We Ditched The Kids! - UPDATE (7/22 - NYC trip)

[Captain_Oblivious]

I know someone who likes to sleep at WDW - and at Yosemite and on a cruise and in San Francisco and in Disneyland. He tells me, when we travel to Tokyo Disneyland, he will not want to sleep, but burn the candle on both ends. I am skeptical...

I'd be very skeptical as well!

I am shocked that the MK opened at 8am in December! I thought that those early openings were only happening in the peak season.

Maybe December weekends are considered a peak visitor day? It took me by surprise as well.

Loved your write up of the tour and it sounds like it has not changed a lot since I took it some 7 or 8 years ago. But we ended up coming out of the Utilidors on the other side of Main Street. I guess it was where now the new Main Street bypass walkway is that they open on very crowded evenings and that might be why you used a different exit. It is a great tour and I would like to do it again one day. Maybe when I am at WDW with @nodnol again... She does not mind getting up early!

It really was an enjoyable tour, and I'm glad we did it. I'd definitely be interested in trying some of the others, like the backstage safari you did a while back. Or the one that shows you how they maintain the trains--that would be cool, too.

Totally, totally agree. Just because it's an adult only trip, doesn't mean you get to sleep-in. In fact, that would motivate me more to wake up early to enjoy more time to ourselves!

Exactly! We're parents! We've forgotten how to sleep in, anyway.

Still pretty empty to me.

Once we waited a bit, it cleared out. I'm not sure why all those people were there just before us.

That's one of the scariest sights

Run away! Run away!

Very cool, never thought about that.

I hadn't either. I really liked the way she told that story.

Geez they think of everything, including literal lines of when to start 'acting'.

Will do!

Dogs and cats living together!

Yikes! Did she happen to say how often they drain water rides?

Not that I recall, but I think Splash Mountain does go down for refurb once a year.

Good golly they have everything!

I know! I'm sure my kids would have loved to get a peek at the pins in there.

Now why in the world would I pay $80 per person, when you just gave me the tour for free?? So thanks for that! Really though, I would love to take a few tours while at WDW, but only by ourselves or once the kids are old enough to understand and appreciate it all.

Well, I know I left a lot out. There's no way to remember every detail of a 5-hour tour!

Great Report so far. I can't wait to hear more.

Thanks for reading along!

 

[pkondz]

You burn the candle at both ends when you visit Disney World.

This is a truism.

So, if they want to (waste valuable park time) sleep in, hey—no problem. They’re entitled to (flush their ticket money down the toilet) their rest.

Yeah. On this we definitely agree.

I mentioned before that we had tried to plan the getaway with an eye towards doing some things that we wouldn’t normally do while dragging the munchkins around.

And that covers a lot.

One of the big items on our to-do list was the Keys To The Kingdom Tour.

Can't wait to hear what you thought!

I’d booked the first tour of the day, which was to start at 8:30 a.m. I did this because I knew the park opened at 9 a.m., so I was hoping to get in early and get some of those coveted Empty Main Street photos.

Smart. Good thinking.

You can imagine my elation when I checked the park hours and discovered that they’d changed, and the Magic Kingdom was now opening at 8 a.m.

oh.

We gave our names and the tour time, and she let us right in.

Sweet!

Hey! You two! Get out of the way!

We headed straight for Main St. so we could check out the view of the castle, unencumbered by hordes of people. We turned the corner and found…

Oh... Crap.

I guess a bunch of people with breakfast reservations had arrived all at once.

What's with that? They didn't pay as much as you did!
Dibs!

From there, it was a simple matter of finding a photographer to get the shot we wanted.

Nice shot, too!

The Magic Kingdom opening show was well underway at this point, and we could hear the music coming from the train station.

How did that feel? Since you couldn't see it?

So the poor guy took a look behind him and said, “Ok, we have about 10 seconds, so I’ll just take a few with your camera and if you want to use mine, you can come back later.”

Surprised he didn't take them with his.
Or was it already packed up?

As he snapped the shutter, we could see this coming our way:

Holy crap! Run! Run!!!!

We made our way back to the town square.

How bad was it, fighting against the tide?

a portable headset that would allow us to hear everything the tour guide said into her microphone as we walked around the park.

Knew about that. Smart.

Looking through the variety of options on the menu, the choices were: fish, fish, fish, fish, fish, chicken nuggets, and fish. Julie and I are not seafood fans, so we chose chicken nuggets by default.

Not even vegan choices?

The biggest rule, by far, was absolutely NO photography backstage.

Yup. Heard that.
I'm going to take the tour and smuggle a tiny spy camera in.

