[lovemysons]

Ok, I have to tell you, I used Birnbaum's for our first trip and it was horrid. We were so UNPREPARED for what we found at Disney.

Park maps would be an awesome thing for your neighbor to have a head of time. I also really like my Passporter, I don't know why I didn't mention it before.

[rlcarmichael]

I've had the official and unofficial guides. I was impressed by what passporter put out on the Disney Cruise Line, so I'd recommend the passporter series.

[dznygrl]

Passporter was a perfect choice! I think it has the clearest, most easy-to-find-and-decipher information for a first-timer.

I know that Unofficial Guide is sooooo intimidating - that's why it's perfect for those of us who are so obsessed, we can't get enough!

The Birnbaum's for kids will help the little one get excited. My parents bought one for my sister on our first trip and I ended up stealing it from her cuz I liked it so much.....and I was 15!

I never recommend the full/regular Birnbaum's to anyone. I just think it provides this glossed-over, promotional dip into Disney and doesn't give you any of the IMPORTANT information! I can't imagine going to Disney for the first time after having only read Birnbaum's. It would be a huge (unpleasant) shock.

[Campbell87]

When we booked our first trip to WDW we bought the PassPorter and it was perfect! Easy to understand and follow and had some great information in! There where sections written for kids and it had tons of information and maps about parks and resorts! Everything a first timer needs (but do try to get them to take a peek on the mousebuzz!)

[ddoll]

Well thank you everyone for validating my choice. I feel even better about the decision. Honestly, I haven't bought a guidebook in years. The last one I did buy was Passporter and I got nothing useful out of it (which is why I never bothered again).

Glad to know it still helps newbies.

This woman is not a computer person at all. I don't even know if she will find her way to allears.

[Big Al]

I'd advise matching the guidebook to your personality.

If you want basic, good background information, but are not a planning fanatic, go with Birmbaun's.

If you're a detail oriented geek like me, the unofficial guide is the way to go.

[Pooh Fan]

I think your choice of Passporter is great for her. I like how there are pockets for you to keep stuff in for each day. That really helped us out when we first started going. I also liked the maps they provided for a basic layout. It helped us plan how we were going to tour the parks.

The Birbaums book for kids is great. My kids don't get them anymore, but they used to get one each year so that they could read it before atrip. Now, I let the families of the students I teach borrow our old copies as well as my old guidebooks because I feel like such a pro that I don't really need one anymore.

I learn any new information here that I may need on one of my trips.

[mickeysgirlz]

This is my fav! And DD5 LOVES the pictures!

The Complete Walt Disney World 2009 by Julie Neal

amazon: Amazon.com: The Complete Walt Disney World 2009 (Complete Walt Disney World) (Complete Guide to Walt Disney World): Julie Neal, Mike Neal: Books

[Boss Mouse]

I have a good guide book on kayaking in the Delaware and Maryland shore areas. It won't help your friend, but I was feeling a bit left out here.

[rlcarmichael]

Originally Posted by Boss Mouse

I have a good guide book on kayaking in the Delaware and Maryland shore areas. It won't help your friend, but I was feeling a bit left out here.

So how is the "The Boss Unofficial Guide to WDW Fountain Hopping" coming along?

[Mickeybug]

I wish we would've had some good friends with great info like you guys when we went on our first trip. In '93 we decided to go to the world, with NO plan. Big mistake!!!!!!! I didn't even know the resorts existed, yeah I know right? AK wasn't around yet and we did the 1 pk per day. On our 3rd day we stopped at one of those cheesy souvie shops downtown and this talked us into trading our MGM tics for Universal ones. It was legit and Universal wasn't bad but OMGosh, had we known what we were doing!?!....geez. Fast forward five years b4 our next trip and thanks to the internet and many, many hours of searching AllEars (and eventually MB) we now travel "in the know".
Now, I don't spread the "word", I spread the "WORLD"

[ddoll]

Poor Boss. Now that Al Franken has another job, feel free to use his old catch phrase and substitute your name instead.
I think "But how does this affect me, Boss Mouse?" has a nice ring to it.

Mickeybug, I completely sympathize with you. Our first trip to WDW was a mess. We wasted so much time and noticed that everyone else seemed to know exactly what they were doing. I vowed to go back armed with all the right information.

I wish I'd had someone help me plan too. And NOT the AAA travel planner who claimed to know all about Disney and really knew less than I did after one day reading on a Disney forum.

[Lexie]

They offer tons of different Disney guide books at the library. I suggest that they go and check out a few, free is good!

[cmrncraz15]

Unofficial Guide is great. My recommendation for a first-timer is to know exactly which rides you need fastpasses for so they know to hit those early. Oh, and don't try to plan everything out. It's just not worth it.

[Boss Mouse]

Originally Posted by rlcarmichael

So how is the "The Boss Unofficial Guide to WDW Fountain Hopping" coming along?

You , at least, will get a new perspective on the term "puddle jumping"