Touring Plans

[robl45]

I broke down and subscribed to touring plans really for no other reason than I wanted to see what the fuss was about and curious if maybe it could save us some time in a couple weeks. I had plenty of Google play money I was doing nothing with. Anyway, for anyone that has tried these touring plans especially the personalized ones, are they accurate? I made a couple just playing around and the waits to me seem quite optimistic as well as the time it actually takes to get through the attraction. I believe its listing 4 minutes for duration for test track. I know it takes quite a bit of time in test track to make the car, then wait in the next line even with fast pass.

 

[srwarden1928]

I have not used the personalized ones at wDW, although I may well do that this fall. I HAVE used the published touring plans in the parks with much success. Of course, with the published plans, there is no schedule, just an order--do this, then that, then the other, etc. Obviously meals, snacks, and other breaks were inserted when needed. a few additions were made at times. Overall it made things go so easily--no debating what to do next--everything was on the list. Touring plans app is MORE accurate with wait times than WDW's own app. I would not want to be without this resource.

 

[sorahl1]

I have not used them at WDW yet... I did use it at Universal last year as we had never been (and wont' be going back) so we could maximize (and we didn't know where we are going).
Now.. I have made up plans this year.. not as written in ink... but as a guide and an idea for time management. We are used to going for 11 days... and we are dropping to 7.. so not as much time to go back and revisit.
hopefully the TP's I made will help.
I also like the 'room' code they generate to help you get the room you want.
we did use that 2 years ago and got exactly the room we wanted at BC.

John

 

[robl45]

I'm still working up plans, but I still think they are seriously underestimating the wait times and time to get through the ride. They are budgeting 35 minutes to do TOT with rider swap. I've done TOT with rider swap and I know it takes a good 20 minutes per trip so that is at least 40 minutes minimum.

 

[lsenquiz]

I have used them for years. I use them more to get a rough idea of what time I need to make my fastpasses and to have a plan for the day. I do not take the times too literally. Although we do not arrive at every attraction at the exact time it says our FPs have always worked out since they have an hour range. I also leave a 30 minute break before any dining reservation just to be safe. I tried taking our May trip without making a personalized plans and it did not go as well as all our previous trips So, I am back to making plans for our upcoming September stay.

 

[heather913]

I used it in May. It was our first time in the parks & I found it very helpful to give me a general idea of what to expect. I thought the waiting times were optimistic as well so I added in attractions in between our must-dos that we didn't mind skipping. I am glad I did. The wait times were optimistic and the walk times were VERY optimistic, even on the most relaxed setting. I don't think the times adequately reflect how much time it takes to maneuver through the crowds, especially with a stroller.

Overall, I liked the program and will use it again for planning purposes.

 

[cdnjason]

I broke down and subscribed to touring plans really for no other reason than I wanted to see what the fuss was about and curious if maybe it could save us some time in a couple weeks. I had plenty of Google play money I was doing nothing with. Anyway, for anyone that has tried these touring plans especially the personalized ones, are they accurate? I made a couple just playing around and the waits to me seem quite optimistic as well as the time it actually takes to get through the attraction. I believe its listing 4 minutes for duration for test track. I know it takes quite a bit of time in test track to make the car, then wait in the next line even with fast pass.

I use it every year. It's a great tool to organize your park touring plans.

I recommend changing the settings to "relaxed" or "very relaxed" for walking speed and "minimize walking" for waiting vs walking. That will give you a more realistic timeline. I'm almost certain @lentesta, who owns/runs touringplans.com, will agree with me.

 

[robl45]

yes, I will try that, I was using relaxed I think because my wife is well slow when it comes to Disney. The mall no one can stop her. LOL Anyway, I had one plan set for Fast because me and my son don't mess around when we go alone and I couldn't keep the pace they were talking about. So I will try the changes to the settings and see how it looks.

unfortunately my fast passes are already in place and basically this was throw away money just to try it with free google play cash so I'm just hoping I can get a somewhat accurate view of the lines to make a plan. Usually we would just go to the park at night and just ride whatever is shortest but that plan doesn't work out so well when they are closing the parks early.

 

[Cynergy]

I also use it for a general guideline of a plan. I make notes on which steps are must do's and which can be skipped. I also add in artificial breaks to pad some times. Overall I like it as it gives us a plan and lets me easily visualize and group stuff together and make sure we are being efficient and not wasting time walking across a park or debating what to do next.

 

[robl45]

So far I like it, but it has at least one flaw, it doesn't let you schedule jedi training and you need to revise that around when you think you would do the training since you need to be there 30 minutes before. I ended up just putting a break in during the time I think I'm doing jedi training.

But overall are the waits themselves relatively accurate? One plan has be waiting for Rock n Roller coaster for 14 minutes at park opening. Is that realistic?

