We're Back! Questions anyone!

[CanadianPaco]

Hi All
DH, DD and I came back yeaterday from two fantastic days at DL and CA. Thanks once again to Ridemax planning and Hydro Guy tips! We did 13 rides on Friday including Toy Story Mania with a 30min wait and 18 rides on Saturday with early entry! We did the Matterhorn five times in a row and Toy Story twice - single rider line~~~ and waited not more than 15 each time! Awesome!!! Yes it was crowded - more so on Friday but I cannot say more about Ridemax and smart Fast Pass collection!!!! It works, with planning and knowledge!! Questions anyone!

 

[Minuet888]

what is Ridemax?

 

[PrincessYessenia]

what is Ridemax?

Great question! Same thing I was going to ask! As they say, great minds think alike!

 

[TwiddleDee]

I've heard about RideMax but never found anyone that used it. http://www.ridemax.com/ How did it work?

 

[CanadianPaco]

You can buy a 3 month or one year subscription for this wonderful DL planning program (available for WDW too). It takes info on the days you plan on going and when you enter in your rides, it gives you a plan to follow. You tweak tweak tweak til the plan suits you best! It saves time, ensures you get onto what you want to ride with a very smart technology!! I have used it twice - this trip was 2 d and my other on was 1.5 days. We saw everything we wanted (I mean really Toy Story Mania twice in one day!) at a normal pace on very busy days!!!! It's crazy cool!!! I'd use it for a one day trip even!! Check out the web site!!!

 

[Cliffside]

Did you do any character meals? I am trying to figure out which one or ones to do when we go in August. Thanks

 

[MathomAndStuff]

I thought Ridemax was incredibly useful for anyone who isn't a DL regular... I think that after a time, you'd know which attractions are busiest and when... how long the walks between them are... if it's a fast-load ride, etc.
However, if you are unsure of that (or just want to have concrete plans instead of just wandering aimlessly) Ridemax is the way to go.
I don't regret spending the $ on it at all.

Standing in line for rope drop on a MM and one fellow and I both had Ridemax schedules. We felt some strange kinship... lol!
That day, we got 25 rides/attractions done... including going back to the hotel for naps and snacks in the afternoon.

Re: character meals: if you have princess fans in the group... look at Ariel's Grotto. It was expensive but worth it.
The breakfast is family style (meaning they bring a group portion out on plates and you take off of there). We didn't eat it all though and they gladly supplied us with take-out boxes and a bag... thus we had leftovers for supper and saved some money that way.

 

[CanadianPaco]

No, we didn't do any character meals. We did them in WDW a few years back. They take up so much time and to get the most of the rides, you have to get to the parks early already having eaten breakfast.

We had cereal in the room. On the Saturday by 10:30am, we had done 13 rides! It was a park opening of 8am but early entry was 7am. We were at the gates at 6:30am with about 100 other people!

 

[joeysmommy]

Hi

Was the Carnation Plaza Pavillion open?
My kids wanted to do the Nestle cookie making thing last year but it was closed for refurb.

 

[PrincessYessenia]

I thought Ridemax was incredibly useful for anyone who isn't a DL regular... I think that after a time, you'd know which attractions are busiest and when... how long the walks between them are... if it's a fast-load ride, etc.
However, if you are unsure of that (or just want to have concrete plans instead of just wandering aimlessly) Ridemax is the way to go.
I don't regret spending the $ on it at all.

Standing in line for rope drop on a MM and one fellow and I both had Ridemax schedules. We felt some strange kinship... lol!
That day, we got 25 rides/attractions done... including going back to the hotel for naps and snacks in the afternoon.

But how do you know the current ride times when you're in the middle of the park? Is there a device they give you or something...?

 

[Mommy2PrincessAbby]

But how do you know the current ride times when you're in the middle of the park? Is there a device they give you or something...?

No, ridemax uses actual rider data and technology to determine what the wait times would be on any given day/time etc... very techno-geeky. But it works, you just end up with a print out that you create by plugging in what you want to do on each day. It juggles everything and tells you what order to do it in, and when it will be best to take a break (like if there is a 30 minute gap between rides.) Works well... we used it our 1st trip in '07, but didn't need in in '08, and won't use it next week... we consistently go in off times, so our original plan won't change much--except now I have to factor in TSMM.

 

[PrincessYessenia]

awesome! Thanks for the help. I'll probably go ahead and try it out. It isn't expensive so it won't hurt...too much!

 

[mechurchlady]

Ridemax is a great tool but you have to remember to roll with the punches. Rides break and sometimes3 minutes before you enter a ride a herd of people rush it. I do not use it because I am in an ECV which alters the plan big time.

 

[Kayla's Mom]

Hi

Was the Carnation Plaza Pavillion open?
My kids wanted to do the Nestle cookie making thing last year but it was closed for refurb.

I don't believe they do that anymore. I think DD did it in 2005 or 2006 and it was really cute.

 

[joeysmommy]

I don't believe they do that anymore. I think DD did it in 2005 or 2006 and it was really cute.

Thanks. What a bummer. Not that we can't make cookies at home but it would have been fun and a great photo op.

 

[daisy2jae]

thanks for the info..I'm going to check into ridemax