We didn’t bother taking photos throughout most of the tour. We chose to just listen and soak it in instead.

Good. That's what I'd do, too.

We learned why there are so many flagpoles around the Main St. area (lightning rods).

Huh. Didn't know that.

It was interesting to hear the info while looking at the various details right there and then.

We wandered into Adventureland, and I liked Stephanie’s comment here. She said that she liked to think of the walk through Adventureland as a timeline of Disney’s development of animatronics. You go from Swiss Family Treehouse (no animatronics) to Jungle Cruise (simple pneumatic figures) to the Enchanted Tiki Room (more complex hydraulic mechanics) to Pirates of the Caribbean (figures representing human beings).

Cool. I like that progression.

Stephanie commandeered a boat and a skipper and we immediately boarded, all while taunting everyone waiting in the line for average peasants.


Ok, not really, but I might have thought about it.

And it's totally understandable.
Heck, I do it when I use a FP.

Once they cross that line, they must be in character at all times. Even though it’s not generally in view of the guests, people riding by on the train might catch a glimpse of a CM on the road, so that line ensures that the guests’ experience is not interrupted.

Wow. That's detailed.

(Stephanie called that shade “go away green”—it’s meant not to draw attention)

Knew that one.

Given how far you have to walk between the entrances of these rides in the park, it was fascinating to see how close the actual ride buildings were to each other. Check it out on Google Earth sometime.

I did. And you're right.

You know how these things are—one goes out, they all go out. If I were them, I’d personally check each and every bulb.

The twinkle lights are not twinkling.

One of the coolest parts of the tour was the chance to walk up to the Splash Mountain building and see all of the water running underneath as it cycled through the ride. The roar made it hard to have a conversation.

Wow. I had no idea.

I believe Stephanie said it took 45 minutes to drain the entire ride.

Huh, again.

Julie and I lucked out with a seat with a view of the Haunted Mansion.

Nice!

From there, we were led to the VIP entrance (i.e., the exit) of the Haunted Mansion. We went through a side hallway not frequented by the peasants (but still in theme, with the mansion wallpaper, spooky lighting, etc.).

Cool!! Want.

The only difference was that there was a side door that led to an employee break room, so it was a little jarring to stand in the Haunted Mansion and then see a door open to find people hanging around a fridge, benches, whiteboard with daily tasks, etc.

Uh... on second thought.
I think this is one ride that I don't want the magic "ruined".

When I took this one, I thought it was going to be too dark, but I actually like how it turned out.

Me too. Good shot.

And the inspiration for Fatal Attraction.

Heh.

nobody wants to swim through the Magic Kingdom with alligators

I dunno. Some people would pay good money for that.

“Well?” Stephanie asked. “What do you think?”


“It’s magical,” I replied.


Plaster drywall. Concrete floors. Fluorescent lighting.

Oohh... so magical!

Still, I found it fascinating. Walls were color-coded to help CM’s understand where they were in the park. I loved studying the guide maps. There’s a long, long tunnel that extends from Main Street all the way up somewhere in the north end of Fantasyland. The tunnels are wide enough for forklifts to drive through, and there were little bits of Disney history displayed on the walls at various points. Every storage area, once again, was highly organized and detailed, and I was still amazed at how such a large organization could maintain that level of detail in their operations. There was even one room called the “Pin Replenishment Center”, where CM’s who ran low while pin-trading with kids in the parks could go to get new supplies for their lanyards.

That is fascinating. I'd probably get a sore neck from looking around too much.

Coming Up Next: They say you should avoid the Magic Kingdom on Saturdays in December when there’s no Mickey Christmas party. Guess where we are?

Gatorland zoo?

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

So funny. And so tragically true. For them. S'ok. More shorter lines for me.

Yep. Have fun sleeping! I'll be on Space Mountain.

The Tour sounds like a really fun one. A great way to spend time together enjoying it.

That it was! Now we need the time and budget to go back and do another one.

We took the Keys to the Kingdom Tour too and all of us absolutely loved it. We too knew some of the things that our guide pointed out to us but I still enjoyed hearing about them. Our guide told us some things that I had kinda sorta noticed before but didn't pay close attention to. Like how the Adventureland side of Crystal Palace is different that the Main Street side. Y'all didn't get to ride Pirates of the Caribbean during your tour? We rode Jungle Cruise, Pirates of the Caribbean and Haunted Mansion and learned something about each attraction. As you said, the utilidors weren't anything spectacular to look at but it was so cool to see how everything was marked so that it would run smoothly.

The price of the tour was a little pricey but it was well worth it for us. I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

Yeah, our guide pointed out those things on Crystal Palace as well. No, we didn't do Pirates as part of the tour. Does that mean they're holding out on us??

