We took our first trip to Disney and I have ...
349914
We took our first trip to Disney and I have to admit, I was very nervous about the planning. This book helped me understand the layout and how to plan for each day at the different parks. I will be using this book again, for our next trip.
1328783
Are you planning a trip to Epcot with your family this year?  If you are, prepare for your trip with Epcot 2012: A Planet Explorers Travel Guide for Kids.  Laura Schaefer, of Planet Explorers, has created a line of travel guides aimed at young explorers that may be heading on a family adventure.

Epcot 2012 has an amazing amount of information in it.  For only a few dollars, you can check out all the great visitor tips for rides, attractions, food or just what you should do first to eliminate wait times and make the most of your day.  Being an ebook, it makes it very user friendly and allows you to easily take it with you on your trip.  There are hyperlinks throughout the guide that allow you to research more about a specific location or topic.  These links may take you to a spot inside the guide or to an external website.

Throughout the guide, in reference to the rides and attractions, Planet Explorers uses a simple rating scale:

S - Scary
D - Dark
A - Awesome: don't miss this attraction
T - Thrilling: think roller coasters
W - Wet: you might get soaked

For our household, this is a great idea because our son is easily scared but loves the thrilling rides, so I would  likely avoid things rated S or D and hit the rest!  There really is nothing worse than trying to calm down a child that finds out too late that the ride they are on isn't the one they wanted to be on!!  There is also reference to whether or not there are specific height requirements for any of the rides or attractions... a great piece of information to know ahead of time.

I would say one of the must visit spots in Epcot would be the World Showcase where you can visit pavilions representing many countries around the world.  Planet Explorers lets you know about what each country is offering at their pavilions whether it's food, movies, attractions or shops.  Whether you want to learn more about France, but try out the food from Germany or Japan, the choice is yours.

Planet Explorers has produced many different guides such as The Wizarding World of Harry Potter: A Planet Explorers Travel Guide for Kids, LEGOLAND Florida 2012: A Planet Explorers Travel Guide for Kids and Universal Orlando Resort 2012: A Planet Explorers Travel Guide for Kids.

Though I have not had the opportunity to visit Epcot yet, certainly after reading this guide I want to!
3329946
Are you thinking about taking a vacation to Disney this year with your family?  If so, Im sure you're worrying about the logistics of getting there, what you need to pack and what you all will do each day at the park.  Stop for a minute and think about your Disney adventure from the perspective of your children.  Theyre excited to go to the most magical place on earth and are looking forward to fun rides and seeing their favorite characters.  But what else can capture your childrens excitement that you haven't even thought about?

This book makes you see and think about Disney in an entirely new light.  Brothers Austin and Tyler Reich inspired me to realize there could be more to this experience than you ever realized.  This second book in the series gives you a childs imaginative perspective of the life of Sammy the squirrel and the adventures he lead.  This creative and fun view of the park is a great way to expose your children to things big and small and how kindness can come in all shapes and sizes.  Austin and Tylers top travel tips and favorite hidden characters give you more things to do in preparation and while you are visiting the World of Disney.

Dont pass up this sweet book created by children for children as they get ready for their Disney vacation.  It will enrich everyones experience and make you wonder what else you are missing in Disney.  Stay tuned!
3372702
A number of friends told me about the book before our trip and being a single mom to a 6 year old I thought it was just good planning.... This guide was so helpful and wouldn't go on another Disneyland trip without it.  Yes it is a little heavy and cumbersome to lug around with you but it saved us time and frustration more than once.  The guide was right on about rating of the rides, particularly for a younger child.  Next trip this book will be the first thing in the suitcase.
2573480
A friend recommended these books after her last trip to Disney with small kids. I LOVED it. It is jam-packed with information and saved us a lot of hassle, line-waiting, sore feet and hungry kids. We went for 3 days with kids 8, 6, 3, and 3 months, and because of the guidance and planning we did from this book, we ALL had a fantastic time. I'll buy the newest edition next time we go, too--there was great information about known ride closures, upcoming events, and current ratings on food/restaurants, too. Thumbs up!
2414756
I bought this for my grand kids, who were 7 and 9 at the time for a planned 5 day visit to the World.  It gave them time to review what was there and what they wanted to see.  It was a great planning tool for the adults, too.  It includes tips for each section of the Park and made the planning less stressful.  I reviewed several books on this topic but Birnbaum's was the best.

