Finding Fee-Based Planners and Tour Guides for Walt Disney World

By Dave Shute

FINDING FEE-BASED PLANNERS AND TOUR GUIDES

As in most things, the best source for you of such planners is the past experience of people you trust. Ask around.

If that doesn’t yield much, then you have a couple of options.

• Many of the encyclopedic Walt Disney World sites are sponsored by travel agents or travel planners. These sponsors have a reputation to protect, and thus make a good place to start. They may not be able to provide the extensive fee-based service you are seeking—but if not, will be able to refer you to someone who can.
• Places to look for such include MousePlanet.com, AllEarsnet.com, and DISboards.com.

Fees vary substantially–but typically begin at $100/hour, and require a minimum number of hours.

RETAINING ME

I only rarely agree to take on fee based planning and/or tour guiding.

This is for two reasons:

• First, I can only rarely take the time away from my real job, especially with short notice (I am an independent management consultant, formerly at McKinsey & Company, Inc.,  focusing on strategy (corporate, business unit, product line, or product), and innovation, for clients ranging from the Fortune 500 to early stage companies to not-for-profits). My workload is often 80 hours a week–and that’s before the time spent on this site…
• Second, because I am often time-constrained, to make fee-based planning or tour guiding worth my while, I have to charge much more than the common market rate.

For example, on short notice I charge for trip planning $250 an hour, with a non-refundable, pre-paid minimum of 4 hours; and for tour guide services, $1,800 a day, with a non-refundable and prepaid minimum of three days.

Use the comment form below to contact me, or email me at davidhobartyfv@gmail.com