Why do we need TGM or UG?

[redrosesix]

I know TGM is Tour Guide Mike, but what is UG?

The Unofficial Guide to Disney World. I actually bought it a few years ago, and it does have a lot of useful information for first timers (similar to the stuff found in the Dis stickies) but a lot more about off-site hotels, restaurants, etc. It's made the rounds of friends and family a few times.

I don't find it useful at all now that I found Dis (ironically, that was where I first read about Dis Boards and Dis Unplugged)

I would never follow a park plan -- we go to WDW just before Pres. Day, so the first part of our trip you wouldn't need a park plan, the 2nd part of our trip no plan would help. We're also not a park plan type of family -- we have long vacations with many park days and prefer to just relax and enjoy ourselves, taking time to watch people running ragged trying to follow a plan and missing out on the minor details of just "being there" eg. actually overheard in AK: "Mum, can't we just do something for fun?" "We don't have time for fun, honey, we have to follow the plan" That is just sooooo not us.

 

[vicki_c]

Let me just say that after using TGM for about 10 trips over about 6 years, we finally bit the bullet and went at Christmas last year. We rode just about every ride multiple times, saw all the evening things except Fantasmic (which was our choice not to), did all the special Christmas activities, toured the resorts, had lots of ADRs, had time off from the parks, used the pool, and had our best trip ever. I never saw any crowds with the exception of the following times: New Year's Eve around fireworks time at DHS, December 30th at the MK, again, around fireworks time, and the night we went to the Osborne Lights at DHS. We did not wait in any line longer than 20 minutes and I could count those 20 minute waits on one hand.

I'm not saying the crowds weren't there - they were - but we made it a point to not be where they were, either by picking a different park or even a different place within a crowded park.

To me, that's what a touring plan enables you to experience. I prefer TGM because it's always worked for us. Would UG work as well - I don't know, I've used their plans a long time ago, but they don't really provide the same type of detailed advice. But any plan is better than not having a plan, IMO. And I never feel that we miss out on any impromptu magic or spend time running all over - we're not slaves to the plan because it works so well, we don't have to be.

There's every kind of person on the DIS - from those who don't plan at all, to those who plan like the D-Day invasion -- most fall somewhere in between, including me. It's not a decision anyone else can make for you, really, it depends on what kind of person you are and what your objectives are.

 

[redrosesix]

Thanks everyone, lots of good points made here.

But my question is about my dates, Dec. 26 to Jan. 8. Most of that time will be crazy busy. My experience is there's not really a difference in the parks, all are insane. Or do TGM and UG predict something we don't know?

Here's what we usually do at Christmas:
-get to the park as early as humanly possible
-send out the FP Posse
-rest of the group heads to first attraction we want that doesn't have FP
-ride it, meet up, check FPes and make plan accordingly
-gear schedule around FPes and ADRs
-get new FPes as soon as possible
-choose to be relaxed and have fun no matter how many people

We an actually enjoy a lot more attractions than I ever thought at that time of year. So what else do we need to know? Are we missing something significant?

No -- that's about all you can do. The only thing I would add is that if you see a ride with very little wait time, do it even if you weren't planning to eg. if the show at the Tiki Room is scheduled to start in 5 mins and there is no line, do it. It makes it feel like you're not waiting a long time for every single ride. Sometimes even some of the best rides will have a lull cutting the wait time down to 20 mins or less (we've done HM, POTC this way on Pres. Day) Also, try to schedule your ADR's so they're not when everybody else wants to eat -- the lines for the attractions are shorter at meal times.

 

[Planogirl]

I've used the UG many times in the past and still reference the newer books occasionally. It's very useful IMO.

I don't really need guides any more though. I can come here and elsewhere to find out about new things and changes and that's just as easy.

 

[richmo]

I don't use either directly anymore. However, for someone that hasn't been to WDW a number of times, I've found the UG to be the single best source of information out there (in book form, that is).

I do like to take a look at the online crowd calendar associated with UG. That does help me plan which parks I plan to visit. However, with UG (and I believe TGM), I find the park touring plans to be too detailed and too precise. I have a pretty good idea of what attractions are the busiest in each park and do pretty well using my FastPasses. I prefer not to have a structured plan once I'm in the park.