If you are planning on your first trip or haven't been to Disney World in many years, this book will help you plan the entire trip and make the visit most pleasurable.
3251569
I bought two of these for my Great Grandkids.....they took them on their trip to Disneyland. The parents of both families are saying what a great idea and they worked wonders!!
3517895
Love Birnbaum's! This is the first purchase for each Disney trip we plan! Very helpful, up to date information on all Disney attractions, parks, and resorts.  Very helpful!
3325935
My wife loves Disney and she can talk about Disney Word for hours. She has so many happy memories from there that include giant Mickey waffles that must be eaten in a very special order (the ears have to eaten first for some reason). So when we went last, you can imagine her dismay when they didn't offer that anymore for breakfast, only some other thing with mini mickeys. Blasphemy! Oh, there was much wailing in the opera house that day and every breakfast thereafter.
So, on our return, my quest for the giant Mickey waffle maker began.
Now she makes every type of giant Mickey waffle there ever was or could be. She still eats the ears first and I dare not ask why.
1845649
Our son saw this when I was browsing online and just had to have it so as we had a trip coming up we thought this would be great as we stopped bringing our stroller along (it never seemed to make it to the destination with us). The first trip we took with it (3 1/2 years old) we drove to the port to catch our boat and it held up well on that trip. The second trip (almost 4 years old) we had a flight across country with a lay over and on the return trip we lost a lock off of the bag and it wasn't as good for going through the airport, was great while sitting in the long lines to check our bags and go through security though but getting the bags checked in he seemed to prefer riding on our Dakine luggage instead as he could stretch out and just hold on (he has done that on many a trip already) and those bags are holding up much better to him riding along than the trunki is holding up after just 2 trips.
2239393
We have the first one, so we bought this one to add to our collection. We test each others Disney knowledge when we go on road trips.
3180667
I purchased two of these bags, for my 5 and 7 year old. We took one trip to San Francisco and the bags were great--the kids used them through the terminal and everyone who passed by us asked where they could get one. I even had a flight crew come up to me and tell me how cute the kids were on their scooter bags and they wanted the adult version. The scooting system was smooth and the steering was really easy...even for my 5 year old. The compartment for the luggage is small but just the right size for the kids to carry their own stuff (a week's worth of clothes). Unfortunately, the first time I unzipped the bag the plastic that holds the top and bottom together (see pictures) broke--on BOTH of the bags. I'm trying to figure out if I should get a refund or exchange the bag (because my kids did love the bags so much). Is this a fluke or your standard quality after one use?!?
4529847
We have made other trips to Disney World, but this is the first time we've used the "Unoffical Guide".  Using the guide has made our planning so much easier and we totally expect to get more from this trip than we have in the past.  So many wonderful tips and the "tried and proven" tour plans will enable us to make the most of our time at each of the parks.  This little book took the work out of planning our vacation and that is important since there are 10 of us going to Disney World in June!
Linda - Dallas
3328064
Even though Ive been to Walt Disney World many times, I still refer to yourfirstvisit.net every time were planning another trip.  Why?  Because I love, Love, LOVE Daves charts on when is the best time to visit.  If you're not using them, you should be.  Just sayin . . . When I found out that Dave was teaming up with Josh from easyWDW to write a book, I couldn't wait to get my hands on it. Well, Ive read it, and I pretty much love this book!  This book makes me extremely happy on so many levels. Heres the thing (Im just going to come right out and say it) . . . If you're planning your first trip to Walt Disney World, you pretty much HAVE to buy this book.  Trust me.  Ill be adding the book to my ever growing shelf of Disney resources and Ill be recommending it as a go-to resource for first-time visitors (and beyond).
2204572
We take our kids, now ages 4 and 6, to Disney World every year, and each year, I try to do something fun and unique with them to get them excited for their trip. This was IT this year, and it was fun for them to be read to from this book each night, and there are little "activities" for them to do. The autograph section in the back came in handy at Disney when we ran out of pages in the other autograph books that we bought at the park. I've already passed it along to another friend who's taking her 4 kids to Disney in April, and they've enjoyed it as much as we did. I'd highly recommend this book, especially if you're trying to find a way to surprise your kids on a special occasion with a Disney trip ... wrap it up and let them open it, and when they do, they'll KNOW they're going to DISNEY!!!
3267962
We have taken out boys to Disney once every 12 to 18 months for the last 14 years.  I love Birnbaum Disney Guides.  Prepares us to have a well planned great trip!
2514604
This worked so well! I just got back from a trip to Disney World and was able to enjoy rides like never before.