On April 2, I went on the Nature Inspired Design tour. For a description of this tour, click here.

The tour began at 8:15 so they directed me to the Character Breakfast turnstile toward the far left. For this tour, I checked in a Guest Relations inside the park. I signed a waiver for use of the Segway.

At 8:15 on the dot, my guide came to get me. He told me that I was the only one who had booked the tour that day! I was stunned. He said it was the first time ever the tour had been for only one person. He took me to the Segway training room and I watched a video about the Segway and began my training. The Segways are surprisingly easy to use. I was a little intimidated at first but quickly got the hang of it thanks to my guide. He was right- it becomes more about feeling than thinking once you’re used to it.

Once I had gotten used to the Segway, the tour began. He radioed ahead to let Soarin’ know we were on our way. We went through Future World toward the Imagination area. We went through a backstage area and made our way to the backstage entrance to Soarin’. The Cast Members seated us in the center, top row. It had been a while since I’d been seated there so that was a treat for me.

After Soarin’, we made our way backstage to The Land. A Cast Member was waiting on us and took us into the greenhouse. They told me that the areas we would visit could also be seen on the Behinds the Seeds tour. I was allowed to take pictures in this area.

She told me that small, at home herb gardens like this one could be done at one with just one square foot of space. This particular one had chives in it.

Disney has begun using a lot of Hydroponics in their gardening. What it does, on a much larger scale than this fish tank, is hydrate the roots while giving them space to breathe and circulate air around them. This is easy to do at home and you can create a little herb garden this way as well.

She discussed the three different kinds of materials they use around the plants:

We were shown the cucumber plants. She had pieces of a cucumber for me to sample. I don’t love cucumbers (but I don’t dislike them either) but these were GOOD. They were crisp and had a wonderful, fresh flavor.

The Land is home to a record holding tomato plant.

We could see this Mickey from where we were standing:

He radioed ahead to The Seas with Nemo & Friends to let them know we were coming. Again, a Cast Member was waiting on us and took us right into the pavilion. He discussed how Disney wanted The Seas to be like looking right into the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. They selected fish that lived near the top of the water, in the middle of the water and the bottom to help maintain this. Lighting also helps maintain this effect.

The coral at The Seas is not real coral. The fish, however, behave as though the coral is real. They lay their eggs, take naps and swim through just like they would if it was real.

Then, they took me to the ‘water’ area. This is the command area where they control and monitor the water for The Seas and several other areas of Disney World. He explained how they make sure the water is clean, how they monitor everything and how they add the salt to it if they need to.

The tour wrapped up after this stop. We put our Segways up and talked a little bit more.

I LOVED this tour. I would do it again in a heartbeat. It was worth every penny to me. The guide was so enthusiastic and personable. He answered all of my questions and pointed things out to me that I might have missed. He was wonderful about letting me know when I could and couldn’t be taking pictures. The Cast Members at Soarin’, The Land and The Seas were very enthusastic and extremely knowledgeable. I had never ridden a Segway before so that was a very fun experience for me. If you have the chance to do this tour, I highly recommend it.

Nature Inspired Design is offered Tuesdays and Saturdays during the month of April. For other months, the tour is offered on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. It begins at 8:15 AM and lasts three hours. Guests must be 16 or older. It costs $124 person ($132.06 with tax). Annual Passholder, DVC and Disney Visa discounts are available.

To read reviews of Nature Inspired Design, or to post yours, please click here.

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