I'm sorry Len, but to suggest that Tour Guide Mike's touring plans are akin to sitting at a kitchen table scribbling some notes out for his clients requires a response. It is not only discourteous to Mike, but insults the intelligence of those of us that have chosen to use his service.
The PassPorter is another excellent guide (as I note above) - and I am sure Dave and Jennifer would be appalled to know that their efforts are being compared to kitchen table scribbling. For you to say I suspect that most other folks offering touring plans sit down at their kitchen table and try to work something out on paper is about the most rediculous thing I have ever read. It is demeaning and inappropriate IMHO.
I use your guide (although this will be the last time thanks to your lack of any tact whatsoever), and have mentioned in many posts (including this one) that it is an excellent publication and extremely helpful to visitors both new and old to WDW. You have successfully alienated one customer that has bought the publication annually since the mid nineties and has sung its praises for years. I am not sure what prompted this kind of a response, but I will not let it be the last word on the subject.
The fact is that the 2004 UG was published in August 2003, which means it went to press well before that. The information in the book is therefore outdated by almost a year. Is much of the information still valid? Of course it is. But a lot of it is not. I personally find the site for UG updates to be lacking, but on this I can only speak for myself.
Tour Guide Mike, on the other hand, updates his site weekly- which makes it an excellent tool for visiting WDW (as are the UG and PassPorter). For you to dismiss other resources as kitchen table scribbling is not something I would have chosen to do unless I did my homework. To assist you in doing your homework so you do not talk negatively about things that you have no information about, I offer the following websites:
www.tourguidemike.com
www.michaelsvips.com
www.passporter.com
I also think you should visit the following link on his web site and explain to me how all these people experienced such outstanding vacations without your software:
http://www.tourguidemike.com/endorsements.asp
It takes a lot for me to get upset, Len, as I am a seminary student- but you have succeeded in getting me to the point where I could not simply turn the other cheek. I hope in the future you will temper your responses to your product(s) alone and quit demeaning others.
I also want you know that I wrote Michael Hewell, the man behind TourGuideMike.com, and here was his response about your post. I hope he doesn't mind that I post it here- but because he was the one you singled out to be critical of, I think his comments should be noted to 'balance the scales'. Hopefully this can be the last word on this subject, unless of course you want to offer an apology to most other folks offering touring plans (that) sit down at their kitchen table and try to work something out on paper, as well as those that use them.
Blessings.
mic_key_mouse
While I fully understand 'why' you believe that I should be concerned by derogatory comments made by Len Testa about TourGuideMiKE.com and my Automated Vacation Planner, please know that I am not - and I actually wish him well. I receive emails like yours all the time regarding Lens behavior on the boards, and I do genuinely appreciate your concern.
I'll admit that his many derogatory comments about me and the service that I provide for my guests used to upset me when I first 'came on the scene,' but I guess I've just gotten used to them. (Either that, or I've grown immune by repeated exposure, LOL!) He once wrote that he purchased the Automated Vacation Planner and that it 'showed promise,' but that he didn't see how I was possibly qualified to offer any advice on how to tour the parks 'as efficiently' as he and his software. Actually, the guy even once outright accused me of lifting information from the UG, because how else could I *possibly* know what I know? (I didn't - I've never needed to due to my background.) Len did purchase an AVP last year, but he only filled out the Questionnaire and never actually returned afterwards to review any of the content according to our log files. (All he ever had to do was ask and I would have given him one. The Passporter authors - nice people - and I exchanged guides a long time ago.)
Anyone who has reviewed my qualifications and experience knows why I am qualified to help guests experience the best possible vacation to Walt Disney World. This is what I actually do for a living. I've been a Disney vacation planning expert for years, and I'm paid three to four thousand dollars per vacation by our guests at MICHAEL'S VIPS - my Private Guide service here in Central Florida. We ensure they are provided with an optimal, relaxing day to day plan, that they avoid lines and crowds at all times, that they have the best seats at the shows, dine at the best restaurants, etc. I don't fly down here five or six times a year and gather a bunch of 'data' for a guide book. I live here, and I'm in the parks all the time with 'real' families of all ages. I then pass this experience and 'real world' advice on to my AVP guests. What I find spiritually rewarding is that a 'family from Boise' can purchase the AVP for twenty bucks and experience the same quality vacation as my multi-billionaires. That's just plain cool in my book! :>)
The irony to ME is that I think the Unofficial Guide is an excellent guide book. Obviously, lots of people agree because they have sold millions of them. Sure it's a bit cynical for my own personal taste - I think Disney does most things very well at their Resort - but I know the author is doing his best to help others, and that's admirable. I also think that Len's TouringPlans.com offers a really nice service for his guests as long as they actually know which attractions are best for them, and IF a touring plan is all they're after. I've never used it -- I don't need to, thank you -- but if Len believes his plans are scientifically efficient then I'm sure they most likely are.
(A slight 'however' note: Because I've never seen his work, I have no idea what the 'daily flow' is like, and that's very important to me. My 'tour guide' touring plans are designed to provide the most entertaining mix of 'rides,' movies, shows, etc. and I mix in deliberate 'minor down times' as well. Again, because I've physically been with many hundreds of families, I've learned through deliberate observation which mixes of Disney attractions work and which ones are not practical. We minimize lines at all times - of course, but there's more to 'having fun' than just that as the number one objective. It's not. Maybe Len thinks about these things while doing his programming -- I honestly don't know. To the best of my knowledge, he's never been a private tour guide.)
