Having twice been on Walt Disney World’s Segway tour called “Around the World at Epcot” and thoroughly enjoyed them both times, we were overjoyed when we discovered that Disney had started a new Segway tour at their Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground.
For those of you who are not familiar with or have never even heard of a Segway, please allow me to explain. The best way to describe a Segway is as a self-balancing scooter with two wheels and “something to do with gyroscopes”……. well, I’m not technical minded! The Segway makes adjustments to balance the rider roughly one hundred times a second. To move forwards or backwards on the Segway, the rider just leans slightly forward or backward. To turn left or right, the rider turns the handles to the left or right. It’s as simple as that.
At present this tour is not being widely advertised, in fact the only place I found any information about it was on a leaflet in the Innoventions area in Epcot. The tours are only available twice a day at 8. 30am and 11. 30am and only on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. I am positive though that they will be operating much more frequently in the future as more and more guests get to hear about and experience them. You need to be over 16 years of age and the cost is $85. Only ten guests are allowed on each tour. The tours last approximately two hours and to book or for more details, call 407-939-8687 (Walt Disney World-TOUR).
The difference between the tour at Epcot and the one at Fort Wilderness is the latter is an off-road tour. Also, the wheels on these Segways are bigger, which come in very useful as you ride over the bumps on the trail and try to avoid any ditches!
If you intend to take the early tour it is advisable to arrive by car, as there will be no Disney transportation operating at that time. Park in the guest parking lot and then take the bus to the Settlement Depot. I suggest that you allow at least 20 minutes from arriving at the car park to reaching the Settlement Depot and then it is only a short walk to where your tour takes place. You will need to head for Mickey' s Backyard BBQ Pavilion.
If you are booked on the later Segway tour then the above applies but you also have the alternative of arriving at Fort Wilderness by boat from Magic Kingdom, Wilderness Lodge or The Contemporary. Again, it is only a short walk from the boat dock to Mickey' s Backyard BBQ Pavilion. However, I must add that on the day of our tour, two guests had opted to arrive by boat and unfortunately the boat broke down and they arrived thirty minutes late! You must arrive fifteen minutes before your tour begins so that there is time for you to fill in a waiver form and choose your “crash helmet! ” Bottled water is provided free of charge.
to continue reading our article please read the next instalment entitled “Segway Tour at Disney’s Fort Wilderness – Part II
For those of you who are not familiar with or have never even heard of a Segway, please allow me to explain. The best way to describe a Segway is as a self-balancing scooter with two wheels and “something to do with gyroscopes”……. well, I’m not technical minded! The Segway makes adjustments to balance the rider roughly one hundred times a second. To move forwards or backwards on the Segway, the rider just leans slightly forward or backward. To turn left or right, the rider turns the handles to the left or right. It’s as simple as that.
At present this tour is not being widely advertised, in fact the only place I found any information about it was on a leaflet in the Innoventions area in Epcot. The tours are only available twice a day at 8. 30am and 11. 30am and only on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. I am positive though that they will be operating much more frequently in the future as more and more guests get to hear about and experience them. You need to be over 16 years of age and the cost is $85. Only ten guests are allowed on each tour. The tours last approximately two hours and to book or for more details, call 407-939-8687 (Walt Disney World-TOUR).
The difference between the tour at Epcot and the one at Fort Wilderness is the latter is an off-road tour. Also, the wheels on these Segways are bigger, which come in very useful as you ride over the bumps on the trail and try to avoid any ditches!
If you intend to take the early tour it is advisable to arrive by car, as there will be no Disney transportation operating at that time. Park in the guest parking lot and then take the bus to the Settlement Depot. I suggest that you allow at least 20 minutes from arriving at the car park to reaching the Settlement Depot and then it is only a short walk to where your tour takes place. You will need to head for Mickey' s Backyard BBQ Pavilion.
If you are booked on the later Segway tour then the above applies but you also have the alternative of arriving at Fort Wilderness by boat from Magic Kingdom, Wilderness Lodge or The Contemporary. Again, it is only a short walk from the boat dock to Mickey' s Backyard BBQ Pavilion. However, I must add that on the day of our tour, two guests had opted to arrive by boat and unfortunately the boat broke down and they arrived thirty minutes late! You must arrive fifteen minutes before your tour begins so that there is time for you to fill in a waiver form and choose your “crash helmet! ” Bottled water is provided free of charge.
to continue reading our article please read the next instalment entitled “Segway Tour at Disney’s Fort Wilderness – Part II