DW, DS (then 24 years old), and I spent a week at the Disney Institute during spring break of 2000. We booked a 4-day DI "package" that included meals, choice of classes, and accommodations. We then added on lodging for the rest of a full week's stay. The package included 6 training sessions for each of us. We were allowed to spread these over the entire week, so we generally selected a training session for a half-day and hit one of the parks for the rest of the day. I did two different cooking sessions (heart healthy cooking and a session on grilling), two different photography sessions (nature photography and architectural photography), a computer animation session, and a wine tasting session. DW did one cooking class, two gardening classes (taught in the greenhouse), two computer animation classes, and an introductory photography class. I think that DS did the same two computer animation classes, a couple of television production classes (there was a studio in the same building where the instructional kitchens were located), the introductory photography class, and a group tennis class (that was a last-minute substitution for the rock-climbing class that ended up being cancelled due to low enrollment).
The cooking sessions wrapped up with the opportunity to eat the product of your work (DW also did the heart healthy cooking session and we still fix the stuffed portobello mushroom that was the centerpiece of the meal we fixed). The equipment supplied for the outdoor grilling session included these fancy stainless gas grills that you now see advertised for about $5000 each. Nice stuff to dream about.
The photography sessions included a 90-minute classroom session followed by a trip to one of the parks to practice what you'd been taught in a approximately two-hour picture shooting session. Film/developing and use of a really fancy Nikon single lens reflex camera, lenses, and tripod (if you wished to carry one) were provided and the instructors (usually 2) were around to answer questions, suggest interesting subjects, and generally help you apply the techniques they discussed. The nature photography session moved over to the AK and the architectural photography session moved over to the Epcot World Showcase. Since we arrived at Epcot about 10 am, we had an hour to walk around shooting pictures in the WS prior to its 11 am opening; if we left the WS, we had to wait 'til 11 to get back in, so it was suggested we get all the pictures we wanted in this area prior to moving over to Future World. The introductory photography session that DW and DS did moved over to Downtown Disney for the practice session.
Because we purchased a package that included accommodations, 4 days worth of meals (that we were able to spread over a 7 day, 6 night stay), and the lessons, the price of instruction is a little hard to estimate, but I remember comparing the cost of the 6 lessons at the day-visitor rate and concluding that it was a pretty good deal. The $45 rate mentioned in an earlier post was actually available to any on-site guest, not just those at OKW; the DI would reimburse your cabfare if you were staying at one of the other resorts and wanted to come over for a particular session on a space-available basis. The cooking sessions were particularly popular with DI guests getting first crack at booking these. Actually, we pre-selected the sessions we planning to do a couple of months prior to our arrival at the institute.
The meal plan included vouchers for breakfasts, lunches, and dinners at the DI restaurant, Seasons. It was an excellent operation featuring American cuisine prepared using the freshest ingredients of the season. There was an additional "wild card" voucher that could be used for a spa treatment, private tennis lesson, or a meal at one of the Downtown Disney restaurants. DW and I ate at the Portobello Yacht Club while DS had a private tennis lesson with the on-site tennis pro.
Overall, our experience at the DI was outstanding. The DI concept included booking corporate training groups and providing "management training" along with access to the more fun options that we did (as a "team building" feature for a corporate group). I don't think the bookings ever reached the level expected in the original planning and the decreased travel, including corporate training travel, in the aftermath of 9/11 was the death knell for the DI concept.
Ralph
