As a lot as I marvel on the marvel of Disney, I’m not a fan of crowds and contours. So once I had an opportunity to take one of many Disney VIP excursions, I jumped at an opportunity to see the way it labored. I used to be actually curious how a Disney VIP tour labored and if it was value what the typical household would pay.
Taking a Disney VIP tour was eye-opening! As a lot as I liked being handled like a VIP and leaping into the Lightning Lane on each trip, I additionally discovered a number of downsides. While the expertise was very particular, I additionally had blended emotions afterward, so I wished to share each the professionals and the cons.
I’ll additionally break down the distinction between an official Disney World VIP tour and a personal VIP tour of Disney from a third-party guiding service.
My Disney VIP tour was hosted by Disney as a part of a press journey with Visit Florida. This put up comprises affiliate hyperlinks. If you click on a hyperlink and make a buy I’ll obtain a small fee. All opinions are my very own.
What is an Official Disney VIP Tour?
Walt Disney World gives official personal premium VIP excursions. If you e-book a personal VIP tour via Disney, you’ll work with a information to create a customized touring plan. While you might be within the park, your group is then guided all through the park(s). When on a Disney VIP tour, you’re going to get Lightning Lane entry to all rides.
In addition to guiding you thru the parks, your information additionally serves as a concierge. With official Disney excursions, the tour information is a Disney solid member and supplies door-to-door service.
Private Disney VIP excursions begin at $450 per hour (costs are topic to vary and depending on seasonality) and have a minimal dedication of seven steady hours. Each tour can accommodate as much as 10 friends with a single information. Larger teams require a number of guides. This worth doesn’t embrace park tickets, these should be bought individually. (Purchase discounted tickets via my affiliate companion Getaway Today!)
Private Disney VIP excursions will be customized to deal with the rides and the Disney parks that you just wish to expertise. For instance, in the event you love Princesses, the tour will deal with Princess meet and greets, Princess rides, and so forth. If you’ve got thrill seekers, your information will map out an itinerary that packs within the thrills. (See my teen’s picks for the greatest Disney rides for teenagers.)
Disney VIP excursions can be found by reservation solely, they usually refill so it is strongly recommended to order your tour 180 days upfront of your go to.
Official Disney Group VIP Tours
In addition to personal VIP excursions, there are additionally group VIP excursions with pre-set itineraries such because the Disney’s Keys to the Kingdom tour. These excursions are supplied at particular days of the week and instances of the day for a 4 to seven-hour tour (park admission not included.)
“Unofficial” Private Disney VIP Tours
In addition to the VIP Tours supplied by Disney, there are third-party tour corporations that supply VIP excursions to Disney World and Universal Orlando, equivalent to Magic VIP Tours.
These third-party excursions are typically a bit extra inexpensive and ideally suited for these searching for VIP therapy. They additionally present a customized itinerary, VIP companies, and tour companies from a Disney professional to keep away from traces and crowds.
Why Book a Disney VIP Tour?
So now let’s have a look at the reason why to take a VIP tour when visiting Disney. These benefits are primarily based on the official Disney VIP Tour.
1. You have restricted time
If you’ve got restricted time to spend within the parks (for instance, you are attempting to do Magic Kingdom in someday), one of the best ways to maximise that point, particularly in the event you aren’t a Disney planning professional, is to have a VIP tour. Your information will speak to you about your “must dos” and perceive the kinds of rides and sights you want greatest.
For instance, are you a thrill seeker or a thrill avoider? They may also take note of the ages and sizes of any kids in your occasion to deal with the rides that everybody can get pleasure from. Maybe you simply wish to deal with Magic Kingdom or maybe you wish to maximize your loved ones trip and hit all 4 parks — the personal guides could make it occur.
Disney VIP guides can zip you out and in of sights and parks in probably the most environment friendly methods potential with minimal time spent ready in line. In seven hours, we hit three of the 4 parks.
We have been in a position to squeeze in Soarin’ in Epcot, Star Wars Launch Bay and The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror in Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and a number of rides on Expedition Everest. With all that we had time to spend a number of hours having fun with a gourmand dinner at Tiffin’s and soak up a present at Animal Kingdom.
2. Skip the road
Part of maximizing your time and having a VIP expertise is the power to skip the road. To be clear, a Disney VIP tour offers you entry to the Lightning Lane. You can’t truly skip that line, however you’ll be able to return into that line again and again in the event you actually like a trip.