We'd do it again, too! It's neat to get a peek backstage.

If you were to editorialize your thoughts about people who sleep in at Disney World, I'd totally agree.

Oh, but I wouldn't do that.

Great idea!!!!

As usual, you mean.

And this is why I've given up on trying to do the pre RD breakfast at CP. This happens every effing time.

I really wasn't expecting that at all. At least we got it to work out.

Holy crap! I guess they're doing too many breakfast ADR's these days.

I'm glad it at least cleared out enough for you guys to get a few pictures.

I really wasn't expecting to see that many people in the park early. It took me by surprise. So I was happy to be able to at least get photos where it LOOKED empty.

Ok, there's gotta be more to it than "Hey look, here comes a wall of people" and "We made it to Town Square."

So how did you get past the masses headed in the opposite direction? If the PP photographer feared for his safety you couldn't be crazy enough to just charge into it, could you?

Did you channel your inner Spiderman and scale the buildings on Main Street?

You know, it really wasn't that bad. We crossed the street ahead of the mob to the Casey's Corner side, and then it seemed like there was a nice path down the wall for us to move. I don't know if maybe having the CM's on the sidewalk greeting people kind of keeps them to the street or what. I was prepared to duck into the store and walk all they way down the Emporium, but we didn't have to.

And for as many great things as I've heard about CHH... this is why we've never had a meal there. Just not our thing.

Yeah, if I've wanted to eat there, it's because of the 2nd floor area giving you a nice view of the park. But when I looked at the menu I've always had to resign myself to eating the chicken. Which was fine, but not something to go out of your way for.

I wouldn't blame you. It would be nice to just take it in.

And it was!

I think this is the main thing about this tour. I'm sure that almost everyone here knows a lot of the Disney trivia and "secrets." But how often do you think of these specific things as you're standing in the parks? You're usually thinking about what you're doing or where you're going. It would be nice to just talk about and think about the meaning behind some of these things when you're standing there in the presence.

I think you put it even better than I did. That's exactly right. It's great to slow down and be forced to notice the details.

Great! You write a TR and assign homework!

Well, it's still better than doing actual work.

Makes sense. Because if the entire building was fake mountain, I'm sure we'd have been past the $100 park ticket long before this year.

It's those old movie set magic tricks, still in use!

That's a lot of water.

Heck, we had a 3' tall 12' diameter pool that we bought from Walmart that took at least 10 times that long to drain.

I'd love to work at Disney World, but this job could really suck.

Yeah, I can't imagine too many people would line up for that one. Then again, people volunteer to work on infinitely detailed Rose Bowl parade floats.

I'm glad they put a name card with it. Somebody might have decided they didn't want their fish and you'd be screwed.

Oh man. That wouldn't have been pretty.

Even ghosts get a lunch break.

And a white board.

I don't think such a large organization could function as it does if it weren't for that level of detail in their operations.

I'm sure that's true. It makes me look at the current state of my desk and feel very ashamed.

This tour does sound like a lot of fun. I'd love to do it sometimes and I'm really glad that you and Julie had a chance to go.

It was pretty cool. I'm glad we had the opportunity to do it.

And by the way, I had Google Earth running the whole time I read this. I kept going back and forth to confirm your story. You seem to be telling the truth. This time...

Hey, the "Spot The Lie" contest was several TR's ago.

But good for you! You did your homework! Did you find the ride buildings for Pirates and Splash? And wasn't it more fun than your real job?

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

This is a truism.

Yeah. On this we definitely agree.

Glad to see so many people on the same page!

And that covers a lot.

We could fill a whole weekend!

Can't wait to hear what you thought!

Great, because I have a lot of paragraphs about that still to come...

Smart. Good thinking.

As usual, you mean.

Hey! You two! Get out of the way!

Seriously. You'd think it was a public area or something.

Oh... Crap.

I think that's what I said.

What's with that? They didn't pay as much as you did!
Dibs!

Buncha jerks.

Nice shot, too!

Thanks!

How did that feel? Since you couldn't see it?

Like a ticking clock!

Actually, I don't think it felt too different. Hearing music in the air just makes me feel like I'm enjoying a day at Disney World.

Surprised he didn't take them with his.
Or was it already packed up?

Well, it was around his shoulder. I'm glad he was willing to use our camera since I'm too cheap for Photopass.

Holy crap! Run! Run!!!!

How bad was it, fighting against the tide?

Like I told Andy, it really wasn't all that bad. We found a fairly clear path close to the Emporium wall on the sidewalk. I think having the CM's greeting everyone tends to keep people to the street.

