Tour guide Mike? Anyone use it?

[coachYO & my 3 girls]

Going June 6-19 anyone ever use TourguideMike.com?
Is it worth the $22 and what real advatages can you get over this web site and allears too. I love to hear from anyone who had used it.
Thanks, YO

 

[hockeymom7691]

We spent the money for it and I really don't think it's worth it. We ended up finding much more information/hints/tips here and allears, etc.

If I were you I wouldn't spend the money.

I wish we were going again soon! We were there the first week of December.

 

[crazyforgoofy]

And will use it again for our summer trip. Mike is a fountain of info, has updates and lots of great stuff all in one place. It took me a while to get the hang of how he arranges things but in the end we got good use from our $$. We've been to WDW lots of times too but I learned a lot I didn't know already.

 

[Lollipop Mom]

We purchased it as well. I would recommend it! We followed his advice and really did avoid lines, even going from 12/29 to 1/3. The longest line I waited in all week was to get lunch at Epcot on 12/31! The web site is wordy and bit clunky to navigate through at first (at least to me!) but once you get the hang of it, there is some really great info to be found!

You can get a discount off of the puchase price by going through a link on www.mousesavers.com or www.themouseforless.com.

 

[nigel-bigel]

I'm thinking about buying this as well. I'm skeptical because I DON'T want a touring plan that has me running from one side of the park to the other and then back again, all day long!

The Unofficial books have some great info, but those touring plans look exhausting and too regimented. In order for Tour Guide Mike's advice to be effective, is that what I'll have to do?

Nicole

 

[Lollipop Mom]

I'm thinking about buying this as well. I'm skeptical because I DON'T want a touring plan that has me running from one side of the park to the other and then back again, all day long!

Absolutely not! He pretty much has you do the "big" attractions in one area before moving on. The smaller, faster loading ones you can come back and do mid day but you get all the "big stuff" while you are there before moving on. The way he lists things is like I recommend these attractions first, these during the first 2 hours, these before lunch as opposed to "obtain a fast pass here, ride this that is across the park, see this in another land, obtain another fast pass then ride the first FP ride." You can go through and check off the attractions you are interested in and eliminate those you are not. Your touring guide is then made up of only the things you are interested in. He gives advice more from the standpoint of "everyone else does this so I recommend you avoid doing what they are and do something different."

I didn't feel like I was following an iternerary. We used the general guide lines and had a great time. I really like a lot of the info in the Unofficial Guide and am glad I bought it, I just felt like the touring plans were too commando for me. I felt like if we did that the kids would wear out faster and I would end up scheduling the fun out of the vacation.

 

[lentesta]

Hi folks,

I wrote the computer software the Unofficial Guide uses to create its touring plans. So discussions on touring plans are near and dear to my heart. And feet.

I don't think the primary touring plans in the Unofficial Guide have anyone walking from one side of the park to the other even once, much less "all day long." For the one-day touring plan for adults in the MK, every step involves either an attraction in the same land you're in, or a transition to a land adjacent to the current land. The only exception I see to this is when we say to take the train to and from Toontown. But that's gotta be better than walking to Toontown in any event.

Similarly, for the MK touring plan for parents with young children, the only transition between non-adjacent lands I see is from Liberty Square to Adventureland in steps 9 and 10. While not adjacent, the walk from LS to Adventureland isn't a slog by any means.

When we wrote the software, we were acutely aware of the balance between walking and waiting in line. So the software has rules that ensure that any walking we ask you to do is more than compensated for by reduced waiting in line. In fact, we generally don't ask you to move from one land to another unless you can save more than 22 minutes of standing in line by doing so (that's in the Magic Kingdom - the actual number of minutes varies by park).

Given that, I'd be skeptical of any touring plan that has you completing every attraction in a given land prior to moving to another land. It seems that that would almost certainly result in significnantly longer waits in line during the more crowded times of the year.

I don't know how Tour Guide Mike creates his touring plans (and I subscribe). I'd bet that he does them by hand, like every other guidebook publisher except us. But given that there are literally billions and billions of possible touring plans for any non-trivial set of attractions, I doubt seriously any person can do that number crunching as well as a computer. During the more crowded times of the year, it's likely that any hand-made touring plan will result in significantly longer waits in line.

Thanks YO for the opportunity to explain how the Guide's touring plans work. Feel free to drop me a line (testa@ncat.edu) if you have any questions.

