Feeling VIP at Disney
- Randi Fine
- Sep 3
- 11 min read
Updated: Sep 9
I must confess, I've always dreamed of living the Disney VIP tour life, but the price tag was scarier than any Disney villain! I was petrified it might not be worth the gold coins. My mind was a whirlwind of questions: What if it rains and I end up like a drowned rat trudging through the parks? Is it really worth the price of a small castle? Can I conquer all the parks in one day like a true theme park ninja? How much magic can you cram into 8 hours? What if my group wants to split up, and I end up lost in Frontierland all by myself? Do we have to stop for food, or do we just snack on pixie dust? Honestly, the questions were more endless than a queue for Flight of Passage. So, picture my delight when Mania Club (more on this later) sent out invites for those who embody Time, Money and Energy - T.M.E. (I'll explain this too, promise) for a Disney Magical Moments day complete with the Disney VIP tour!
What is Mania Club and what is T.M.E?
I get this question a lot. Mania Club, in my humble yet hilarious opinion, (I can't speak for the whole gang, but I'm pretty sure they'd agree) is a nonprofit powerhouse that lets us
tag-team our love for professional wrestling and philanthropy with others who share our same flair for flair and passion for compassion. Through Mania Club, we've raised more funds than a certain wrestler raises eyebrows, supporting awesome causes like Connor's Cure, Give Kids the World, Camp Kasem, and NMDP, just to name a few. Every now and then, Mania Club reaches out to members who pour in their time, money, and energy (or as many like to call it, T.M.E—because who doesn't love a good acronym?) to support their cause. These Mania Moments are where you may be able to join in raising funds while rubbing elbows with Superstars/Wrestlers who are just as charitable as they are talented. I hope that answers some of your questions because I'm about to go full Disney Adult mode in Bibbidi-bobbidi-boo!
Planning
Ever tried herding 8 Disney Adults and two Disney newbies to craft the ultimate Disney day where everyone’s dreams come true? Spoiler alert: it’s as impossible as jumping on Peter Pan's Flight without a line! Let's dive into our whimsical wish list:
Things we all (kind of) agreed on:
All 4 Parks (because why not aim for the stars?)
Kick things off at Animal Kingdom
Tiana's Bayou and Guardians of the Galaxy Cosmic Rewind were non-negotiable!
Castle and Mickey photo op? Absolutely essential!
Things that had us scratching our Mickey ears:
Shopping time: To splurge or not to splurge?
How long to linger in each park
Rise of the Resistance or Smugglers Run? The ultimate showdown!
If time slips away, which park gets the boot?
Honestly, I was flabbergasted we mostly shared the same brainwaves. We were all just giddy to be in Disney, living the VIP life. We began counting down the days, watching the weather like hawks as the temperature soared higher and higher, and higher...
Day of the Tour
AAAhHHHH, the day we’d been waiting for finally arrived! After what felt like a million outfit changes and a deep dive into the world of Mickey ears and Loungefly backpacks to find the perfect match for my park sneakers, we were off! Destination: Port Orleans, where our epic tour was about to begin. We all rolled up at 9am—way too early for my taste, but hey, anything for Disney, right? LOL!
Animal Kingdom
We crammed into the van like a bunch of excited sardines and zoomed off to Animal Kingdom. Entering through a secret back entrance? So cool, I felt like a true Disney VIP! Of course, we still had to go through security and get our magic bands scanned. Like true Disney warriors at rope drop, we snapped our pre-adventure photo and took approximately three whole steps to Kilimanjaro Safari! We breezed through the lightning lane and practically leapt onto the safari bus. Quick tip: if you’re looking for a gentle ride through the African Safari, the back of the bus is not your friend. I mean, I was practically nose-to-nose with a baby giraffe while getting tossed around like I was on the world’s oldest roller coaster. It was wild and wonderful! As soon as we hopped off, we made a mad dash to Flight of Passage.
On our way to Pandora, our guide John Z was like a walking Disney encyclopedia, mixing fascinating insider tidbits with trivia that would stump even the biggest Disney nerds. His stories were legendary, and I stuck to him like glue. He kept us hydrated and laughing all day—I could rave about him forever! Another perk - a quick picture with Kevin!
As incredible as Flight of Passage is (and trust me, it really, really is), my top moment was convincing our Mania Club captain, Demario, that the reason our pre-show was dragging on was because he kept stepping off his number—not because they were stalling for time!
