Review: Behind the Seeds tour at Epcot’s Living with the Land

Basic Info for Behind the Seeds

Behind the Seeds is a one-hour guided tour backstage at Epcot. Attendees learn about the real-life horticulture and nutrition grown inside The Land Pavilion in the World Nature area of the park, specifically along the route of the Living with the Land boat ride. Along the way, guests get to touch, taste, and even feed some of the organisms that grow here.

Behind the Seeds is one of many backstage tours at Walt Disney World Resort. These experiences are branded under Disney’s Enchanted Extras Collection, a catch-all term for tours, private PhotoPass sessions, and other structured, guided add-ons to a Disney World vacation.

Backstage at Living with the Land

Behind the Seeds is the only tour at Disney World to focus on one specific ride. Given the fandom that Living with the Land commands online within the theme park community, many guests may enjoy the opportunity to not only learn more about the attraction, but to simply spend an extended period of time in its calming atmosphere.

Much of Behind the Seeds takes place in walkways adjacent to the ride path of Living with the Land. You may have seen tour groups shuffling through from your boat while onboard the ride.

Because of this proximity — being a “backstage” tour that largely takes place in a guest area — photography is allowed during Behind the Seeds (whereas most Disney tours have a strict no-photos policy). A few minutes into the tour, I realized the unique vantage point we had of many plants and structures I’d never seen so up-close before. Why was my camera in my backpack?! I promptly retrieved it, and spent much of the remainder of the tour snapping pictures. If you enjoy taking photos inside Disney theme parks, Behind the Seeds offers the unique opportunity to practice photography of a familiar space from uncommon angles. I loved taking advantage of this when I realized I could.

You’ll Enjoy Behind the Seeds If …

Behind the Seeds feels a bit like a science class field trip. It’s educational and hands-on in a space that’s not a classroom. If that sounds fun to you, you’ll enjoy this tour. If that sounds boring to you, your hour might be better spent elsewhere in Epcot.

Guests with interests in horticulture, farming, health, or bugs will be over the moon during Behind the Seeds. At the same time, one needn’t be an expert in any of these subjects to enjoy the tour. The information on the tour is presented in a clear, accessible, and fun way.

Visitors with fond memories of 1980s Epcot may also find Behind the Seeds particularly special. Although Living with the Land has changed slightly over the decades, the attraction remains largely the same overall experience that debuted with Epcot in 1982. Incidentally, our tour guide told us much of the attraction’s backstage systems have remained stuck in the ’80s, too. More on that in a moment.

Fun Facts We Learned

Some fascinating tidbits we learned during Behind the Scenes:

• While it’s true that food grown inside The Land Pavilion is harvested for guest consumption at Disney World restaurants, the ratio of this supply is very small compared to the resort’s total inventory of fruits and vegetables.
  
• Chefs at Disney World restaurants can request specific items be grown in The Land Pavilion for specialty dishes or new menu items. The most frequent “customers” are the chefs at Tiffin’s (at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park) and curators of corporate events onsite.
  
• Only cast members with special clearance can enter the areas closest to the plants throughout Living with the Land. Anyone without certification is not allowed — including Imagineers. For this reason, the attraction’s horticulturalists are responsible for seasonal theming elements, like the lights during the holidays or the storybook gardens during springtime. Typically these décor-driven tasks would fall to Imagineers instead.

Is Behind the Seeds Worth It?

Behind the Seeds costs $39-$45, depending on the date (same price for all guests regardless of age). This price does not include park admission to Epcot, which is required.

While the bottom line might seem more economical compared to other Disney tours, the proportion of cost-vs.-time is more expensive than some of them. Behind the Seeds is roughly $40 for one hour. In contrast, Keys to the Kingdom (the tour of Magic Kingdom Park and its “underground” Utilidors) is $129-$149 for five hours.

For longtime Disney World visitors looking for something new to experience, Behind the Seeds is an excellent choice to see something you know through a completely new lens. First-time guests or those expecting a look into the history of Epcot and the inner workings of Disney storytelling would probably enjoy a different tour more.

Our tour guide said that much of the technology at work within The Land Pavilion’s real-life application was revolutionary when Epcot opened, but it’s almost all outdated by today’s industry standards. Therefore, seeing it all up close could be either fascinating or depressing, depending on your point of view.

How to Book

Behind the Seeds embarks on a new tour every hour, on the half-hour, 10:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Guests staying onsite at a hotel in the Disney Resorts Collection can book their spot for Behind the Seeds beginning at 6 a.m. (eastern time) 60 days prior to check-in day. Other guests can reserve a tour up to 60 days before their intended tour date.

Book online here, or call (407) 939-7529. Disney Vacation Club members can call (800) 800-9800. Guests can also reserve Behind the Seeds in the My Disney Experience app. Disney accepts walk-ups too, if space is available; you can check by visiting the desk near the ride entrance to Living with the Land.

While some Disney tours require an age minimum somewhere in the teens, Behind the Seeds is available to any guest age 3 and up (though guests under age 18 need an adult present with them). That being said, it’s hard to imagine a three-year-old enjoying Behind the Seeds. As stated earlier, the vibe is very “science class field trip” and therefore probably best enjoyed by guests ages 8 and up.

Other Epcot Tours

As an alternative to Behind the Scenes (or in addition to it!), Epcot junkies can take a deep dive, literally, during DiveQuest or Dolphins in Depth, two programs offered with Epcot Seas Adventures within The Seas with Nemo & Friends.

The former Undiscovered Future World tour is no longer offered.

Living with the Land Ride-Through POV Video

We leave you with this, a full ride-through video, so that you may truly be living with the land.

If you’re interested in visiting Walt Disney World Resort, we recommend Mouse Fan Travel for a free, no obligation quote and free help throughout your trip.