by Gary P. Bungart

Let me start out by saying that I consider myself a little higher than average when it comes to knowing the history of Walt Disney World, and all the trivia that goes along with it.

With that said, I can only heap praise and adoration on Walt Disney World's Keys to the Kingdom tour, and specially Matthew, tour guide extraordinaire!

Saturday, Val, Jeff, Michael  and I had the distinct pleasure to take the 4-5 hours tour throughout the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World.

The tour begin outside City Hall. We were all given personal assisted listening devices that fit comfortably in our ear and made hearing Matthew's non stop, humorous, and fact filled narrative / commentary a pleasant experience. Regardless of where I was in the group of twenty-one people, I had no problem hearing every amazing fact, or touching story that Matthew had to share during the tour. Standing in Town Square, Matthew introduced us to the four standards of the Disney Company, which are: Efficiency, Courtesy, Safety and Show.  As we started our tour, walking down Main Street USA, Matthew pointed out the names on the windows, and the story behind a few of them. He also demonstrated how the upper floors of the buildings are used by park management, and how they protect the show from being infringed upon by this use. Of course forced perspective was also one of the topics since it is so easy to see it in action along Main Street.

As we continued our walk down Main Street to the Hub, Matthew continued non-stop commentary about what we were seeing, and many times pointed out interesting items that often go overlooked by the average guest, stampeding down the street to get to Tomorrowland first! Even with the opening bell "Running of the guest" as Matthew so aptly called it, by using the listening devices, I never missed a word of his story.

Next we were on to Adventureland; here we took our first biological break, and then proceeded on to the Jungle Cruise. We were given our own boat for the tour and Matthew gave us a behind the scenes tour of how the popular attraction works, and of course a little history lesson as well. Did you know that as you come to the end of the boat ride, the Headhunters that are singing and beating on the drums actually say at one point, "I love disco". Amazing. How many times have I been on that attraction and never heard that before? Of course I will from here on out!

After the Jungle Cruise we began part of our backstage tour over to the Parade float staging area and Splash Mountain. Here we learned about the SpectroMagic Parade and how the technology is meticulously maintained.  I found the backstage reservoir at Splash Mountain particularly interesting, and was amazed at the amount of water moving through the attraction every day.

As we left the parade staging area behind Frontierland, we made our way to the Haunted Mansion. Matthew gave us an overview of the attraction along with some fun points to look for during the ride.  Did you know that in the stretching room alone there are now more than 100 speakers for some very impressive and surrounding sound effects? (Before the rehab there were only four speakers in this room.) Somewhere in the newly refurbished attraction are several Jack Skelington's, however, no one in our group was able to spot them. While we were in the Haunted Mansion, Matthew made sure they were ready for us at the Columbia House for lunch (included in the cost of the tour). 

After lunch we ventured into Liberty Square for some more Walt Disney World History and folklore. 

As our tour began to wrap up, our last stop was the Utilidoors (the tunnels under the entire Magic Kingdom). For the first time visitor, this is almost anticlimactic, as the Utilidoors are not all that impressive. The concept is truly fascinating, and what made the journey to the first floor of the Magic Kingdom enjoyable was Matthew's excellent description of why the Utilidoors exist in the first place; how they were constructed and now used to make the Magic Kingdom, "magical". Along with this narrative, we also had the opportunity to learn a little more about Walt Disney through photos and story.

In closing, we ended up back in Town Square, and as promised earlier in the tour, Matthew told us the story of talking with the creator of the Walt and Mickey statue (the Partners Statue) in the Hub, and what Walt is pointing to.

The "Partners" sculpture in front of Cinderella's Castle at the Magic Kingdom is not a "complete" sculpture on its own. It requires the "Sharing the Magic" sculpture up front near the entrance (the one with Roy and Minnie) to be complete.

The two sculptures were created by Blaine Gibson, a retired imagineer for Disney. The first sculpture was created and given to the Magic Kingdom in 1995. He said it was not a finished sculpture. In 1999 the Roy and Minnie sculpture was added to Town Square to complete his work. The story behind the sculptures is that since Roy was never that "approachable" (or not nearly as much as Walt was), he had Minnie move across the bench, holding Roy's hand to make him more approachable. The statue of Walt and Mickey is set in 1966, just before Walt died of lung cancer. Walt is holding Mickey's hand, telling him he's taken him as far as he can take him and he has gone as far as he can go on this journey. But not to worry, Roy and Minnie have saved a seat for you on the bench up front as Walt points in that direction letting Mickey know it'll be alright.

I have no idea how Matthew retells this story without tearing up. It is a very touching story and made for a perfect ending to a wonderful Keys to the Kingdom tour.

If you decide to take the tour, I highly recommend that you request to have Matthew as your guide. They do their schedules 2 weeks in advance and you need to make sure that your request is attached to your reservation. Trust me, it will be something you will always treasure. Matthew is the very embodiment of the true Disney Cast Member. I will never look at my time spent in the Magic Kingdom in the same way again. Even though Walt never walked in this park, his spirit is present and continues to amaze me to this day.

Details for taking the tour:

Open the door to the secrets behind the creation and growth of the Magic Kingdom®. Enjoy stops backstage and at a variety of favorite attractions as you discover the remarkable history of the Park and hear intriguing stories about Walt Disney, his visions, philosophies and amazing accomplishments.

Duration: 4 1/2 - 5 hours
Cost: $60.00◊ per person

Additional Information

• Book a tour in advance by calling (407) WDW-TOUR.

• Guests must be at least 16 years old to attend this program.

• Lunch is included.

• This is an outdoor walking program.

• Guest are required to have a photo ID in their possession during the program.

• Large bags and cameras are not permitted on this tour.

Click here to reserve the tour on Disney.com