Posts Tagged ‘Backstage Tours’

While beautiful all year round, Walt Disney World puts on its most gorgeous face for the Christmas season.  The parks and resorts are spangled with greenery and ornaments and sparkling lights.  Tens of thousands of poinsettias are massed in gardens and baskets and urns.  Lobbies boast astounding edible constructions; garlands swirl around pillars and up staircases.  The parks ring with seasonal music, holiday shows, and signature trees.  

Sign up for the Yuletide Fantasy Backstage Tour to get an inside peek at the preparations.  Guests visiting during the decorating season can go to bed one night and awake to find an area completely transformed, and tour participants will visit the Holiday Services department to see how this amazing feat is made possible.  The program includes visits to Epcot, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and the Magic Kingdom, as well as several resort hotels and the cavernous warehouse where the seasonal decorations are stored.   Guides share some of the secrets that make this annual decorating extravaganza such a success:  how the “Disney” bow is tied; their method for securing ornaments and stringing lights; the theming of the many installations around the “world.” 

Transportation from one location to another is provided by bus, and many visitors have made this tour part of their annual holiday tradition. 

Review:  If you are visiting during the Christmas season, this is a great way to immerse yourself in the holiday spirit.  One caveat regarding the presentation:   departing from the usual history/trivia/anecdote format, Disney has chosen to take a somewhat grade-school approach here, with lots of little “quizzes” about the holidays and Walt Disney World in general, “Who can name….,”  Does anyone know…..?”    The unending banter, which continues throughout the tour and is non-stop on the bus rides, wears very thin, very quickly.  This appears to be part of a current corporate theme – a collective frisson at the very thought of even a second of silence.  Every waking moment must be filled with music, videos, the incessant background drone of the television, or this inane chatter.  Clearly the notion that people might sit quietly in a bus for ten minutes, chatting amongst themselves, is unacceptable.  While there are always a few who are willing to get into the spirit and raise their hands enthusiastically to answer all the questions, many will find this tiresome and trite.  Although not reason enough to avoid the tour entirely, be prepared to tune out.   

The stops at Holiday Services and the warehouse are worth the price of admission, and those who haven’t had a chance to visit the resorts during the season will really enjoy seeing them decked in their Christmas finery. 

Yuletide Fantasy

Daily during the holiday season

3 1/2 hours

$69.00 per person/must be at least 16 year of age

Park admission NOT required

 

To make a Walt Disney World vacation stand out from the rest, consider adding one of these enhancements:

Tours

From an hour-long stroll Behind the Seeds, to the all-day Backstage Magic extravaganza, guests can choose from a number of programs that offer an in-depth look at what makes Disney, well…Disney.

Designed for a variety of age groups and interests, tours might involve a treasure hunt through the Magic Kingdom, an overview of the holiday decorations, or a swim with the sharks.  Many provide a rare peek behind the curtain at the incredible infrastructure and efforts that support the onstage experience for millions of guests each year.

Cirque du Soleil

Few productions on earth are more mesmerizing than a Cirque du Soleil performance, and the show at Walt Disney World, La Nouba, may well be the very best of them all.

There are truly no bad seats in the dedicated theater at Downtown Disney and their somewhat expensive price tag is an investment in the extraordinary.  The swirling colors, music, and unbelievable physical feats will astonish and delight.

Private Car Service

While you can’t beat the price of Disney’s Magical Express (free!), there’s no better way to start your Walt Disney World vacation off on the right foot than an airport meet-and-greet.  As you wearily disembark from a long plane ride, your driver is waiting with a smile, a helping hand with the luggage,  and a private car ready to whisk you directly to your destination.

Our hands-down favorite is Sunray Transportation, a company which not only offers great pricing, but the very best service of its kind that we have experienced.  Prompt and friendly with meticulously-maintained vehicles and car seats for the kids on request, they will even schedule a complimentary 30-minute stop at the grocery store to stock up on snacks.

It’s one of those niceties that quickly become necessities!

Spa Treatment

Yes, Walt Disney World is all about kids but it’s also about adults – after all, it’s everyone’s vacation.  What better way to indulge than with a rejuvenating treatment at the Grand Floridian Spa with its citrusy offerings, or the Spa at Disney’s Saratoga Springs featuring decidedly woodsy themes. There are romantic couples’ massages, a variety of facial and body therapies, hand and foot treatments, even special experiences for guests as young as four.  After several frenetic park days, a spa appointment is something to be savored – indulge.

EPCOT International Food and Wine Festival Event

Each fall, the World Showcase at EPCOT becomes a tasteful showplace for world cuisine.  Booths and pavilions feature specialties from every continent, and visitors can sample the foods and beverages of many countries and enjoy complimentary demonstrations and tastings during the Festival’s six-week run.

Those guests looking for a really memorable experience can make reservations for some of the very special programs offered throughout the Festival.  Options include seminars with celebrity chefs, wine schools, and a variety of fabulous dining experiences.  The competition for the limited tickets to these exclusive events is fierce, and prices can be daunting, but they draw a devoted crowd year after year.

At Disney’s Animal Kingdom, the top priority is caring for the animals in a manner that ensures their health and wellbeing. Few castmembers approach their roles more seriously than the animal caretakers. The range of responsibilities is enormous and includes designing diet plans for each animal with daily preparation and feedings; monitoring health, behavior, and interactions; maintaining living quarters and grazing areas. They must train the animals to accept necessary daily checks without harm; formulate and implement plans for breeding and research programs; water, bathe, medicate, and perform required surgery – the list is endless.

The Backstage Safari is an intimate look at the behind-the-scenes efforts to provide optimum conditions for the contentment and longevity of a wide variety of species living in this vast, but closed, environment. The majority of the tour takes place backstage, and visits to some of the night houses, food preparation areas, the veterinary center, and “browse” gardens give guests a unique view of this amazing park, as well as an appreciation for the painstaking requirements of the AZA accreditation which it proudly holds.

Questions are welcomed by the guides who are eager to share their enthusiasm and dedication. If they don’t have the answer, someone will call a researcher and an answer will be forthcoming before the tour’s end!

The tour culminates in a private safari ride minus the usual onstage script, allowing guests ample opportunity for picture-taking and questions.

Review: There is a far more profound story being told here; one barely audible to the millions of visitors who come to enjoy the comical meerkats and the graceful tigers. It’s a story of animal vs. animal; starkly illustrated in the neatly packaged frozen mice and rats which will soon become another creature’s meal. It’s a story of animal vs. man and the desperate efforts to repopulate species whose numbers have been decimated in their natural habitats. It’s a story of animal vs. captivity as the behaviorists work to devise ways of keeping the animals active and challenged in an environment where they no longer need to struggle for survival. It’s a story about the need for caretakers to maintain minimal contact with animals for whom they feel great affection. I use the word “whom” advisedly here, because these animals are most definitely individuals to those who care for them. This is a tour for lovers of all animals; for those enthralled by their diversity, their beauty, their charm; for those who wish to hear this story.

Backstage Safari

Disney’s Animal Kingdom

Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday 8:30 a.m.

3 hours

$70.00 per person/must be at least 16 year of age

Park admission also required