 

[MarkinNM]

Been 18 times...never needed a tour guide....

my vacations have been great...why use it? waste of money IMHO.....

I've been to WDW 30+ times.I don't see why ya need either one....hang out on the DIS Boards...and check out a few other places around the internet... and you'll find ALL the info you need!!

let me just chime in....just because I don't use TGM or UG doens't mean I run around like you claim. I've gone to Disney more times than I can count..Sorry I don't need someone else to tell me how to enjoy MY vacation. Plus I don't want to follow a "plan", I want to do what I want that day. To me that's more important than being on schedule to make sure I complete a checklist.

As for your "godsend" for those with young children.
I couldn't disagree more. Planners don't consider you kid might want to ride Dumbo 3 time in a row. or spend an hour at Dumbo's Boats.
I would definately say no to plans for people with little kids. They are too unpredictable to have someone else tell me what they will enjoy.
And I'm certainly not going to force a plan on them.

and Pepe is just given their opinoins, that's what the OP asked for.
Why are you so offended that others DON'T use these and voice their opinion?

I agree in that I am NOT going to have a guide tell me how to take my vacation!!!

Whats next, UG in how to spend your $$???

Go enjoy who cares if theres crowds, it Disney, Disney=Crowds...
Sure there are slower times, we all know this, why pay for somebody to tell you this?? I am on vacation, to relax, enjoy ourselfs w/o having a piece of paper to tell me to be at a certain place and a certain time of the day.......There is PLENTY of info on the web to make your plans, PLUS use the many members here on the DIS, LOTS OF FREE AWESOME INFO HERE by people that have gone MANY, MANY times!!!!!

 

[Ash&Wes07]

I suppose I don't *need* the UG, but I still get one every year. I like it and I trust them. Plus, it is interesting and there is always something in there I didn't know before.

ITA. I love the UG. I buy it every year, even if there are only minor changes. I think it is a great resource and well worth the cost. It also gives me something to read in the car/plane and in bed. LOL.

 

[Daydreamer]

I would say there is a good bit more that you can do and would advise you to sign up with TGM. We have used the site several times in the past and have gained a tremendous amount of knowledge. As for UG, I can't really speak to the information there as we have never signed up.

As far as what more you can do, use the least crowded park information to get a rough schedule of your park days and then schedule your ADR's around the parks that will have the lowest crowds, don't plan your parks around available ADR's. Don't just acquire FP's and then plan around what you have been able to get. Instead, plan what general area you would like to tour in the park and then plan and obtain FP's based on your touring plan for the day, etc.

I wish I could say that by signing up for either of these you will gain some insight to help with your vacation but that is impossible for me to say. I can, however, say that it has proven a very valuable asset for our planning.

 

[Cmbar]

I would never follow a park plan -- we go to WDW just before Pres. Day, so the first part of our trip you wouldn't need a park plan, the 2nd part of our trip no plan would help. We're also not a park plan type of family -- we have long vacations with many park days and prefer to just relax and enjoy ourselves, taking time to watch people running ragged trying to follow a plan and missing out on the minor details of just "being there" eg. actually overheard in AK: "Mum, can't we just do something for fun?" "We don't have time for fun, honey, we have to follow the plan" That is just sooooo not us.

Hi! We have never used TGM or UG, but this trip we just took during the 4th of July week was relatively painless with crowds. Two things to keep in mind for us though. We had the QS dining plan and therefore were not bogged down by ADR's and we did use the "best parks" guide on the touringplans site. I think it worked beautifully and we didn't even get to a park earlier than 11 am (we are late sleepers). We never hit an EMH day except maybe to hit them late at night after most of the EMH people had gone to ride some rides a few times. It was amazingly easy to get around all parks. We only had to skip Test track and that was because I didn't realize that once I got a fastpass for Soarin that I could get another fastpass a little later. We just usually don't go during times that we need to use fastpasses. But this being our first summer trip, tried to use a few times, but only needed it for Soarin and Toy Story. I don't know if we were just lucky or if the touringplan "best park" days helped or not. I did however notice that often times we missed the "mob of crowds". We would do a ride and walk right on and then when we got out the crowds were there with long lines, so I don't know if this is what TGM or UG would help with.

