The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World 2008 (Unofficial Guides) [Paperback]

Bob Sehlinger (Author), Len Testa (Author)

Book Description

Series: Unofficial Guides | Publication Date: August 27, 2007

From the publishers of The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World

"A Tourist's Best Friend!"
—Chicago Sun-Times

"Indispensable"
—The New York Times

Five Great Features and Benefits offered ONLY by The Unofficial Guide:

1. Exclusively patented, field-tested touring plans that save as much as four hours of standing in line in a single day

2. Tips, advice, and opinions from hundreds of Walt Disney World guests in their own words

3. Almost 250 hotels rated and ranked for quality and value, including the top non-Disney hotels for families

4. A complete Dining Guide with ratings and reviews of all Walt Disney World restaurants, plus extensive alternatives for dining deals outside the World

5. Every attraction rated and ranked for each age group; extensive, objective, head-to-head comparisons of the Disney and Universal theme parks

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Find out how to avoid queuing and pay less in... Frommer's unofficial guide books to Disneyworld and Disneyland."  (TNT Magazine, Monday 5th November 2007)

Find out how to beat the queues, which rides to avoid, where to shop and dine, and how to cut costs."  (Junior, February 2008)

From the Back Cover

From the publishers of The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World

"A Tourist's Best Friend!"
—Chicago Sun-Times

"Indispensable"
—The New York Times

Five Great Features and Benefits offered ONLY by The Unofficial Guide:

1. Exclusively patented, field-tested touring plans that save as much as four hours of standing in line in a single day

2. Tips, advice, and opinions from hundreds of Walt Disney World guests in their own words

3. Almost 250 hotels rated and ranked for quality and value, including the top non-Disney hotels for families

4. A complete Dining Guide with ratings and reviews of all Walt Disney World restaurants, plus extensive alternatives for dining deals outside the World

5. Every attraction rated and ranked for each age group; extensive, objective, head-to-head comparisons of the Disney and Universal theme parks

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 864 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; Revised edition (August 27, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0470089636
• ISBN-13: 978-0470089637
• Product Dimensions: 4.5 x 1.5 x 8.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (90 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #555,141 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Bob Sehlinger, a Lowell Thomas Award winning journalist, is best known as the creator and producer of the Unofficial Guide Series published by Wiley Publishing Inc. and sold worldwide.

He is credited with being the first to apply research techniques from the fields of operations research and statistics to travel guides. Among other projects, he was able to develop mathematical models that could save theme park patrons more than three hours of standing in queue in a single day.

Sehlinger and his research team (pictured) have had numerous adventures and developed some unusual methodologies. Here's a sampling from research for The Unofficial Guide To Walt Disney World:

"We've slept in every Disney resort multiple times and more than 80 Orlando-area properties. Only once did we wake up covered in bugs. (It was a non-Disney hotel.)"

"We test hotel room soundproofing using a sophisticated digital sound meter and a copy of The Who's Greatest Hits."

"The first time we did Orlando spa reviews, one of our researchers had an eyebrow burned off during a waxing that went horribly awry."

"We once logged more than 700 miles in one week on buses to test Disney's transportation system, and never left Disney property. The bus drivers got so used to us being on board that one forgot we were there and took us back to the bus garage when his shift ended."

"We test pillow fluffiness using a measurement process we invented. We intended to use a fake human head as part of the test, but worried about getting it through airport security. We settled on a gallon jug of water, which is about the same size and weight as an average adult's noggin."

"When we test counter-service restaurants, we order at least one of everything on the menu, and break up in to small teams to sample each thing. We've tried every counter-service food item in every American Disney theme park."

"Our crowd prediction models take in to account everything from the day of week and time of year, to the vacation schedules of the fifty largest school districts east of the Mississippi, to weather phenomena including temperature, rainfall and humidity."

