The first step is to make a reservation for the Around the World at Epcot Segway tour. Call (407) WDW-TOUR (1-407-939-8687), to reserve a spot for yourself on one of their tours. They are currently offered four times a day, at 7:45, 8:30, 9 and 9:30 a.m. These may sound like early start times, but the advantage is that you get to be in the Epcot World Showcase before there are any other guests there. It's a very special experience to be in Epcot and feel like you have it all to yourself! Select your date and time, pay by credit card, and you're all set.
The current cost for the tour is $99.00 per person. You will also need separate admission to Epcot to take this tour.
There are some restrictions for the tour: you must be at least 16 years old and weigh between 100-250 pounds to take the Segway tour. A guardian must sign a waiver for anyone 16-17 years old.
When you arrive at Epcot on the date of your reservation, you are asked to come at least 15 minutes before your scheduled time. You come in through the turnstiles at the entrance to Future World and go to the left to the Guest Relations lobby. You will check in there with the rest of your group and will be met by your guides/instructors for the tour. At least two to three guides will be assigned to each group of riders.
The Segway is a very easy conveyance to ride. But Disney does everything with excellence and that includes safety, so the first hour of your tour is spent training you to ride the Segway.
You go to their indoor Segway Training Room where they show you Segway Operation/Safety videos, fit you with the required helmet, and introduce you to your Segway. You will be taught everything you need to know about the Segway before they turn you loose on your own.
Segways are very stable and very easy to learn to ride. The instructors you will have are fantastic - typical Disney! They will teach you how to maneuver around obstacles, go up and down hills, go over speed bumps, and stop on a dime! The training experience itself is fun, so don't think you will be wasting your time.
But, the best is yet to come!
Your tour group leaves the training facility, led by and followed by the Epcot guides. You head towards the World Showcase, traveling single file, like ducks in a row! You feel like the whole World Showcase is there just for you to enjoy. There is no one else around except for a few workers sprucing everything up for the day, and it is a very quiet and peaceful place that you get to experience.
You don't just take a quick trip past the different country pavilions, you get to ride through many of them! Be prepared to ride into Germany, China, Italy, Morocco, and Japan, hearing a little history about each pavilion from your guide as you go. You gather around the fountain in Germany, go by the fish ponds and over the bridges in China, and ride through gift shops, among other things.
You don't just get to ride Segways, you also learn something about each of the country's pavilions. The whole trip is very fun and informative, and extremely well chaperoned by your Disney guides.
If you are a Disney Pin Collector, one more reason to take the Segway Tour is that at the end of your tour, they give you an exclusive Segway Tour Pin! And that may be enough to convince some of you to do it!