Plus, you don’t need to take care of navigating the system and also you aren’t restricted to a set variety of Lightning Lane passes. [Note: VIP tours from private companies deal with Lightning Lane access differently.]
But along with having a information to create an environment friendly itinerary and route you rapidly via the crowds, gaining access to the Lightning Lane saves a ton of time and avoids all of the whining and fussing that comes with ready in lengthy traces.
3. Go behind the scenes
When I used to be in enterprise faculty, we learn a variety of case research in regards to the magic of Disney advertising. From the time I realized in regards to the secret tunnels and entrances that allowed the solid members and characters to magically seem the place they’re wanted, I used to be interested in what Disney parks have been like behind the scenes.
One of my favourite elements of our Disney-led VIP tour was attending to go out and in of solid entrances. You hardly ever get a peek behind that curtain however utilizing worker roads, parking and entrances permit you to rapidly get to precisely the attraction you wish to go to.
Many of the options of a VIP tour are about comfort and effectivity, however this actually is one thing you’ll be able to’t do by yourself.
4. VIP therapy
I drastically loved a number of the tales our information shared in regards to the celebrities and dignitaries she has guided via Disney. Yet one of many true luxuries was the VIP concierge service that our information offered.
For instance, we have been there in June and the temperatures have been nicely above 90 levels. Imagine how pleased we have been to disembark from the Kilimanjaro safari trip in Animal Kingdom to see our information standing there with bottles of chilly water.
Or, when one in every of our group misplaced her cellphone, our personal information looked for it from the place it had fallen out throughout a trip on Everest. Plus, our reservations at Tiffins and VIP seating on the present weren’t too shabby both.
5. Families touring collectively
If you might be two households touring collectively, you’ll be able to share that charge and on a per-person foundation, perhaps it turns into a bit extra palatable. The trick can be getting everybody to agree on what to do. But the good a part of that’s you’ll be able to hand the decision-making over to the information and inform the youngsters it’s essential to comply with the schedule they developed — taking you off the recent seat.
Are Disney VIP Tours Worth It?
There are additionally a number of good the reason why chances are you’ll not wish to take a Disney VIP tour.
1. Price
Price is the plain con to a VIP tour of Walt Disney World. Not many households have a spare $3150+ (plus tickets) to drop on a VIP tour. But hey, if you wish to have the expertise of a lifetime, perhaps it’s value a splurge.
2. Not an genuine expertise
What will not be as initially apparent is what a special expertise you’ve got when on a VIP tour. Instead of experiencing the magic of strolling via the gates or seeing the Castle for the primary time, you might be whisked behind the scenes on to the trip you wish to go to.
I had by no means been to Disney’s Hollywood Studios and despite the fact that I bought to hug Chewie and had my likelihood to trip the Tower of Terror, I had completely no concept what the remainder park regarded like.
Likewise, I hadn’t been to Epcot in over 30 years however our energy stroll from the aspect entrance to Frozen after which in a again technique to Soarin’ left me with no sense of how a lot has modified or stayed the identical.
So in case you are fluent within the language of Disney, you’ve had your Disney “firsts” and also you simply wish to get probably the most out of a brief go to — then by all means e-book a Disney VIP tour.
But I actually wouldn’t advocate it in your children’ first Disney expertise. It was just a bit too surgical. And I do know that it was designed that technique to maximize our time to see the most recent sights however nonetheless, you’ll be able to’t match all of it in with out a few of these shortcuts.
3. Teaching privilege
The different factor that sort of rubbed me the flawed means is one thing that I battle with usually as we get to journey and expertise issues that many households won’t ever get an opportunity to see. And that’s offering my little one with a privileged expertise that’s unattainable for many of her friends.
If that’s the solely means {that a} little one experiences the world, it might be simple to grow to be entitled and count on these alternatives to at all times be out there to them.
I work arduous to guarantee that once we are getting a particular expertise, my daughter is aware of it and he or she is aware of that we’ve both saved for that splurge, or it’s a perk of the arduous work and really lengthy nights that I’m placing in in change. I need her to know that if she desires the occasional particular expertise in her life, she’ll must work arduous to have the power to save lots of for these experiences.
I believe there’s something fairly instructional and rewarding a few conventional Disney expertise — full with traces and crowds. But after you have been there and executed that and simply wish to see what’s new or discover a enjoyable technique to rejoice an important day, a Disney VIP tour actually could be a magical expertise. Just make sure that the youngsters don’t count on that kind of expertise each time.
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