Sincerely,

Len

 

[peanutzmom]

I am subscribed to Tour Guide Mike, and I love it! I used a code (Lori listed two places you can currently get discount codes), so it only cost around $18. I'm a guidebook junkie -- I have Birnbaums, Unofficial, and Passporter all sitting on my coffee table right now -- and I like each of them for different reasons. I like all of the detail in Unofficial, the pretty photos & bright illustrations in Birnbaums, the worksheets and pockets in the Passporter, and the customability of Tour Guide Mike. There isn't anything particularly wrong with the touring guides in Unofficial, but none of them really fit our family profile. They include rides we don't want to bother with, and don't include some things we want to do. At Tour Guide Mike I can choose exactly what rides, attractions, etc. I want to see, then have a customized itinerary to print out. Anyway, I definitely considered it to be money well spent, especially because it's always being updated. That's something that books in print just can't do. There are several things already out-of-date in my 2004 Unofficial Guide and Birnbaums simply because things change so quickly at WDW and it would be impossible for any book in print to keep up with those changes.

 

[lentesta]

Hi peanutzmom,

Thanks for reading the Unofficial Guide. My sig below lists the web page that contains all of the updates to the Unofficial Guide that have happened since we published the 2004 edition.

Also, the Unofficial Guide offers customized touring plans that, I believe, go beyond those offered by TGM. For one, the Guide's touring plans let you specify the attractions you want to see, plus any meals or breaks you want to include. We'll also make restaurant suggestions if asked. We'll also order the attractions for you to minimize the amount of time you spend walking and waiting in line. And we do this based on your schedule - you tell us when you want to arrive and when you want to leave. I'm virtually certain this isn't offered by TGM - the amount of computer power necessary to do it is prohibitive.

Feel free to drop me a line if you have specific questions: testa@ncat.edu.

Sincerely,

Len

 

[CarolA]

I used TourGuide Mike for over Christmas and it did have some great hints.

 

[disdanmom]

I agree with Peanutzmom, they all have good and bad reasons to use them. I have used all of them at different times. TGM is great because it does allow you to customize what you want to see and do and he will send you e-mail messages when it is time to make reservations for dinners, shows or specialty cruises. Just log on and he will tell you any changes that Disney has made concerning anything on your customized plan. I also like the idea that he did this for a living and has actually walked the tour he is suggesting. I have e-mailed him with several questions and he responded within 24 hours each time.

 

[Selket]

I used TGM for our trip last August and I LOVED it! That was the best money I've ever spent on a guide and I have the Official Guide and Passporter and other ones. For the most part, it seemed to me, TGM gives you a general idea of what to do when based on what things are most important to you) and then you go and do it. I have 2 young kids and it is easy to get sidetracked unexpectedly - you really can't march them around the parks like you could yourself! I felt like whenever we got sidetracked I had the info to know what attractions we should hit next. He gives awesome information on what parks on what days and info on spending half or full days. He does give some detailed touring plans if you wish to follow them (I did once during EE for the MK). Considering we went during a busy time of year and only did one EE day we spent 10 mins or less in lines for the most part - many times we walked right on (not talking about just fastpass attractions either). Mike was also wonderful in giving me detailed and accurate help when I emailed him about what to do with my 20 mo old who had muscle problems and couldn't stand up or walk yet. His suggestions really made the difference in our trip. My husband LOVED his Buzz Lightyear tips on how to get more points. I never felt like I could follow the Official Guide's touring plans because they seemed so rigid - not the same with TGM. You can certainly tell that Mike takes suggestions, comments and criticisms seriously and goes out of his way to include info on the site for everyone.

I think the different guides appeal to different folks based on how you approach the parks. TGM worked the best for us and I've already signed up with him again (at a discount for returning customers) for our next trip.

 

[jtjarvis]

I have or at least read all the "big books" for WDW and think Tour Guide Mike is the most valuable. The books and other sources all have their input and advantages but for value's sake I haven't run across another source that gives the inside scoop as well as TGM. On the outside it may seem cut and dried like a book but the more you delve, the more you'll find. And a previous poster is quite right, if you e-mail TGM with a question he'll answer promptly. I can't imagine someone feeling they haven't gotten far MORE than their money's worth if they fully exploit all this truly interactive guide has to offer.

As far as the wordiness issue, I personally like it. (Hey, I'm a writer!) There's a real "I'm really talkin' to ya" feel about this site--

JT
P.S. I do not know the TGM operators nor am I being paid LOL. !

 

[jeankeri]

I used Tour Guide Mike and loved it. My kids also liked going on and seeing reviews for rides or shows and looking through the photo tours. There is definately something about seeing things in color that gets you excited! Having used the touring hints, I can say they were on the money and saved us time in line at every park. My plug for The Unofficial Guide (and where I would mark down Tour Guide Mike) is that The Unofficial Guide has years of readers comments and reviews, and comprehensive/complete reviews of the entire World. Tour Guide Mike is still a work in progress, and while he is entirely up front about this, there was still no in depth guidance for DTD (specifically DQ) of Water Park specific advice available. As TGM adds to his site this will resolve, and I plan to re-subscribe when we go back to the world in 2005.