The Cheapskate's Unauthorized Guide to Walt Disney World: Time-Saving Techniques and the Best Values in Lodging, Food, and Shopping

Rating:
Summary: A terrific guide...that's fun to read, too
Review: The above review notwithstanding, I found this book to be informative, well-organized, and extremely helpful. I also liked the way it was written -- all too often "guides" like this tend to be boring as hell. The fact that the author Michael Lewis has also written books on Tom Hanks and Harrison Ford (I collect movie books) shows in his entertaining style and confident tone. I would recommend this book if you're interested in an easy-to-use, helpful guide to the Land of the Mouse!

Rating:
Summary: A terrific guide...that's fun to read, too
Review: The Cheapskate's Guide was a major disappointment!! It wasn't cheap, either! The book was just a rehash of the other, more complete and better written guides. This book could have been written at the dinner table using the others as sources, because it didn't offer any new information, and offered very little in helpful tips. Too much of the book was wasted in describing rides that are described in the brochures given out at the park. The rides are part of admission, and have nothing to do with saving money. Our personal experience has netted many tips to saving at WDW, that were not even mentioned. One of the more obvious examples was in one of the "Itineraries" suggested. The authors recommended eating supper at 6:30 in the evening. There are no "Cheap" prices at that hour. We saved money on numerous occasions by looking for "early bird" meal specials, that ran just before the usual dinner hour. We also found some meal "specials" that were only on certain days, none of which were even mentioned. There were some "old wives" tips that are useless, such as "Always get in the left-hand line because it is faster". Finding the faster line is more a matter of watching them for the type of groups. Had it not been for the constant mention of the authors love of Disney, one would conclude the opposite, from the way this is written. We would recommend Sehlinger's "Unofficial" guide as a better bargain, with more tips to make the experience enjoyable.

Rating:
Summary: Not recommended by the Cheapskate Book Buyers Guide!
Review: The Cheapskate's Guide was a major disappointment!! It wasn't cheap, either! The book was just a rehash of the other, more complete and better written guides. This book could have been written at the dinner table using the others as sources, because it didn't offer any new information, and offered very little in helpful tips. Too much of the book was wasted in describing rides that are described in the brochures given out at the park. The rides are part of admission, and have nothing to do with saving money. Our personal experience has netted many tips to saving at WDW, that were not even mentioned. One of the more obvious examples was in one of the "Itineraries" suggested. The authors recommended eating supper at 6:30 in the evening. There are no "Cheap" prices at that hour. We saved money on numerous occasions by looking for "early bird" meal specials, that ran just before the usual dinner hour. We also found some meal "specials" that were only on certain days, none of which were even mentioned. There were some "old wives" tips that are useless, such as "Always get in the left-hand line because it is faster". Finding the faster line is more a matter of watching them for the type of groups. Had it not been for the constant mention of the authors love of Disney, one would conclude the opposite, from the way this is written. We would recommend Sehlinger's "Unofficial" guide as a better bargain, with more tips to make the experience enjoyable.