Customer Reviews

The Complete Guide to Walt Disney World 2008

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I think I've been to Disney World three or four times. Mostly, these were on business trips. Once I even got a behind-the-scenes tour (hint: if you are EVER offered this opportunity, jump on it! It's NOT a Small World, after all, but it is an amazing show.) The theme park complex is huge. And yes, complex. If I were planning a vacation, I'd be doing hours of pre-work to make everything I wanted to see and do was covered on a schedule, and that I knew roughly where I wanted to dine. I'd like to know about the resorts, and which one would suit my mood and budget.

The guide covers the resort, the parks, the town, the resorts and restaurants, entertainment, the special events and is absolutely loaded with color photos. If you are planning your trip, this will help you and your family select the things you most want to see. (Hint #2, go early in the day and plan to see the most-wanted attractions first so no one will be disappointed.)

What I liked best in this very complete volume was the section on the resorts. If you are planning to stay in any of these, you will get a good idea of what they have to offer. And if you are NOT staying at a Disney resort, there is a section on other accommodations (YAY!!!) And there is a following section on the dining facilities. These two sections will help you plan your budget and avoid sudden spending, things that bust the spending limit you may have set for your vacation.

Best guide ever. Do NOT plan a trip to Disney World without this.

It's vital to plan ahead before visiting Disney if you want to get the most from the parks. This book keeps you from standing in interminable lines, yet still see the top attractions. I liked the Daily Plans suggested in the book and easily swapped out some rides and shows to suit our guests' ages and interests.
We've visited the parks dozens of times but with this book I still found overlooked shows. Disney is huge and can be quite disorienting. Knowing ahead of time what you want to see makes the day less stressful. We used the Fast Pass to get on Expedition Everest and Soarin. We also used the Single Rider option several times. Even though our recent visit was during the jam-packed Christmas period, we minimized the time standing in lines and had great memories to take away with us.
For the shows and rides described in the guide, pay close attention to the summary at the end. It gives the average wait time, length of the ride, any accomodations for handicapped users, and advises on the Fear Factor. That is quite important, as some rides are too intense for young children (or sensible adults). I was terrified on Expedition Everest and wished I'd opted out after reading the Fear Factor on it.
I'll be getting lots of use from this book for ourselves and our visitors. I was glad to see added restaurant section that wasn't in the earlier guide. Food is pricey inside the parks, so the guide helps you make decisions on fast foods versus splurging on a fancy meal.

I think calling it a GUIDE to Disney is misleading.
TO me the BOston Globe calling it a souviner is more fitting.
While it is full of pictures, I quickly felt like I bought someone's vacation pictures instead of a guide book. The Authors' Daughter was in NUMEROUS photos. (She did write a very FUN review of hotel pools.) We were hoping for more photos of the hotels to get a better feel and were disappointed in those. I really didn't feel I got anything out of this book picture wise that the Disney website didnt already offer.
It is full of lots of Trivia whick can be fun to read but the stuff I read had no importance at all to our actual vacation. Nor did it offer any tips\help not readily found on most free disney planning websites.
I also found it annoying when reading about the rides that they explained them in DETAIL from start to finish. Some people may like that, to me it would ruin the fun of experiencing new rides.
Maybe I am spoiled, the unofficial guide to Disney has been so much more useful to actually planning a vaction, that this just could not compare.
We just got back from our 4th Disney Vacation.

Julie and Mike Neal have achieved the impossible; they have summarized Walt Disney World in 336 pages with maps, tables and hundreds of photos. It would take at least a month to do everything at Walt Disney World. There are four major theme parks, a sports complex, two water parks, 27 themed hotels and a shopping and nightclub district spread over 47 square miles. About 100,000 guests are served daily by 54,000 cast members. Walt Disney World is big. BIG.
The Complete Walt Disney World 2008 is a concise, up-to-date reference that allows me to `walk through' tour plans while at home. The phone directory is conveniently located on the back page--this book is designed for use while visiting Walt Disney World. For more complete information I'd need to connect to the internet while using a telephone and have a Walt Disney World library of more than two dozen volumes. In addition to up-to-the-minute information, The Complete Walt Disney World has history and trivia. For example, on page 48 there is a connection between Allied POWs in World War Two and the Cinderella Castle mosaic--the sidebar is titled `War and Pieces.' The history of Walt Disney World from the `Project X' days is a nice touch. How about the Hidden Mickey, the personalized touch or `autograph' Imagineers put on the rides and attractions? See pages 324-330. Thank you, Julie, for the bibliography--for me, that page is an important resource.
Need to know what is at a restaurant or one of the 27 hotels? On Pages 8 and 9 is a simple map--more than enough to keep me from getting lost on Walt Disney World's road network. Each major theme park has a small, simple map showing where the rides and attractions are. A sample tour of each major theme park is a nice touch and meshes in with the Neals' 7-step planning process on pages 24-27. For those not familiar with Florida's climate, the `what to pack' on Page 28 is excellent advice. A word on `what to pack'--in November 1998 I was touring both Disneyland Paris and Walt Disney World. The weather in Florida was so cold that my Keys to the Kingdom tour guide had drawn a heavy overcoat and gloves from Costuming. I was fortunate that I and anticipated the bitter cold in Paris--so I was able to stay warm. Speaking of tours, Julie and Mike cover them--how to get them (pages 256 and 257) and how much they cost--more important, how long these tours are. There is an outstanding FastPass guide on page 31--simple, graphic and easy to understand (while telling you how to dodge lines other ways, too). The book is divided up into the four major theme parks, water parks, Downtown Disney (the shopping and nightclub district), Diversions, Accommodations (both on and off Walt Disney World), Restaurants (with the Disney Dining Plan) and Special Events. I'd add some sticky tabs to mark the spots I needed and some sticky-notes inside and keep a separate notebook--this helps me organize my trip.
A word on plans--a plan is a starting place for changes. Planning can help you get the most out of your vacation--you won't worry `what am I missing' because reading The Complete Walt Disney World 2008 will tell you everything that is there. A check on the official Walt Disney World web site (use your local library if you lack a computer) before you set out will update your plans--anything you miss will be because you were doing something more important, more fun. Knowledge puts you in control of your vacation. Julie and Mike Neal are giving you a gift in The Complete Walt Disney World 2008--their combined experience. It is like having your own professional tour guide in your pocket.
I'm not doing The Complete Walt Disney World 2008 justice in this short review. There is a lot of Walt Disney World. The Neals' have managed to put that in a book small enough to have with me in the parks. This book is entertaining, too. I just hope that The Complete Walt Disney World 2008 is available at Walt Disney World just in case I go there and accidentally leave my copy behind!

