I suppose it matters what the non-Disney guides are claiming to do. The Official Disney guides can provide access. A non-Disney guide holding someone’s hand, figuratively or not, as to actual park touring and navigating Genie+ and LLs is more like Cliff Notes.
One trip I was sitting on a wall in Fantasyland waiting for extended family to exit iasw. The woman sitting next to me was from Missouri as well, small world (), with her family on their first visit to WDW. This was probably 2006. She confessed they’d just decided to visit, got in the car and came. And then realized they had no idea what the heck they were doing. She was so overwhelmed she was nearly in tears.
This person needs the Cliff Notes. Or Dr Mary from my sister’s work, single mom to two elementary age kids, wanting a decent visit but not necessarily all the rides. Or the elementary school principal that wanted to keep things simple enough but fun enough that her doubter DH would agree to another visit in a couple of years. If they had time, they’d be happy to subscribe to TouringPlans. I love to plan and didn’t then have the time or money to make all the trips I could plan. Very happy to help them.
If I lived closer than @ThorKat I’d probably be interested in helping senior visitors have slower, maybe less ride-centric experiences.
I do feel these folk that want the express visits - whether officially or not, are missing a lot of the charm and magic.
Update, turns out it wouldn’t. I just brought up the discussion and his knee jerk was “wow” followed immediately by a “no, thanks” because in spite of all of the enticing benefits, it’s still not Disney. (the having to rope drop to get ahead of the lines etc…we would rather just have the walking Fastpass)
This is part of why I really like G+ and enjoy studying its quirks. I don’t want to sit around in a line for an hour and a half when I’m in a resort as beautiful and intricate as DW/DL. By maximizing the time I spend waiting in virtual queues instead of physical ones, I maximize the time I spend taking in the atmosphere and food, while still enjoying the rides themselves.
In theory this sounds like a great job but I’d never do it in practice because 1) it would dilute my love for Disney (has to be special / somewhat rare / earned experience), 2) it would be a LOT of work to do this for more than a few days a month, and 3) some people are shitty.
I can say my love for Disney only recently started to waver when I felt the shift into money grab vs magic making.
Even after a 10 hour shift on 4th of July weekend in DLR where everything is under the hot sun, I still couldn’t wait to go into the parks before/after my shifts. People are people, but they weren’t going to ruin my love of Disney.
Even now, with all my anxiety. It’s towards the crowds, never the parks. Now, thankfully, I use other tools to deal with the crowds.
I tell DH if I ever end up alone, I’m applying again so I have something to keep me active and gets me out of the house. I’d do it now, but a 4 hour commute is just a little outside my tolerance level. A full shift wouldn’t even cover gas money
I remember seeing one of these guides once while RD MK. We were waiting on the bridge to tomorrow land. It was a young guy dressed as anyone else and a family of 4, but i could tell from the conversation that they had just met. He was kinda giving them an idea of what the plan for the day was going to be, where they were going first, stopping for snacks and so on. I got the sence that the couple had given their ride priorities in advance. The family was happy and seemed to be trusting the guide.
It reminded me of when I take anyone in my family. I have the plan and they follow. Most of the time the plan works out but sometimes it doesn’t. Any of us could do this.
I think I need to charge my family and friends more (I do not charge them anything, but they do usually give some token of appreciation for making their trip easier)
I like your phrasing: making their trip easier. I don’t ask for anything but have received t-shirts and one hoodie! Loved that hoodie. Lots of pins.
Most have built from that first trip, using it to fine tune their subsequent trips. Some had a good time but also had other destinations to visit.
One long time family friend (our parents were friends) found it all to be a supreme waste of time. He’s on outlier amongst outliers.
), with her family on their first visit to WDW. This was probably 2006. She confessed they’d just decided to visit, got in the car and came. And then realized they had no idea what the heck they were doing. She was so overwhelmed she was nearly in tears.
(I do not charge them anything, but they do usually give some token of appreciation for making their trip easier)