| PassPorter.com Feature Article Original article at: http://www.passporter.com/articles/epcot-gardens-of-the-world-tour.html Gardens of The World Tour: A Guided Tour During Epcot's International Flower and Garden Festivalby Sikander Durrani, PassPorter Guest ContributorLast modified 5/28/2009 This spring I took the Gardens of the World Tour at Epcot, presented by the Disney Institute. The tour is a 3-hour walking tour that takes you around Epcot for a closer look at Disney's beautiful gardens. The tour group is lead by a Disney Horticulturist. The first 30 minutes of the Gardens of the World tour is spent going over the way Disney does their decorations and how they get around different issues regarding watering of the plants and excess water. This tour spends most of the morning just going over the different types of flowers that are on display for the festival and in my opinion, the only people that interested in the information in my opinion are serious gardeners that can tell the difference from one flower type and another. The tour was originally advertised to have a behind-the-scenes look at how Disney grows and prepares their flowers including a look at their greenhouses. I was disappointed that on my tour we only got to see the facility from the outside, which is behind the Canada Pavilion. The guide simply told us a little bit about how they have to do some acrobatics to get the taller trees out of the greenhouse. Most of the information provided on Gardens of the World tour could be found on information placards below the trees or next to the flower beds. In my opinion, I would have preferred to read the information myself and gotten more “behind the scenes” information from the tour guide. I am not sure if this tour is given with audio equipment, but we were not offered any. I found it often hard to hear the guide over the regular crowds of the park. My recommendation for this tour? Unless you are really into gardening, don’t waste your time or money on the tour. You can get the same information at a more leisurely pace by walking around Epcot on your own, reading the placards and looking at the flowers and trees above them. Gardens of the World Tour Information: The tour costs $59 per person. Discounts are available for Annual Passholders, AAA members, and DVC members. It is highly recommended that you book this tour in advance. The tour is only offered during the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival each spring. To make reservations for the tour, call 407-WDW-TOUR (407-939-8687) at least 24 hours in advance. The tour is offered three days a week on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. About the Author: Sikandar Durrani is from just outside Houston, TX. He has spent a lot of his time as an adult going to Walt Disney World and Disneyland and hopes to go back to Walt Disney World as often as he can. This article originally appeared in the PassPorter newsletter -- subscribe to our popular newsletter today for free at http://www.passporter.com/news.htm Updated 5/28/2009 Check for a more updated version at http://www.passporter.com/articles/epcot-gardens-of-the-world-tour.html |