Tour Guide Mike

[Licorice]

Bit the bullett yesterday and spent the $18.95 for his service. While I am not done reviewing everything yet (there is a lot of information), I have yet to see any "revelations". Most everything, I already knew by reading the Unofficial Guide, or reading here on these boards. Even the parks he proposed for our visit in July are exactly what we planned to do anyway without his "expert advice." All pretty much common sense for anyone who has been to DisneyWorld before.

Anybody have the same thoughts about TGM, or different? Thanks.

 

[AllyCatTapia]

the funniest part of your post is that TGM predicts that many new people says almost exactly what you just said.

I mean, almost to the word! I am a TGMer too... I should go find you the thread.... it's downright creepy!

 

[XxStaceFacexX]

I said the same thing when I was new too but now I'll be subscribing to TGM again for my September trip

 

[Kick Save]

Allright, Stace! I was worried about you a few weeks ago.

 

[Eeyore'sthebest]

Same thing with me. I thought the same thing after the first time I subscribed but just subscribed again for my upcoming Christmas trip. As far as I'm concerned, if I save just an hour of my time by doing something recommended by TGM then it is well worth it! I'm sure I save more. I just never calculated it!

 

[hallie615]

I'm so glad I'm not the only one who felt that way. I gave in and joined and I find there is soo much info to look at, I keep looking at the same stuff over and over. I am having a hard time with all the info it gives you. I still have 3 months to figure out how to use the site to my advantage. If I spent as much time on Tour Guide Mike's site as I do in the DIS I would have figured it out already. There is just not enough time in the day to be on both sites..

 

[brentalex]

Bit the bullett yesterday and spent the $18.95 for his service. While I am not done reviewing everything yet (there is a lot of information), I have yet to see any "revelations". Most everything, I already knew by reading the Unofficial Guide, or reading here on these boards. Even the parks he proposed for our visit in July are exactly what we planned to do anyway without his "expert advice." All pretty much common sense for anyone who has been to DisneyWorld before.

Anybody have the same thoughts about TGM, or different? Thanks.

I bought tgm for our Easter vacation trip and ended up getting my money back. I had a number of problems with it. First since it was supposed to be 'personalized' based on the information I gave when signing up, I did not like all the warnings to stay away from the EMH parks in the morning because of all the onsite people who would be there. Well I was an onsite person and would rather have had some information about how to make the most of my EMH time, not warned to stay away from myself. Second, although Everest had only officially been opened for a short time, there was absolutely no mention of it in the plans for the AK, none at all. Third and this should not be a problem for you, I purchased it only a few days before my trip and because the site is not very intuitive about how to navigate it, and there is so much information there, that I could not possibly have looked at everything. I found the suggested touring plans for each park for the times I was to be there, but they were not much different than the unoffical guide and the information here. After coming back, Mike and I traded a number of e-mails about the whole thing and I got my money back. I simply was not impressed with it.

 

[run4me]

I signed up two weeks ago for out Sept. trip. I love the site. I've been WDW only twice before. I love the disboard and would not give it up but I also recommend TGM. Well worth the money.

 

[badatz]

I've been to WDW a number of times and am a steady reader of DIS and Debby but figured I'd try TGM and if I could get new insights it would be worth the money
Unfortunately not to much new info there, which you could not get by reading other boards but the overall decision is still out and I'll only know when I come back next month

 

[CathrynRose]

I think we're in the minority, but I agree with you.

I wont be asking for my money back - it's $20 - not worth whining about.

However - Ive been Disney message boarding for 10 years, went on yearly vacations all that time and lived in Florida for a year and visited weekly - I know everything he has listed on his site. I was bummed - but how much more could I expect to learn?

Even some of his tips which say "remember the agreement you signed not to share information" I thought "well, duh! - we always do that"

So, I agree with you.

 

[fuji]

I am signed with TGM, and there is a lot of info on his site. If you have the time to read most of it, you would find some interesting stuff. I leave Sunday for Disney and will let everyone know if his advice works. My entire trip is based on his recommendations. So , I guess I am up in the air on whether or not his advice works, but will find out shortly.