Knew about that. Smart.

Not even vegan choices?

They might have had a salad on there. You might be surprised to learn I barely glanced at it if it was there.

Yup. Heard that.
I'm going to take the tour and smuggle a tiny spy camera in.

Good luck! Let me know if it works. One of the DIS Dads has seen/worked with Disney's security team and told me if you even sneeze in the Magic Kingdom, they'll know about it.

Good. That's what I'd do, too.

We paid all this money to listen. Might as well do that.

Huh. Didn't know that.

See? Learned something already.

Cool. I like that progression.

I thought that was a neat way to think about Adventureland. I'll probably remember that every time I'm down there.

And it's totally understandable.
Heck, I do it when I use a FP.

Wow. That's detailed.

They think of everything!

Knew that one.

Dang it!

I did. And you're right.

Google Earth is one of the coolest inventions ever.

The twinkle lights are not twinkling.

I know, pkondz, and thanks for noticing.

Wow. I had no idea.

That was a lot of water.

Uh... on second thought.
I think this is one ride that I don't want the magic "ruined".

That's understandable. Especially with a favorite.

Me too. Good shot.

Thanks!

I dunno. Some people would pay good money for that.

Don't give Disney any more ideas on how to charge more money.

Oohh... so magical!

If only they'd included some TPS reports!

That is fascinating. I'd probably get a sore neck from looking around too much.

Pretty cool to know that there's a whole theme park right above your head.

Gatorland zoo?

I mean, wouldn't everybody want to be there?

 

[pkondz]

Great, because I have a lot of paragraphs about that still to come...

Standing by...

As usual, you mean.

There's a first time for everything.

Seriously. You'd think it was a public area or something.

People. You can't live with them...

Buncha jerks.

Ingrates.

Actually, I don't think it felt too different. Hearing music in the air just makes me feel like I'm enjoying a day at Disney World.

There is that.

Well, it was around his shoulder. I'm glad he was willing to use our camera since I'm too cheap for Photopass.

Ah! Well, there you go.
I'm the same.
"Pay you? For a photo... of me????"

Like I told Andy, it really wasn't all that bad. We found a fairly clear path close to the Emporium wall on the sidewalk. I think having the CM's greeting everyone tends to keep people to the street.

Oh, okay. That does ring a bell.

They might have had a salad on there. You might be surprised to learn I barely glanced at it if it was there.

What is this "salad" you speak of?

Good luck! Let me know if it works. One of the DIS Dads has seen/worked with Disney's security team and told me if you even sneeze in the Magic Kingdom, they'll know about it.

What if I hack up a wad of phlegm?

I thought that was a neat way to think about Adventureland. I'll probably remember that every time I'm down there.

Me too!

I know, pkondz, and thanks for noticing.

And no drumroll. Disappointing on many levels.

That's understandable. Especially with a favorite.

Don't give Disney any more ideas on how to charge more money.

Whoops! Retract! Retract!

I mean, wouldn't everybody want to be there?

Have you been? It's a cool place... or was, when I was there last, in, oh... '87 or '92.

 

[GoofyFan1515]

Ok, some people don’t. Far be it from me to editorialize about other people’s choices during their vacation. It’s not for me to tell them how to enjoy their time. So, if they want to (waste valuable park time) sleep in, hey—no problem. They’re entitled to (flush their ticket money down the toilet) their rest. In any case, Julie and I were determined to squeeze as much fun as we could into our long weekend.

Or you could just live closer, get APs, and then you don't have to kill yourself because you know you will be back real soon.............

One of the big items on our to-do list was the Keys To The Kingdom Tour.

Need to do that myself sometime.

We gave our names and the tour time, and she let us right in.


Cool.

Cool indeed!

We headed straight for Main St. so we could check out the view of the castle, unencumbered by hordes of people. We turned the corner and found…

Hordes of people. I guess a bunch of people with breakfast reservations had arrived all at once.

As he snapped the shutter, we could see this coming our way:

We wandered into Adventureland, and I liked Stephanie’s comment here. She said that she liked to think of the walk through Adventureland as a timeline of Disney’s development of animatronics. You go from Swiss Family Treehouse (no animatronics) to Jungle Cruise (simple pneumatic figures) to the Enchanted Tiki Room (more complex hydraulic mechanics) to Pirates of the Caribbean (figures representing human beings).

That's a cool way to think of it.........

Stephanie commandeered a boat and a skipper and we immediately boarded, all while taunting everyone waiting in the line for average peasants.


Ok, not really, but I might have thought about it.

Might have???