What I personally disagree with the most is Len's 'approach' to Walt Disney World. I don't believe successful touring of the parks is some form of complicated rocket science that requires a 'million billion' possible plans. I don't know
if a place is so complicated to visit that it requires a team of scientists, mathematicians, and computer engineers to have fun there, I don't know if I want to go
Thankfully, there's certainly more than one way to experience Walt Disney World and have fun, and I'm proof of that. Either my guests encounter lines when they visit, or they don't. That's not really open to debate. I know if they do -- I'm actually there WITH them! I respect Len's work and goals, and I think it's 'neato' that he has a computer program that can print out an order of attractions, so let's just agree that our approach to 'having a stress-free and fun vacation' is different. And that's fine.
I also believe there's a lot more to planning a successful vacation than arming yourself with a computerized park touring plan (Len) OR suggested sample park tour (what I provide in the AVP). If that's all you needed, I could have saved myself TONS of time and expense and just opened 'TourGuideMiKE's Touring Plans.' Because of this, my library of Sample Park Tours are only a *portion* of what's found in the AVP, as you have previously complimented me on. My software suggests the 'best of the best' that Disney has to offer for each AVP user's unique family preferences, they can interact and fine-tune the recommendations as they learn everything about them, and they can then use my 'tour guide' advice and tips to decide what's best for them on a day to day basis. In other words, 'plan a magical, wonderful vacation.' And because it's online instead of printed in a book, I can keep it constantly updated. (I can barely keep up with all the changes that Disney throws at us week by week and month by month- so how can a book?)
I've never understood why Len Testa writes what he does about my service, and frankly, I don't really care. I don't say this in a mean-spirited way; it's just that I have more important things to direct my energy towards. And as just another human being, I decided a long time ago to take the 'high road' with him and just wish him success.
I will continue my work on the AVP -- I have SO many wonderful goals for this project -- and will always strive to help my guests with the most up-to-date advice on *everything* they need to know. There is a plethora of planning resources out there, and that's great -- they're needed. But one of the reasons why I developed the AVP in the first place was because I looked around at all the web sites, purchased every book, reviewed the discussion boards, etc. and thought to myself, "But they're leaving this out. They don't mention this
What about that?
etc." The AVP's content is 'MY' approach to experiencing Walt Disney World, and that's all I really concern myself with. I'm sure most of the other guide book and web site authors feel the same way about their own work. Hopefully the vast majority of 'my' guests will appreciate what they learn and have a wonderful vacation because that's all I can and should care about. So far it seems that I am achieving my goals
I receive rewarding, very positive 'thank you for the best Disney vacation ever' emails every day, so I must be doing something right! ;>)
In closing, I think you should also know that I believe it would be entirely inappropriate for me to register and post anything regarding this issue on the DIS boards. I contacted them a long time ago requesting to advertise TourGuideMiKE.com on their site, and they declined. I respect their decision as they have a right to determine who can and cannot advertise and participate on their boards. I do on my own site, so why not them?
Len Testa is a DIS sponsor, so that gives him the right to post as many thinly disguised "I'm here to help you" commercial replies as he desires, and I assume that everyone realizes that. Unfortunately, no one he criticizes with his 'we're so much better than anyone out there' posts has the luxury of responding, and I imagine that like me, they have no desire to. (I also like to think -- and hope -- that Bob Sehlinger is totally unaware of 'how' Len is representing him and his book to the public.)
Therefore, my only 'voice' is from my actual AVP users, and their opinions are actually much more valid than anything I have to say. Of course I'm going to write positive things about my own product and service. Isn't that a given? (And I am proud of my work, setup, automated features, content, and so on -- I've put a lot of my 'heart & soul' into them.) I appreciate it when people post positive things about TourGuideMiKE and the AVP, and I'm glad to learn that I've successfully helped them. I also take notice when they criticize as an opportunity to improve it (I actually have a file I keep for such things). Thankfully, the vast majority of comments are extremely positive, and so are the emails I personally receive.
I ignore anything Len writes because his goal is clear: to promote TouringPlans.com and the UG. It's very unfortunate that Len believes he has to make negative comments about me and most everyone else out there in order to promote himself, but that's the way he has chosen to do things. I can't control what others say and do, and I learned a long time ago not to worry about it. (I don't always succeed, but I sure do try!!) While I, again, disagree entirely with Len's 'approach' and attitude towards others, I can't blame him for trying to secure a return on his investment of time and money.
As I opened with, I wish him, his organization, and his fans well - and I'll simply continue to help my own guests, including you, as best as I can! Thank you again for the thoughtful email, and please don't waste any more energy being mad about what someone else writes. I'm sure you're familiar with that wonderful 'Serenity Prayer,' right? ;>)
(Whew! I guess I had a few things to say, huh? LOL. If you dont mind, I think I'll save this so I can 'copy and paste' to others who are upset by Len in the future. As I said, people write me all the time about his behavior. Now if you'll forgive me, I need to return to my kitchen table and work something out for my clients -- the work's piling up!)
Best regards,
TourGuideMiKE
a.k.a. Michael J. Hewell :>)
TourGuideMiKE.com
I am assuming the abbreviation you used is for the Unofficial Guide to WDW (UG). If not, please repost and let me know what you mean.
