Customer Reviews

The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World 1998

5 star:		(190)
4 star:		(32)
3 star:		(13)
2 star:		(12)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

For some families a trip to Walt Disney World is an annual ritual, for others it is a one-time rite of passage. For all who go, it is a big-ticket vacation destination with seemingly limitless choices of lodging, attractions, dining, and entertainment. This encyclopedic guide provides you with all the information you need to make the most of your time and money. Their recommendations are based on their own staff's experience as well as surveys of Disney vacationers and Unofficial Guide readers.

I wish I could give more than five stars to the vacation planning chapters of the book. Monthly attendance data plus subjective pros and cons of visiting during each season helped us decide when to go; detailed reviews of hotels within and outside the "World" helped us decide where to stay; an outline of all the available ticketing options helped us determine what sort of park admission to buy. All in all we saved hundreds of dollars - and planned a more suitable vacation for our family - as compared to following the advice of friends and co-workers.

The chapters pertaining to each park rate four to five stars. Each ride, show, or attraction is described in detail and given a star rating for each of several age groups. Careful attention is paid to factors affecting how long you will wait in line. The author provides touring plans designed to get you to as many of the "best" attractions as possible with the least amount of waiting in line; 1-day and 2-day touring plans for families with and without young children are provided for the Magic Kingdom. Occasionally the reviews are a bit idiosyncratic but on the whole they let you know what not to miss - and what to pass up with no regrets. The guide also includes chapters on Universal Orlando and Sea World.

The chapters reviewing Disney dining deserve four stars. Again, the coverage is vast and detailed, with reviews not only of restaurants in and out of the "World" but even of counter-service (i.e., fast food) within the "World." You will either shake your head and roll your eyes at the hints for landing a breakfast reservation at Cinderella's Royal Table, or you will rush to synchronize your clocks with Disney reservation center time and start warming up your dialing fingers. I agree with other reviewers that the restaurant reviews are overly harsh and discount the extent to which a sit-down meal in some Disney restaurants can be an attraction unto itself. There is also no index to table-service restaurants in each park.

This guide contains far more information than any one traveler is going to need, and at least some of it will seem like common sense - but one person's common sense is another's startling revelation. As with any guidebook some information will be out of date; some specific issues noted by prior reviewers have been corrected in the 2003 edition. If you are a true believer in Disney magic you might not like the blunt tone of the author's remarks. However, if you are a Disney skeptic, a novice, or simply a vacationer trying to get the most out of a big-deal vacation, the Unofficial Guide is an excellent resource.

If you are going to Walt Disney Word and looking for the book to cut through the publicity machine that Disney is, you will want this book. Its tone, can be skeptical (some say cynical), and not always the Disney "cheerleading" guide that some purists insist only be written about Disney properties. Please know that there are no pretty pictures of the Disney parks in this book. It is a "battle" guide that does not pull punches. The author(s) are traffic gurus and are looking to get you through the park, not standing in lines.

If you are an "easy going", "take things as they come" type of person, then this book is not going to be your cup of tea. If you are looking to get the most from your dollar by avoiding lines, bad food, and brutally honest opinions, then this book will do you well.

If you have kids, this will show you the way to limit stress, and keep everyone happy with planning tips and schedules appropriate to age groups and interests. It is okay to get the Birnbaum book for the kids. Let them see the pictures and read the descriptions of the park, but if you want to be serious about minimizing the stresses of a family vacation, use this book.

I have used editions of this book for the last 10 years, and I will always by a copy of this book when planning my future vacations. I have saved time and money, and always find this book to improve the quality of my trip. My three tips for YOU to make your WDW vacation the best; 1. Stay onsite and use the Disney transportation system; 2. Take an afternoon break from the parks and get off your feet; 3. Use Fast Pass - Make Fast Pass your friend...

This is a great book, we used it for our two recent trips to Disney and most of what was written turned out to be true. Now we are planning another trip in 2000 with our 1 year old and friends and their kids, and we're sending them a copy of this book (they've never been). We've been reading the section about traveling with kids and know now already which attractions to avoid and which ones to head to; based on honest advice that you won't find in any "official" guide.

However, you do have to keep in mind that this is someone's opinion and not necessarily fact (but it is the opinion of someone who has traveled to Disney World far more times than the average American). They print actual reader comments, usually pitting contrasting comments side by side, as a reminder that their advice is just that, advice and not fact. We went to a few attractions despite the written reviews, i.e. Alien Encounter, and found the reviews to be accurate insofar as the experience, however, our opinion of how good or not-so-good the attraction was differed from what was written.

A good reference, highly recommended.

We took our boys to Disney World in 1996 (they were 6 & 4 yrs). I used this guide to pick the quietest time to go. My husband wanted to stay inside the park, and because of $$ we stayed 3 nights outside at a hotel ($45/2rms/kitchenette/ Nintendo/kids eat free!),and 2 days inside ($114/1rm/no cable or vcr,only Disney Channel/$$greasy food!).The first day at the park, my husband refused to follow the book, and the kids were tired and stressed (as were we!). That night he agreed to finally read the book, and the vacation improved DRAMATICALLY! We skipped many rides, snuck in snacks, shared ice cream, and just RELAXED! We are now planning our 2nd trip for next year. We will NOT waste our money staying inside the park again, and will DEFINATELY stay in a 2rm suite again(a MUST with young kids). We are also planning to end the trip with a couple of nights at the beach to unwind before we head home (as recommended by our cousins,yearly Disney vacationers)! For those with young kids,REMEMBER...Don't try to do it all ...plan for the minimum you want to do/see, all the rest will be a bonus. You don't need to use the book faithfully, or even agree with all that is inside, but do heed the warnings/info and use your best judgement. I'll be buying a new copy, perhaps the kids version. I've lost count of the # of skeptics I've refered this book to who were amazed at the usefull info that is NOT included in other books. Just try it.

