Anyone heard of RideMax.com?

[nicolem]

I ran across a reference to it on another site, and I'm curious about whether or not it's worth it ...

Basically you pay $14.95 to download their application, then you input all of the rides you consider "must-dos," the date and time you plan to arrive and leave, and what times you have PSs (if any) and it gives you a very detailed touring plan based on their estimated crowd patterns. It even tells you what time to pick up fast passes and how long you'll wait in each line.

Since we're going the Friday before and the Monday after the 50th, I'm looking for any way possible to save a little time - but I don't want to waste money on something that doesn't work. Thoughts?

 

[peachgirl]

We purchased the program but haven't actually tested it at the parks yet to see how well it works.

We have the schedules made up and if it does what the site claims it does, it will be well worth the money. Even if it's off a bit, just having it decided before hand what we're going to be doing will save a lot of time.

We did have a couple of questions and emailed the site. They were very helpful and quick to respond.

So far, I like it a great deal. We'll see how well it really works next week.

 

[makunc1]

I purchased the software as well for our trip this weekend (the 1st through the 4th). The best part about it is that I have made various iteniraries, so if one goes off course, I will know how to steer it back on course. I have not heard anyone come back saying that they hated the software. Everyone says it works like MAGIC. Do a search in these forums, and you will see. Look at it this way. You are spending more than a thousand dollars for a trip. $14.95 is well worth it if your family can stand the structure.

Worse comes to worse, if the times are not accurate, I believe the website promises a money back guarantee if you are not satisfied. Have fun.

 

[AFMom]

There is also a less personalized schedule for avoiding crowds in the Unofficial Guide To Disneyland. It wasn't very crowded when we went - so we didn't need to use the schedule - but loved the whole book anyway - and the schedules were a bonus - might want to check that out as well.

 

[nicolem]

Thanks for your feedback, everyone! I think we're going to give it a try tonight ...It's true that I really shouldn't worry too much about $15 compared to the cost of the whole vacation.

We also have the Unofficial Guide, but I was intrigued by the idea of being able to use so many variables in the RideMax program!

 

[peachgirl]

One thing we've found that we like is that you can program in as few hours as your want, you don't have to schedule an entire day.

For instance, on the day we arrive, we want to just hang out for a while at Downtown Disney, then go over to MK and watch the fireworks. We scheduled rides just for the time between after the fireworks and closing.
No matter how little time you have to schedule, it still organizes your time to get the most out of it. Also, it seems to work best when you check the option to use expired fastpasses.

You have to play around with the program a little to get it to put breaks in when you want them, but it's very easy to figure it all out.

 

[HydroGuy]

I bought Ridemax for our upcoming trip in August. I have used it quite a bit to test how it works, but have not used it in the sense that I have implemented an itinerary. With that caveat, here is some feedback.

1. Ridemax does give you an itineray to follow based on your desired rides. Some people think this ruins spontaneity, and it might. Others see it as a stress reducer in that it minimizes time waiting in line. It also reduces potential arguments on "what to do next", since all in the group know when their favorite ride is scheduled. Finally, it reduces wasted time looking at maps and trying to decide what to do next.

2. Ridemax documentation itself encourages people to get buy-in from their group ahead of time, rather trying to force an itinerary on people.

3. Ridemax documentation itself says that it provides the most value during busy days.

4. Ridemax will provide more value to the less savvy DL guests. For example, a first timer may have no idea how the lines build up on which attractions, or on how to use Fastpass. These people will get the most. I am more DL savvy, and in many cases I think my seat-of-the-pants decision making can get me on more rides than Ridemax if I am shooting for say 20-25 rides during mid-summer. However, as a test I wanted to see if Ridemax could get me on every single DL ride in one day. And it could, with a two-hour break in the afternoon. I did the same thing for DCA. I do not think I could do that using my savviness. In summary, as your schedule becomes more complicated than your knowledge of the park, Ridemax becomes more valuable.

5. One thing I dislike about Ridemax is that it does not handle multiple rides of the same ride very well. For example, we like to ride Matterhorn twice in one day. But we like to do it once in the day and once at night. When I ask Ridemax to create a complicated itinerary (with say 20-30 rides in a day) it will invariably tell me to ride Matterhorn twice in a row. I have e-mailed the Ridemax author a wish list of new features, which would include the ability to better handle such a situation.

6. The previous response about using Ridemax for parts of days is good advice.

7. Ridemax tech support is excellent.

We are going to DL/DCA for four days. We do NOT plan to use Ridemax every day. I suspect we will use it for parts of days, and for general guidance on wait times.

Have fun on your trip!

 

[nicolem]

After hearing everyone's positive feedback, I took the plunge last night and bought it - so far I love it! I've wasted so much of my day coming up with different touring scenarios! We're going with my parents, who don't even like to book their hotels in advance when they travel (which resulted in some very interesting vacations as I was growing up!), so having a minute-by-minute schedule is going to totally freak them out ...but I really do want to make the most of our two days there.

Thanks again to everyone for giving me your opinions!