UG or TGM??

ArielsMommy

DIS Veteran
Joined
Jun 3, 2004
Messages
578
For those of you that have used both, which one has the better touring plans? I have both, but I'm not sure which to use on our upcoming trip (Nov 30 - Dec3). We will be traveling with another family - it will be myself (29), DH (31), DD (5 - it is her b-day we are celebrating), DBIL (35), DSIL (34) and Dnephews (5 and 5mo). We are staying on property, but we will have our own transportation. What do you think would work better for us and why? TIA
 
I prefer TGM for touring plans just because he seems to operate more on principle than on procedure. I do enjoy reading UG, but do not follow the plans.
 
We used the UG in July and never waited more than 20 minutes. The key is to get there before opening and follow the touring plans to the tee. It may take some extra walking, but it worked great.
 
I've tried both, but UG is the one that works best for me.
 

I buy both UG and TGM each year and TGM plans works best for my family.
 
We have used both and decided TGM suits us best. Flexibility is important when you want to enjoy the street magic.
 
Hubby says,"Don't leave home w/out TGM!".I agree!!!
 
Just use what you've learned and your own common sense.

All of the plans out there, from those companies and others, rely on some basic principles.

When it comes to rides, schedule the big "E-tickets" (i.e. mountains, towers, etc.) early in the day, at the end of the day, or during parades.

Watch for traffic patterns - when everyone walks out of the end of a Lights! Motors! Action! show, that probably isn't the time to follow them en masse to Muppets 3D. When you see throngs of people heading in one direction, go in the other. Always look for alternate lines; although it's one of the oldest pieces of Disney advice, many people still don't know that at many counter service eateries, for instance, that you can order from both the left and right side. Many people don't know that the line splits in the boiler room at Tower of Terror - if one line is longer, go in the shorter one.

Eat your meals a bit earlier or later to avoid the "rush" hours at dining spots. The early afternoon is a very busy times at the parks in general (late arrivals are already there, and the early arrivals haven't left yet), so it's a good time to take a break from the parks totally, or at least find something quieter and less crowded to do.

For nighttime entertainment, like Spectro or Fantasmic!, if there is more than one show, the later show will be less crowded. Go to the rides while everyone is in the first show, and attend the second showing.

Regarding EMH : If you actually can get up and get to an EMH park BEFORE 8AM, go ahead. They usually are rather pleasantly uncrowded. However, because of late risers who intended to make it early and didn't, those parks become more crowded later in the day, so it's best to hop away around lunchtime. But if you can't be there for opening, don't bother. Go to another park that day.

As to PM EMH's, most "plans" tell you to totally avoid them, but remember that avoiding them means you miss out on the parks at night. The goals of these plans is to cram as many attractions as possible into one visit, but what one forgets is that even though most of us are #1 there for the parks, not every single hour needs to be spent doing attraction after attraction. PM EMH's, especially in slower seasons when the parks close painfully early, can be wonderful just to see the parks lit up and the attractions at night. And, by the end of most PM EMH's (the last hour, when people are giving up and going home) can be a wonderful opportunity to get in many rides as the lines disapear. Remember, you only need to be in line at closing time; the rides don't actually close until everyone who is in line by closing gets to ride.

If you have researched enough to have multiple "professional" touring plans, you've likely noticed that these and other principles can be applied without rigorus scheduling or endless second guessing. The best advice you really can get is to research all you can before hand, have a rough idea of how to avoid the bottle necks (i.e. we will hit Splash Mountain and BTM at opening, and if we don't see shorter lines at Space Mountain and Buzz during the day we'll go back there around closing) and then just go with the flow - while watching how everyone else flows, and doing the reverse. ;)

Good luck with whatever you decide,

NED
 
I used a little of both in my plans. Sometimes they contradict each other especially about the EMH, so you need to decide what's best for your family. Not everyone wants to wake up at 6am on vacation and not everyone can stay up 'til 2am either.
Maybe you can try UG's plan one day and TGM's the next one !
 
Zippa D Doodah said:
I prefer TGM for touring plans just because he seems to operate more on principle than on procedure. I do enjoy reading UG, but do not follow the plans.

Ditto !!!!!!!!!
 
I prefer UG. Another tip...try to go to WDW at off season, you don't need any touring plans at this time of year. Most of the lines are very short. Did not wait more than 20 min. in all rides.
 
I don't know that one is better than they other---they are different.

UG's plans try to fit in as much as humanly possible, and keep you going at a pretty good clip all day. Most of the plans don't include a mid-day break away from the park.

TGM's focus is to get you to the things that make Disney Disney, but without tiring you to the point of needing a vacation to recover from your vacation. You tour very expeditiously in the morning, but after late morning there are more options and it's a bit more relaxed.

So, which one works best for you depends in part on how you want to experience the parks. Both can work great. I usually follow a more Mike-style touring plan than a Len-style one, but I do take bits and pieces from both sets of plans to craft my own visits.
 


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