TGM or UG touring plans?

[bozley0621]

Ok, I'm up in the air as to whether I should use TGM's touring plans or UG's touring plans. I'm joined both sites, I just don't know which to use.

Has anyone used either or both? How did they work out? What could have been done better?

 

[Tam1067]

I haven't used TGM, but I did use UG on our last trip (it was in July) and will be using it on this trip (in July too) because we really found it helpful. In particular, MK was a huge help. We got through the Fantasyland sequence very successfully and found that we avoided lines at those rides on really crowded days. We actually avoided most of the long lines at all the parks because I used the touring plans pretty closely. Lots of people on these boards swear by TGM, too.

 

[MissMichelle]

Ok, I'm up in the air as to whether I should use TGM's touring plans or UG's touring plans. I'm joined both sites, I just don't know which to use.

Has anyone used either or both? How did they work out? What could have been done better?

I am going to say UG, just because I am a MAJOR TGM follower and am afraid the more people who use it the less effective it'll be! LMAO.

All kidding aside, they are both pretty good..I am subscribed to both and they both would have worked for my last vacation (but I used TGM.)

 

[HydroGuy]

I have subscribed to both as well. If you are talking specifically rides, then another resource is RideMax - www.ridemax.com . It is established at DLR (I have used it there) but they just released a WDW version within the last month - so it does not have a track record at WDW. I subscribed to RideMax WDW too.

One cool feature is that RideMax allows you to specify which rides you want to go on, and it creates a custom itinerary for your rides. I like the philosophy and info on TGM, and am using TGM and RideMax to plan for our WDW trip in May. FWIW, RideMax has helped me most at MK. It has some weaknesses (such as inability to schedule shows) which has made it less useful to me at the other three parks. TGM of course has touring advice for all four, plus a ton of advice not related to touring per se but the overall WDW experience.

What all three resources emphasize is getting to the parks early, doing a lot of rides in the morning, and taking mid-day breaks. So, bottom line is that if you use UG or TGM you will be ahead of 99% of everyone else.

It is fair to say the jury is still out on RideMax WDW. I will use it to some degree, but am not prepared to rely solely on RideMax. In fact, even if I trusted RideMax completely and it had every feature I ever wanted I would still subscribe to TGM because of the wealth of info there.

 

[XxStaceFacexX]

I haven't used TGM, but I did use UG on our last trip (it was in July) and will be using it on this trip (in July too) because we really found it helpful. In particular, MK was a huge help. We got through the Fantasyland sequence very successfully and found that we avoided lines at those rides on really crowded days. We actually avoided most of the long lines at all the parks because I used the touring plans pretty closely. Lots of people on these boards swear by TGM, too.

I cant seem to figure out how the TGM site works. I paid and all but the only thing I've gotten out of it is a migrane!

HELP!

 

[PKS44]

stacey--go to the TGM site and click on the FORUMS button and post there..also try using the AVP organizer button to start with...and go thru it step by step--when you click on a link do NOT just click--open it in a new window by pressing SHIFT key when you click if in Internet EXPLORER or right click in FIREFOX and open in a new tab--then you can close that window/tab and still be on the same page without getting lost....

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

Whichever you choose, make sure you understand the whys and do not just download the plans. That way, if things go off course, you'll be able to adjust. And you will have to adjust. There are always unforseen things down there and if you cannot adust, your touring plan is toast.

 

[Nancyg56]

I cant seem to figure out how the TGM site works. I paid and all but the only thing I've gotten out of it is a migrane!

HELP!

I am LOL because that is how I felt with TGM. I am not able to navigate as well as so many people and found the site to be humongous! I also used the UG, and was more comfortable, but I think if my family was going during a busy time, I would have put more effort into learning to navigate. I did find that the response on the forums was very fast. I got enough info to justify the price I paid.

 

[HydroGuy]

Some people really seem to struggle with finding their way around TGM. There is a lot of info there, and I can see why this would be so.

I was a little disoriented at first, but quickly found my way around. Personally I have never found the site hard to navigate, and cannot think of any way the site organization could be significantly improved. But that is just me.

 

[GrandmaBarb]

The secret to TGM web site is to take it "step by step" just like the intro tells you. don't jump around to all the links or you will be totally lost as there is just so much there to be read and absorbed.
and, if you need assistance, just post your question on the forums and someone will be right there to help you with expert advice.
Try it, take it step by step, and you will see for youself there is a world of information there to benefit each WDW visitor.

 

[Michelina]

We used the UG's touring plans for our last 2 trips and they worked incredibly well for MK, AK and Epcot. Only MGM didn't work out so well and I think that's because of all the shows. I wonder if anyone has used TGM for MGM and how well his plan worked?
I just read that TGM has 1/2 day touring plans for park hopping and that's the first thing I've heard that really makes me curious to check out his website.

 

[clonetothebone]

I cant seem to figure out how the TGM site works. I paid and all but the only thing I've gotten out of it is a migrane!

HELP!

LOL

I feel exactly the same way. I keep hoping I'll reach some secret portal and then it will all fall together. I usually mess around with it for a bit then go to touringplans.com.

 

[byoung]

I chose to do it my way.

