What am I missing about Tour Guide Mike's?

[Shasta]

I joined Tour Guide Mike's and I promise this is not a negative, flame post but I don't see what others are getting. I had my ADRs already and reservations for POP. The only thing I learned is his opinion of park crowds. I found little advice on how to use the DDP and didn't realize it only covered DIS property until today when trying to investigate our one day over to Universal.

97% of what is on the site, I already know and I'm not a pro. Also, some of the information's last update was 2006 and seems to be out of date.

Maybe it's that I haven't found out how to use it best or that I already knew most of what his site had to teach me.

Again, I promise, I'm not stirring a pot. I just want to know if others had a problem figuring out how to glean information too. If it were cheaper, I'd not be so confused.

Thank you in advance!

 

[nedidajohn]

Keep in mind if you're not satisfied Mike will refund your $.

 

[mtemm]

have you asked over on the tgm forums? people there might be able to be more specific.

we used it last fall for our trip and loved it, but unfortunately I dont remember enough to steer you in the right direction.

good luck!

 

[Shasta]

I know that there is a refund policy but I don't know how easy it is to get.

I looked over those forums but didn't find an area for TGM help. It's a general forum like this one that covers DIS advice.

 

[bradk]

you can ask, it's okay. it'll still make more sense asking in a more general forum there than it does here. use the itinerary forum.

 

[zumbergc]

We got it for one trip.
Didn't really like the organization structure it had at all.
It always logged me out, and would loose my spot where i was.
Didn't find anything to useful.
About the only things useful was the crowd level stuff.

The rest, i already knew, or can find elsewhere for free.

 

[mickeysaver]

I bought it too. I am not that thrilled with it either. I am also trying to be positive about it but it's not easy when you see that there are major issues with lack of updated content, lack of detail, and basically the same info that is offered for free elsewhere and crowd advice that is not that different from what Touring Plans offers for less than half of the rate that he charges, poor customer service, and delays in new content release. Plus Touring Plans offers way more actual Touring Plans! I am disappointed in TGM, but I am determined to give it a fair trial. YMMV Maggie

 

[Redbudlover]

my opinion exactly. maybe good for newbies.... but out of date

 

[angelmav]

We just had a very successful trip and used TGM. Of course I concede the point that we didnt really change any parks because I had my ADR's lined up before we went and the touring strategies amount to go to the most popular attractions first and make sure your grabbing FP's. I do think its a great tool for someone going for the first time though and I enjoyed his reviews of attractions and dining, but I am a disney junkie and read everything on allears and trip advisor too even if I have made up my own mind. I found I barely used the site for much of the time I was subscribed to it. Still I would recommend it to anyone that has never been.

 

[2infinityandbeyond]

Here's what we did in MK (in no particular order) last week, with an afternoon break, using TGM plans:

Space
Buzz x2
Laugh Floor
Dumbo
Pooh
Peter Pan
carousel
IASW
BTMRR x2
Splash x3
JC
Spectro
Wishes

I think the cost of subscribing is well worth it.

 

[alabamabluezebra]

Although I basically got my money's worth, the out of date content was very disappointing. If this is Mike's livelihood, he is not spending enough time making his website the best in the business. Many of sample tours are out of date and/or incomplete. The website is hard to navigate and not well organized. The forums are very helpful and made my touring a little easier. Dining and park information added to the knowledge found on the DIS. It did save me from buying another book to collect dust on my shelf.

 

[budbeerlady]

I did sign up again for 2007. It helped us a ton with a touring plan for 2006, there are the new attractions for 2007 and it hasnt been updated. I dont think I will sign on again.

 

[Stitchfans]

I was considering signing up for our upcoming trip in '08. Sure glad I saw this thread before I signed up.

 

[angfento]

He doesn't reply to emails... so I imagine getting a refund WOULD be hard!

 

[nicolbw]

I signed up for my upcoming trip. I already had our trip planned this time, but I found out I had about half my trip planned to go to parks he suggests not to go to. I changed it around to what he suggests and with what we prefer. It actually seems to work out better. I was able to change my ADRs and was even able to get one at a place I didn't think we would be able to make it to. I'm happy with just that feature of his site. I don't know if I'll use it again, but this time it was worth the small amount of money I paid to ensure that our trip is the most fun it can be. The funny thing is that with following his suggestions it seems like we will be doing more than what I had planned. But then again, I'm no pro at this either.

 

[jollytammy]

Just take your time going thru the site. I joined in the Spring and not going until December, but I like reading the articles, looking at what he does to get the best seats, where to watch the parades, which places are best for to see the fireworks, what to take with you, what places are good to eat, and how to get in quickly--especially if you're not staying on site.

Of course, I'm just fanatical about planning, and when I pay a lot of money to go somewhere, I really want my money's worth and make sure I'm not missing some wonderful thing that I didn't know was there.

If you hurry thru the site, you're going to miss a lot of information. Just follow the threads, yeah they move this way and that, but boy what information you'll find

 

[Sabrina90744]

Like you the only useful information is the crowd levels/ But when you have to make ADRS on the 1st or 2nd of the month and he doesnt update until around the 8 or 10th its not all that helpful. I also noticed a lot of outdated information

 

[indykaren]

I did not care for TGM's website either, although I know a lot of people here seem to really like it. I guess people just have different preferences. I didn't like the layout, and found it very difficult to navigate. I tend to think of things sequentially, and the website seemed scattered to me. It took too long to find the information I wanted. I did enjoy reading some of the articles, and I did pick up a few tips, so I wouldn't think of asking for my money back. I won't subscribe again, though.

Also, before subscribing to TGM, I had already planned which parks we would visit for each day our upcoming trip. I didn't change anything based on his best days advice, but it was nice to have my choices confirmed.

What would I advise a friend? Since so many DISer's seem to like it, I'd hesitate to advise against it. I guess I would say that if you don't mind risking the fee, I think it's worth it to have a look around.

 

[quadaunt]

I've used TGM for two trips to WDW in 2/05 and 2/06 and found his tips and touring plans invaluable. I've renewed twice since then even though I don't have a current trip planned (but am eyeing 2008 for a trip with my five-year-old princess-crazed niece).

 

[dcforbreakfast]

As a Disney newbie, I got a lot out of it. I don't know if a veteran would though (aside from the crowd charts). It takes awhile to learn how to navigate the site, that is true, but once you get going there are some great nuggets of info, detail and tips that I have not found elsewhere.

I subscribe to ***************** as well and I think TGM's touring plans describe better how to use fastpasses to your advantage, I have not noticed much with touring plans for fastpass strategy, however maybe I'm missing it.

My only disappointment with TGM and I've said this on other threads, is the outdated articles. There are some on there from 2003! And there are new rides that have not been inserted in his touring plans which is disappointing.

I can't figure out if the website is just a side job for him or his main thing. If it's a side job, it would be nice if he could hire staff to make updates based on his expertise. To me, the nice thing about the web is instant info, and having info that has not at least been looked over for a few years is not good.

Sooooo, despite that, if you're new to Disney, I say it's a must. I learned a TON.