Customer Reviews

Fodor's Walt Disney World® with Kids 2006 (Special-Interest Titles)

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I wanted to buy one guide book and took a chance on this one. It is very readable and has helpful hints, money & time saving tips, insider secrets, and scare factor boxes highlighted throughout. The Don't Miss List and Quick Guides to Attractions for each park are handy. If you want an 'executive overview' that doesn't overwhelm you, it's a good choice.
However, if you want to know what is missing from this book and you're the sort that craves detailed info, get the Unofficial Guide to WDW (not the For Kids version). It is a fun read, but much longer. It has kid oriented info, plus much more. For example, a hotel to park minutes chart, a list of best off-site family hotels with swimming pool ratings, excruciating detail on the best way to score seats at Cinderella's Royal Table for breakfast, Character to Person ratios at Character Meals, detailed touring plans for each park, and lots of reader comments that supplement the text and provide some countering viewpoints...

Good basic book covers such elements as lodgings, food & the activities you might expect to encounter in all the Disney parks...and a few off Disney. Most valuable, perhaps, is the "scare" rating they offer for various rides. My child lands somewhere in the high middle of the daredevil scale, and I expect this feature to be very valuable for helping him decide which rides will delight him and which rides might spoil his day. I'm in the process of reading other Disney books as well, so I don't know yet whether this is the best of the lot or simply a good one, but I do feel confident enough to recommend it to any parent planning a trip to Disney. My tip: read the book before you make your reservations, if you're staying onsite. Disney has so many resorts that it can be baffling to figure out which one might work best for your family. It's also a good idea to check out independent review sites to find out what other families have thought about their accommodations. One of the best I've found is http://allearsnet.com/ which really helped us narrow down our options.

I have bought Walt Disney World With Kids four times in the last six years and in my opinion the guide contains more and better information each year. We have several conditions in our family (such as twins and a child with health issues) that make a trip to Disney World even more challenging than it is for the average family and I think Ms. Wiley does a great job of giving advice. Her plus and minus rating for Disney hotels has been a great help to us through the years, and her advice on how to save time and avoid long lines is right on the money. As a parent, I especially appreciate her insights into what rides are most appropriate for what ages of children. Unlike the other guides (we buy them too!) she does not focus exclusively on seeing it all, but instead gives you solid advice on how to see the things that will most enthrall your kids based on their ages and their ability to handle scary rides. The guide is clearly directed toward parents, not just your average Disney traveler and I think this makes it the most helpful of all the many Disney books on the market.

Angela Bonney, mother of four

We've been using Kim's book for our trips to WDW since the first edition. We still get the latest edition every time we go, because each edition has all the updates on new attractions--the things we try to see first. You can't beat careful planning when you have a lot to see in a limited time, and this book makes it ever so easy to plan. We're going back to WDW in 2006 and are already using the 2006 edition to get ready!

This is the best travel book I've ever read. Well, okay, De Tocqueville is a close second, but he didn't travel with kids, did he? Left them home with the wife. I'm sure she would have liked to have this guide to the mind-boggling vacation banquet that is Orlando. Whether your first visit or your twentieth, this practical guide will help you and your kids actually ENJOY your Disney vacation. Rather than a laundry list of whats available to do, Ms. Wiley's book offers inside information and strategies that help you focus on what you want out of your vacation. Better yet, Ms. Wiley avoids the dry technical style of many competitors. She writes with humor and insouciant charm.

I bought along 4 different Disney/Orlando guidebooks on our first family trip to Orlando and this was clearly the best for the Disney Parks. There are descriptions of every ride/attraction for each park, including height requirements and Scare Factor. It proved very prudent to have a plan once inside the crowded parks. Who wants to find out after an hour wait that the ride was too scary for your little one? Also, it is loaded with tips for parents on park basics such as arrival, strollers, first aid, dining, character viewing, fastpass, park maps etc. Highly Recommended!

I have read a LOT of Walt Disney World books, and this is by FAR the best!!! Full of practical tips for families with children! I recommend it to everyone!!!

If you don't like to waste time and don't want to miss any of your must see sights with your kids in tow, then get Wiley's superb guide. As a single-mom of three kids (teen & pre-teen), I wouldn't even think about setting foot on Disney property without first perusing Wiley's comprehensive, light-hearted guide. Make sure your trip's a blast-- after studying Wiley's handbook, toss it in an easy access spot in your park backpack because you'll find yourself referring to it throughout your visit!

This is simply the best guide to Disney if you're going to bring your kids with you -- bar none. It covers everything from rides to what kids like to eat to where to stay and everything else there is to do and see at Disney World. Obviously written by someone who has ACTUALLY been there with kids and not some travel writer who has never dealt with a grumpy teen or squabbling siblings.

This guide book was essential in helping us plan a great vacation to Disney World and Universal's Islands of Adventure. It helped us book a room close to both attractions. It also helped us plan in such a way that we saw all the attractions we were interested in, and were age appropriate. It helped us be efficient with the time we had to spend in the parks. Highly recommended!