VIPTours for extra help and reduced wait time

[DisneyAuntie12]

Has anyone used MyVIPTour or Stone VIPs during their stay? I'm wondering if it would be worth the cost and, if so, if it would be better to book them for the first or second half of a trip. There is no way I could afford to book them for more than two days (even the possibility of two days is only because my parents would pay for the hotel and park tickets.)


We are looking at early April of next year which is supposed to be very busy. My parents both have arthritis, especially of the spine, which is difficult because standing still is bad for them but sitting can be even worse (I think it feels a bit better, but my understanding is it actually puts more pressure on the discs of the spine.) So even if they would use a motorized vehicle (which they won't,) I don't know that it would help a lot.


One of the munchkins in our group is 'quirky'. It may be something she'll outgrow, I'm not sure. She's hitting all her milestones developmentally and is doing fine in a typical preschool but just has a mix of sensory, feeding, sleeping, gut, social language and rigidity issues that can get worse when something unexpected happens or there is a big change in routine. She's been on vacation to the beach and done fine and she loves Disney characters as toys and movies, but even so, I feel like her reaction could be a wild card - if she gets overstimulated or overwhelmed she might refuse to do much at the parks and / or melt down.


We'd also have about six other people in the group, kids and adults, who wouldn't particularly need extra assistance.


If we went for four days I was thinking of booking VIPTour for two of them. My understanding is that they are very good with kids; in general help out and make sure things run smoothly; and have magical 'company fast passes', to reduce wait time - especially if you have to change plans midday. I feel like the first two days would be good in that we'd have extra hands on deck to help my little quirky turkey relative get acclimated and transition, and if meltdowns ensued they could help us redo our daily schedule more easily. On the other hand, I feel like everyone will be more tired the last two days and that's when we may really be wishing for some extra help - especially my parents who would benefit from not standing in long lines.


Has anyone used this service? If so, do you think it's better to begin or to end a trip with a guide? Or just take out a second mortgage for the whole trip, lol!

 

[gap2368]

I have never used either of the two you asked about, but I believe Disney has taken away the ability for outside companies to get extra FP so all you will get is your 3 and if you do not make your time you will be out of luck. I truly think beside the extra set of hands you are just as good with a good touring plane like getting to the park early, having your FP start about 60-90 minutes after the park opens.

have you thought about a roller or wheelchair for your parents so that they could sit when need to and they could push the chair/ roller when they need to. Disney has taken away benches away at the parks so if they will need to sit they need to bring there own set with them.


for your DD may be the DAS will help her if her. The DAS will not make wait shorter but it will give her ( and 5 people with her) a place to wait bedside the standby line. if you think this will help her you will have to stop by GR and talk to them about your concerns for her in the line and why waiting outside of the line will help her.

 

[mamabunny]

I agree with @gap2368 - you may be just as well served by planning your FP+ yourself, maybe build in some Resort time every day, and spring for Park Hoppers (so you can start the day at one Park, and end it at another - the change of scenery is sometimes good when things get overwhelming).

Before I went with an expensive Guide service, I would personally buy a subscription to Kenny the Pirate; he's usually spot-on as far as crowd levels and which Parks are best for each day of your trip.

Put a DAS with all of that for your DD, and you may be just fine.

 

[DisneyAuntie12]

Thanks for the heads up about the Fast Passes and benches guys! I'm not sure about the touring companies - I was under the impression that they could help with Fast Passes in some way, but I will make sure that's the case before booking - it's a huge expense and yeah, if it comes down to just putting in some extra planning time on my part, I will go that route. The reviews online (on other sites like TripAdvisor and Yelp, I mean, not just the touring site) talk about things like people going at spring break and never waiting in line more than five minutes, fitting in more rides than they ever could have by themselves, and so on, but I'm not clear on how that happens.

 

[SueM in MN]

If we went for four days I was thinking of booking VIPTour for two of them. My understanding is that they are very good with kids; in general help out and make sure things run smoothly; and have magical 'company fast passes', to reduce wait time - especially if you have to change plans midday.

