selects petition: Disney Impressions ? Using Personal Tech in Walt Disney World ...

This week we continue examining the use of personal tech in the Disney Parks. Over the next several posts, we will look at some of the apps available for iOS, both third party and Disney developed. Some are free, some require a one time purchase and some are subscription.

Let?s start with one of my personal favorites that I have used for a couple of years and highly recommend: Touringplans.com?s Lines App. This App is a subscription app that you purchase for a yearly fee. Wait, you say !! Why would I consider a subscription app when so many are available for less or free?? There are several reasons for this. First both the app and the computer website are very comprehensive covering many aspects of Park info that you would like to know (more on this later). Lines also has an app for Disneyland Resort as well so if you are a two-coaster, you have access to both locations with the same familiar interface. One of the best aspects of Lines, which we?ll discuss in detail are the extensive Park Touring Plans available to you. Finally, the subscription cost is low, $11.95 per year. Disneyland can be added for just $3.95 per year. Renewals are just $9.95 per year. A discount is also available if you have a recent copy of The Unofficial guide to WDW published by the same team.

Let?s look at some of the specifics and see if I can?t convince you that this App is worth the cost.

Crowd Calendar ? Wonder what the crowds will be like at the Magic Kingdom today? Maybe you are more interested in what they will be like in say 4 months. How about a history of crowds at Animal Kingdom the week after Thanksgiving over say the last 5 years? All this is available with Lines.? Not only are the crowd levels estimated, but suggestions of what are the best parks to visit and those that should be avoided for that day.

Park Hours and Wait Times - Lines provides you with the Park hours for every day that Disney has announced them. It also includes the Extra Magic morning and evening hours for each park. As you already probably know, Disney has posted wait times in front of each attraction showing the estimated wait time. The way they get these estimates is to periodically give a person entering the attraction a lanyard with a plastic card attached. The person is instructed to return the lanyard to the Cast Member at the end of the line just before entering the actual attraction. The time between handing out the lanyard and retrieving it is then the current estimated wait time. While this is helpful, it does have some problems with accuracy. It gives a snapshot in time of history but not necessarily a good predictor of the future. For example, Peter Pan?s Flight (PPF)is a typically heavily attended attraction and may have long wait times. Let?s assume that on a given day it has been running fairly light with wait times of 15-20 minutes which would be the posted time. Then Mickey?s Philharmagic dumps out a packed house at the completion of the show and a large number of them get in line for PPF which is next door. A Cast Member runs a lanyard through and suddenly the wait time jumps to 45-50 minutes. This process neglects to account for the fact that what was measured was the bow wave of people from Mickey?s Philharmagic which is now nearly complete. Since many people saw the long lines and decided to return later, the actual wait time is now about 10 minutes. Lines makes an attempt to adjust the posted wait time to what you would actually spend in the queue. This is assisted by ?boots on the ground? since Lines allows you to post your actual wait time in the queue as you are there. This provides real time updates to give the best possible estimates. If you choose to participate in providing wait times, you can earn badges if that is your thing.

Hotels and Dining - The Touringplans website provides detailed descriptions for each WDW hotel including number of rooms; costs; which rooms have the best views; amenities; etc. Also included are direct phone numbers, addresses and a URL as well as reviews and grading of important aspects such as room quality, pool, fitness center, noise level and available children?s activities. Both the website and Lines provide an in-depth listing of each restaurant in each Park including menus, prices, ratings and acceptance of the Disney Dining Plans. You can also search by menu item. Let?s say you are at the Magic Kingdom and your kid really wants chicken nuggets for lunch. Rather than searching individual menus for all the restaurants in the Magic Kingdom, you can search by ?chicken nuggets? and a list of the locations serving them quickly comes up. You are in Tomorrowland? so you decide on Cosmic Ray?s Staqrlight Cafe. If you wonder what might be available for the adults to eat there, you can tap the link to Ray?s and get ratings, menus and cost quickly.

Touring Plans - I?ve saved one of the best features of Lines for last: the use of a touring plan. You can select from dozens of plans for any given park. Each plan is tailored for specific situations. Examples include plans for: one and two days, small children, late arrival, holiday, older kids, Extra Magic Evening hours, just to name a few. Touring Plans claims to save you up to 4 hours a day! While I can?t vouch for that savings, I can say I have saved a lot of time using a touring plan rather than going it on my own. Touring Plans tells you when to just go on an attraction, when to get a FastPass and when to use it. But you say, I?m not a Theme Park Commando, I like taking it easy. Even so, you can elect to follow part of the plan as it suits you so you need not follow it to the letter. After all saving time is better than wasting it. One real benefit anyone can appreciate is the information and strategy for using Disney?s FastPass. Lines provides you with the return time of the FastPasses as they are being distributed with no need to actually go the the Kiosk to find out. It also alerts you to the projected time when FastPasses will run out for the day which often happens with popular attractions such as Soarin? and Toy Story Mania.