Actually, they do. It was interesting to see how well organized the space was. Every float had a specific place in the garage. The bulbs are checked daily. Everything has to be perfect in a Disney production.

Well not always. When we did the parade at Disneyland last year the lights on the Tinkerbelle float were out and she was in the dark as she passed us by.

Julie was going to flip them the bird, but I told her it wouldn’t be Disney-like—and we didn’t want to get Stephanie fired. She seemed nice.

That Julie........

And our chicken nuggets were perfectly fine.

A ringing endorsement if EVER I heard one...........

Soooooo.............the face on the guy escaping the rhino on Jingle Cruise???

 

[Poolrat]

Ah yes, the Poolrat Pat vegetable minimalization meal plan........

Hey I have allergies AND paperwork to prove it!!!

I really need to get on that plan.

I am sure I can arrange some paperwork....

You can fix anything with those two items.

Yup

You've got that right. If you've got WD40, duct tape and a hammer in your tool box, you're set.

And zip ties.

One of the coolest parts of the tour was the chance to walk up to the Splash Mountain building and see all of the water running underneath as it cycled through the ride. The roar made it hard to have a conversation. I believe Stephanie said it took 45 minutes to drain the entire ride.

Now that is something that would catch my attention. Of course I would geek out and ask - What size pump and how many gallons.... and the size of the discharge pipe.
I imagine it goes out about as fast as it goes down the drop.

They say you should avoid the Magic Kingdom on Saturdays in December when there’s no Mickey Christmas party. Guess where we are?

That might be worse that watching the crowd come down Main Street!!!!

Ok, there's gotta be more to it than "Hey look, here comes a wall of people" and "We made it to Town Square."

So how did you get past the masses headed in the opposite direction? If the PP photographer feared for his safety you couldn't be crazy enough to just charge into it, could you?

Did you channel your inner Spiderman and scale the buildings on Main Street?

I was going to say - duck into the stores but glad you didn't have to. Yes I do believe everyone on the curb keeps people on the sidewalk but not once you get tot eh bakery ... I mean Starbucks.

That's a lot of water.

Heck, we had a 3' tall 12' diameter pool that we bought from Walmart that took at least 10 times that long to drain.

Yup using a 5/8 garden hose and no pump for a gravity drain... Using Splash Mountain piping and drain... it would be drained in 10 sec.

Even ghosts get a lunch break.

Union Rules

You know, it really wasn't that bad. We crossed the street ahead of the mob to the Casey's Corner side, and then it seemed like there was a nice path down the wall for us to move. I don't know if maybe having the CM's on the sidewalk greeting people kind of keeps them to the street or what. I was prepared to duck into the store and walk all they way down the Emporium, but we didn't have to.

Good DISer, you know exactly where to not get get killed.

 

[Steppesister]

Yep. Have fun sleeping! I'll be on Space Mountain.

You know, you could kill 2 birds with one stone and just spend some time in Hall of Presidents or The French Show.

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

Standing by...

Well, there was that whole chapter after that...

There's a first time for everything.

Yes, and I'm glad I finally--HEY!!

People. You can't live with them...

Can't shoot 'em.

Ah! Well, there you go.
I'm the same.
"Pay you? For a photo... of me????"

If it's more than $1.98, it ain't worth it.

What is this "salad" you speak of?

I believe it's there to feed any rabbits in the group.

What if I hack up a wad of phlegm?

Excuse me, sir, we're going to need you to come with us.

And no drumroll. Disappointing on many levels.

He worked really hard, grampa.

Have you been? It's a cool place... or was, when I was there last, in, oh... '87 or '92.

Can't say as I've ever had the pleasure. Every time I say I'm going to explore a different part of Florida I get distracted by this big castle.

Or you could just live closer, get APs, and then you don't have to kill yourself because you know you will be back real soon.............

If only I were independently wealthy.

Need to do that myself sometime.

Yes, you do!

That's a cool way to think of it.........

I really liked that. It was a memorable way to put it.

Might have???

Well not always. When we did the parade at Disneyland last year the lights on the Tinkerbelle float were out and she was in the dark as she passed us by.

Uh oh. Somebody had some 'splainin to do.

That Julie........

I can't take her anywhere.

A ringing endorsement if EVER I heard one...........

Soooooo.............the face on the guy escaping the rhino on Jingle Cruise???

Oh, shoot--I never did pay that one off, did I? Well, I did take a photo of him later on...so let's put a pin in it and we'll talk about it again in a future chapter.

Hey I have allergies AND paperwork to prove it!!!

Mind sharing some of that with me?

I am sure I can arrange some paperwork....

So long vegetables!

And zip ties.

