More Behind the Attraction at Disney

When I worked Epcot Main Entrance and worked an opening shift we would take the segways through the park to power up the International Gateway turnstiles (they were still turnstiles then!)

If I timed it right I would ride the entire way there with the background music off and I could enjoy a totally silent, empty Epcot from the main entrance all the way through the center of what was then Future World and then a trip over the bridge and then through Canada and the UK. Then on the ride back to the front I would wait by the old Fountain of Nations for 8am when the music would turn on for the day and also trigger a fountain show. Outside of a few other Cast Members and a random guest or two walking back to Norway for a breakfast reservation, it would be totally empty. I absolutely loved that routine on those mornings.

Peaceful walks in the parks/resorts after the BGM turns off are the only way I keep my sanity when I have to work on projects overnight. Some parks have just as many working at night as in the day so it can be difficult to escape but when I can, walking alone while a park is empty and quiet is a nice way to reset. Until someone calls one of my phones and the headache comes back but still.

I can actually appreciate the Epcot on Segway before opening situation. We had an early Segway tour once. We came in through the Showcase entrance because we were staying at Beach Club. Walked to Innovations in a very quiet place. Then it turned out that e were the only two scheduled. We were Segway veterans, so we breezed through the training and had lots of extra time. Guests were just starting to enter when we ended the tour. That was pretty great.

A guy that runs a FB page that I follow posted nighttime pictures of an “empty” IOA. Someone asked how he got access after hours and he said they were open, but a hard evening rain had driven everyone away. The shots were stunning with the lights reflected on the wet pavement and the park was indeed deserted, with nary a soul in sight. Experiences like that are once in a lifetime and are easily remembered as some of the best times ever.
I suppose it’s a good thing he wasn’t at Carowinds, right?

I suppose it’s a good thing he wasn’t at Carowinds, right?

Speaking of CF....

You should try driving through CP in your own car, in the middle of a sunny winter day, with some snow on the ground and rides.

Or walking the train tracks at sunset, no skeletons moving, and dead silence except for the wind, and maybe some sound from maintenance but little else.

I drove through CP in the snow a few times. Got to walk the trail midway in the snow too...leaving only my footprints. Pretty great. I often found myself standing outside Sandcastle in the winter time...with no noise whatsoever. It was about as peaceful a place as I've ever been.

Sharpel007:

You should try...

I have done both of these as well. Also walked around inside of the Steel Vengeance structure along the track when it was being installed.

wahoo skipper:

I often found myself standing outside Sandcastle in the winter time...with no noise whatsoever.

This one of of the places I would visit in the winter, usually early evening just before 5p. It was so eerily quiet out there to the point where it felt like a whole different world from in the park. Cedar Point had a lot of places like that where you could escape, winter or summer, and it made you feel like you were the only one around.

I've climbed to the top of Mantis for training one year during Halloweekend Fridays. One of the best views in the park, and very memorable.

I sat in the booth beside T-Rex at JP River Adventure at IOA when I worked there. That was my favorite position. The job duty was to watch for standing riders, to warn them that they were about to go down a drop if they were standing, and hit the E-stop if they were still standing after being warned. But the best part was, if a boat floated by that had no riders, I could watch T-Rex's performance. She was pretty terrifying.

Beast walkback... Way before everyone had cell phones. I wish I would have taken a camera.

I got to walk through KI very early in the morning for Coasting For Kids one year.

I've climbed to the top of Mantis for training one year during Halloweekend Fridays. One of the best views in the park, and very memorable.

To me the best coaster view is still Magnum, looking out over the lake, to CA.

Though I have not been on Gatekeeper's or Valrayvn's lifts

All this talk of special winter events reminded me of the times I've peed under the Boomerang loop at Elitch's and other various locations throughout the park. When the plumbing was turned off, I wasn't going back to admin or the entry pavilion.

The funny thing is, that sorta thing happens a lot, especially at seasonal parks. Most parks will winterize everything which includes turning water off in the restrooms. At Cedar Point, if you were working in the back by Snake River for example, your closest restroom with running water/heat might be Park Operations. Unless it was during business hours and you could get into P&D behind Mean Streak. And of course on construction sites.