If you’ve been to the theme parks many times over you might be looking for ways to have new experiences at Walt Disney World. Backstage tours are a great way to try something new and different!
In this post, I’ll describe your options for Disney World tours and explain how to book them at a discount.
If you haven’t considered taking a tour before, you just might after reading this!
Disney World Tours Overview
There are over thirty different “Backstage” (aka behind the scenes) tours offered at Walt Disney World. They range in price from $25 to $299, though it’s possible to get a 15% discount on most of them!
Here is an overview of some of the most popular tours:
Cost: $35 Adults/$10 child under 10
Length: 1 hour
Epcot park admission required, any age
Cost: $275 (includes lunch)
Length: 7 hours
Park admission NOT required, minimum age 12
Cost: $39 (ages 3 and up)
Length: 2 hours
Magic Kingdom park admission required, any age
Cost: $145
Length: 2.5 hours
Park admission NOT required, minimum age 8
Cost: $199
Length: 3 hours
Park admission NOT required, minimum age 13
Walt Disney: Marceline to Magic Kingdom
Cost: $49
Length: 3 hours
Magic Kingdom park admission required, minimum age 12
Cost $99
Length: 5 hours
Magic Kingdom park admission required, minimum age 15
Cost: $189 – $249
Length: 3 hours
Animal Kingdom park admission required, minimum age 8 and 48″ tall
This is just a small sampling of the most popular tours, but there are many others to consider. Some tours are only offered during one of Epcot’s festivals (such as Food & Wine).
All tours can be booked by calling 407-WDW-TOUR. I suggest making a reservation for any tour. Reservations can be made up to 90 days in advance.
I’ll share links to more information on all of the tours at Walt Disney World at the bottom of the post, but let’s talk discounts next!
Discounts on Disney World Tours
You can get a 15% discount on most Disney World tours if you are a DVC member, annual passholder, or Chase Disney Visa cardholder. The most accessible option is definitely the Chase Disney Visa.
Read all about the card here to learn how to get a signup bonus you can put towards your Disney vacation plus lots of other valuable perks.
Two caveats: Discounts on tours are considered “Membership Extras”, so if you bought into DVC on the resale market after April 4th, 2016 you would not qualify for the discounts. Premium and VIP tours (Such as the Sense of Africa tour) are excluded from the Disney Visa discount.
Here are some of the tour costs with the 15% discount:
- Behind the Seeds: $21
- Family Magic: $33
- Walt Disney: Marceline to Magic Kingdom: $41
- Epcot Seas Aqua Tour: $123
- Backstage Magic: $234
Some of these tours don’t require park admission, so they are a great idea if you don’t already have a park ticket.
It’s always a good idea to confirm that the tour discount is still being offered before you make any plans. To make sure that you qualify for a tour discount, I suggest consulting these sites:
- DVC Member Benefits for Tickets & Tours
- Disney Chase Visa Cardholder Perks
- Annual Passholder Tour & Entertainment Discounts
Lists of All Walt Disney World Tours
Here’s where you can get more information about the various tours offered at Walt Disney World:
- Magic Kingdom Tours
- Epcot Tours
- Hollywood Studio Tours
- Animal Kingdom Tours
- Animal Kingdom Lodge Tours
I hope this post gave you a sense of the Disney World tours offered and enticed you to try one on your next trip! Have you ever taken a tour or do you have any questions about Disney World tours? Please leave a comment below or join the discussion in The Budget Mouse Facebook group!
Aryn
Monday 28th of May 2018
On my boyfriend's very first Disney trip we did the Keys to the Kingdom tour because he likes to "know how things work" and he wasn't exactly looking forward to a week in a "kiddie park." (Who would have know then that 7 years later we'd live an hour and a half away and be annual pass holders!) I think that tour really helped him to see how much thought goes into every single detail of the park, and that it's obviously not just for kids. So I always recommend that tour to friends, and especially to the skeptics! 15 or so years ago my mother and I went for a long weekend right before Christmas and I remember we did a tour that concluded with us making a Mickey Christmas ornament. I don't know if something like that still exists, but I remember having glitter on my shoes for the rest of the day!!
Leah
Tuesday 29th of May 2018
Aryn, those are the best stories! I would never think to take a first-timer on a tour, but it clearly worked out well for you - I love it. Now I really want to take the Keys to the Kingdom tour. Thanks so much for your comment!