RedRose.... We are planning our first trip near Presidents day and noticed you sound like a pro for that time. We are going the Tues, Wed, Thus, Fri and Sat before the Presidents day Mon. IS this the crowded times or the non crowded time? Little confused if Presidents day crowds are before the Monday or after? Thanks for any information! The dates are Feb 9-13th. What do you think? Should we not worry and just do all the way through to Presidents day (since the kids will have that day off?) Thanks!

 

[Mickeygolf]

Let me just say that after using TGM for about 10 trips over about 6 years, we finally bit the bullet and went at Christmas last year. We rode just about every ride multiple times, saw all the evening things except Fantasmic (which was our choice not to), did all the special Christmas activities, toured the resorts, had lots of ADRs, had time off from the parks, used the pool, and had our best trip ever. I never saw any crowds with the exception of the following times: New Year's Eve around fireworks time at DHS, December 30th at the MK, again, around fireworks time, and the night we went to the Osborne Lights at DHS. We did not wait in any line longer than 20 minutes and I could count those 20 minute waits on one hand.

I'm not saying the crowds weren't there - they were - but we made it a point to not be where they were, either by picking a different park or even a different place within a crowded park.

To me, that's what a touring plan enables you to experience. I prefer TGM because it's always worked for us. Would UG work as well - I don't know, I've used their plans a long time ago, but they don't really provide the same type of detailed advice. But any plan is better than not having a plan, IMO. And I never feel that we miss out on any impromptu magic or spend time running all over - we're not slaves to the plan because it works so well, we don't have to be.

There's every kind of person on the DIS - from those who don't plan at all, to those who plan like the D-Day invasion -- most fall somewhere in between, including me. It's not a decision anyone else can make for you, really, it depends on what kind of person you are and what your objectives are.

Thank you VickiC. This is finally the best explanation of why and how we use the touring plans. We are TGM subcribers, but I believe UG would give you some of the same satisfaction for making a plan. I really don't have any proof of why it works, we just know that when we follow his advice our Disney vacations have been better than when we didn't use his advice. I understand why Pepe doesn't use any advice. They've been multiple times and have time to go back and do it at a leisurly pace. I get that. But most people don't have that same opportunity and want to make the most of what they can while they are there. Are they wrong in wanting that? I don't think so, but that's just my opinion.

For the OP, I think you would be good to use either UG or TGM or possibly even RideMax. Any of these will give you a decent plan to follow and will put you ahead of the mass of people who would never make a plan because they truthfully don't know any better.

 

[clarabell]

To me, it's easier to follow a plan. If I follow their list I don't have to think nearly as much. I just go down their list. If there's no line, I ride twice if I want to. If I see a butterfly garden on the path between rides, I stop and look at it. But I don't have to stand outside It's A Small World having a 20 minute debate about where to go next. We just go down the list.

I use the Unofficial Guide. It was a lifesaver this time since there are 4 families going together. When we were trying to make the ADRs, we just deferred to the guide on which park to go to which day. When it was between 2 restaurants (that none of us had been to before) we just deferred to the guide.

If it's just a couple of people going, I wouldn't think there would be much advantage to using it though.

 

[laceemouse]

I am a subscriber and TGM is just way too wordy. It's very difficult to understand exactly what he wants you to do and when in his touring plans. It could just be a list, but he goes on and on about "well maybe ride this if this or how about this? Now, how about I give you the most complicated instructions possible on which path I want you to take after that?" JUST TELL ME WHAT TO DO!

Agree! I like suggestions of which park/which days. I can get that from UG/touringplans. But most of them are no brainers (if you can't hop avoid EMH in the a.m., stuff like that.)
I never understood on TGM how people GOT an exact plan, and I never saw anything I didn't already know from books, the dis, etc.

I didn't really use TGM when I had it, did fine, wouldn't pay to have it again.

 

[itchin2go]

I have used both in the past. If you're a veteran planner, you don't *need* either of these. The least crowded/most crowded, parks to avoid information - you can figure this out for yourself. Spectro night? MK will be crowded. Avoid EMH parks. Special event in a park? Avoid that one. It's more complicated than that, but you get the idea. New planners will learn a lot. Veteran planners will probably only confirm what they already thought.

That said, I'm a subscriber to UG's touring plans, and I still refer to my UG all the time. I am no longer signed up with TGM, but when I was, I enjoyed reading his park predictions and articles. Both of these services mostly just reinforce what I already think/know, but if you're a major planner, they can be informative and enjoyable.

