When Touring Plans Disagree...

[Asnell]

I've been looking at EasyWDW and comparing the suggested touring plans to those from the Unofficial Guides, and there are a few key places where they disagree with each other -- things like avoiding EMH parks vs. using EMH, and their recommended touring order in AK is quite different.

I'm curious whether anyone has tried each and how they compare, especially at the more crowded times of year.

 

[stamot]

I have use different ones and after trying some i find that EasyWDW is very good and 98% of the time is right.

 

[sethschroeder]

Just take an average or something on crowds or even go with easy. TP is all about the in park app and ride specific wait time predictions.

 

[scoobydooby]

I've used both and find TP the most efficient. Either is better than none though I think!

 

[ashleighbass06]

My understanding is that touringplans doesn't tell you not to use EMH just to avoid the park that has EMH if you do not plan to utilize it.

I would go with the UG and TP personally. They have years of data and research to back up their TPs and if you don't want to use their plans you can create your own with the optimizer.

 

[MuddyTires]

For me, the best thing to do has been to understand the theories behind their recommendations and then decide what's best for my family.

 

[wendybeth75]

We generally start at the park with EMH and do what we want to do there then jump to the most recommended park after that or later in the day after pool time. This works well for us, however the new rule with FP+ may change things for us in the fall. We are contemplating a new strategy with pro's and con's.

 

[wareagle57]

The biggest difference to me has been Touring Plans crowds vs easywdw and UT. UT and EWDW have May 31 as an 8 and a 9, while UT has it as a 6. The entire month of May is that drastically different between the 3 sights. Why does TP project crowds so much lower than the other two?

 

[PiratesMansion]

I used Touring Plans when I was at Disneyland last year and it worked great! I haven't used either at WDW, but I decided to go with EasyWDW because the plans made more sense to me and they actually incorporate FP+ into the plan, whereas TP just lists suggested times at the top and then doesn't mention it anywhere else in the plan.

I just noticed fewer things in EasyWDW's plans that struck me as odd. For example, on TP's one day Epcot plan, it has you ride Living with the Land after Soarin' and before Test Track. Why would you stop your morning tour at its tracks by going on a long boat ride that won't have a line for several hours? I mean, if that appeals to you, go for it, but if you're trying to be efficient it doesn't any make sense other than the fact that Soarin' and LWTL are in the same building.

 

[JimmyV]

I've been looking at EasyWDW and comparing the suggested touring plans to those from the Unofficial Guides, and there are a few key places where they disagree with each other -- things like avoiding EMH parks vs. using EMH, and their recommended touring order in AK is quite different.

I'm curious whether anyone has tried each and how they compare, especially at the more crowded times of year.

At the more crowded times of the year, the day-by-day recommendation sites like TP and EasyWDW typically recommend avoiding EMHs. The "Unofficial Guide" is a more generic book that tries to capture everything in one place but is less concerned with the day-by-day, hour-by-hour touring like the other sites. TP and EWDW suggest avoiding EMH (especially on crowded days) because they know that people's best intentions are often foiled by a late bus, by a longer wait for a cup of coffee, or just by not getting out of bed as early as you think you will. Both sites agree that EMHs are great if you make the RD of the EMHs. But many people saunter in to the park only 15-20 minutes early due to delays and miss the first and most important 40 minutes of EMHs. And lots of other people do the same thing, thinking that it would be great to go to the park that has the extended hours. So a day that might otherwise be a "6" turns in to an "8" because of all the people enthused about going to the park with the longer hours. If you make the RD of the EMH, that is great. You really get a huge benefit. But by 10:30, the park is more crowded than on other days of the week. So it is a trade-off. Do you reap the benefits of the first hour in exchange for a more crowded 12 additional hours, or do you skip the beneficial first hour and head somewhere else? But here is the kicker. TP and EWDW are predicting that the average guest will miss out on most of the EMH, arrive later than they thought they would, and get the worst of both worlds. No EMH benefit and a larger crowd the rest of the day. The Unofficial Guide is giving advice to go to the EMH, and is expecting that the reader will take that advice in spades. The other sites are realistically assuming that not everyone will be so ambitious at 6:30 in the morning.

 

[BlueFairy]

At the more crowded times of the year, the day-by-day recommendation sites like TP and EasyWDW typically recommend avoiding EMHs. The "Unofficial Guide" is a more generic book that tries to capture everything in one place but is less concerned with the day-by-day, hour-by-hour touring like the other sites. TP and EWDW suggest avoiding EMH (especially on crowded days) because they know that people's best intentions are often foiled by a late bus, by a longer wait for a cup of coffee, or just by not getting out of bed as early as you think you will. Both sites agree that EMHs are great if you make the RD of the EMHs. But many people saunter in to the park only 15-20 minutes early due to delays and miss the first and most important 40 minutes of EMHs. And lots of other people do the same thing, thinking that it would be great to go to the park that has the extended hours. So a day that might otherwise be a "6" turns in to an "8" because of all the people enthused about going to the park with the longer hours. If you make the RD of the EMH, that is great. You really get a huge benefit. But by 10:30, the park is more crowded than on other days of the week. So it is a trade-off. Do you reap the benefits of the first hour in exchange for a more crowded 12 additional hours, or do you skip the beneficial first hour and head somewhere else? But here is the kicker. TP and EWDW are predicting that the average guest will miss out on most of the EMH, arrive later than they thought they would, and get the worst of both worlds. No EMH benefit and a larger crowd the rest of the day. The Unofficial Guide is giving advice to go to the EMH, and is expecting that the reader will take that advice in spades. The other sites are realistically assuming that not everyone will be so ambitious at 6:30 in the morning.

I think it is worth pointing out that The UG book is written by the people who do the TP blog/podcast/website/app. Perhaps they tweak their advice for a different audience, as you suggest. After all, a once-a-year-book needs to be more general than a by-the-minute app. But their advice is rooted in common principles. It's a matter of choosing which side of the coin is realistic for your group.


Now I am wondering why I never see anyone mention RideMax on the DIS anymore. That always worked great for us in WDW with FP-.

 

[BlueFairy]

I've been looking at EasyWDW and comparing the suggested touring plans to those from the Unofficial Guides, and there are a few key places where they disagree with each other -- things like avoiding EMH parks vs. using EMH, and their recommended touring order in AK is quite different.

I'm curious whether anyone has tried each and how they compare, especially at the more crowded times of year.

Also, are you looking at the UG book from August for 2014 or the touringplans.com website? I haven't reviewed the book in years, but with the implementation of FP+ and closing out of FP-, they have completely overhauled the TPs, I believe since publication. So a TP from the website (touring plans.com) is going to be better than the now-outdated book. I'll be curious if they change again for the August 2014 book titled UG Guide WDW 2015.

 

[JimmyV]

I think it is worth pointing out that The UG book is written by the people who do the TP blog/podcast/website/app. Perhaps they tweak their advice for a different audience, as you suggest. After all, a once-a-year-book needs to be more general than a by-the-minute app. But their advice is rooted in common principles. It's a matter of choosing which side of the coin is realistic for your group.


Now I am wondering why I never see anyone mention RideMax on the DIS anymore. That always worked great for us in WDW with FP-.

This.

 

[lmmantini]

I've used Ride Max in the past and really liked them, but I'd be leery of using them now since their website still states:

"FastPass Options

Disney's FastPass system can save you time standing in line. Is there an able-bodied member of your group who is willing to gather FastPasses for you?"

 

[NorthernBuckeye]

We generally start at the park with EMH and do what we want to do there then jump to the most recommended park after that or later in the day after pool time.

This.