There are no outside companies that have ‘extra’ Fastpasses.
Even the WDW Company OFFICIAL VIP Tours do not all get extra Fastpasses or ability to bypass or shorten waits. (Only certain, more expensive ones do).

Those companies say they will develop an itinerary for you, for the attractions you most want to experience. With experience and knowledge of the parks, there are ways to schedule your day for minimal waits as other posters mentioned (many people use services like touring plans.com ) . Those VIP company tour guides would be able to do that too.

Presumably, the non-official companies are scheduling each guest’s 3 Fastpasses (the same as every guest gets) and then using My Disney Experience and their knowledge of when different attractions are less busy to help their clients experience the most attractions. After using the first 3 Fastpasses, any guest can schedule more, one at a time as soon as the last Fastpass has been scanned. Those VIP services could start to do that while the guest is in the attraction.

 

[Allison]

There are no magical fastpasses that a company would have access to and there isn't anything they can do in a park that an ordinary customer can't do because that is what they are-a regular customer.

 

[EFree]

I think the DAS passes might be a good fit for you if you qualify.

 

[gap2368]

I think the DAS passes might be a good fit for you if you qualify.

But only the OP DD might qualify for a DAS pass the OP parents would not

 

[EFree]

But only the OP DD might qualify for a DAS pass the OP parents would not

Sorry, I did not specify that I did actually mean for the daughter.

 

[DisneyAuntie12]

Thanks for the clarification - I did look back at their website and it doesn't say anything about extra FastPasses, I guess I just assumed based on the wait times people talked about in reviews. I may still book them for the two days but I actually feel a bit better that I won't be 'missing out' on some magical FastPass bliss by not booking for all four! I have never used the same-day FastPass system (I don't like the idea of leaving anything up to chance so the last time I went to Disney, I had every must-do accounted for either as a rope-drop attraction, extra magic hours, or the original 3 Fast passes,) but if need be I could probably figure it out based on crowd level.

 

[SirDuff]

I think that the usefulness of the external companies was reduced when WDW closed the loophole of being able to get FPs with tickets/passes that hadn't been used that day (e.g. scanned at park entry). That was a way that they could get you extra FPs.

 

[Bete]

Let's make some points clear. You have the ability yourself of making three advance fastpasses each day. If you stay onsite or Disney Springs (through 2018 for now) you do your fastpasses 60 days ahead of time by using my Disney Experience. You do need to have Disney park tickets in advance for all for this to happen. If you have a Disney package deal then the Disney park tickets are included in the package. If you are offsite you can make your fastpasses 30 days ahead of time if you have Disney park tickets ahead of time.

If you stay onsite you have access to extra magic hours. We always use the extra morning extra magic hour. You do have to be an early riser for this to work. We love getting into the park before the general public. You can do many rides without a long wait using the extra magic morning hour. Then, after the extra morning hour you work yourself towards the back of the park. Then, when the park opens to the general public you have about 30 -60 minutes before the general public catches up to you in the back of the park. This strategy works. Make your fastpasses after 90 minutes from the extra magic hour opening.

DAS is for certain disabilities where you can get a ride time to come back with not as much waiting in the ride lines. You have to qualify and guest services at the park can help. Once you get approved it's good for your whole trip.

Mobility issues do not normally qualify for a DAS. Disney expects you to use a wheelchair or a scooter. If you have able bodied individuals in your group you may want to consider using wheelchairs for your parents and let someone push them. Then, they don't need to worry about driving a scooter. If they want to walk some then they can use the wheelchair like a walker. You could even share one wheelchair between them; so, each can have some time to walk. You can take wheelchairs pretty close to the ride.

There are special dinner/show packages available to see shows like Fantasmic and River of Lights with reserved seating. Then, you don't have to use a fastpass for it. Also, there is a dessert party with reserved seating for Happily Ever After fireworks in MK. You can take an Illuminations cruise for Epcot's fireworks.

I would consider extending your trip a couple days longer. You would get more fastpasses and you wouldn't have to have long days in the parks. You could go back to the bigger parks twice. Forget about VIP anything.

