Who has the best crowd calendar?

Most accurate crowd calendar

  • touringplans

  • dadsguide

  • **************

  • easywdw

  • undercover tourist


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Your teen makes $12 an hour at a summer job? Is that what kids make these days? I feel old.

Not my kid. He makes $0.83/hr. :rotfl2: He works at a camp and only has 24 hours a week where he doesn't have to be available at any time of day or night. Oh, his "salary" also includes room and board (in a platform tent). :thumbsup2
 
Whats going on here? Josh takes pretty constant potshots at TP, and everyone is cool with that. Len says he likes empirical data, puts Josh's name in quotes for whatever reason, and he's vilified? I dont get it.
 
To be honest, I prefer EasyWDW because I feel like Josh is more about teaching you how to read the park yourself. You get the recommendations and the reasoning, then you piece together how to tour. He's not trying to sell me anything or really do anything for me except show me things as he sees them and leave the rest up to me.

I'm not saying Touring Plans isn't useful, but I feel like it's made for another type of person. The kind of person who isn't an obsessive planner and just wants pure numbers and a touring plan they can print out immediately. Doesn't mean there's anything "wrong" with either, I think it's just for different sorts of people.

I do enjoy Josh's humor though and his blogs/pictures, I am happy to admit that!
 
Not my kid. He makes $0.83/hr. :rotfl2: He works at a camp and only has 24 hours a week where he doesn't have to be available at any time of day or night. Oh, his "salary" also includes room and board (in a platform tent). :thumbsup2

My first Summer job paid something like $5.25 an hour.

Whats going on here? Josh takes pretty constant potshots at TP, and everyone is cool with that. Len says he likes empirical data, puts Josh's name in quotes for whatever reason, and he's vilified? I dont get it.

I don't think Len's comments to Josh were that bad. But his comments to other folks on this thread were a bit odd.
 
I'm planning my first trip to WDW. I came across Touring Plans first. Being able to adapt their plans to the attractions I prefer and see the outcomes is really valuable to me. On one page I can see the expected wait, how long the ride takes, and the approximate time to walk to the next ride.

I like EasyWDW, too, but for different reasons. Josh has very helpful photos and tips, and reading his blogs is a pleasure.

Both TP and Easy WDW would save me a ton of time in line compared to how I toured DL years ago-- .

I abbreviated the above post just for the sake of brevity, but I agree with DakotaRose on most things she says. This is not an either/or deal. I use TP for some things, like its touring plans and weekly crowd predictions, which we have found to be extremely helpful over many years. We were fans long before the website existed, when it was 'just' the Unofficial Guide book. Still have a recent one on the shelf.:thumbsup2

I use easywdw for his daily park recommendations. I like being able to read the reasons behind these, which tend to coincide with the way we like to tour. I also enjoy his blogs and photos and his (sometimes) wicked sense of humour. You can glean some great bits of information through these, and be entertained at the same time. :thumbsup2

As I said in the beginning- it doesn't have to be either/or. Both can be appreciated and used for the things that work best for you as an individual.
 
I used TP up to our last two trips and was successful for the most part. I decided to use EASYWDW for our last two trips and was much more successful. It isn't because TP has bad information, but rather they just don't give any commentary on options. It is an all or nothing for the parks. For instance, TP may have MK as a park to avoid and EWDW may have it to avoid as well - EasyWDW will explain that there are two prime times to tour MK during the day if you want to go to that park. This allows you to decide to make rope drop at MK and plan on hopping to another park or spending the rest of the day at the resort. TP just says to avoid park. The commentary is invaluable. I so wish TP would add some commentary and I would subscribe again...
 
I found the information from easywdw.com to be the most helpful for planning my trip this past May. I started out using TP's information along with it, but when TP's numbers kept changing, and Josh was giving rational information for why he was choosing the parks, I ended up ditching my TP information completely.

My preference for Josh's information is also that I do not want to use a very prescribed touring plan with no explanation behind it. I want to be given all the information that I need and then be able to make my own educated decisions on what best fits my family and me. Easywdw allowed me to create a framework for rides and then go about my day accordingly. That was so much nicer for me than stressing over not going to the rides in the order of a touring plan or wanting to deviate and not knowing what might happen to my day. So, my thumbs up go to Josh for his great and thorough information (and for making me laugh often).

That said, I do feel I got my money's worth from TP's just for use of the Lines chat and wait times in the app.
 
Easywdw.com is hands down the best on the net. Plus the pictures on the site makes you think that you are there.
 
The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World is easily the BEST book I have ever read on the subject. It is brilliant. Thank you, Len, et al.

Also, for the last several years, I have paid for Len's website (touringplans.com) and love it, too. As I am leaving for Disney in two days, I have been giving that website a workout this last week. Thank you, again, Len, for all of the useful information!

