Rating: 
Summary: A good guide to planning your vacation
Review: Your initial reaction to Birnbaum's Guide to Walt Disney World may be, "This is more than I ever wanted to know about the place!" While the book is dense (in the sense of being information-filled, not in the sense of being a Herman Melville novel), it is also an easy-to-use and comprehensive guide to the Walt Disney World experience. Do not attempt to absorb all the information in one sitting, the night before you leave for Florida. Rather, you will find it most useful as a planning guide which you consult well in advance of your trip. In fact, if you are unsure about the bare bones (when to go and how to get there), this book should become your immediate companion. Among its many useful tips is the name and location of a motel which is five minutes from the Main Gate, with rooms at $23-47 per night. Birnbaum's guide is organized in color-coded sections, starting with "Getting Ready to Go" and "Transportation and Accommodations." There is a thorough guide to each of the three parks, and a brief preview of the new Animal Kingdom. Birnbaum then devotes a chapter to "Everything Else in the World," with information on the Disney Institute, Downtown Disney (an ever-growing part of the WDW experience), and the various water parks which add to the family-fun experience. The "Sports" chapter lists opportunities for tennis, golf, fishing, horseback riding, etc. The final section ("Good Meals, Great Times") is an extremely useful list of what might otherwise be a bewildering quantity of eating establishments. Restaurants are organized alphabetically by area, with price guidelines to help you avoid any nasty surprises. While any book of this nature will have some inaccuracies (price changes, time changes, etc.), we found them to be minimal. In fact, we were surprised by the frequency with which we referred to this guide during the duration of our stay. The book does have a few disadvantages. Its size makes it portable only in the sense that it fits in a capacious purse or back-pack (fortunately, I have the former). And its dismissal of vacation packages in a four-paragraph aside is neglecting an area which we felt was very important. Birnbaum's logic (that there are too many packages to allow for thorough coverage)is a bit specious - there are nearly two hundred eating and drinking locations in Walt Disney World, but the guidebook gave at least minimal information on all of them. In our experience (four vacations at WDW to date), the right package can make the difference between an affordable vacation and a credit card nightmare. Also, more emphasis should have been placed on the eating plans available as part of packages, since the food is one of the most expensive parts of a Walt Disney World vacation. In spite of these caveats, I would certainly recommend that you buy this guidebook. If you are a devoted "book person," it goes against your grain to highlight passages or dog-ear pages - but these activities are mandatory to getting the maximum use out of this book. Used carefully, and with a willingness to improvise in minor matters, Birnbaum's Guide to Walt Disney World will allow you to maximize the pleasure of your visit, while minimizing its cost. What more could a guidebook provide?
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Summary: I thought this was the best guide about Disney!
Review: It helped me learn more about Disney World!
Rating: 
Summary: Good but .......
Review: This book was very good as far as telling you when to hit what attractions. The problem that I had with it was it praised every ride and attraction as though they were all great. Things like the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and The Enchanted Tiki Hut should be skipped, and should be noted in any Disney guide book.
Rating: 
Summary: Birnbaum is not ideal.
Review: Working for Disney, I can tell you first hand that this guide to WDW was out of date the second it was published. WDW changes so frequently that prices and attractions listed in Birnbaum are already out of date. Also, a very scary fact about reading this "guide" is that a lot of the people who are at WDW read the same book you read, so those insider facts are no longer insider facts. For example, everyone goes to WDW when Birnbaum says the lines are shortest, hence the lines are not short. I believe this is one of the reasons Birnbaum is out of date when it hits the stands. The book does offer good descriptions of the parks and resorts with great pictures, but I wouldn't suggest hanging on to every word like it is scripture.
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Summary: I knew where to go, clockwise or not,and at what time!Great!
Review: Without this book to help a first time visitor, I would have stood in the middle of Mainstreet, USA, Magic Kingdom not knowing what to do or where to go. I felt, after reading this book, that I was an expert Disney tourist. I recommend everyone traveling to DisneyWorld to read this book and become an expert in FANTASY!!!
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Summary: A Must Have for a Trip to Walt Disney World
Review: This is the most informative book on the market for persons about to journey to Walt Disney World. It is absolutely essential if you want to approach your WDW vacation with knowledge enough to make the most of it. My advice is to purchase the most recent edition, as it is updated each year to include new attractions, and there are always new attractions. The book is filled with information about hotels, restaurants, amusement parks, and attractions throughout the entire Disney property. I have made about 25 trips to WDW, and I buy a new one each year I go so that my information is current. Well worth the reasonable price.
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Summary: Disney
Review: We just got the book a few days ago, and my husband and I can't put it down! We were already excited about our anticipated trip to Disney World next year, but this book is heightening the excitement! Lots of information on lodging, food and the parks, what more could you want?
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Summary: Disney Guide Book- Don't leave home without it!
Review: I was very impressed with this book. It was very informative and covered every subject concerning a Disney vacation, from what to pack and how to get there, to planning your itinerary and figuring your budget. It also gives info on the different resorts and restaraunts in the Disney park and their price ranges. There are illustrations on every page, my kids can't put it down. It describes every attraction and gives it's location as each park is divided into sections. It covers transportation needs, including the surrounding areas like Downtown Disney,Pleasure Island, Boardwalk, and downtown Disney West Side, and what they entail. Several water parks are also discribed. It even breaks down the Florida weather for each month so you can choose when to go. The book offers tips on saving money, avoiding crowds, and etc. It gives schedules for character meals and labels her "Birnbaum's Best" for best family restaraunts, best dinner shows, best fireworks view, and many more. There are even money saving coupons in the back of the book that are good through December of this year. I plan on taking this book with me on my trip this year to use as a guide.
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Summary: Propoganda
Review: This is just fluff from Disney. It isn't much more helpful than getting the map once you are inside the park. We had a wonderful Disney trip, but it was made better by the Unofficial Guide to the park. If you like to see glossy pictures and brag sheets, get this book. However, if you want advice on where to stay and how to save some money, get the Unofficial Guide. It is much more helpful.
Rating: 
Summary: Just do what the book says.
Review: Take it from a former Disney cast member: just do what this book says. Plan your trip at the times it tells you to, and plan your day with the schedules that it provides. Sometimes, you just have to conform to enjoy a "hassle free visit". And isn't that what we are all looking for in life?
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