Sure, I'll get on board with that.

Now that is something that would catch my attention. Of course I would geek out and ask - What size pump and how many gallons.... and the size of the discharge pipe.
I imagine it goes out about as fast as it goes down the drop.

That was a pretty impressive roar coming from the water. I have no idea on the technical specs, though. I'm not sure the tour guide would know, either!

That might be worse that watching the crowd come down Main Street!!!!

NOW you tell me.

I was going to say - duck into the stores but glad you didn't have to. Yes I do believe everyone on the curb keeps people on the sidewalk but not once you get tot eh bakery ... I mean Starbucks.

Luckily, we were on the other side from Fivebucks.

Yup using a 5/8 garden hose and no pump for a gravity drain... Using Splash Mountain piping and drain... it would be drained in 10 sec.

Now that would be fun to watch!

Union Rules

Local Haunted #509.

Good DISer, you know exactly where to not get get killed.

Sometimes it's better to be lucky than good.

You know, you could kill 2 birds with one stone and just spend some time in Hall of Presidents or The French Show.

Seriously. Lots of great places to get that sleeping time in.

 

[pkondz]

Can't shoot 'em.

Well, you can... but then you don't go to Disney for.... the rest of your life.

If it's more than $1.98, it ain't worth it.

Your standards are higher than mine.

I believe it's there to feed any rabbits in the group.

Ah. Just like Disney to think of people's pets.

Excuse me, sir, we're going to need you to come with us.

Whoops!

He worked really hard, grampa.

So do washing machines.

Can't say as I've ever had the pleasure. Every time I say I'm going to explore a different part of Florida I get distracted by this big castle.

It does that, doesn't it?

 

[Dugette]

So, if they want to (waste valuable park time) sleep in, hey—no problem. They’re entitled to (flush their ticket money down the toilet) their rest. In any case, Julie and I were determined to squeeze as much fun as we could into our long weekend.

You can imagine my elation when I checked the park hours and discovered that they’d changed, and the Magic Kingdom was now opening at 8 a.m.

We gave our names and the tour time, and she let us right in.

And we could certainly understand why the photographer wanted to get out of Dodge. At that point, so did we.

But you can you imagine the awesome Photopass shot of you being trampled?

If I were them, I’d personally check each and every bulb.


Actually, they do.

I want them to come check my bin of Christmas lights that I'm too lazy to fix.

The only difference was that there was a side door that led to an employee break room, so it was a little jarring to stand in the Haunted Mansion and then see a door open to find people hanging around a fridge, benches, whiteboard with daily tasks, etc.

Huh, we must not have seen that break room on our tour. Our guide was too busy telling us about about the celebrities that had used that entrance.

Plaster drywall. Concrete floors. Fluorescent lighting. The Imagineers had gone all out once again, carrying out incredible detail in the “commercial workspace” theme.

Yep, that describes it pretty well.

I can only answer for myself: of course not. Being an engineer, I’m fascinated by how things work. Especially on a scale like that of Disney World. I thoroughly enjoyed the tour and was glad we had taken the time to do it. If anything, I think Julie and I would like to try some more!

I'm glad you enjoyed it!

 

[franandaj]

You burn the candle at both ends when you visit Disney World.

OK I admit it. I am the odd one out. I try not to burn the candle at both ends while at WDW.

So, if they want to (waste valuable park time) sleep in, hey—no problem.

This one I can wholeheartedly agree with. The best park time is first thing in the morning.

They’re entitled to (flush their ticket money down the toilet) their rest.

This one is different for me and I'm sure that I'm the only one around with such a strange situation. My DL pass is going to cost what it costs and there is no changing that. I can't help it that a WDW AP happens to be included. There are some folks I know with the same pass that wouldn't even consider ever setting foot in WDW. So the way I look at my pass is that if I even make it to Florida and use the pass to get inside a theme park, I have redeemed at least some of the value of that pass. I can certainly understand the logic for having a ticket which is valid for only a limited number of days. Then you want to maximize your value. For me value includes rest and sleep, cause I can't do that at home!

One of the big items on our to-do list was the Keys To The Kingdom Tour.

That sounds really cool, though it sounds like it was not entirely handicapped accessible.

We headed straight for Main St. so we could check out the view of the castle, unencumbered by hordes of people. We turned the corner and found…

Hordes of people.

That's just not right when you have early entry.

“Ok, we have about 10 seconds, so I’ll just take a few with your camera and if you want to use mine, you can come back later.”

Looking through the variety of options on the menu, the choices were: fish, fish, fish, fish, fish, chicken nuggets, and fish. Julie and I are not seafood fans, so we chose chicken nuggets by default.

