Tom Sawyer Island

[Rodrigo]

We always skip the visit to TS Island. Next August we will be there for the first time with kids.
Please tell me what I have been missing. What type of entertainment can you find there?
How much time do you usually spend visiting the Island (including the ferry ride)?

 

[Pat_Elliott]

We blew off TSI for years. It's now one of our favorites, for several reasons:

A) on a hot day in a park with little shade, it has trees, and places to get cool without that bone-tingling AC.

B) There's much to do.

C) It's seldom crowded.

The "to do" list.

The caves. The neatest thing, something a lot of folks miss. There's two caves, real honest-to-goodness exploring-type caves. They're cool without being chilling, and have many mysteries and surprises along the way.

Fort Sam Clemens is on the far end of the island. A gated fort, there's plenty of stuff for kids to do while parents sit and rest, including manning the fort guns (non-offensive munitions). Note: this adult loves firing the guns. There's three levels: the upper level (the most action), the ground level (including a livery with very realistic horses), and the "escape tunnel" in the basement.

There's several bridges on the island, including the barrel bridge (which I could do without). There's trails (nice, quiet nature trails), and Aunt Polly's, a quaint restaurant where you can get simple fair (the Peanut Butter & Jelly Sandwich is a neat touch). And on the island you can get some neat views of the BT/SM attractions, the Haunted Mansion, and the Riverboat as it goes by (all good photo ops).

Our average time (ferry boat included) is about an hour, usually over lunch.

WARNING: Many people feel the way I do about TSI. The one's that don't seem to hate it with a passion, calling it a "waste of time." I think they're nuts, but they think I'm nuts. Read a few reviews and figure out who YOU think is nuts!

Pat

 

[loriandmatt]

TSI is (for us) a quiet spot to rest, have a snack and watch our son play on the few things there. It is a 20 min to half hour diversion for us at best.
They do have some dark caves to wander through, but i don't think i am the only one who considers these to smell a bit funky - we generally avoid them.
They also have a nifty tree house that DS likes to play in - we usually hang out at one of the picnic tables nearby and watch him and the roaming ducks on TSI.
DS also likes to take a turn on the balancing rock (sort of like a very large teetertotter made out of rock) and then we stroll our way back to the dock.
It has been said that they hide (i think it is 3) paintbrushes on the island. (perhaps daily or on random days?) If a child finds one and returns it to a CM they get some sort of recognition. (not sure about this one - have never been lucky enough to find one!)
Not a must for us, but if DS wants to go, we hit it and use it as a pick me up for me and daddy.

- lori

 

[donna in Oz]

I thought I had heard that lunch on TSI had been discontinued. Can you still get PB&J???

 

[PrincessAurora]

I love Tom Sawyer Island at both parks. In fact that last time we were at The World, Mickey & Minnie showed up in their Holiday clothes and took us on a tour of Injun Joes Cave. THAT was cool.

I love the fort and shooting the guns too. I heard they took them out of Disneyland (don't know about WDW) when a kid dislocated or broke their finger on the non-working trigger. It would be a shame if they did.

Also small side note: resist the urge to get down on all fours and crawl through some of the tunnels in the cave!

A CM friend of mine did this at Disneyland after telling him not too and I hear this echoey voice from the tunnel saying "This place smells like pee." EXACTLY what I was afraid of.

Adults remember Little Kids + Dark Crawl Spaces + Soft Drinks = Trouble. DONT CRAWL IN THE TUNNELS or at least wash your hands afterwards.

ANYWAY, I love Tom Sawyer Island! Really, try it - the trails are great, the windmill if fab, its COOL!

 

[Pat_Elliott]

Originally posted by donna in Oz
I thought I had heard that lunch on TSI had been discontinued. Can you still get PB&J???

Good question. I haven't been to the world since September (and boy, does it miss me). I'd heard this discontinued food, then I heard that was wrong. Anyone know?

 

[B'rer Karen]

One word of warning about those caves, they are pitch black! I am not claustrophobic by nature, nor am I afraid of the dark. But I became a little of both in those caves!