I have looked at Josh's website (easywdw.com) in the past and enjoyed reading it. I had forgotten about it for this upcoming trip, so I will have to check it out again tonight and tomorrow.

With Len's website, it's easy to remember each year, because I count on it for numbers and charts and quick recommendations. With Josh's website, as I was planning my trip a year ago, I read it more for pleasure than for critical information. So I did not remember it this year. But I like a PP's suggestion of reading Josh's website like a daily blog, and I think I am going to try that. It will give me my daily dose of Disney all year long, just like the DISboards.

Although I find Len's website invaluable, two things have frustrated me:

1) Last year, I made all of my ADRs based on the recommended parks well in advance. As the date of my vacation approached, some of the park recommendations had changed, and my ADRs were in the wrong parks.

2) In the summertime, too often Animal Kingdom is the recommended park and Hollywood Studios is the park to be avoided. I understand that might be accurate, as far as wait times, but it is frustrating. If I am going to Disney World for 10 days, I do not want to visit Hollywood Studios only once and Animal Kingdom six times. Perhaps touringplans could add a feature where it lets you know the best TWO days to visit each park out of every week?

As for Len's participation in this thread, I am grateful to him for taking part. Tonight, I went back and read every single post in this long thread twice, and never once did I hear a tone from Len that was not respectful. To me, he came across as someone VERY enthusiastic about what he does and on a genuine search for information about how to do it better.

In life, I often find that people try to squash anyone with enthusiasm, and I believe that is sad. I have no idea why Len put Josh's name in quotes. The first time I read it, I just assumed it was an inside joke between the two of them, since they obviously know each other. Why would anyone think that it was something more?

Perhaps people are so attuned to sarcasm nowadays, that they do not know how to recognize sincerity. Len's posts came across to me as animated and exuberant. He seems passionate about his website.

I feel fortunate that both Len and Josh share their zeal for Disney World through their websites. I tip my hat to both of you. Thank you!
 
As for Len's participation in this thread, I am grateful to him for taking part. Tonight, I went back and read every single post in this long thread twice, and never once did I hear a tone from Len that was not respectful. To me, he came across as someone VERY enthusiastic about what he does and on a genuine search for information about how to do it better.

In life, I often find that people try to squash anyone with enthusiasm, and I believe that is sad. I have no idea why Len put Josh's name in quotes. The first time I read it, I just assumed it was an inside joke between the two of them, since they obviously know each other. Why would anyone think that it was something more?

Perhaps people are so attuned to sarcasm nowadays, that they do not know how to recognize sincerity. Len's posts came across to me as animated and exuberant. He seems passionate about his website.

Pretty much, all of this, especially the bolded part. Anytime you hear Len speak (and I mean actually speak, not just write on the internet) about his work, the enthusiasm he still has for everything he does is obvious. If I remember correctly, much of the technical side of his site stems from work he did in graduate school, and he still has the passion.

I met him once (and only once, for the record) at an event at Disney World, ended up in line next to him in Star Tours. All I wanted was to say hello, and to say I enjoyed the podcast and the site. Most people when approached by a stranger like this would, at most, smile and say, "Hey, thanks, glad you like it." And that would be it, and that's all I expected. Len was SUPER friendly and engaging. Asked us where we were from, asked us how we liked the new Star Tours, asked us about where we were staying and if we were enjoying it, talked to us about an upcoming WDW project he was working on etc. Len's an incredibly friendly and enthusiastic person and, from what I've seen in the past, tends to shy away from negativity and sarcasm.
 
Yep, I agree with the above positive comments about Len. He's being read all wrong.

I'm sure Josh's site is very helpful, but the cult of personality around Josh is distracting. Not sure what that's all a about. No one starts a startup just to be nice. It's a business venture, with an eye to growth and drawing investors. Feedback and criticism of easywdw are vital if it's fans want it to continue (because unless Josh is a trust fund baby, it won't.)

Someone earlier suggested that my feedback of Josh's site was rude because it is free. Yeah, so are Facebook, Google, Yahoo, allearsnet, Mouseavers, and the Disboards. So no matter how great Josh's info is, it should stand up to feedback. The blog is probably great, but it desperately needs some reworking of the organization for quick and easy access. As it is now, I feel like I need to read the entire thing to find the info I'm looking for. Tabs and a great search function sure would be nice.
 
Yep, I agree with the above positive comments about Len. He's being read all wrong.

I'm sure Josh's site is very helpful, but the cult of personality around Josh is distracting. Not sure what that's all a about. No one starts a startup just to be nice. It's a business venture, with an eye to growth and drawing investors. Feedback and criticism of easywdw are vital if it's fans want it to continue (because unless Josh is a trust fund baby, it won't.)