I'm not sure why they didn't choose a place with more universal appeal. I love CHH, but we're avid fried seafood eaters. I mean they couldn't have chosen a place with a burger on the menu?

We wandered into Adventureland, and I liked Stephanie’s comment here. She said that she liked to think of the walk through Adventureland as a timeline of Disney’s development of animatronics.

That's cool it works at MK, but not DL.
You have animatronic birds, the simple moving animals, then a crazy topsy-turvy world with snakes, poison darts, giant crushing boulders. Oh wait. Sorry man.
Where were we? Oh yeah then Tarzan's Treehouse, and finally pirates, with the full figure animation.

She pointed out a face on one of the figures climbing the pole away from the rhinoceros and asked us to remember it for later.

Did you ever tell us why she had you remember it for later?

Julie was going to flip them the bird, but I told her it would be in Disney-like

Yeah that Julie. Always got to watch out for her!

They say you should avoid the Magic Kingdom on Saturdays in December when there’s no Mickey Christmas party. Guess where we are?

Beaches and Cream?

 

[Gracefulskinny]

Given how far you have to walk between the entrances of these rides in the park, it was fascinating to see how close the actual ride buildings were to each other. Check it out on Google Earth sometime.

I've noticed that in a few places while studying maps of Fantasyland.

 

[Poolrat]

Oh, shoot--I never did pay that one off, did I? Well, I did take a photo of him later on...so let's put a pin in it and we'll talk about it again in a future chapter.

Will do. I think I might know this but I will wait.

That was a pretty impressive roar coming from the water. I have no idea on the technical specs, though. I'm not sure the tour guide would know, either!

Only the coverall wearing, chlorine stained Mechanical dude ( or dudette) would know that. Even then it is safe to say THAT'S a LOT OF WATER.

Seriously. Lots of great places to get that sleeping time in.

Don't forget Ellen.....

 

[YawningDodo]

That was basically the end of the tour. We went back upstairs and re-entered the park by the gate next to the Firehouse on Main Street. We concluded our tour under the railroad station, and Stephanie wanted to know if the magic of Disney had now been ruined for us by being backstage.


I can only answer for myself: of course not. Being an engineer, I’m fascinated by how things work. Especially on a scale like that of Disney World. I thoroughly enjoyed the tour and was glad we had taken the time to do it. If anything, I think Julie and I would like to try some more!

I did the Disney College Program back in 2006 and was assigned to costuming at the Magic Kingdom...my parents always asked if the magic was ruined for me, but I'm with you. Having seen all the work that goes into it makes it even more amazing for me; there are tons of things constantly going on that most guests don't even notice and it's kind of mind-blowing that it all works as smoothly as it does.

Still get all excited reading about another person's take on the behind the scenes portions of MK. One of my regular work assignments was Spectromagic, so I have pretty vivid memories of the parade buildings and of the step-off and step-down areas just off stage (mostly in the dark; I remember climbing up parade floats with a flashlight clenched in my teeth...). Even so, I'd probably still learn a few things myself if I took the tour. I really enjoyed reading about your experience.

 

[wasnotafan]

...I mentioned before that we had tried to plan the getaway with an eye towards doing some things that we wouldn’t normally do while dragging the munchkins around. One of the big items on our to-do list was the Keys To The Kingdom Tour. Considering you have to be age 16 or over (we barely made it) to do the tour, we obviously wouldn’t have been able to do this with the kids.
...

Age, not maturity level. Important distinction.

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

Well, you can... but then you don't go to Disney for.... the rest of your life.

That's a non-starter right there.

Your standards are higher than mine.

I know. I mean, uh...I wouldn't have guessed that.

Ah. Just like Disney to think of people's pets.

They're so thorough!

So do washing machines.

That line cracks me up every time.

It does that, doesn't it?

But you can you imagine the awesome Photopass shot of you being trampled?

That would be epic!

I want them to come check my bin of Christmas lights that I'm too lazy to fix.

That's what kids are for.

Huh, we must not have seen that break room on our tour. Our guide was too busy telling us about about the celebrities that had used that entrance.

Maybe no one went in or out while you were there. We had a bit of a wait in the hallway.

I'm glad you enjoyed it!

Me too!

OK I admit it. I am the odd one out. I try not to burn the candle at both ends while at WDW.

Well, it is different for people who have the coveted passes.

This one I can wholeheartedly agree with. The best park time is first thing in the morning.