 

[andriade]

I had a hard time navigating at first, too. It took me awhile to get into to it and now I have renewed it for the 3rd time. I personally like having everything in one place. I do spend a lot of time here and I have ALL of the planning books too. I like his website better because it is updated more often than the Unnoficial Guide book is. This is my fourth trip to WDW so I guess I am still new. For me, it is worth the money to have all of the info at my fingertips and I don't have to search all over for it. To me, that's worth $19 a trip!

I do see your frustration though.

 

[te2077]

i have both things that i do like and things that have disappointed me. I really learned alot about fireworks and parade viewing for regular nights as well as mvmcp.

the thing im disappointed about is that park hours have been out for over a day now and theres no best days for dec yet. I know im being too impatient. hell probably have them up really soon.I was hoping for at least the first couple of days in dec to be up. Im worried that tomorrow i make all my adrs and that i will have to remake them all when he gets the scedule updated. I will just follow what the ug says on best days. hopefully i will be ok since its crt i dont want to have to change.

Other than that i love the site and the avp forum. I think its great and will definately use it again.

 

[TheZeppo]

TGM is extremely over rated. He has no info that can't be found in other sources or by using common sense. To anybody considering using him, don't waste your money.

 

[magnumaid]

I think if you're new to Disney, TGM might be worth it. All of the info is in one place. (though I found the site a bit hard to navigate).
If you have the time, you can learn just as much from the DIS and Allears.
Also, I've realized that my family tours the way that's right for OUR family. What works for some, may not work for others.

 

[Kick Save]

TGM is extremely over rated. He has no info that can't be found in other sources or by using common sense. To anybody considering using him, don't waste your money.

That's a bit harsh...if you're new to planning a trip to the most overwhelming vacation destination in the world, TGM can be extremely helpful. I'm a planning vet and I got some good info off his site. I would definitely recommend it for a WDW newbie.

Plus, common sense seems to fly right out the window at WDW...

 

[wdwbeforetn]

TGM is wonderful for someone new to Disney (like me). I agree you have to spend a little time to go through his material. Another advantage is the TGM boards are very friendly to people (like me) that ask new and maybe sometimes dumb questions.

 

[GOOFY D]

I think if you're new to Disney, TGM might be worth it. All of the info is in one place. (though I found the site a bit hard to navigate).
If you have the time, you can learn just as much from the DIS and Allears.
Also, I've realized that my family tours the way that's right for OUR family. What works for some, may not work for others.

Based on the sample reports I have seen, that is probably accurate. I read the samples and it was all common sense to me (but I have been to WDW man times). It is similar info that I give to those going. For someone new to WDW, it may be very valuable.

 

[Mickey Fliers]

I bought tgm for our Easter vacation trip and ended up getting my money back. I had a number of problems with it. First since it was supposed to be 'personalized' based on the information I gave when signing up, I did not like all the warnings to stay away from the EMH parks in the morning because of all the onsite people who would be there. Well I was an onsite person and would rather have had some information about how to make the most of my EMH time, not warned to stay away from myself. Second, although Everest had only officially been opened for a short time, there was absolutely no mention of it in the plans for the AK, none at all. Third and this should not be a problem for you, I purchased it only a few days before my trip and because the site is not very intuitive about how to navigate it, and there is so much information there, that I could not possibly have looked at everything. I found the suggested touring plans for each park for the times I was to be there, but they were not much different than the unoffical guide and the information here. After coming back, Mike and I traded a number of e-mails about the whole thing and I got my money back. I simply was not impressed with it.

Interesting. I went the week before Everest opened and found very specific AK touring advice on TGM. He updated all his info to include Everest. I was there March 30-April 3.

I find TGMike to be extremely helpful and wouldn't dream of taking a trip without him!!!

 

[greg126]

I think if you're new to Disney, TGM might be worth it. All of the info is in one place. (though I found the site a bit hard to navigate).

Hard to navigate, definitely. I think I'm fairly knowledgeable but am still glad I sprang for TGM my only regret being I didn't do it earlier...I was downloading like a madman there the last few days before departure. While I got most value for a special event (MVMCP) that isn't really covered comprehensively in any other single source I could find, there were other insights I found useful adding to value received.