This book really made my vacation at DisneyWorld. I’ll admit I’m not a Disney ‘fanatic’; I’d been once before and enjoyed it just fine, but hadn’t thought about going back until this family reunion came up. I was put in charge of the DisneyWorld planning and bought several guidebooks — this book was definitely the best.
It was clear that the author knew the parks inside and out, but he didn’t seem to have ‘drunk the Disney kool aid’ if you know what I mean. For example, he pointed out rides that were disappointments and eating options that were overpriced, whereas the other guidebooks basically said it was all great, and gave you no caveats whatsoever.
I really appreciated the book’s frankness and wonder if that’s why it got those negative reviews from the folks who seem to go there over and over. Sometimes he was ironic about the parks too in a way that made me laugh out loud (never chuckled at a guidebook before).
I thought the book was very accurate. We ended up going the condo rental route thanks to this book (an option the other books barely mentioned but in this book there were a lot of details on it) and I have no doubt our group of 12 saved a good $2000 that way if not more.
I think this is an essential book for a Disney vacation.
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I am, quite honestly, dumbfounded by the previous negative reviews (one reviewer of which didn’t even read the guide). This guide, recommended to me by a friend (a high compliment in itself), was superbly written and indispensible for my family trip to Walt Disney World. Here is why: I knew that we couldn’t possibly afford to stay in the park, partake in the meal plans, and come in on budget. My husband and I have limited time for vacations (we both work to put our kids through school), and our kids – one in grade school, one in highschool – were about to disown us if we didn’t take them to Disney at least once in their lifetime. Of course we wanted to go, but we didn’t know how to swing it financially. Enter Pauline’s guidebook: the writer, Jason Cochrane, gave us the tools to accomplish this feat without sacrificing any quality time with the kids and pointed us in every right direction to keep more money in our pockets for spending in the park. I WOULD MARRY THIS MAN IN A SECOND, thank you, Jason – please don’t tell my husband.
I actually WANT a guidebook with a bias. I want an unvarnished opinion. This guidebook was spot on for that reason, and we now know how to go to Disney to feel the majic, but still put food on our table and put the kids through school. I highly recommend this guide to other families that are struggling to find ways to have a quality vacation without going further into debt. For a family with two working parents. I found the instructions a life-saver.
p.s. I have no idea what one reviewer means by any suggestions made in this book about encouraging activities that will get you thrown out of the park. Bizzarre comment.
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Jason Cochran’s writing is encyclopedic, witty, and fascinating. He does all the typical guidebook stuff: lists of recommendations of where to stay, where to eat, what to do…but what makes this book a delightful read over and above its utility as a guidebook is the terrific prose. Jason provides an unvarnished picture of what Orlando’s really about, and, interestingly, how it got to be that way. The history of the region, the beginnings of Disney World and the rivalry between WDW and Universal Studios–it’s fascinating stuff.
So if you like your guidebooks to be boring and uninteresting, please avoid this terrific, well-researched, highly informative and amusing paperback. It’s a great read for anyone considering a trip to the biggest tourist mecca in the continental U.S., and a great read for anyone else for that matter.
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great, accurate, fun to read — best of the several Disney guidebooks i bought,
This book really made my vacation at DisneyWorld. I’ll admit I’m not a Disney ‘fanatic’; I’d been once before and enjoyed it just fine, but hadn’t thought about going back until this family reunion came up. I was put in charge of the DisneyWorld planning and bought several guidebooks — this book was definitely the best.
It was clear that the author knew the parks inside and out, but he didn’t seem to have ‘drunk the Disney kool aid’ if you know what I mean. For example, he pointed out rides that were disappointments and eating options that were overpriced, whereas the other guidebooks basically said it was all great, and gave you no caveats whatsoever.
I really appreciated the book’s frankness and wonder if that’s why it got those negative reviews from the folks who seem to go there over and over. Sometimes he was ironic about the parks too in a way that made me laugh out loud (never chuckled at a guidebook before).
I thought the book was very accurate. We ended up going the condo rental route thanks to this book (an option the other books barely mentioned but in this book there were a lot of details on it) and I have no doubt our group of 12 saved a good $2000 that way if not more.
I think this is an essential book for a Disney vacation.
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|A Wonderful Guide that Saved my Family Vacation,
I am, quite honestly, dumbfounded by the previous negative reviews (one reviewer of which didn’t even read the guide). This guide, recommended to me by a friend (a high compliment in itself), was superbly written and indispensible for my family trip to Walt Disney World. Here is why: I knew that we couldn’t possibly afford to stay in the park, partake in the meal plans, and come in on budget. My husband and I have limited time for vacations (we both work to put our kids through school), and our kids – one in grade school, one in highschool – were about to disown us if we didn’t take them to Disney at least once in their lifetime. Of course we wanted to go, but we didn’t know how to swing it financially. Enter Pauline’s guidebook: the writer, Jason Cochrane, gave us the tools to accomplish this feat without sacrificing any quality time with the kids and pointed us in every right direction to keep more money in our pockets for spending in the park. I WOULD MARRY THIS MAN IN A SECOND, thank you, Jason – please don’t tell my husband.
I actually WANT a guidebook with a bias. I want an unvarnished opinion. This guidebook was spot on for that reason, and we now know how to go to Disney to feel the majic, but still put food on our table and put the kids through school. I highly recommend this guide to other families that are struggling to find ways to have a quality vacation without going further into debt. For a family with two working parents. I found the instructions a life-saver.
p.s. I have no idea what one reviewer means by any suggestions made in this book about encouraging activities that will get you thrown out of the park. Bizzarre comment.
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|hilarious and informative,
Jason Cochran’s writing is encyclopedic, witty, and fascinating. He does all the typical guidebook stuff: lists of recommendations of where to stay, where to eat, what to do…but what makes this book a delightful read over and above its utility as a guidebook is the terrific prose. Jason provides an unvarnished picture of what Orlando’s really about, and, interestingly, how it got to be that way. The history of the region, the beginnings of Disney World and the rivalry between WDW and Universal Studios–it’s fascinating stuff.
So if you like your guidebooks to be boring and uninteresting, please avoid this terrific, well-researched, highly informative and amusing paperback. It’s a great read for anyone considering a trip to the biggest tourist mecca in the continental U.S., and a great read for anyone else for that matter.
Was this review helpful to you?
|