Anyone hear of Ride Max?

[disneydebi]

apparently it's mentioned in this Month's readers digest (according to my father who just had to call and tell me). I looked it up on line (www.ridemax.com), and unfortunately its for Disneyland and DCA, but it's a software program where you can input the rides you want to hit, and it tells you how to maximize your time?

it looks interesting... does anyone know of something like that for WDW?

 

[Amy&Dan]

Yes, we have used it for Disneyland and DCA. It worked very well, although haven't used it in awhile since we now know what we are doing without it! I think tourguidemike.com is your best bet for WDW or the UG touring plans.

 

[disneydebi]

Does TGM or the UG allow you to actually input the rides you are interested in, or are they more standardized plans.

What looked cool to me about ridemax was that it appeared that you could actually choose the list of rides and attractions you cared about....

?

thanks.

 

[AmyBeth68]

TGM works differently from RideMax. We're trying Ridemax for our upcoming trip to DL in November...so I can't review that for you *yet*.

UG gets rave reviews on this board....I haven't personally used it but have heard very good things from others. I'm not sure, and somebody may correct me if I'm wrong, but I don 't think the UG touring plans work the same way as Ridemax. Hopefully someone else can confirm that for you. But it does offer best days and touring plans based on your group type (eg. family, etc).

TGM is more of a "planner" in that all the advice and tips are in articles that you read on his extensive site. There is some personalization and special monthly features, the best IMHO are those that pertain to the peak crowd levels (think holidays/summer). I also love his sample park tours that provide a basis for you to create your own tour based on your preferences, special needs etc. He also offers best times to visit and a vast amount of tips, some of which are unique to his site. I also enjoy his forums, there are some very knowledgeable folks there as well. I know there are many different opinions on TGM and the UG, and I truly hope that this thread doesn't degrade as similar threads have done recently. But I highly recommend TGM, as a three time subscriber to his service. Please know that he offers a full refund if you are not pleased, so IMHO there isn't much to lose.

If you have the time, the dis itself provides TONS of great information. I just had trouble sorting through everything (especially the conflicting opinions) and thus decided to go with a paid-for planner. I have small kids and really needed to minimize the waiting in lines and pure exhaustion that seemed to happen on all our trips. BTW...the tour books are also great (Passporter, Unofficial Guide, etc) if you are more comfortable with a hard copy planner.

Best of luck in your planning. I'm sure you will have a fabulous vacation no matter what!

 

[disneydebi]

Thanks, I actually subscribed a while back to TGM for a previous trip... and while I liked it, i didn't feel it gave any more info than what can be found right here on the boards. I have the UG, and have looked at the sample plans on the web site. I just really liked the idea of customizing your plan based on the attractions you want to see. This is going to be my 4th trip in the last 4 years... and while I'm obviously familiar with the parks at this point, I have a tendency to get overwhelmed. Also, given that we've been a number of times, there are rides and attractions we can skip this time which usually show up on the sample touring plans. That's why something like RideMax looked so appealing. I was hoping there was something similar out there for WDW.

 

[Brian Noble]

To the best of my knowledge, nothing like RideMax exists for WDW. The closest you can get is to order a customized plan from touringplans.com, but unlike ridemax you don't get to "play around" with the plan by adding removing attractions. I believe this is because each plan is generated partly by-hand, so there are nontrivial costs involved to generate each one.

 

[JulieM96]

We used Ride Max for a two-day visit to Disneyland Resort during the busy week after Easter, and it worked well for us.

About 2 to 3 weeks prior to our trip, the planning information was available taking into account ride openings and expected crowd levels. This was even updated as time went by. I could put in the times we planned to enter and leave the park, the specific attractions we wanted to ride, and when we wanted to take a break for meals, etc. The program then spit out an optimized plan, including when to obtain and use Fastpasses. It provides tips on how best to set things up, and it did take some time to come up with a plan that was acceptable for me.

In practice, it worked pretty well. I was worried about how much we'd get done because of the crowds, but we did a lot. A plan, after all, is just a starting point from which to deviate -- and we did have to make adjustments. But I liked having that place to start.

I'd use it again, especially if I was going during a busy time.

 

[disneydebi]

Okay, so some computer wiz out there needs to team up with the UG/Touring plans and do one of these for WDW. I think that would be great!

 

[AmyBeth68]

Thanks, I actually subscribed a while back to TGM for a previous trip... and while I liked it, i didn't feel it gave any more info than what can be found right here on the boards. I have the UG, and have looked at the sample plans on the web site. I just really liked the idea of customizing your plan based on the attractions you want to see. This is going to be my 4th trip in the last 4 years... and while I'm obviously familiar with the parks at this point, I have a tendency to get overwhelmed. Also, given that we've been a number of times, there are rides and attractions we can skip this time which usually show up on the sample touring plans. That's why something like RideMax looked so appealing. I was hoping there was something similar out there for WDW.

Oops...sorry. I misread your post. I agree that RideMax sounds great. Can't wait to give it a whirl for DL. As far as I know there is nothing really like it for WDW.

 

[pouncingpluto]

I've used it for Disneyland/DCA and loved it!

 

[disney4me4ever]

... does anyone know of something like that for WDW?

I think this was asked a while back, and the guy that developed the RideMax program responded that there were no plans to develop this type of software for WDW. Just a few days ago, DH showed me an article in a publication he subscribes to (The Bottom Line) that discussed RideMax, and having just returned from WDW, said "why don't they offer it for WDW"? . I think there are alot of us that could see the value and would love something like that.

Nancy

 

[dizenthusiast]

On the RideMax web site it shows RideMax for WDW Magic Kingdom now. Anyone tried it yet?

 

[disneydork]

I understand Ridemax is now available for MK at WDW, as well as DL and DCA.

 

[RideMax Mark]

I understand Ridemax is now available for MK at WDW, as well as DL and DCA.

Yes, it's been a *huge* effort, but as of about three weeks ago we finally have a version of RideMax for the Magic Kingdom park at WDW.

If you have specific questions regarding the software, feel free to stop by the web site and ask!

Mark Winters
RideMax

 

[disneydebi]

is this still available?
I don't see it currently on the ridemax web site.