many in my party my next trip...I'll skip lol

 

[XTinabell]

What was it like to ride a Segway?

At first it's a little scary and intimidating, but trust yourself and the segway because in a matter of minutes it becomes a part of you and is so easy and fun. We kept wanting to go faster but disney has it set to lowest possible speed for safety reasons. But know that it is normal to be a little freaked out the first time you step on it.

The staff/guides were so helpful and made sure we were comfortable and knew what we were doing before we started the actual tour. They went to each person individually and helped us get on and off the segway, move forward, turn, go down hills and such.

Lots of fun. And it feels weird to walk after you've been on the segway for a couple of hours.

 

[dcfromva]

Here's a review I posted on another site about the DCA Segway tour (Dec. 07). It was a blast and I highly recommend it!

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I'm not a morning person at all, so getting to DLR for a 7:15am meeting time was not the easiest thing in the world, but somehow I managed to make it. Tour participants had the option of parking at DTD for complimentary parking. The brisk walk from the DTD parking lot to the entrance to DCA sure woke me up.

I'm really interested in this tour. This question is for anyone who has taken the Segway tour and used the DTD parking option. The tour info says the tour lasts for approx 3 hours. Did you have to pay for DTD parking after 3 hours? If the tour lasts 3 hours plus adding the time to walk to/from the vehicle would probably be about 4 hours total (or did the tour/walk take less time than that?)

 

[dcfromva]

bump

 

[YellowMickeyPonchos]

If you want to get a taste of the Segway without paying for the tour, they still do free Segway training on the 2nd level of Innoventions in Tomorrowland at DL. Sign a waiver and learn to ride around a couple cones. It will definitely whet your whistle or help you decide it's not for you - all without paying a dime (excluding park admission of course)!

I've done the Epcot tour and loved it. We can't get the girls moving fast enough in the morning and don't stay over at the hotels enough for me to get there in time to do the DCA one. Maybe soon!

Nancy

 

[heatherleigh]

I didn't know you could sample the ride. What a great idea. There is no way we could do the tour this year, w/ our kids being so small. I know my husband would get a kick out of trying one out though. We will have to put that on our to do list.

 

[PinkBudgie]

I was going to mention the Innovations ride too. It says you must be 16 or over.
If anyone happens to be up in the Bay Area, you can also try a Segway at the San Jose Tech Museum. I tried one there it is actually a little tricky at first. For some reason the control was opposite of what I kept wanting to do.

 

[RaeRae's Mommy]

I made my reservation for the Segway Tour yesterday. Got my 20% off by using my new Disney VISA card.

 

[M4travels]

We were on the tour this past Saturday morning. I will definitely do this again! It was great zipping around. We're going to be at WDW a few times this fall / winter so we're hoping to try Epcot and the Fort Wilderness tours, too.

For those not staying onsite and driving/parking at DTD, the free parking is good for the whole day!

I called on Friday for Saturday's tour. Worked great!