That won’t work for optimize… You will have to keep moving the break time around.
Been there, seen it, done it, and bought the T-shirt (it was red and had a nice TP logo on it). :-D. “Breaks minus 20 minutes” is a good all-around solution to many TP conundrums.
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The break has a time associated with it. Optimize seems to be… a bit… capricious about whether it pays attention to it. 
If one makes it a meal break, Optimize takes it a little more seriously.
Of course, then it tries to get you to the break (meal time) 15 minutes ahead of time if it thinks it’s an ADR.
But I use evaluate for more often than optimize anyway & yes, I’m okay with moving the break around… The whole idea of “optimize” is partially to see where good times to put the breaks are, so generally, I’m putting them in after optimizing. Len & the crew will get this stuff nailed down eventually. Until then, it’s another workaround. Bottom line is TP is a great tool. Just got to use it to its capabilities.
What results are you looking for with entering and exiting the park at different locations in the software? Are you just looking for a more accurate end time? A plan that minimizes your total time in the park (rather than just wait times)? Something else?
I’d love to have an option to select “Single Rider”.
Potty breaks, that optimize by a restroom.
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Meet and Greets, or at least allow a specific place for a stop. And add memory maker photo locations- at least icons on map.
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If you’re really taking requests, I’d love to see the single rider option, though a lot more for DLR than WDW given how many more rides have SR out there
I was going to enter through the front after visiting another resort and exit the International Gateway to go to my room at BWV. I tried to optimize. It had me hit a few future world places, head to France (I was only seeing Canada, UK, and France in WS), and then go back into future world and finish at Spaceship Earth. I can just change the order manually, but I wonder if I could get a better plan if the plan could be optimized know in the correct entry and exit points. I hope this makes better sense. Sorry if I’m not explaining it very well.
@Lentesta - I would love to see an option for choosing specific show times when making a personalized touring plan. For example, if I know I’d like to do the 4:15 Dream Along with Mickey, it would be nice to specify that time. Maybe a list of choices that includes the specific showtimes as well as an option for letting the optimizer choose? I get that sometimes letting the optimizer figure out showtimes will end up with the most efficient plan. I think this is probably true for Hollywood Studios plans, so I wouldn’t want choosing a showtime to be a requirement - just an option.
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Good idea - I will try that next time. Thanks!
I’d like to include special parties or festivals. I’ve tried to put in a break to accomplish this, but optimize will shift it around. So, if the optimizer would lock specific times of breaks, I’d appreciate it.
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Optimize should not shift around break times. It may move the start time by about around 5 minutes, but it should not move it more than that.
I’ve had break times shift around as well, despite having the times entered. Often thought it was just how the optimizer handled things. maybe it’s a bug? @sarah
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Not really a bug - although the optimizer tries to keep breaks around the time you list, if it’s going to greatly add to your overall wait times it’ll er, strongly suggest that you move it. You’ll usually get a message when this happens that your plan isn’t going to work for the exact times you put in well.
Best way to deal with this is to go ahead and move your break and/or change timing for other things in your plan, but if you’re set on a specific time then just take note of what’s going on, move the break to where you want it and use Evaluate to check that your wait times will be livable.
As I said, another “workaround” is to make it a “meal break”. TP seems to “honor” those a little more closely, probably because they could be ADRs for which one needs to be at. Having said this, TP will usually try to get you to the break 10-15 minutes early. So…
Schedule the break (er, meal break) for 15 minutes after you want it to actually start & do the “minus 10 minutes” duration thing (see above in this thread).
TP is a great tool that does only what it is programmed to do.
It tries to be all things to all people, but can’t possibly accomplish that in reality.
Many people have asked, “can’t it just optimize my break time & tell me when a good time to take a break is?”
So we do the best we can to give it parameters it can work with.
In my first go at making TPlans including FPP, I found 2 times where the optimize feature didn’t use one of my FPP plans. And I understand why -due to wait times. But the plan had me doing splash without FPP right after Pirates League - which I labeled as a break. Eventually, the optimizing led me to boot my buzz FPP for a ride with longer wait and I ended up with everything in its place (Splash for sure before pirates league because who wants their pirate face washing off so quickly?) I love the dashboard. I was up super late playing on it. It’s awesome. It just took me a long time to get those FPP plans to make sense.
@whenuwish, the best way to report issues is to email webmaster@touringplans.com. Go well. 
Be sure to include the URL of the TP you’re trying to use.
First I want to say that the TPs are an amazing job of programming and statistical analysis - BZ to the entire development team. Only a couple of small “tweeks” I’d like to see. First has been mentioned already - allow for adjustable time spent “visiting” WS pavilions. For me some usually get a “fly-by” and 10 min is fine, but others I might spend 30-45 in looking in the shops or stopping for a snack/drink. My second one has also been mentioned; the ability to “pin” steps - especially at the beginning and end of a day. But these are really “minor features”, both of which have simple “work-arounds”.
I love, love, love the TP and really appreciate all of the work that goes into it. As long as we’re making suggestions…I’d love to be able to put in a generic counter service meal break at a given time and have the optimizer make suggestions based on where I’m at in the park.
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