After a quick pit stop at Expedition Everest, a timeless classic, and realized we’d already spent over two hours in Animal Kingdom. With Dinosaur down for the count (sniff... you will be missed), we had to hustle over to our next magical destination: Magic Kingdom!
Magic Kingdom
After a van ride that felt like a game of Tetris getting us all in, we finally rolled up to Magic Kingdom. Let me tell you, it was HOT—like, "I think I just melted into a puddle" hot! I was a mere shadow of my former self, but thankfully, we’d already snapped a cute photo however, no trip is complete without a classic castle pic, so we dashed off like caffeinated squirrels (thanks again to John Z for his Starbucks run) to hunt down the perfect photographer. Lucky for us, we didn't have to wait long. While it wasn't our most glamorous shot of the day, it quickly became one of my favorites!
After snapping some photos, we made a beeline for Tiana's Bayou. Now, as an annual
passholder, I usually avoid new rides like the plague because of those epic lines, so I hadn't yet braved Tiana's Bayou. Don't get me wrong, I adore Princess and the Frog, but I was skeptical about whether it was worth standing in a line that seemed to stretch into infinity and beyond. Even with the VIP tour and lightning lanes, this line was LONG. Like, "pack a lunch and maybe dinner" long. My expectations were low. But then our guide, John Z, turned into our own personal storyteller, keeping us entertained the whole way, while pockets of the iciest AC kept us from actually melting into puddles. I opted to sit near the back, aiming to avoid the splash zone because I wasn't keen on walking around like a soggy sponge all day. Once the ride kicked off, though, it was a revelation. Just when I thought the ride was wrapping up, it would surprise me over and over again. Honestly, I might have skipped this adventure if it weren't for Priscilla and Zac's contagious enthusiasm. Huge thanks to those two for introducing me to what might just be my new favorite ride at Magic Kingdom!
After a snack break featuring Mickey
pretzels, churros, and enough water to fill a small swimming pool, Shotzi and Jesus finally joined our escapade. Apparently, Shotzi isn't exactly a sunrise enthusiast, and by now, we were well into the afternoon. We sidestepped the afternoon parade and made our way to the Haunted Mansion (Pirates was out of commission, otherwise we’d have been setting sail). For the first time in eons, Hayden agreed to pose for a cute photo on the Haunted Mansion, but we botched it so spectacularly that it's staying under wraps. However, if you're at Magic Kingdom, no trip is complete without hopping into a doom buggy and maybe picking up a hitchhiking ghost for the journey home.
As our time with our guide was rapidly disappearing, we sprinted over to Tron like we were in a race against the clock. Now, as I mentioned earlier, I had skipped the newer rides, thinking I'd get to them eventually. Well, "eventually" turned into "never," so here I was, facing a new adventure. I was nervous, clueless about the ride, and had dodged spoilers
, so I knew absolutely zilch about it. Let me give you a tip: don't do what I did when boarding the ride. First, a little context. I'm vertically challenged. At 5'4", when I positioned my knees where they were supposed to go, they jammed my muscular calves against the metal bar meant for behind your knee. Not exactly a spa treatment, but it was only for two minutes, so I toughed it out. The ride blasted off like a rocket (seriously, it was fast) and didn't slow down. It's a roller coaster at heart, not the leisurely ride I was expecting. It was fun, but considering how long we waited in line, I'll skip it until the wait time is 30 minutes or less. The best part was riding with Demario and hearing him curse like a sailor the whole way through.
Two last pit stops before we wrapped up our magical escapade at the Kingdom of Magic. SHOPPING TIME! The VIP tour flaunts some of the most jaw-dropping, exclusive goodies that you can snag only if you book the tour. I'm a complete pushover for exclusive merch, so... I splurged way too much (but hey, totally worth it). We all placed our orders for our treasures and dashed off to join the Mickey Mouse meet and greet line. It was a quick line, and by the time we popped out, our goodies were ready and waiting as we geared up for the next chapter of our adventure!
Epcot
Time was slipping away and our fearless leader John advised us to mosey on over to what would be our final park. Our grandiose dreams of conquering all four parks was now a distant memory. We faced the nail-biting dilemma of which park would be our grand finale. In the end, it was a no-brainer—missing Guardians of the Galaxy was not an option!
