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Gemini Cricket
08-06-2001, 04:40 PM
Has anyone tried one of those guided tours?
There's two as far as I know: A Walk in Walt's Footsteps Tour and the Premiere Tour.
I was wondering if it might be worthwhile to take.
Do they divulge any information you would otherwise not get? I've been there at least 50 times as was just curious about doing it.

You've got to love their hats...:D

Gandalf
08-06-2001, 04:47 PM
Originally posted by Doc
Has anyone tried one of those guided tours?
There's two as far as I know: A Walk in Walt's Footsteps Tour and the Premiere Tour.
I was wondering if it might be worthwhile to take.
Do they divulge any information you would otherwise not get? I've been there at least 50 times as was just curious about doing it.
You've got to love their hats...:D
Hey, those hats are cool! It's those little whips they carry that make me nervous!

wonderful
08-06-2001, 07:29 PM
Passholders get the tour at a discount and, i think, it's a great way to spend a few hours... There are lots of passholders who take different tour guides and compare them... The Walk in Walt's is the most popular tour and the guides who give it pride ourselves on our knowledge and presentation... and we LOVE folks who LOVE Disney... it makes for a great tour.
Now, if you know a lot (which presumably most do who come to this site), you might not learn anything NEW, but you might be reminded of things you might not have thought about in a while...
If you like, you might ask if the "Wonderful" Walt guide is giving the tour.. I'd love to have you!:)

DisneylandKid
08-06-2001, 07:50 PM
Originally posted by wonderful

If you like, you might ask if the "Wonderful" Walt guide is giving the tour.. I'd love to have you!:)
Are you a tour guide??? If so-when do u work?

Lost Boy
08-06-2001, 09:14 PM
I have been going to Disneyland several times a year since the day it opened. I have taken the Walking in Walt's Footsteps twice. It is well worth it. Even for us "know it alls" you can always learn something new. And the Tour Guides are the best. Take it, you'll like it.
:p

Napsto
08-06-2001, 09:29 PM
ive always wondered about those tours, like how the hardcore fans will feel.

tjrj
08-07-2001, 08:28 AM
I've never posted before-hope I get this right! During our last DL visit in September '99 our family-Mom, Dad, 13 year old, and 8 year old-took the "Walk in Walt's Footsteps" tour as part of our package.

The older 3 of us enjoyed it. Everything was sort of "over the head" of our 8 year old. The main problem that I had with the tour was that the tour guide did not use a microphone. We tried to stay in the back so that the other tour members weren't distracted if our kids were loud(which they didn't but wanted to be cautious). The non-use of the microphone made it very difficult if not impossible to hear our guide.

Ralph Wiggum
08-07-2001, 08:53 AM
tjrj welcome aboard!! I too have been interested in this tour and wanted to let you know that your comments have led me to finally do it.. Thanx :)

mad4mky
08-07-2001, 05:56 PM
Hey Doc,
I went on the tour this past February on a horrible, rainy day. The tour was great. We had a great guide, who spoke very loudly and clearly above the noise of the rain. As you know, rain is noisy when its pouring down on umbrellas...but we heard him quite well. The tour guides can either make or break the tour. Our's was quite enthusiastic, and it was obvious he loved DL and Walt as much as we do. And when we came back down 3 months later, my husband and I ran into our guide, and we expressed to him how much we enjoyed the tour with him. He was so excited to hear good feedback. I had already knew quite a bit about DL and Walt's ideas and plans...but I sure learned quite a few new ones.
Take the tour...

Gemini Cricket
08-07-2001, 07:40 PM
mad4mky-
Thanks for the info. The next time I visit DL I'm going to give it a shot. I think it's the only thing I haven't done there. Except maybe Club 33.

Mburk
08-30-2001, 12:22 PM
I know this is an old thread, but I was wondering if the tours can be reserved in advance. I'll be in DL for the first time :D in a couple of weeks and would hate to get shut out. Anyone know?

hbquikcomjamesl
08-30-2001, 12:46 PM
I know this is an old thread, but I was wondering if the tours can be reserved in advance. I'll be in DL for the first time in a couple of weeks and would hate to get shut out. Anyone know?


I don't believe so. But if a tour gets unusually heavy traffic on a particular day, they'll split it up. The last time I took the Walt's Footsteps tour (I've taken it every July 4th since its inception; for the first year or two, it included a trip around the Park aboard the Disneyland private car, the Lilly Belle), the turnout was quite large, and the group was split in two.

You shouldn't have any problems.

I was also one of the lucky few who took one of the two experimental backstage tours that were offered for a few weeks, the year before Walt's Footsteps had its debut. That was a special experience, but if I told you anything about it, I'd have to kill you. ;)

WDW guided tours, on the other hand, most definitely can be booked in advance, and if you're taking the Backstage Magic tour (highly recommended), particularly during busy seasons, you'll probably have to book it many months in advance.

Mburk
08-30-2001, 12:55 PM
Thanks for the tip. Sounds great - that way we can be flexible with which day we want to tour. Will also book early for WDW as you suggested. Do you have any pictures of the backstage stuff or was photography a no-no?

hbquikcomjamesl
09-04-2001, 08:11 AM
Do you have any pictures of the backstage stuff or was photography a no-no?


Most of the stops on the BSM tour were strict backstage areas, as in "please leave your cameras on the bus." You get to see areas where even official Disney photographers would have to have prior arrangements, and would be subject to censorship. (Case in point: Central Shops, particularly the Animatronics department.) Then again, there are places you visit where even if photography were permitted, it wouldn't be of much value. (Case in point: the rehearsal trainer behind Fantasmic: the tour guide makes a point that it's a fairly typical rehearsal room.)