Tour Guide Mike

[lovemyguys]

Has anyone signed up for his AVP before? Was it worth it? Did you find it helpfull once in the parks? I know it is only $21 but I do not want to sign up if it is a waste. Thanks!!
Lisa

 

[glass slipper girl]

ABSOLUTELY worth it!!!!

We've gone twice over Christmas week and still never stood in line for more than 20 minutes, usually under 10. I definitely recommend it.

Iff you use the link from the banner at the top of the Theme Parks board you can get $3 off.

 

[ksoehrlein]

With a Grand Gathering (I read your siggie) in your future, you probably should consider a subscription.

I had never thought I "needed" TGM until our last trip, which spanned Christmas. I was really nervous about getting caught by the large crowds. Well, we had a lot of plans change on the fly, so I was glad I had internet access in the room and had printed out relavent pages of Mike's AVP to bring with me!

For example, when we spent much more time at the DVC Merry Member Mixer than we'd planned, I needed to work in more time at Epcot or else we never would have seen any of the holiday storytellers. In the beginning planning stages, I had mapped out our days very carefully to avoid the crowds thanks to Mike's AVP advice. Now I was back to the drawing board! But it was really nice to have sound advice to fall back on and not feel like I was purely guessing as I rewrote our itinerary. That alone was worth the cost.

Also, the forums over there are really helpful. Such a friendly bunch!

 

[jbmom]

TGM is so worth it! I've used it 3 times now and will continue to do so.

 

[BlakeNJ]

Another vote for Mike. Mike was a VIP Tour Guide at WDW for several years and know the parks inside and out. Go fot it. Plus, they have a great community board over there--all happy to help!

Looking forward to seeing you over at TGM!

 

[mouseketeer_mom]

Ditto what everyone else said. I was really planning to just "wing it" and let our kids set the pace so I was unconvinced he would be very helpful to us.... oh, how wrong I was. Even if I just use his "which park, which day" info and he gets us through MK. It'll be worth it.

Think of it this way; will you, at any time during your trip, be standing in a line and think "I'd pay 18.95 to not be waiting any more than 20 mins anywhere today"... if the answer is yes, he's worth it!

 

[UTgirl]

Love it! There's alot of info and it will take some planning on your part. If you are willing to do that and do whatever he says - it will be worth your money.

 

[mommyoeo]

It's the best money you'll spend on your trip!

DH and I just got back and were floored at other people telling their children things like, "Don't worry, we won't wait more than 45 minutes for things today." Signs were posted with wait times of 120 minutes and saw gobs of unhappy families waiting in those lines. We smiled at each other because we've never waited more than 15 minutes even for the best rides, and that was in holiday season. Those poor children; I bet they just wanted to swim in their hotel pool instead!

TGM is the very best, provided you understand a couple of things. First of all, you will have to do lots of research. So, if you are leaving on a trip in the very near future, it will not help you as much as if you sign up months in advance. Second, you have to put your plans together; he does not do that for you.

The forum over there is full of helpful folks who are absolute pros. They will guide anyone through any questions, whether they be about the site or an itenerary. I've been TGMing it for a few years now, and I've still never "seen" a fight. It's a really fun and disney-esque wasy to prepare for your trip!

Seriously, we would never go without Mike in the parks ever again. To think that we called our previous trips "vacations" when they weren't vacations at all! Mike helps make magical family memories, and he does it right!

 

[WDW1st-timers]

I personally would use him for the dates that you are looking to travel but for us going in September it's so slow you don't need really any advise unless you are not good at planning. It took me about 2 months of planning for our last trip and it turned out awesome. No problems. We spent 2 and a half weeks there and never waited over 10 minutes for a ride or for a bus.

 

[MissyDVC]

Another "YES" vote for TGM We would not go without looking at his planner and advice, no matter what time of year or how many of us were going! He has made Disney even more magical for us

 

[crisi]

Didn't like it. But he has a guarentee - or at least used to. I used it enough that I didn't ask for my money back - but I didn't learn anything I didn't know, found his site to be very disorganized and his tone to be patronizing.

I'm in the minority on this though.

 

[luvgrumpy]

Take it from a veteran of many, many, many trips spaning over 20 years. We had many trips under our belt before Mike and thought we knew everything. We were wrong. Once we tried Mike we won't go back without him.

 

[lovemyguys]

Well I bit the bullet and signed up. Have not had time to sit and read it yet but I am excited to see what he has to say. Thanks for all you help!

 

[mel64]

signed up last night. Great info. He explains things very well. I tried to get around the site without reading his instructions. It was a mess. I went back and did what he said on his first page and now it's simple.

 

[Deesknee]

Well worth it. I have purchased it twice in the past and will continue to with each time we are planning a trip. TGM even informed me park hours had changed, yet when I called to change my ADR's the CM I spoke with didn't know they had changed yet!

 

[rie'smom]

We will never take another WDW trip without first subscribing to Tour Guide Mike.

 

[ajcolorado]

Our life is such that going to WDW during peak times is unavoidable. We've used TGM numerous times and found his information very helpful even though we're pretty well versed in WDW touring strategy. We've never waited more than 20 minutes for anything. I am also in the minority that finds the hyper-cheerleader type tone he uses in the articles a bit irritating. I know that his intent is to take something as overwelming as a first trip to WDW and make it accessible and to be reassuring but the tone drives me a little crazy. But it is a small thing to overlook when the information is just so good.

 

[elaine and the boys]

We spent Christmas week 2005 in the parks with less than 10 minutes waits. Felt a little guilty, even, passing by all those people in long lines. TGM's strategies really work!

 

[Gillian]

We used it once and thought it was wonderful! The best part for us was the up to the minute updates. I appreciated the current info, so hard to find elsewhere without wading through a lot of other junk, you know?

I want to sign up again for our 2007 dec visit.

 

[luvlumpy]

I love Tour Guide Mike!! It is worth every penny. Used if for our May '06 trip and will use it again this year!