Cosmic Rewind was on everyone's wish list, and with Test Track just reopening, we made the heartbreaking decision to skip Hollywood Studios and zoom straight to Epcot. The good news? The VIP tour entrance for Epcot was conveniently parked right next to Guardians of the Galaxy, so we were practically drooling to hop on both rides. We dashed over to Test and I was eager to see how they'd revamped the ride since it had been ages since my last spin. Honestly, they did a fantastic job (even if our car seemed to have a personality crisis and decided to crawl like a turtle during the indoor section). We had a blast, but if it weren't for the lightning lane, I'm not sure I'd have waited that long. The air conditioning was a gift from the heavens because, the heat and I have a long-standing feud, and this day was a scorcher that had me wilting like a sad lettuce. Next up was the eagerly awaited Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind.
So, we're in the lightning lane, and I turn to Demario, who's been open about being glad to be done with roller coasters, and I ask if he's ready for his grand finale of the day. He looks at us all and says, "Wait, I thought this was a show!" We all had a good laugh and prepped him for what was about to come. Well, luck was on our side, and we snagged the front row seats. This roller coaster is like a happiness factory, churning out smiles with its epic music and wild twists and turns. Sure, Tiana's Bayou might have my heart at Magic Kingdom, but this ride? It's the king of all Disney Parks, hands down!
After our galactic adventure with the Guardians, we faced a dilemma: hitch a ride back to Port Orleans, where our epic journey began, or stick around Epcot and fend for ourselves. With our energy tanks on empty and having clocked over 18,000 steps (who knew our feet could even count that high?), we decided to head back. All I could dream of was the world's coldest shower to transform me into a human popsicle. We waved our dramatic farewells as our squad split up—half staying behind, half retreating. The ride back was a symphony of silence, punctuated by the crunch of Mickey Ice Cream bars. It was the perfect finale to a hectic yet enchantingly magical day.
My takeaways and was it worth it?
Takeaways
If you have an annual pass or DVC this is 100% worth it. It's cheaper than paying for individual lightening lanes and you have a personal driver between the parks so theres not relying on buses, skyliners, or monorails.
Be realistic there is just no way to do all 4 parks in the heat or in the busy season.
Be ready to wait. VIP is not an all access to cut all the lines.
You will get to see backstage area (no photos) and it's incredibly cool. Pay attention when you get the chance to go backstage there are tons of hidden gems.
Your guide is the most important part of your group. They will guide you and fill your days with crazy amounts of Disney magic.
Our Guide
I need to highlight our guide John Z real quick and yes this part will have a completely different one. I have mentioned a lot that he was full of trivia and jokes but the shear amount of knowledge was beyond impressive. What struck me the most was just how honest he was about the parks. There are rides and attractions that are gone and he openly admitted to feeling like them leaving was a mistake, or that he didn't love the replacement. He also was brutally honest when he thought a ride was ready to leave and it's replacement was not only best for Disney but for the customer experience. What I didn't highlight was just how much he loved every Disney park and the park experience. Not just for us who were on the VIP but everyone who was vacationing. Any time John saw trash he picked it up or someone if he saw someone in need of assistance he was there for them. He went out of his way to make sure everyone at Disney that day had the most magical time. He reminded us to stay hydrated and made sure that everyones needs were met. He even helped us score some crazy hard to get reservations for when our tour was over. 10/10 would recommend and let me tell you we are already planning our next tour!
Final Thoughts
I had a day so magical, I half expected Mickey to pop out around every corner. Seriously, there's no other way to describe it. But this day wouldn't have been possible without a few MVPs. First up, a big shoutout to Demario and the Mania Club for setting up this shindig. Organizing these events is like trying to juggle flaming swords while riding a unicycle, so I'm grateful I just got to kick back and enjoy a stress-free Disney escape. How do you even begin to say thank you for that? Next, a special nod to Derrick from Wicked Discounts, whose charitable contributions gave us an extra magic hour on our VIP Tour. Lastly, but definitely not least, a massive thank you to the wrestlers who joined us to help raise funds for charity. These moments are already epic, but when you all join in, it's like adding fireworks to a cake. This day will forever be etched in my memory, all thanks to the incredible people who came together to do some good! Thank you all.
See ya on our next adventure! Now enjoy so really fun photos from our day