Also, I've heard the same thing about the paintbrushes. And what I heard was that when you turn the paintbrush into the CM, you would get a fast pass. I don't know if it's to a specific ride or the ride of your choice. Nor do I know if it's really true since it never happened to me

 

[Pat_Elliott]

Originally posted by PrincessAurora
II love the fort and shooting the guns too. I heard they took them out of Disneyland (don't know about WDW) when a kid dislocated or broke their finger on the non-working trigger. It would be a shame if they did.

I've never, EVER been to DL, but read about this on Mouseplanet last August, before our September trip. I remember it well because at first I thought they were talking about WDW. They weren't.

But DL's rules are caution run amock. Not only did they shut down the fort, they filled the caves with sand. I guess folks are walking around looking for someone to sue. And if it looks like you can be sued, you take away what you percieve to be the problem. Just makes me believe all the more that we have too many lawyers, too little cement (my apologies to non personal-injury lawyers).

Pat

 

[wdwguide]

Just a side note: If you every make it to Disneyland Paris, be sure to visit Adventure Isle! The caves there are really elaborate, and the Swiss Family Treehouse actually emerges out of one of them. It's really fun to walk through there, see some light coming in from above, look up and see the big tree right above you!

 

[megrod74]

I've only been to TSI once (with DF) but we thought it was really fun (and we don't have kids). It has lots of shade and plenty to explore. The raft ride over is the only downfall, since you usually will have to wait for it and you're tempted to jump in and swim across, since it would be faster.

 

[loriandmatt]

Ah - ha.....I knew i wan't the only one who thought those caves smelled a bit "funky"!! It reminded me way too much of a philly subway station!

- lori

 

[sjc]

We were at TSI last week and it was my first visit there in close to 25 years. I would strongly reccomend you go. It still has the guns, the forts, the caves etc. It is alot of fun and I am shocked that with today's ever present lawyers and risk managers that it is as pristine as it is. My thirty year old wife actually got scared that we were going to get lost in Injun Joe's cave (this was the first time that she had been there.) I think we spent about an hour. It also is a good way to wait for your Splash Mountain Fastpass time to come up..... steve c

 

[Pat_Elliott]

I found the Mouseplanet article of which I spoke, regarding the closures on TSI in DL:

http://www.mouseplanet.com/david/tomsawyer.htm

Pat

 

[LaurenS]

Originally posted by B'rer Karen
Also, I've heard the same thing about the paintbrushes. And what I heard was that when you turn the paintbrush into the CM, you would get a fast pass. I don't know if it's to a specific ride or the ride of your choice. Nor do I know if it's really true since it never happened to me

Our last visit to WDW was in January 2001. We were on the first raftload over and found at least 3 paintbrushes. We kept one and helped the others find good families. We were given the choice of a front of the line pass for the whole group to either Splash Mt. or Big Thunder Mt. Railway.

 

[koslo]

I used to love the island when I was a kid. When we went last year we found that many of the "fun" things had been removed. The teeter totter rock and the spinning rock were gone. The guns had been removed from the fort windows. The barrel bridge was closed off and worst of all Aunt Pollys now only serves Ice Cream and Soda. The PB&J sandwichs and Fried Chicken used to be the best.

We will most likely skip it this year.

-Jim

 

[Belle5]

I could have written Koslo's post! I think the caves smell like urine!

 

[Keeter]

Don't forget Aunt Polly's whole dill pickles. Makes my mouth water just thinking about it.

 

[swilphil]

My sons are 3 and 1. Is TSI worth the trip for them (the 3 yo anyway)?

Is it stroller friendly--we have our own that folds up easily for the boat ride?

I was looking forward to having that be our lunch stop before heading back to the hotel for nap/pool time. Is there someplace fast/cheap we could buy lunch and bring it over?

Thanks for your help!

 

[MaryJ]

We were there in February and all enjoyed the PB & J sandwiches. However, the thing I miss is fresh fruit to go with it. The best apple I ever ate in my life was on TSI!

 

[cavepig]

I like Tom Sawyer's, but think it has gone down hill from when it opened. Last summer they didn't have the teeter totter rock, merry go round rock, or the guns. Does anyone know if these are back now?

Also they used to sell lemonade and other snacks in the fort a long time ago, but stopped that a while ago.

And it seems they don't run all the rafts back and forth like they used to, making the wait to get on and off the island longer.

I do enjoy the island, the caves, and bridges, but miss a lot of the old things that made it more fun.