Customer Reviews

Birnbaum's Walt Disney World for Kids, By Kids 2004

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is a book that I have liked in the past, and when I saw the 1999 edition was out with a new section on Animal Kingdom, I just had to get it. It dicusses every ride and gives them final ratings (but the section that said something like"Save for last" somehow dissapeared). Younger kids and adults will enjoy this book that will definetly help with the planning of a vacation. You shouldn't hesitate to but this for anyone, especially if they are going to enjoy Walt Disney World for the first time.

This book, written by kids gives descriptions of Walt Disney World through the eyes of a children. It gives very honest advice about every ride, saying if it was too fast, too dark, or too scary. I would recommend this book, if you are taking your child for the first time to Walt Disney World, it will build their excitement, let them pick the rides that they want to ride, and when you get there, you will know how to set your schedule. It will also let you know as a parent which rides are more appropriate for your children. This book, written by kids might actually give more insight to the rides, than the original Birnbaum`s, being more opiniative, instead of factual. I guarantee you will not regret purchasing this book...............

With only so much time to spend at the parks, we found the child-authors' ratings of the rides/shows helpful in creating our "short-list" of must-dos. The parks weren't crowded during our visit, so we didn't have to worry about entertaining the children while in long lines. If the lines had been longer, our children would have spent more time on the activities and trivia in the book. The autograph section let us avoid buying and carrying around an autograph book in addition to the guide book. Next time we go to WDW, I will buy the latest version of this book.

I purchased this book for my step-children in anticipation of our upcoming trip to WDW. I have not yet given it to them, so I can't report on what the kids think of it, but I will tell you what my parental opinion of the book is - Great! It's chock-full of pictures and cute facts about the rides. I enjoyed looking through it as this will be MY first trip to WDW (I'm a Disneyland veteran, through and through). It even gave me a great overview of what the parks look like, as it included far more pictures than any other guidebook I have seen. There are a bunch of cool pages in the back for kids to record their impressions of the park as well as pages to collect autographs from their favorite characters. I would fully recommend this book for anyone with children, or first-timers like me who could then pass the book along to someone else with children.

When most people think of Walt Disney World, they think of joyful times and having happy thoughts. But that's not always the case. Disney can also be an extremely frustrating and confusing place with so much there to see, you might never get to see it all, but not anymore! Walt Disney World: For Kids, By Kids is the perfect guide for kids to this magical place. It's a hit with all children because it gives advice from others as well as descriptive sections about Disney World!
This book is good for anyone because it has so many pictures, descriptions, behind-the-scenes facts, and more. About every few pages there are games and activities that you can complete on the way to Disney. Almost every ride profile has a photograph that shows what the ride looks like on the inside. There are also "attraction reactions" that tell how dark or scary a ride is going to be. There's even a place in the back of the book for character autographs!
Children of all ages will love this book because it gives you the information in a fun, but descriptive way. Less complicated words are used so that even the youngest of readers can understand it. All kids will enjoy seeing what the attractions will look like before they ride them. Even the book says it was "made especially for kids." The book seems to flow with the heart and atmosphere of Disney and it gives it to you in a fun, uncluttered way. Past guests write the whole book and they say which rides are for what age groups. Other kids even tell you their advice on which rides to go on.
So the next time you plan a trip to Disney World, you should remember to take this book with you and have a great time!

I purchased this book after quickly previewing it in the local bookstore and finding that it had A LOT of pictures for my four year old son to look at. I thought that it would be a great bedtime read for us as we anticipate our trip. Although we have pretty much enjoyed it, it is really not that kind of book. Some of the pictures were a little scary for him (the witch in Snow White-- too realistic and eerie- and the photos of the Haunted Mansion) and many other pics were cartoons rather than actually pics of the parks. The intended audience is kids who can read and complete written activities alone or with little assistance. The language is geared for this age group without being too simplistic and there are great games, activities and ideas for kids getting ready for a WDW vacation(you write right in the book!). An awesome book for the count-down days preceding the trip but an EVEN BETTER book for the long plane, car, or bus trip! What a fantastic idea! Needs more pics of the parks but even still a great activity with interesting page layouts. We'll be saving this book for when my son is a little older.

If I'm going to spend so much on a vacation, another few dollars isn't going to send me to bankruptcy court, and in fact, enhances the experience for the kids. I just bought two more, one for each child, so that they can mark up their books by highlighting their "Must Do" attractions and places to eat, jot down ideas and help plan our trip! (They love filling in all of the blanks in the book.) Face it, for kids, the anticipation is almost as much fun as the trip. By knowing what each family member wants to do most, I can make sure that everyone sees their top 3 attractions every day, and everyone is happy. Plus, it helps to teach my kids about making tough decisions and budgeting their time throughout the planning process. The bonus: the kids are reading, and they are doing it for fun! They also hone writing and other skills when they are making lists for planning, using their book. The book speaks to kids on their level and is entertaining to read even if you can only be considered a kid at heart.

I think that birnbaum puts out way too many books on the same subject... I think their main Disney book covers the subject well enough and that all their other books are just re-hashed material. A disney vacation is expensive enough without thinking you need several books that basicly cover the same material. A very good balance for birnbaums book is "the unofficial guide to disney" between these 2 books you get an excellent balance. i planned my vacation using both of them... and i wasnt sorry. They provide an excellent source of balanced pros and cons.

The text and descriptions seem appropriate for a very narrow reading age. I had anticipated sharing the pictures and text with my 6 and 4 year old. But the text is dull and the book is very low on attraction photos. Half of the attractions have no picture at all, and others have only one picture.

The book is bulked out with a few crossword type games, 5 blank pages for autographs and stock cartoon pictures.

If your child has about an 8 year old reading level they might enjoy this, otherwise it has little to offer.

I love this book. It organizes everything for your trip. Kids rate the rides and write reviews. I'm in the book.