Well done, gang!

I've become a big fan of Julie and Mike Neal's Complete Walt Disney World. First of all, Walt Disney World is a visual experience, so - naturally - I want a visual guide. The Complete Walt Disney World 2008 is just that. With its full color interior that is packed with photos, when you first receive it, you'll spend a good bit of time just flipping through and perusing the photos.

However, the guide also has a number of features that I think make it superior to other guides. In fact, it's actually superior to its own predecessor, the 2007 edition.

I took the 2007 edition with me on my last trip to Disney in order to give it a real, honest-to-goodness experience "out in the field." I realized that the information on the restaurants and lodging was a little light. However, this guide has COMPLETELY fixed this. It now has thorough descriptions of hotels and restaurants. In fact, one point I loved about the lodging guide was that it gives you mileage to all the parks. For instance, when looking at the description for Old Key West, I can see that it is 4 miles from The Magic Kingdom. Seems frivolous at first, but it's truly not. For those planning to jet to one of the parks for dining reservations, this information gives you a good idea of when you need to set out in order to make those reservations.

The lodging pages also now give you rates, restaurants and transportation details (i.e. can you take the boat from the Swan to MGM?). There's even a note of check in and check out times.

The guide also contains those things that make me prefer it to others such as the tickertapes at the bottom of the pages that give you little hints and tips. The "fun finds" section underneath the attraction descriptions that give you a list of "easter eggs" and trivia to look for as you experience the attraction and, of course, a listing of Hidden Mickeys near the rear of the book.

Overall, the book is what a Walt Disney World guide SHOULD be: fun. Plus, as I can attest to: it's small enough to fit into a pack so it won't be cumbersome while you're in the World.

Oh and by the way, for those of you who consider buying the souvenir books, you couldn't do any better than this book. While it is most definitely a guide, it is also a great way to remember some of the attractions and sights of Walt Disney World that other books overlook.

Definitely my favorite WDW guide in print.

This is by far the best Walt Disney World guide I have ever read. To start off, let me tell you I have read quite a few Disney World guides. I have been to disney over 15 times, and I would say I know a whole lot about the ins and outs of Disney World.

With that said, after reading this book I have realized how much I didn't know before! The pictures are absolutely phenomenal. If you have never been to Disney World before, you will truly get a glimpse of all the magic through the colored, professionally taken photos on each page.

The fun facts about rides and attractions featured on the pages were so much fun. For example, did you know that you never actually go inside "the mansion" during your ride on the Haunted Mansion? It's actually a building type that is used in movie sets. I was stunned by this, and many, many other fun facts.

There are complete ride descriptions describing every last detail to you about rides, attractions, resorts, and food.

Let me tell you this, you will never need to buy a Disney World book again if you just purchase this one. It is by far the most researched guide out there, literally millions of details about everything. Whether you've been to Disney 30 times or not at all, this is the best book for everyone!

I bought this hoping to find out the "scoop" on hotels and parks, but what I got was just positive blurbs about everything in general. Don't get me wrong the book is detailed when it comes to rides but doesn't give you any pros or cons about restaurants or hotels. The book does have very nice pictures though.

I couldn't recommend this book enough. It has thorough explanations, backstories and hidden gems for anything and everything in Walt Disney World. My only gripe would be an adjustment to the "wait times" portion of each attraction. Nearly all of the attractions show just a minimum (early morning) and maximum (peak afternoon) wait time, giving large ranges that aren't very helpful. I don't have the newest version (I have the 2007 version), but the range for "it's a small world" was 5-60 minutes. I feel that average wait times would be far more useful in this area.

I am a true Disney fanatic. I have more than a dozen books that review the World, but this one has so many interesting details and yes, as it states, great pictures too. It is worth the cost and is very entertaining. It doesn't have the same information that you find in most of the other books out there, but new interesting info and a history of where most of the attractions and what inspired them came from. I highly recommend this guide to anyone who enjoys Disney!

As a Florida native, I've visited Disneyworld a few times. It's an amazing place. This book is the best of the bunch if you are planning a trip to the parks. It has extremely helpful advice, up to date information about everything, and is unbelievably great to read.
Take it to the bank - this book covers everything.
Vicki - Mobile, AL