Behind the Seeds - Worth it?
One of the most affordable tours that you can do at Walt Disney World is Behind the Seeds at the Land Pavilion in Epcot. This is a one hour walking tour that takes you through the gardens of the ‘Living with the Land’ attraction. BUT even though it’s affordable, does that mean it’s worth it? Let’s talk about it!
What is it?
Living with the Land is a boat ride attraction that takes you through a variety of indoor greenhouses and teaches you about some of the unique growing techniques used to grow the plants and flowers you see. This attraction is available to all guests and is an Epcot classic.
Behind the Seeds is an additionally paid tour that you can book. You and a group of around 10-12 will spend an hour walking through pathways behind the garden to learn a little more hands on about these growing techniques and why they are done that way.
The experience is around $49 per person, BUT if you are an Annual Passholder or Disney Visa Cardholders you can get a pretty steep discount! We only ended up paying around $33 per person. Do keep in mind that you will need to have valid admission (aka a park ticket) to Epcot for that day.
You can book this experience up to 60 days in advance and although this one isn’t as crazy to book as some, I still highly recommend booking as early as you are able.
The Experience
You’ll check in for your tour around 10-15 minutes beforehand and you’ll be given a lanyard and need to sign a waiver. Once your group is called, your tour guide will take you back and give some safety rules before beginning.
Each group has a tour guide and each guest has a headset that they will wear throughout the tour so that they can easily hear their guide as it does get a little loud in the gardens.
The first room you enter is where they breed some of the natural pesticides used to keep the gardens under control. Don’t worry! It’s not a ton of creepy crawlies, but it’s still cool to learn about how they work.
Then you’ll be guided through the gardens. I won’t give all the fun away, but you’ll get to learn about how the plants are cared for, why certain types of plants are there, AND you even get a chance to feed some of the fish in the aquaponics lab.
You won’t be walking through the gardens exactly as they are an FDA facility and have to keep the plants clean. You will be walking along concrete paths at the back of the gardens instead. You’ll still be pretty up close to the plants, just no touching. This also does make it friendly for wheelchairs and those with walking-related disabilites!
Something I loved about this tour is that you were welcome to take pictures at all parts of the tour, even in backstage areas! This is the ONLY tour that Disney offers that allows this, so I was pretty excited to get some pics! However, the tour does move fairly quick, so you do need to be ready with your camera so that you don’t hold up the group. There is a photo op towards the end so you can get a picture of your group.
Would I do it again?
YES! I am a plant girlie and it was super fun to learn about some different growing techniques! It has honestly been on our bucket list for a long time and since it isn’t super long, it’s very easy to fit into a park day at Epcot! It was neat to see the gardens from a different view and our tour guide made it super fun as well as educational.
My only complaint is that I wish they gave you a Lightning Lane for Living with the Land to use afterwards. lol
I think this is a super fun family activity, but I wouldn’t recommend it for super young children as there are alot of spaces you have to be careful not to walk. BUT if you have older children who enjoy plants or gardens and can handle a tour type environment, it’s a great one to book!
So…. worth it? Personally I say yes! BUT if you are someone that doesn’t love ‘educational’ type tours, this may not be for you. If you are on a tight budget, but are looking for something special to do, this can be a really affordable option!
I think a super fun time of year to do this experience could be the holiday season when the gardens are decked out in lights or Flower & Garden Festival season when the focus is on gardening too! But honestly any time of year would be great to do this tour.
What do you think? Would you give this tour a try on your next trip to Epcot?
