Guests backstage at MK

[crstopher]

I was at the Magic Kingdom this last wednesday night and they were directing people behind the buildings on main street. From the restaurant by tomorrow land all the way towards the front of main street. Through the backstage area past garbage dumpsters, bales of cardboard, etc. They had a few potted plants but you could see the "butt end" or backside of main street. While I was interested, it was also a disappointing experience. Does anyone know if this is happens very often?

[MandaBella]

Safety and Efficiency before Show in this case.

Yes, they do this periodically.

[Jiminy Cricket]

I was at the Magic Kingdom this last wednesday night and they were directing people behind the buildings on main street. From the restaurant by tomorrow land all the way towards the front of main street. Through the backstage area past garbage dumpsters, bales of cardboard, etc. They had a few potted plants but you could see the "butt end" or backside of main street. While I was interested, it was also a disappointing experience. Does anyone know if this is happens very often?

Welcome to the board!!! Very interesting report. Did they give you any reason? Was this at park closing? Anymore details will be greatly appreciated for all us WDW fans.

[Sam I Am]

In peak seasons, this is commonplace. Due to congestion on the East side of Main Street shortly before, during, and after nighttime parades, and fireworks. Especially when the nighttime parade is only shown on select nights during the week, this backstage area is used to provide a safe path into and out of the park. This enables you to get to the front of the park, and also into the park, nearly completely avoiding the parade crowd. (If you go through tomorrowland and then through fantasyland, and then through liberty square, you've made a nice circle around the mob of parade-watchers. Or do that in reverse to leave.)

One other advantage to using this for exiting Guest traffic is that those exiting are less likely to stop and start watching the parade from the middle of the path. There's a bunch of buildings in the way, and the path is wide, so even if someone did stop, it wouldn't suddenly backlog everyone from market street all the way to the ice cream shop.

[Keasmom]

I was trying to get out of the park at 8:40pm Tuesday night (Mar.22) and was directed in the same fashion, past the reality behind the fantasy. I was semi-escorted by a CM who was making sure we got out safely and being curious, I asked. His explanation was the Parade. To keep everyone off the route, everyone must be kept off the route. (It makes an interesting kind of sense). If one person crosses it opens a flood gate and since the floats were already transiting to the proper areas, it was too dangerous to allow for the possibility of a rush of bodies in any direction. Since we had already discussed the near record crowds with several other CM's it made a lot of safety sense. As we approached Mainstreet, the floats were, in fact, beginning the journey and I was trying to get through an opening 1 human body wide for the last few feet to the exit, and had to ask to be let past several times. It was a huge crush of people. Also, some of the visitors, might think someone is trying to get in front of them and create a scene that in huge crowds could get ugly quick. I saw lots of hot tempers (long lines, long waits, lots of people, and hot days are a recipe for flare ups).
This was just my experience, but I think the safety first rules apply in large crowds at WDW.

[crstopher]

Thanks for all of the good information, My finance and I where over for day of planning last wednesday. We are getting married in the wedding pavillion. After a lot of decision making, we decided to go into the MK. for just a little bit of fun. After a trip back to tomorrow land we had started walking towards main street. THe parade was just getting started. and that's when they directed us through a CM door and out back behind mainstreet. I am a grown up, late 30's and a florida AP holder, so we come down about once a month. This was the first experience of this kind for me.

I have been visiting disney for thirty years or so and this unexpected backstage experience was one of the most dissapointing experiences for me.

[lashk]

It's called the "Keys to the Kingdom tour" and anyone can do it if you are 16 years old or older. It costs about $45 and lasts about 4 hours. I did it three years ago. You schedule it at Disney.