Pretty Disappoointed with Tour Guide Mike

[LegoMom3]

http://www.touringplans.com

And I'll have to second this! Tons of great info there; only $6.95 for a year's subscription if you decide to sign up for the plans.

 

[mickeysaver]

I signed up for TGM, but being a WDW and board vet, I expected to find little if anything help, but so far, the tips seem to be pretty good....but most of it has been seen elsewhere. I have learned a thing or two, but nothing that would make much difference. Being that we are 500 days away, I will give it more time before I pass a more final judgement. I do feel that for the less seasoned WDW traveler or the life has them too busy planner wannabe's that TGM would be a blessing, but if you have the time to read the DIS, AllEarsNet.com and MouseSavers.com then you should be ok to skip spending the money. The DIS members are all too willing to help our fellow boardies with very similar info for absolutely free. Maggie

 

[Iluvpooh&mickey]

I have learned A LOT from TGM. I have been on the DIS for @18 months and couln't have planned my 1 and now 2nd trip without it but TGM just blows me away. Yes, you can find some of the info here and other places but he always give the reason behind his comments-which is invaluable in learning yourself. For example, he can tell you best times to visit certain attractions and WHY (ie slow loading, large audience, etc) which seems like it can help greatly in a more going-with-the-flow plan, you can decide on the fly based on his info.QUOTE]\

Ditto on the above comment.

I really think that great info can be found in lots of places...whether it be the DIS, guide books or websites. I read UOG, Passporter, Birnbaum, TGMike's site and of course the boards here.

That being said...I did subscribe to TGMike to plan our recent vacation (6/2-6/7). I agree that the first time I used his site, I was overwhelmed but quickly figured it out. We found his best days advice and other tips very valuable. We never waited in line longer than 10 minutes when following his advice.

I had also joined touringplans.com to take a look at their touring plans but I thought it would be difficult to follow any set touring plan b/c there are some attractions in the plans that we just didn't want to see. The thing I liked about TGMike's touring plans was that I understood the reasoning behind his plans so even if I didn't follow them exactly as written (which we definitely didn't) they still helped me.

My DH thought I was crazy for subscribing to TGMike and taking all the time I did to plan but boy was he thanking me on our vacation.

 

[Skroops]

I think these threads are kind of funny. First of all, it's only what, $18.00? It's the price of any current guide book. I don't know about you, but I like to gather information out of under many rocks. Find a yummy nugget here, a yummy nugget there. I guess I am a cult member chiming in like this, but it's really not a big investment and it has some great information for those who have no idea on how to go about planning a WDW experience. The website hops around a lot, but TGM has a lot of information available. Most of the DIS'ers already know many tips that he suggests, but the average joe doesn't.
Does TGM generate these posts?? hehehe

 

[kimand3kids]

I was very skeptical and didn't even tell DH that I paid for his website. I found it a bit confusing, but after a few visits it got easier.

Well, I printed his MK touring guides for "day 1 w/ small children", "day 2 with small children" and the one for older children..... We followed it to the T and were AMAZED that we didn't have to wait for more than 10 minutes at any ride -all day long! This was for our trip just 4 weeks ago.

Once DH and my parents were in awe of the information I had in front of me, I confessed that I had paid and everyone agreed it was money well spent!

 

[TAKitty]

I agree that it wasn't worth it. I like touringplans for the past days and the Dis for the other information.

 

[AllyCatTapia]

are you people on crack? Have you waited in line longer than 10 minutes? If so, : SHOULDA BOUGHT TGM. I was simply amazed and assume those who get refunds are just perplexed by the site. TOo bad for you- less lines for me!

 

[GoldiBabi]

TGM does give you sample plans, but they're just that--samples. He gives you the information that you need on every ride, every park, every show, and it's up to you to read it, learn it, and put your own plan together. Sure, TGM is a lot more work than touringplans, but if you invest the time, you'll end up with a perfectly tailored plan that gets your party everywhere you want to go with little to no lines.

 

[Ready to go in Ok]

Sorry you didn't find TGM helpful. I think it is great, and the formatting, while initially a little overwhelming, is pretty straight forward. And I am not so web savvy. If you feel that you can get the same info. without paying, I say go for it. However, the ease of having all of the information in one place and taking much of the guess work out of my planning is well worth the money to me. I have never found his info. out of date. Hit the AVP boards with any concerns....the folks there are extremely nice, and I have never seen anyone flamed on there they way it sometimes happens here.

 

[RitaZ.]