Someone earlier suggested that my feedback of Josh's site was rude because it is free. Yeah, so are Facebook, Google, Yahoo, allearsnet, Mouseavers, and the Disboards. So no matter how great Josh's info is, it should stand up to feedback. The blog is probably great, but it desperately needs some reworking of the organization for quick and easy access. As it is now, I feel like I need to read the entire thing to find the info I'm looking for. Tabs and a great search function sure would be nice.

I didn't care for the tone of Len's post either and he must have gotten the hint since he hasn't posted to this thread in a while. As far as Easywdw is concerned, I think it's pretty obvious that a large majority of folks prefer to have some context & explanation instead of just a bunch of numbers (which often change with no explanation as to why). It's also been previously stated (and evidently ignored) that Josh has announced that the web site is being re-designed although I personally don't haven any trouble navigating the site. And for the record, I have no affiliation to Josh or the web site - just like his product and his style (like many others).
 
I've looked at all of the sites in the poll. My favorite for info and entertainment is EasyWDW. His calendars are easy to understand, his day to day recommendations are very helpful, and I like that he teaches you how to tour if you choose to read his blog on a regular basis.

This will be the first trip I've planned and, between this board and Josh's blog, I feel prepared. Because I'm learning to understand the "why" behind effective touring, I feel better able to make changes in case something doesn't follow the plan...like ride closures ;)

I would recommend TP and Easy depending on how the individual needs their information presented. TP for someone who wants to follow directions and Easy for one who wants to know why and how to accommodate changes. Also, his pictures help me because I'm a visual learner. I get a frame of reference since my last visit was many years ago...and the red arrows make me laugh every time! There have been days when I've been in desperate need of a giggle and I can count on it at his site!
 
Yep, I agree with the above positive comments about Len. He's being read all wrong.

I'm sure Josh's site is very helpful, but the cult of personality around Josh is distracting. Not sure what that's all a about. No one starts a startup just to be nice. It's a business venture, with an eye to growth and drawing investors. Feedback and criticism of easywdw are vital if it's fans want it to continue (because unless Josh is a trust fund baby, it won't.)

Someone earlier suggested that my feedback of Josh's site was rude because it is free. Yeah, so are Facebook, Google, Yahoo, allearsnet, Mouseavers, and the Disboards. So no matter how great Josh's info is, it should stand up to feedback. The blog is probably great, but it desperately needs some reworking of the organization for quick and easy access. As it is now, I feel like I need to read the entire thing to find the info I'm looking for. Tabs and a great search function sure would be nice.

That was a strange comment (in bold.) It's possible for a person make money in OTHER ways. Plenty of people have real jobs and whatnot and still manage to run a blog. Or maybe he does have a trust fund. Who cares? I, as just some random person on the internet, am not too concerned about where Josh gets his money.

EasyWDW has a forum section, and I've seen plenty of people there giving Josh feedback fairly often. He has also posted numerous times on his site that a better layout is in the works. He is well aware of things that need to be re-worked. I've been following his blog for almost a year now. With no future trip to WDW coming up, I still enjoy reading the blog all the time.

I think one reason I enjoy his blog is because it just seems different than others I've read. His point of view seems more fresh or something. I also enjoy the massive amount of photos he posts in each blog entry. I've read the TP blog quite a few times and it just seems like a lot of the same regurgitated 'info' I've seen a million times before with a small smattering of photos (often those photos aren't even taken by the person writing the blog.) So to me, that's just another way EasyWDW stands out from the pack of Disney bloggers.

But I suppose I've veered off track since this thread is about crowd calendars and not the actual blog aspect. Ha! Just wanted to post my point of view even though I know it's much different than many people. I'm sure many people feel the exact same way about other Disney blog sites, and that's perfectly fine too. Everyone has their own preferences.
 
I didn't care for the tone of Len's post either and he must have gotten the hint since he hasn't posted to this thread in a while. As far as Easywdw is concerned, I think it's pretty obvious that a large majority of folks prefer to have some context & explanation instead of just a bunch of numbers (which often change with no explanation as to why). It's also been previously stated (and evidently ignored) that Josh has announced that the web site is being re-designed although I personally don't haven any trouble navigating the site. And for the record, I have no affiliation to Josh or the web site - just like his product and his style (like many others).

:thumbsup2
 
That was a strange comment (in bold.) It's possible for a person make money in OTHER ways. Plenty of people have real jobs and whatnot and still manage to run a blog. Or maybe he does have a trust fund. Who cares? I, as just some random person on the internet, am not too concerned about where Josh gets his money.


Mousesavers is another one. :thumbsup2
 
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