 

[Pedler]

The secret to TGM web site is to take it "step by step" just like the intro tells you. don't jump around to all the links or you will be totally lost as there is just so much there to be read and absorbed.
and, if you need assistance, just post your question on the forums and someone will be right there to help you with expert advice.
Try it, take it step by step, and you will see for youself there is a world of information there to benefit each WDW visitor.

GrandmaBarb,

That is probably the best advice on using TGM. If you try to jump around too much it is like getting a drink of water out of a fire hose, it will blow you away. There is just so much great info there that you have to take it at a slow an steady pace.

To the OP we looked at the UG plans and TGM and decided that the TGM experience was more to our liking. UG was too much of a commando mode and without the information about the why behind the plan. TGM gave us enough information about the why that we were able to create our own plan and adjust on the fly. That became very usefull when we discovered that DS6 (At the time) wouldn't go on any ride that was remotely scary. That include POTC, HM, Spash, BTMRR just to name a few. Whole sections of our plans got chucked in a moments notice. Not a problem with TGM. We were easily able to adapt and adjust and had a great time.

 

[mommabo]

We used TGM this past Jan 1-9 while it was VERY busy for the holidays we only once waited 15 minutes for a ride, half dozen times waited 10 mins and ALL other times waited 5 mins or less ....walked on! We did EVERYTHING we planned. I read everything TGM had to say and his reasons why. Admittedly, I went a bit overboard, and printed out rough daily itineraries on hard paper and folded this into my fanny back. I didn't make my family stick to these plans, they just gave us an outline of what to do so we wouldn't stand in the middle of main street and say "So now what?" Some days we followed the plans, others we made adjustments according to what everyone wanted to do. And the nice thing was, we could do this easily because TGM had given reasons as to WHY he was making certain recommendations. If you kept his reasoning in mind, you could make changes on the fly without finding yourself in stand-by line hell. At several times during our stay we had so many fast passes accumulated that it was as if we had too much to do (but somehow always got it all done And now this summer we are going to Disneyland (we live in AZ, so this is very close) and even though TGM doesn't do DL, I KNOW I can use his strategies successfully and avoid long lines and cranky kids. (My hubby and I even joke that our kids don't have any clue of what DL and WDW experiences are like for the vast majority of visitors ....... wait, wait, tired, wait, cranky, wait, ride and start all over again). I worship at the alter of TGM

 

[Angiepea]

I used tgm for xmas 2004, and i would use him again...example....New Years Eve MGM, at 9pm when lines where humongous, i still had fast passes for the kids, so we still could enjoy the parks without cueing. EXCELLENT

 

[HydroGuy]

And now this summer we are going to Disneyland (we live in AZ, so this is very close) and even though TGM doesn't do DL, I KNOW I can use his strategies successfully and avoid long lines and cranky kids. (My hubby and I even joke that our kids don't have any clue of what DL and WDW experiences are like for the vast majority of visitors ....... wait, wait, tired, wait, cranky, wait, ride and start all over again). I worship at the alter of TGM

You may know this already, but DL has some FP loopholes that do not exist at WDW.

I wrote this up last summer. Here is a link:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=885132

Here is a quick summary:

a. There are "disconnected" FP rides at both DL and DCA, which means the FP return times do not affect other FP availability. I believe that Roger Rabbit at DL and Grizzley River Run at DCA are the only two at present.

b. The acceptance of expired FPs from the same day has been policy at DLR for many years. In 2005 on several occasions we used FP we got at 8AM (with return times of 8:45-9:45AM) and used them at 11:50PM that night with no problem whatsoever - 15 hours late.

c. Unlike WDW, when you enter either DL or DCA, your entrance tickets are initialized for both parks at the same time. If you are in to picking up FastPasses and parkhopping, you can enter one park and then send a FP runner to the other park to get FPs without everyone needing to enter that park.

d. If you book a DLR Hotel room thru AAA, you can get "Enhanced FastPass". Differences between EFP and FP are discussed here:

http://mousepad.mouseplanet.com/showthread.php?t=43193

 

[mommabo]

Hydroguy,
Thank you for that link. I had read your post before, but couldn't remember where ..... now I have it bookmarked. At the time reading it, I thought, now here is a TGM for DL in the making ...... hmm, maybe a new career move for you . I will definitely be using many of your tips (except EFP as we are not staying at a DLR hotel). I currently have hubby in training as our fastpass collector. I will let you know how it goes.

 

[HopingforAMiracle]

We used the UG's touring plans for our last 2 trips and they worked incredibly well for MK, AK and Epcot. Only MGM didn't work out so well and I think that's because of all the shows. I wonder if anyone has used TGM for MGM and how well his plan worked?
I just read that TGM has 1/2 day touring plans for park hopping and that's the first thing I've heard that really makes me curious to check out his website.

We felt the same way with MGM.
It was a park that we thought we could see in a day. Especially if we decide to do the Fantasmic Dinner Package (latest seating in Oct is 4:30)- it will take us almost two days to see all the shows!
We gave ourselves only one day last trip and we missed so much! It's hard because there are so many shows that you need to work around their schedules and also get there so far in advance for some of the shows. There's a lot of time, we found, just spending waiting for a show to start.

I wonder if anyone has used TGM for MGM and how well his plan worked?

 

[abaldacci]

I used TGM plan for mgm and it work well for me but I don't like the shows that much so we only saw beauty and the beast.