This one is different for me and I'm sure that I'm the only one around with such a strange situation. My DL pass is going to cost what it costs and there is no changing that. I can't help it that a WDW AP happens to be included. There are some folks I know with the same pass that wouldn't even consider ever setting foot in WDW. So the way I look at my pass is that if I even make it to Florida and use the pass to get inside a theme park, I have redeemed at least some of the value of that pass. I can certainly understand the logic for having a ticket which is valid for only a limited number of days. Then you want to maximize your value. For me value includes rest and sleep, cause I can't do that at home!

Makes sense to me. If I lived close enough to make an AP a reasonable investment, I'm sure my attitude would change and I wouldn't feel like I needed to maximize the value for my park ticket. But with a limited number of days and the expense of that ticket, I'm going to squeeze every last dollar of value out of it!

That sounds really cool, though it sounds like it was not entirely handicapped accessible.

Actually, it was! We had one or two people using scooters on the tour. There was an elevator to get them down to the tunnels under Main St.

That's just not right when you have early entry.

Agreed. We felt a little cheated.

I'm not sure why they didn't choose a place with more universal appeal. I love CHH, but we're avid fried seafood eaters. I mean they couldn't have chosen a place with a burger on the menu?

Amen!!

It was all right--the chicken nuggets were fine. We knew going in we'd be eating there.

That's cool it works at MK, but not DL.
You have animatronic birds, the simple moving animals, then a crazy topsy-turvy world with snakes, poison darts, giant crushing boulders. Oh wait. Sorry man.

That sounds awesome! I'd love to try a ride like that someday.

Where were we? Oh yeah then Tarzan's Treehouse, and finally pirates, with the full figure animation.

So just ignore Indiana Jones, like I did, and it almost works out.

Did you ever tell us why she had you remember it for later?

Yes, and sorry for forgetting to follow up on that. However, I did get a photo later and I can explain it all in a later chapter. So hold that thought.

Yeah that Julie. Always got to watch out for her!

I can't take her anywhere!

Beaches and Cream?

Not quite...

I've noticed that in a few places while studying maps of Fantasyland.

They really efficiently use their space.

Will do. I think I might know this but I will wait.

It won't be hard once you see the photo.

Only the coverall wearing, chlorine stained Mechanical dude ( or dudette) would know that. Even then it is safe to say THAT'S a LOT OF WATER.

Don't forget Ellen.....

45 minutes of air conditioning!

I did the Disney College Program back in 2006 and was assigned to costuming at the Magic Kingdom...my parents always asked if the magic was ruined for me, but I'm with you. Having seen all the work that goes into it makes it even more amazing for me; there are tons of things constantly going on that most guests don't even notice and it's kind of mind-blowing that it all works as smoothly as it does.

Still get all excited reading about another person's take on the behind the scenes portions of MK. One of my regular work assignments was Spectromagic, so I have pretty vivid memories of the parade buildings and of the step-off and step-down areas just off stage (mostly in the dark; I remember climbing up parade floats with a flashlight clenched in my teeth...). Even so, I'd probably still learn a few things myself if I took the tour. I really enjoyed reading about your experience.

When I was a kid, Disney was like, "Wow, this is amazing!"

Now as an adult, it's "Wow, this is amazing--how'd they pull that off?"

Oh, and aboard and thanks for commenting! I can't get enough of the behind-the-scenes tales either.

Age, not maturity level. Important distinction.

That's what saved me!

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

LIFE UPDATE:

Sorry I have been scarce on the boards this week. It's been an incredibly busy week and I haven't had much time to work on an update here or catch up on your TR's. So I apologize for being so far behind! I'll do my best to catch up if/when things slow down.

The big reason for my absence is: I finally got a promotion! Those of you who have been talking with me through the years know how long I've been trying to get over that particular hump. So this is a very exciting time and the first raise I've gotten in 8 years. We may or may not have visited my favorite steak house when we got the news. The only downside is that it means the end of my long-running gag of comparing the interview process to Morgan Freeman's visits to the parole board in The Shawshank Redemption.

I'll start the new job (not only is it a raise, but the work location is 10 minutes from my house) at the beginning of May. In the meantime, I need to try and get things wrapped up in a good place in my current position. It's very possible that my DIS time could drastically decrease with the new position, so I don't know what that will mean for the future of TR's. But hopefully it will all work out.

In the meantime, I promise I'll try and catch up here and on your TR's as soon as I can!

 

[Gracefulskinny]

Congrats on the new job!!!

 

[afwdwfan]

The big reason for my absence is: I finally got a promotion!

Shut the front door!!!! Really??? Is this a joke???

It's so hard to believe.



I'm glad you finally broke through. Congratulations, I couldn't be happier for you!!!

Does the promotion come with a padded handle for when you're leaning on a shovel?