You do need to plan if you want to avoid bigger waiting times. Watch some you tube videos about doing fastpasses. Get the free vacation DVD from Disney.
You need your group to want the same fastpasses or it could get out of hand to keep the group together. You may have to separate into smaller groups if you can't agree on the same fastpasses.

Keep in mind there are some rides with moving sidewalks and that may not work for some in your group.

 

[cmwade77]

The only VIP tours that get extra FPs are the VIP tours that Disney sells directly and those are not worth it.

 

[cmwade77]

Keep in mind there are some rides with moving sidewalks and that may not work for some in your group.

Aside from Peter Pan, I don't know of a single attraction where a moving walkway cannot be stopped in Disney World. They may not like to do it, but it is a reasonable accommodation to ask for a moving walkway to be stopped, as I said aside from at Peter Pan where doing so would literally cause the ride to shut down (poor design on that one).

 

[JustCallMeMommy]

I think that as long as you know what you are paying for, these type VIP tours can be good for some people. They are basically a travel agent plus. They are handling your fast pass (and dining) reservations, developing a good touring plan, and guiding you through the park.

I was curious, so I read their web page and a few reviews. They aren't doing anything that anyone else couldn't do. They are just very familiar with the parks and can help you navigate. You won't spend time figuring out where to go or what to do next.

I would not consider putting down that much money for this service myself, but I recognize that it could be valuable in some circumstances. I would have to compare the benefits of adding a few days and going slower vs. using something like this.

 

[cmwade77]

Yeah, we tend to do 10-14 nights so that we can go slower and be ok.

 

[gap2368]

Aside from Peter Pan, I don't know of a single attraction where a moving walkway cannot be stopped in Disney World. They may not like to do it, but it is a reasonable accommodation to ask for a moving walkway to be stopped, as I said aside from at Peter Pan where doing so would literally cause the ride to shut down (poor design on that one).

I have heard the people mover cannot be stoped either

 

[cmwade77]

I have heard the people mover cannot be stoped either

Sorry, you are right that one cant either, again poor design, but that was the time frame it was built in. But Haunted Mansion, Space Ship Earth, Buzz, Nemo and Little Nermaid can all be slowed and stopped as needed. Again, they may not like doing it, but oh well, it is a reasonable accommodation when it wont cause the attraction to break down.

 

[DisneyAuntie12]

Thanks for the replies all! Unfortunately I'm not scheduling or paying for the trip so I have no say regarding how long we stay. Ditto for getting my parents to use any kind of accommodation like a scooter or a wheelchair - my mom has slipped two discs already and been immobilized for weeks at a time but heaven forbid she use a scooter - those are for old people, lol! Going to give me a heart attack one of these days, she is paying me back for my teenage years, I think.

Regarding the tour, I will definitely think long and hard about that one. I am a total sucker for glowing reviews and I have found during other travels that they have indeed helped me discover some real gems - but sometimes it just means that particular company is good about asking their clients to post a review on TripAdvisor. Or just that people have consistently good experiences within the realm of what that company offers, but if that's not what you're looking for in particular, it's not going to knock your socks off. Their clients sound so consistently ecstatic that I'm really tempted, but again, will definitely see if we could fit in everything we want to do with an extra magic hours day and Fast Passes first.

 

[DisneyOma]

Thanks for the replies all! Unfortunately I'm not scheduling or paying for the trip so I have no say regarding how long we stay. Ditto for getting my parents to use any kind of accommodation like a scooter or a wheelchair - my mom has slipped two discs already and been immobilized for weeks at a time but heaven forbid she use a scooter - those are for old people, lol! Going to give me a heart attack one of these days, she is paying me back for my teenage years, I think.

Well, after she walks 8-10 mile a day, she'll probably figure it out herself. And a tour is not going to help with walking distances, etc. It's going to be pretty hard to even find a place to sit sometimes, as WDW is not loaded with benches anymore. You might want to bring along the numbers for some offsite scooter rentals just in case.