The Unofficial Guide to Disneyland 2006 (Unofficial Guides) [Paperback]

Bob Sehlinger (Author)

Book Description

Series: Unofficial Guides | Publication Date: September 23, 2005

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. Every attraction ranked and rated for each age group, based on interviews and surveys of more than 7,500 families
2. When and where to go: the best times of the year and the best days of the week for each park
3. All the Disneyland-area hotels ranked and rated for value and quality of rooms
4. Field tested itineraries for adults and families with children that can save more than three hours of waiting in line
5. Complete coverage of Disney's California Adventure® theme park and Universal Studios Hollywood

Sample Rating

Soarin'

Appeal by age Preschool — Grade school Teens Young adults Over 30 Seniors

What it is Flight simulation ride. Scope and scale Super headliner. When to go First 30 minutes the park is open or use FASTPASS. Special comments Entrance on the lower level of The Land pavilion. May induce motion sickness; 40" minimum-height requirement; switching off available (see pages 266–268). Author's rating Exciting and mellow at the same time; ......5. Not to be missed. Duration of ride 4 minutes. Loading speed Moderate.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“…chock-a-block with tips on everything…” (www.wdisneyw.co.uk, October 2005)

About the Author

Bob Sehlinger is the publisher of Menasha Ridge Press and the author of numerous Unofficial Guides, including the Unofficial Guide to Las Vegas and the best-selling Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World.

Product Details

• Paperback: 277 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; Revised edition (September 23, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764583425
• ISBN-13: 978-0764583421
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,544,996 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

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Memorize this book! or just take it with you, March 23, 2006

By 

Sun Central (Austin, Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Unofficial Guide to Disneyland 2006 (Unofficial Guides) (Paperback)

I used the Walt Disney World version of this book 10 years ago to good effect. So when we planned a trip to Disneyland for the 50th celebration early March we bought the 2006 Disneyland version. This time I really studied all the ride types and paid attention to the "not to be missed" portions of the book. What a difference!! We rode nearly everything and got character pictures. We used pretty much all the suggestions in the book, and were even referring to it on the last day. The different ratings and motion sickness guides helped enormously. Knowledge is power, this book is very accurate and indispensible. Oh, and the incredible thing is, not many people seem to follow their advice, because we barely waited in line, and breezed past a lot of people with our fastpasses. Thanks for writing this fantastic guide!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect Trip!, June 14, 2006

By 

V. Torres (CA, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Unofficial Guide to Disneyland 2006 (Unofficial Guides) (Paperback)

We went in a group of about 10 to Disneyland and found the guide to be very helpful in decideing which rides to go on. We took the book's advice to arrive early and get on the big rides first. Our group was ahead of the rush everytime. What is great about the guide is that it gives you ratings for each ride. I am a scardy-cat when it comes to rides so I made sure what type of ride it was and saw if it had the potential to really scare me. The kids in our group were very adventurous and got on all the rides! I think the author did a good job explaining that the guide is not a fit for everyone and that each visitor should tailor the advice to their needs. It also gave information on California Adventure, as well as dining information in both parks. The most helpful tid-bit: Alcohol is not served in Disneyland but is sold in California Adventure. :)

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Unofficial Guide to Disneyland 2006, March 20, 2006

By 

Ryan Howell (Meridian, ID United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Unofficial Guide to Disneyland 2006 (Unofficial Guides) (Paperback)

This was a great help to us. We had a plan, and it made the vacation much more relaxing, knowing we would be able to get to everything we wanted to. Our first trip as a family to Disneyland was a great success, and next time we go, we will definately check out the updated Guide.