We used TGM two weeks ago and he was right on! I was skeptical at first, but I printed his recommendations for the parks and decided to give it a try. Again, he was right on! I know that the information is out there about EMH and all that, but since I didn't have the time, it was easier to just print his recommendations. The day that he recommended for MK was a Wednesday. We arrived about 15 minutes after the park opened and went straight to Fantasyland. There was no one, I mean not one single person, waiting or riding Pooh's ride. I had to ask the CM if the ride was working.

TGM~

 

[Diznut84]

We are Disney vets, and have found TGM (along with the Unofficial Guide) to be indispensable. The problem with saying that you saw everything here before is that, while that may be true, there is a great deal of conflicting information here as well. TGM is very consistent. The site is somewhat difficult to navigate, but in my opinion, his advice about park touring is FAR superior to any other source.

JMHO!

 

[LeesyUD]

are you people on crack? Have you waited in line longer than 10 minutes? If so, : SHOULDA BOUGHT TGM. I was simply amazed and assume those who get refunds are just perplexed by the site. TOo bad for you- less lines for me!

Actually no never bc I listen to Len Testa on touringplans .com, only 6.95 and much better site. I am very computer literate and find Tour guide mike's site to have a very poor layout and there wasn't any info on there I couldn't get on touring plans or in the unofficial guide. Seems like the people like me who save their money and use it for those better resources our making out with great timesaving tips and we are at least $10 richer oh and not to mention the time you save not having to go through a bunch of links on tour guide mikes page that all take you back to the same place.

 

[Boardwalk Tigger]

I am a Disney vet and the only reason I signed up was to see his EMH schedule during the holidays. I was mainly concerned with his recommendations for the evening. I did like his color coded recommedations, however I already knew the rest of the information that the site had.

 

[2belles'mom]

I am very much a Dis vet, and I have been on these boards since 2000. I used TGM this past Christmas--it was great. Yes, it took me awhile to navigate the site, but it was worth it. I figured the $$ was a good deal--I usually buy a Passporter and a UG anyway!--so one more tool in the arsenal. I always tell friends and family that I WILL NOT WAIT IN A LINE LONGER THAN 20 min., and TGM made it that much easier!!!!!!!!!

 

[matthewsmom1]

I liked TGM! I think I got alot out of his 'philosphy'. I love his best days charts and he tells you WHY he recommends certain parks over others... He also tells you (in general) which areas of the park/rides to visit first & why. It makes sense. And I have to say, we were there from 6/8-6/13 and it was busy, but we NEVER waited more than 10 minutes for a ride. SUPER!!

 

[fakereadhed]

I am so glad nobody likes TGM. More of "them" means easier touring for me!

 

[Mariposa]

While I love the UG and Passporter, TGM is my hero. I've gone on trips using both the UG and the Passporter touring plans and found that I'd end up in crowds or completely worn out- never even came close with TGM!

 

[DISUNC]

That's $18 I'll never see again! A total waste, is my opinion. You can get all you need from the DIS. I don't even understand his site, and I consider myself pretty savvy when it comes to different web sites.

ITA...I just want to add some extra insight!

Here is what I dont like about it.

I too am a pretty savy site navigator. TGM is just click & click & click & click...I have clicked so much I forgot what I was looking for. .
More convoluted than intuitive.

I have printed out MANY pages of info I am druging thru.
Lots of printing pages needed. ( I am talking more than 100+)

What really gets my goat is that TGM advertises that it 'personalizes' your trip!!!! This means TGM adds your name wherever appropriate!!!!

You tell TGM the dates of your trip...and you still have to clog thru info that relates to MONTHS after your trip. I thought I type in July, that I would only see info related to July...Nope, I see August, November, December, etc.

Each of the parks tours info is layed out differently from each other. There is no consice layout.

Way too often you need more than 2 people for his plan. One unlucky member of your group must get FP's. So if you have only 2 people or lazy people...this requires some tweaking!!!

Way too often TGM is very defensive about his layout of the site. He keeps mentioning how HARD he worked on it and dont really grasp why people are complaining about it.

ANYHOW...That being said. I will try his tour plans and see what happens.

 

[Amirah95]

I've said this many, many times before. TGM is great with the touring plans and that's what I use it for. LMA...see the times guide and work it into his plans. Park Commandos unite. TGM isn't for everyone.

 

[Amirah95]

While I love the UG and Passporter, TGM is my hero. I've gone on trips using both the UG and the Passporter touring plans and found that I'd end up in crowds or completely worn out- never even came close with TGM!

I 2nd the Passporter touring plans comment...never follow those.