 

[lifepaused]

I purchased it and set up personal tours for my stay at wdw. I am using it as a guide. As I am doing 2 days in each park it makes it not as bad. When I return back in October, I hope that I will be able to sell my remaining moths to someone. I will only of had it for 4 months and will not be going back for at least 5 years so there is no need for me to have it any more.

 

[heather913]

So far I like it, but it has at least one flaw, it doesn't let you schedule jedi training and you need to revise that around when you think you would do the training since you need to be there 30 minutes before. I ended up just putting a break in during the time I think I'm doing jedi training.

But overall are the waits themselves relatively accurate? One plan has be waiting for Rock n Roller coaster for 14 minutes at park opening. Is that realistic?

Are you sure? I was able to add Jedi Training to my schedule in May.

 

[robl45]

Yes, you can add it, but you can't pick a specific one when you think you will go, nor does it understand that you need to be there 30 minutes in advance. Its kind of a weird thing anyway so adding a break makes it easier. It still has things too close for comfort though so I think I'm probably going to have to go to whatever fast pass falls during jedi training after and hopefully they don't give us an issue.

 

[travelgirl77]

I am another one who uses it as a guide. I am about 3 weeks out from our trip (WOOT!) and I check the app daily for the wait times at my projected park. I also found it helpful to just get a lay of the land. It has been years since I have been and at first I was putting rides across the park next to each other, which the tp site fixed when I asked it to analyze. Everything may not be spot on, but it has given me a lot to go off of, which I find helpful!

 

[robl45]

funny you should mention that as the plan I put together last night keeps putting me on splash mountain, then walking me a ways to another attraction and then back to thunder mountain which is next to splash. No matter how I adjust the parameters, it keeps doing that. Finally I just adjusted manually.

 

[lsenquiz]

funny you should mention that as the plan I put together last night keeps putting me on splash mountain, then walking me a ways to another attraction and then back to thunder mountain which is next to splash. No matter how I adjust the parameters, it keeps doing that. Finally I just adjusted manually.

This is why I do not let it optimize. I put the rides in the order that makes the most sense walking wise. They I ask it to evaluate what I have done. Anytime I let it pick the order it has us walking from one side of the park to the other all day long.

 

[chris benton]

Yes, you can add it, but you can't pick a specific one when you think you will go, nor does it understand that you need to be there 30 minutes in advance. Its kind of a weird thing anyway so adding a break makes it easier. It still has things too close for comfort though so I think I'm probably going to have to go to whatever fast pass falls during jedi training after and hopefully they don't give us an issue.

Won't it suggest your "best" time for your specific plan? IIRC, it also does include a buffer for that arrival. It might not be 30 minutes, and I was pretty cheesed that we made it a point to get there 30 minutes prior only to stand around for 15 minutes, while waiting for the other attendees to show up 10 minutes before (like pro's.) We were pretty much ready to choose from three time slots if we needed to but since we were one of the first in line, we picked the "ideal" time. It would have been just fine if we had to select any of the backup times, tho.

Anyway, what I like about TP is that recalculating on the fly only takes a few seconds. When we used it, it was spot on for just about everything, and it also did some things far better than conventional wisdom. When we had spare time because the software guided us to almost 30 minutes ahead of schedule, it told us to go to IASW instead of Tea Cups even tho the Tea Cup posted wait was less than IASW. A few seconds after we walked into the IASW line, the posted wait dropped in half. Our jaws dropped. TP for the WIN!

It just makes planning so much easier and more calculated - even if you use a personalized plan as a starting point - which most ppl do. IMO, it's worth every penny. There's also a message board on the tp site for questions/discussions. Disney Pro's might not find it as useful, but it's really inexpensive to get your plans and have backup plans organized on the fly. I think it's a great resource for the price.

 

[lsenquiz]

Yes, you can add it, but you can't pick a specific one when you think you will go, nor does it understand that you need to be there 30 minutes in advance. Its kind of a weird thing anyway so adding a break makes it easier. It still has things too close for comfort though so I think I'm probably going to have to go to whatever fast pass falls during jedi training after and hopefully they don't give us an issue.

You can be 15 minutes late for a FP. After that they will probably give you an issue.

 

[robl45]

I don't understand about the recalculating on the fly. And are you sure you don't have to be there 30 minutes before? We've done it twice before but honestly I don't remember. That would help if its true. TP is getting us there like 15 minutes before.

 

[lsenquiz]

I don't understand about the recalculating on the fly. And are you sure you don't have to be there 30 minutes before? We've done it twice before but honestly I don't remember. That would help if its true. TP is getting us there like 15 minutes before.

We done it a ton of times and it has always been 15 minutes early. However the last time we did it was in 2015 so it could have changed.