Based on my experiences when I have followed the recommendations (and when I haven't), I believe they tend to be on the $$$. Again, if you already know how to discern the most crowded/least crowded parks without paying for a service, you don't *need* these services in order to visit the right parks on the right days. I customize my touring plans too much to rely on anyone else's, but I do take recommended touring plans into account when designing my own.

I don't understand the people who seem to have contempt for these services. WDW planning was an utter and complete mystery to me when I first started. I felt like I did the best I could and then held on for dear life. Just because a service does nothing for you doesn't mean it's worthless to everyone.

 

[Azree]

let me just chime in....just because I don't use TGM or UG doens't mean I run around like you claim. I've gone to Disney more times than I can count..Sorry I don't need someone else to tell me how to enjoy MY vacation. Plus I don't want to follow a "plan", I want to do what I want that day. To me that's more important than being on schedule to make sure I complete a checklist.

I didn't say other people run around - pepe did. And, uh, "plans" allow me to "do what I want that day." It's not about being on a schedule, it's about doing what I want to do and not wasting time thinking about it.

As for your "godsend" for those with young children.
I couldn't disagree more. Planners don't consider you kid might want to ride Dumbo 3 time in a row. or spend an hour at Dumbo's Boats.

Umm... Yes they do, and yes they do. EDIT: Wait - Dumbo's boats? Did I miss an attraction somewhere? Guess I gotta hit the guide books again!

I would definately say no to plans for people with little kids. They are too unpredictable to have someone else tell me what they will enjoy.
And I'm certainly not going to force a plan on them.

I don't "force" a plan on anyone. I plan out the day, have a general route in mind, and go with it. The UG touring plans do that for me perfectly.

and Pepe is just given their opinoins, that's what the OP asked for.
Why are you so offended that others DON'T use these and voice their opinion?

He's done it in just about every thread. I think we got it.


Boy, a bit sensitive, aren't we? Too many 120 minute waits for Toy story Mania?

 

[LauralF22]

I've been to Disney a few times, never with a plan, but always during slow periods, so I've gotten accustomed to quick lines.

I chose to subscribe to TGM for this trip because we will have both kids and extended family with us, and I want to maximize our experience. The planning guides that TGM provides are geared toward visitors of different age groups, so you can plan what works best for your family. And he does not require you to criss-cross the parks, nor does he restrict you from riding something more than once. He just provides you advice to make the best informed decision.

Ultimately, the plan is yours. I'm a planner, so this works for me. I like to know which direction I should be headed in, and don't feel that I am knowledgeable enough to do this on my own.

Just my two cents.

 

[Purseval]

You must keep in mind that TheDis forum users aren't your typical WDW visitors. For the most part they don't need either touring plan. But for families who don't use these forums the guides can save them hours of waiting in line. I doubt that either guide was written with the AP holders or people who make massive amounts of visits in mind. I always recommend the UG and this website to anyone who is asking me for advice about the parks.

 

[kpipkin]

If you've been 10+ times and feel like you've gotten everything you wanted to out of your Disney vacations then you probably don't need anything. If you feel like there were things you missed or that you waited too long in lines, then either would probably be helpful to you.

I don't know anything about TGM, but I've used UG for each of our WDW and DL trips. We haven't been 10+ times though. We have a couple years inbetween each trip, so I forget things and like to read the UG to refamiliarize myself and learn about new attractions. I use the UG strategy of avoiding EMH parks. It has always worked for us, so we stick with it. I'm a planner and like to be organized, so I find it very helpful (and comforting) to have a print out of my day's plan. I find that very easy to do with UG's website. On the website, they even have holiday touring plans for those extra busy times in the parks. We've never waited in long lines following these plans. On our most recent June trip, we waited 30 mins only twice (both at MK) and only because we deviated from the plan! Everything else we walked on or waited less than 20 mins. I like having that list in my hand. We never waste time trying to decide what to do next. My family just looks at me and I direct them to the next attraction! lol

 

[jettyspagetti]

Pepe, every time a thread like this starts you pop in with an opinion like this. I think we get it, you don't like the guides and touring plans!

The thing is, those of us who've used these things don't "run around the parks like it's a race track," and we don't "hurry" from one thing to another, we don't charge around with our heads down, and we don't "criss cross" the park skipping things left and right or miss the magic.

