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Segway is the only way to see the Nassau outback: A Disney Wonder shore excursion adventure
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The inventor of the Segway said they would revolutionize travel and entire cities would be built around them. They haven't lived up to that lofty dream, but they've found a nice among tourists in various vacation spots. Disney World offers Segway tours of World Showcase and Fort Wilderness (click here for a review), and you can also take a tour of the town of Celebration (click here for more about that). But the best Segway tour I've ever done had to be the Nassau shore excursion that I did today. You get to ride full-out on true off-road trails, mounted aboard the rugged wild-tired Segway model. What an exhilarating experience!
Normally my husband and I stay onboard the ship in Nassau. In 68 Disney cruises, we've been there more times than I can count. We like relaxing an an almost deserted ship. But a few months back I noticed that a Segway tour had been added to the Nassau shore excursions. Since hubby and I are Segway fans, we decided to give it a whirl.
Our meeting time was 10 a.m. Our little group of ten was led out to our tour guide, who loaded us into a taxi van. It was a relatively short ride to the government-owned nature area where the Segway tours take place. You get a short explanation of how Segways works, and everyone suits up with helmets and knee and shoulder pads. Then the guides help each person up on their vehicle individually and give a little orientation. You practice around markers and over a little hill before everyone lines up for the tour.
The first part is done in "turtle mode" till everyone gets the hang of it. Then (and this shocked the heck out of me), they crank those suckers up full blast. Tours in the states use a slow mode, but here in Nassau we were allowed to ride in the mode that can go over 10 m.p.h. Woo hoo! It was a total blast flying down the straightaways! Of course, you can't go full out the whole way. There are lots of curves, rocks, bumps, low branches, and other off-road features. It made the Fort Wilderness tour look like a stroll down a city street. You also get to see the old aquaducts that used to provide Nassau's water.
The tours are very safety oriented. Besides the equipment, you also have a guide in the front and back watching over everyone. Still, my husband managed to bite the dust not once but twice. Keep in mind that the first time he was trying to back up a hill, and the second time he was flying like a maniac and didn't notice that the rest of us had slowed down until it was too late. If you pay attention, the odds of hitting the ground are very slim. I would recommend this tour for anyone, even if you're a bit timid, because the guides will give you the training that you need and help you feel comfortable. If you don't want to go too fast, you can just stay at the end of the group. The guides used our cameras to take tons of great photos, as you can see above right and at left. Fortunately we had brought some cash so we could give them a well deserved tip. Our driver was really good too. On the trips out and back he gave us a mini-guided tour, pointing out sights like the fort and governor's mansion.
If you're just joining in, click here to read part one of my Disney Wonder trip report. Meanwhile, tune in later or tomorrow to read the next installment. I'll be covering the spa and some of the onboard entertainment. To read more of my articles, click here.
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