Bob Sehlinger is founder and co-owner of Keen Communications, a book publishing company that includes Menasha Ridge Press in Birmingham, Alabama; Clerisy Press in Cincinatti, Ohio; and Wilderness Press in Berkeley, California. The author of twenty-seven books, Sehlinger is a past president of the Publishers Association of the South, and has served at the invitation of the U.S. State Department and the U.S. Information Service on educational missions for publishers in Hungary, Romania, and Russia.

Before becoming involved in writing and publishing, Sehlinger was CEO of SAGE, inc., a wilderness arts teaching and expeditional company that produced courses in kayaking, rock climbing, survival, and backpacking (among others) for high schools and universities in a 7-state area. During this period Sehlinger served as president of the Eastern Professional River Outfitters Association. Sehlinger makes his home in Birmingham, Alabama where he continues to be an avid river runner and mountain biker.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

164 of 169 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Still Useful, But Serious Errors, September 24, 2007

By 

J. Silversmith - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World 2008 (Unofficial Guides) (Paperback)

Although I have been a fan of the UG, it appears that the editors are resting on their laurels, and not updating the book every year as they claim. This year's guide includes a disturbing amount of assertions that were not true at the date of publication, and haven't been true for years.

For example:

* The guide claims that all resorts on the monorail have child care centers. The Contemporary Resort does not, and has not since 2004.

* The guide claims that Universe of Energy is an "Exxon pavilion." Exxon has not sponsored the pavilion since 2004.

* The guide claims that guests at the Hard Rock Hotel and Portofino Bay Hotel can obtain early entry to Universal on certain days. Universal discontinued its general early entry program for resort guests years ago.

* The guide claims that there is no bus between the Wilderness Lodge and the Magic Kingdom. Although that was true at one time, it again hasn't been true for years.

* The guide lists Hidden Treasures and Gardens of the World as tours available to the general public at Epcot, even though they were discontinued earlier this year, and the UG website's corrections for the '07 guide in fact notes that the tours have been discontinued.

The index also contains some serious mistakes, such as the claim that Typhoon Lagoon is in Tomorrowland, the hours of operation for "Paradise Island", and a listing for "Lunch with Walt Disney World Animal Programs" which does not actually appear in the body of the guide (having been discontinued).

There's still a lot of good information in the guide, but its becoming less and less trustworthy every year. Wait for the '09 guide and hope that by then the editors get the message that they actually need to do their jobs.

60 of 60 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is definitely worth the cost and time to read!, September 23, 2007

By 

Glow Worm - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World 2008 (Unofficial Guides) (Paperback)

A friend raved about this book and how it helped with her recent vacation to Disney in May 2007. I'm going in Oct. 2007 and wished I'd bought it at least 6 months ago. But even if you're visiting in the near future, this book is worth it's weight in gold just for the touring plans.

I believe they've covered everything, and I mean EVERYTHING in this book. It's well organized and I like how they provide different opinions from letters received from their readers.

The information provided will definitely help you get the most bang for your buck, and most enjoyable experience. There is also a lot of other activities (e.g. character dining) that I didn't know about. Now I know I can book these things (far) in advance for our next trip!

A key advantage to buying the newest version (as opposed to getting an older version from the library) is that you can go on the author's website and punch in the dates for your vacation, and they'll tell you which parks they recommend to visit on which days for the remainder of 2007 and then on into 2008. (You have to have the passcodes from the latest book to get this info.)

37 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pleasant surprise, November 3, 2007

By 

Jason Cavanaugh (Peru, IL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World 2008 (Unofficial Guides) (Paperback)

I took a chance on this book based another Disney fan's feedback. What a pleasant surprise! This book is wonderful reference. I love Disney and also frequent Sea World, Universal Studios and other parks. After visiting Disney World 8 times and purchasing at least 5 Birnbaum guides, I found this 'unofficial' guide very insightful and conveniently up-do-date. There are many great maps and even information about things outside of Disney World. It is my new 'must have' for planning the best vacation possible.