What we DO do is save hours of time waiting in line - for those of us with young children, this is a godsend - we save even more time in not having to pore over a map and decide what to do next, we get ahead of the mobs that swarm the parks in the afternoons, and we create wonderful, magical times for our families.



Why do you seem to have so much of a problem with that? We've spent thousands of dollars on a vacation, and we want to make sure we maximize our time and feel like we get our money's worth.

Does it somehow offend you that others like to have more of a plan of attack than you do? I wouldn't ask the question if you didn't feel the need to post in just about every thread that asks about planning...



As for me, I love the UG and the touringplans website. I find that there plans allow us to do the things we want to do in the AM, get back to the resort for lunch, a swim and rest in the early afternoons, and get back to the parks in the early evening and do what we want and repeat the things we want.

I made a mistake on our last trip and jumped in the Peter Pan line at a bad time because the line "looked" short. An hour later, the kids were mopey and cranky and we felt a bit worn out. We went back a few days later and did it when recommended and rode it twice in a row in 10 minutes. Learned a lesson, there!

The UG is our fave too. After dozens of trips in my youth spending half the day waiting in line, I love having tips that keep my wait times to a minimum. I want to spend the day with my happy kids, not sweating in lines!

 

[redrosesix]

RedRose.... We are planning our first trip near Presidents day and noticed you sound like a pro for that time. We are going the Tues, Wed, Thus, Fri and Sat before the Presidents day Mon. IS this the crowded times or the non crowded time? Little confused if Presidents day crowds are before the Monday or after? Thanks for any information! The dates are Feb 9-13th. What do you think? Should we not worry and just do all the way through to Presidents day (since the kids will have that day off?) Thanks!

DD competes at Twirlmania, which was held over Pres. Day wknd the past 2 years, and part of that is a parade through MK on Sat. afternoon. When you arrive on Tues, the FP machines won't even be open -- if you're there for pm EMH (and often before that too) many of the best rides are a walk-on (Buzz, POTC, HM) This continues for the rest of the week, although we've never been there on the Friday before Pres. day. (but I've been told that's not nearly as bad as the weekend -- I guess people are still arriving at their resorts on that day?)

Sat. is crooooowwwwded -- by the time DD is finished doing the Dreams parade, it's pretty hard to move in MK. This year we hopped to AK, last year to Epcot -- great moves on our part because those parks were much less busy. We were able to hop back to MK around 9 pm each time, and the crowd levels were considerably lower. Sundays can be good or bad, but Pres. day and the next day have about the same crowd levels as Sat. This year, we did Epcot on Pres. Day, and it was ok -- long waits for many rides, but the Kim Possible Adventure was awesome and there wasn't much wait time for that (really, it was only about as long as the time it took you to walk to pick up the Kimmunicator) -- we did it 3 times in a row!

BTW, some of the people in our group have been going to this competition for a long time (2010 will be the 15 year anniversary) and they have always said our experience at WDW was pretty typical for those weeks of the year.

Twirlmania is going to be the following weekend next year, so you might have slightly lower crowd levels in MK Fri night, Sat afternoon and Sat. night ie less twirlers and their families waiting around to do the parades or visit the parks afterwards.

Should add that we usually do the CS restaurants, but we did find it necessary to get ADR's for Sat afternoon at MK -- our first time doing that Sat. we had to stand in line for nearly an hour at CHH, there were no seats available at any of the CS places.

You are going to be soooo spoiled by the first few days of your trip, believe me.

 

[pepe of ohio]

I didn't say other people run around - pepe did. And, uh, "plans" allow me to "do what I want that day." It's not about being on a schedule, it's about doing what I want to do and not wasting time thinking about it.


Umm... Yes they do, and yes they do. EDIT: Wait - Dumbo's boats? Did I miss an attraction somewhere? Guess I gotta hit the guide books again!


I don't "force" a plan on anyone. I plan out the day, have a general route in mind, and go with it. The UG touring plans do that for me perfectly.


He's done it in just about every thread. I think we got it.


Boy, a bit sensitive, aren't we? Too many 120 minute waits for Toy story Mania?

Just plain changed my mind, with some it's just no use, alot easier for me to add them to my ignore list.