Customer Reviews

Frommer's Walt Disney World & Orlando 2008 (Frommer's Complete Guides)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book is what it states: an excellent tool for learning about any of the new or newly rehabbed rides and shows at Disney world and several other Orlando area parks. It's as up to date as the books press time would allow and the maps of the parks are decent if not totally encompassing. This is not the book to get if your debating on where to stay on the Disney property as the hotel descriptions are extremely brief. You're likely better off cruising the web with as many informative web sites as fellow Disney fanatics have created out there.

My biggest complaint with the book is that this author doesn't actually seem to like Disney World. From the tone of her writing maybe she just OD'd on too much Disney, stood in one too many lines, heard one too many crying children in her quest for Disney detail-whatever. If I'm buying a book about a place I'm going to on vacation, I want to feel happy and excited about the place...and I definitely didn't get that feeling from this author I'm sorry to say.

This book is very detailed and gives you information on everything in Disney World and the surrounding theme parks (including a very detailed map!). From the prices and what to expect at the restaurants to very detailed descriptions of the rides including age recommendations.
Compared to other Walt Disney World guide books (and believe me I own them all) this one is above and beyond the best available.
I am an obsessive planner and this book has all the information I need to plan a wonderful Disney vacation.
Very highly recommended!

I have reliably used Frommer's guides for trips worldwide for many years, and have found both Frommer's Web site and Budget Travel magazine to be valuable aids when planning trips.
However, this latest edition of the Disney World guide doesn't measure up.
While some descriptions, especially of the rides, by Laura Lea Miller, were thorough and adequate, sloppiness abounds. So does considerable evidence that Miller and Frommer's neglected to update crucial aspects of the book.
Why else would they be telling people they could fly Song Airlines, when Song went out of business in 2006?
Why is there scant mention of Soarin', one of the top rides at Epcot?
Finding Nemo The Musical gets a sidebar, but not a letter grade, like the other attractions. It's sort of stuck in there as an afterthought, a shame given that it's one of the highlights of any WDW trip, and should be treated accordingly in the book.
These are just a few of the errors by omission. A much better choice would be the Unofficial Guide, which is a bit unwieldy to take with you to the parks, but an unparalelled resource for planning a trip.
Ironically, both are put out by the same publisher. Too bad the same attention to detail wasn't given to both.

As usual, Frommer's has produced another well written guide to the Walt Disney World complex. This, as well as the Unofficial Guide should be your 2 "must purchase" resources when planning any Disney trip. It covers everything from hotel and dining reviews, to concise touring plans for each park. The dining reviews alone are worth the price of the book.

As for accurate touring, that is up to the individual. After 10+ trips to Walt Disney World, I pretty much know what to do and when to do it like the back of my hand. As for the review by Law Student, there is NO WAY you experienced everything Walt Disney World had to offer in 4 days, let alone adding in other Orlando attractions. There is NO WAY, and I repeat NO WAY humanly possibly to do the Magic Kingdom AND EPCOT in a single day! You easily missed 50% or better of each park, and at least 1 of the night time shows. There is no way to do Wishes! and Illuminations: Reflections of Earth in the same evening, due to scheduling and travel logistics.

I definitely recommend this book as a planning resource. Take touring at your own pace, and realize that the average person will need at least 6 days to experience everything the 4 parks have to offer.

This is an incredibly astute, wittily written, and helpful guide with refreshingly accurate information about DisneyWorld. It includes honest tips to save money and economize on time while visiting the Disney complex. It inspired my trust (in part because it doesn't seem to follow the regular Disney marketing point-of-view)
This book has honest (and sometimes humorous)insights about the ups and downs of Disney vacations for visitors of all ages.

I own several WaltDisneyWorld guide books and this one is confusing and unorganized. It tries to be a guide book for WDW and Orlando. So, if you are planning a trip to WDW and you are looking up listings for Best Restaurants, or Best Place to Eat with kids, you may be reading about a suggested restaurant only to find out that is actually at Universal Studios in Orlando...thinking you are reading about WDW. It mixes everything together and is hard to follow. Save your money and borrow it from the library.

My husband and I just went to Orlando for 4 days, and with the use of this guide, we were able to see the Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom, Disney-MGM, Sea World, and Discovery Cove in those 4 days without feeling like we missed anything. We especially liked the 1-day planning guides for each park, which tell you what you must see if you only have one day at any particular Disney park (we were able to use these to see both Magic Kingdom and Epcot in one day, but keep in mind we have no kids in tow and we move fast!). We've used many, many Frommer's guides in the past, and some have been better than others. This one in particular was extremely helpful, and we have Frommer's to thank for the awesome time we had in Orlando.

My husband & I went to Orlando for the first time over Xmas 2006. This book really gave great information and suggestions for our time there. We enjoyed the restuants that they recommended and great reviews of the parks (what to see & what to skip) were very helpful!

I am only a little way into this book, but the information is great. Lots to think about and lots to plan. But it is all made easier by someone who has lived it. Thanks, I look forward to more exploring and to our trip to Orlando.

With all the guide books available for Walt Disney World, how does this one compare?

It is not as good as The Complete Guide to Walt Disney World, PassPorter's Walt Disney World and the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World. But those are the top three guide books to WDW, in my opionion.

This book does have a fair amount of coverage of WDW, but also spends time on other Orlando attractions and hotels.

There's just nothing special about it that would cause me to recommend it when there are much better books out there.