I haven't read the latest edition, but I just returned (as of 5 days ago) from Disney World with a well-worn version of the previous edition. Every review from hotel, to age appropriateness, to rides and inside secrets proved its weight in gold. Each ride was described in detail, included any warnings (motion sickness, frightening aspects, etc.), a star rating guide for a variety of age groups (preschool, grade school, teens, adults, seniors), along with an overall review and letters from readers. The rides and attractions ratings were dead-on accurate and when we doubted a warning from the book and went anyway, we soon regretted it. Conversely, all of the recommendations were highlights of our trip. Restaurants were rated by overall value, price, service, and food quality. While they seemed a little on the harsh side (we loved the Cinderella Castle restaurant), they were very accurate in their suggestions. I neglected to listen to all the money-saving advice, and now regret that I didn't follow the instructions to the "t." From the initial planning to the final day, this will be an indispensable tool and a cheap ticket to your sanity. Skip the official line-- this is infinitely better.

I'm in the middle of planning my WDW vacation and this book has been indispensable! It's given me a feeling of confidence about navigating "the world" and my choices of where to stay etc. If you read the reviews of the individual attractions you'll see that the authors really enjoy WDW! Everything a friend or family member has recommended to us has been included in this book.

The in depth look at each ride/attraction, hotel and restaurant in WDW is amazing. The realistic but humorous tone is great, I read the entire book cover to cover even parts that don't apply to me (the sections for people traveling with children for example).

If possible I'm even MORE excited about this trip than I was before I read "The Guide"

Update: 8/16/01 Now that I've been to Disney and back I can honestly say that this book was indispensable! We used the tour plans (the "one Day" plan for Magic Kingdom, MGM and Epcot) and they worked like a charm! Avoiding parks on early entry days let us ride many "Main" attractions 2+ times! I can't reccomend this book enough! Just remember it IS a guide not a "rulebook' you aren't required to follow every suggestion exactly. I know I would have been lost without this book both literaly and figuratively.

Currently, I am a cast member that works at the Disney Port Orleans Resort. I have worked at all of the Disney resorts at some point so I know the properties fairly well. When I see a guest coming up with this book I wince. Guests will often try to ask for exact room numbers because they believe them to be the best, but the reality is that these rooms have been asked for by hundreds of other people. You're best bet of getting the room of your dreams is by being courteous to your front desk agent. They have the ability of making that water view room either by the pool or by the water fountain. I'm not saying to be overly nice or fake, but a courteous attitude will get you farther than anything. Now that I'm off my soapbox. I have read the book and a lot of the information is absolutely true. The park information on how to ride the most rides with the least amount of wait time is superb and the descriptions are great. I would make a note though, make sure you pay close attention at check in. Guests are often so in a hurry to get going that they miss important information about ride closings, shuttle schedules, etc. Lastly, if you have a question or problem, don't hesitate to call or ask a cast member. If your kid drops his ice cream, we'd be happy to get you another one; if you want to know if Fantasmic has two shows this evening ask. That's one thing I think the book fails to mention is how helpful the staff can be.

In 1998 and 1993 I went to WDW during the busiest week of the year there - the week between Christmas and New Year's Day. Both times we used the viewing plans in this book. Both times we never stood in line longer than 20 minutes for an attraction. We kept walking by the same attractions later in the day and seeing signs that the waits were as long as 90 minutes. Using this guide was the best thing we could have done. I'm heading to WDW again this April and will be picking up the new copy of the book for that trip. I've never been to any of the parks on a slow day, but when it is busy this guide is indispensible

I first discovered the Unofficial Guide in 1989 and highly recommend it for anyone going to Disney World or Disney Land. That's the first suggestion I make to people are state they are going to Disney - but this book! It's great - it rates the rides, tells you what age groups like what rides, whether the rides are scary for young kids.

It tells you how to see the popular rides with the least amount of waiting. Tells you how to save money and time at the parks.

It also rates all the different hotels - inside and outside Disney World with all different factors to consider.

It's worth the money and time reading this book!

I bought my first edition of this book in 1996 when I went to the park with my parents, my brother and sister-in-law, and my husband (not a child in sight!). The book is very well-organized -- I was able to skip the sections that were specifically designed for parents with young children and go to the sections for adults. I found most of the ride ratings to be accurate, and to prove that the author's opinion is just that -- an opinion -- they rely heavily on reader feedback when updating the book annually to rate the rides. They also have no problem printing contrasting opinions to their own. The author is very vocal about his dislike of Disney food, but he has stressed that it has less to do with the food being awful than it does with the price. He agrees it's not awful -- just not nearly good enough for the price. (I, on the other hand, love the dining experiences at Disney -- especially Epcot -- so I take the author's opinions with a grain of salt.) I'm planning another trip to Disney this fall -- this time with my young nieces and nephews -- and will now need to go back and read the sections I skipped about touring with young children! An invaluable travel resource.