This is the best book and I have read them all.


ABSOLUTELY THE GREATEST!!!   November 13, 2003
I would recommend this book to any potential visitor to WDW - from the first time visitor to the "regulars". We had already booked our resort and airline prior to receiving this delightful guide, but these sections would be extremely important to first time visitors to Disney. I absolutely loved all the little "tips" throughout the book as well as the ratings by readers, authors and a child! The references to "How to get from one point to another within WDW" would have helped us on our last trip in getting to the Hoop De Doo Revue!! This is by far the best guide to WDW in terms of style and content I have seen on the market. We can't wait to get back to WDW. I absolutely love my Passporter!!!


A last-minute planner's life-jacket!   October 1, 2003
 15 out of 15 found this review helpful

I just returned from a week-long trip to Disney World with my entire family (parents, sister and her family, etc.) - that's seven adults and two children under five. Somehow, I was unanimously elected trip planner. (Maybe because I'm still single and childless, they all figured I'd have more time and energy to plan...grrrr) I was floored.

Sure, it was no problem calling and making the actual reservations, getting airline fares, etc. The problem came when I needed to start actually scheduling meals, deciding which parks we would visit and on what days, where my brother-in-law could golf, which rides would be suitable for the kids and which ones would scare the stuffing out of them...I couldn't just keep surfing the Disney website, and there were just too many websites created by people who had already been to the park - information overload! Then, inspiration struck! A travel guide!

I looked at some of the other manuals that were available - Frommer's, Birnbaum's, the guide for Dummies - all very informative and helpful, but not quite what I needed. Then I found the PassPorter. I don't want this to sound like one of those corny infomercial testimonials ("This product changed my life! I look and feel like a teenager again. And those pesky rings around my bathtub are gone, too!") but I can count on one hand the number of times I have come across a book that has so perfectly filled such an immediate need.

The PassPorter starts out as a very helpful travel guide full of tips on planning transportation, what to pack, what times of year are busiest at WDW, that kind of thing. Then it moves on to very lengthy and insider-tip-filled sections on all of the Disney resort hotels, including layouts of the average room and a diagram of the resort. (I would have liked to have known the layout of every type of room, because I'm the kind of person who likes to know my options. This means I'll never truly be satisfied unless the hotel provides a full 3-D schematic of their lodgings. I'm pesky like that.)

The most extensive sections of the guide are the park overviews. Here, the authors discuss each attraction in detail, including a series of ratings and a child's take on the ride or show in question. This proved to be indispensable when plotting our course through each park. We had a four-year-old who had a really hard time with most of the 3D attractions, and after trying one with no success, the guide helped steer us away from most of the other potentially frightening rides. (We just came back later after Grammy had the kids tucked in for their afternoon nap and rode or saw whatever we had missed.) The dining guide was incredibly helpful, and the priority seating worksheet sent me into paroxysms of joy. We were using a vacation plan that covered all of our meals, so price was no concern, it was just a question of narrowing our options. Again, the PassPorter proved beyond useful here.

The last portion of the book is a series of heavy yellow envelope-style pages, each one specific to a part of your trip. There's one for recording transportation details, one for lodging, and more than a week's worth of day-planner envelopes, each with a blank time-sheet to help you schedule the meals and big events for the day. And on the back of each are prompts and places to record memories of each day, budget info, etc.

Overall, the PassPorter proved to be an invaluable planning tool. What really makes it work for me, however, is the fact that it's such a personal piece of work when everything is over. I carried this book with me every day of vacation, and each night when we returned to the hotel, I spent a few minutes recording some of the day's special memories in the pages at the back. The PassPorter stored our meal receipts, our baggage claim tickets, our shuttle boarding passes, maps of each park, and our Fastpass ride tickets.

I've been home three days now, and I'm already anticipating using the PassPorter as one of the major tools in making a scrapbook of our trip, something I've never done before for a single vacation in my life. If you're looking for a unique tool to help you plan your Disney vacation, something that offers a personal take on your vacation that goes beyond a rote listing of major lodging and attractions, order this book right away. I'm planning on getting the Deluxe edition the next time I want to go to Disney!


If I could give it 10 stars, I would!!!   September 22, 2003
 11 out of 11 found this review helpful

When I began planning my Disney vacation, I looked at every book I could get my hands on. I spent hours in bookstores attempting to choose the perfect guide for my trip. I only wanted one, because I didn't want to be bogged down. This is the clear choice for a guide book, organizer and keepsake. This is the best idea, conceived and created by frequent visitors to Disney World. There's tons of space inside for all the little stuff that's so important, but also so difficult to keep track of. There's pages to help you plan and budget your time, money and energy. There are paces for schedules and confirmation numbers, but also places to record memories. There are pull out maps and quick reference pages for addresses and important phone numbers. There's a packing list...I could go on and on. This book has been my bible. The next edition promises even more photographs and color maps. I recommend one for every Disney vacation you take.


Worth It's Weight In Gold!   August 30, 2003
 16 out of 16 found this review helpful

I love this book! If you want a book that will really help you plan your Walt Disney World trip from start to finish then this is it. It's full of fresh, useful information in a well-organized, easy-to-read format. And unlike other guides, Passporter provides you with worksheets (which are indespenible to planning your trip) and "organizer pockets" to help you keep all your trip information together in one place.

I bought Birnbaum's WDW guide and Walt Disney World with Kids for a trip 3 years ago and they pale in comparison. Passporter gave me new ideas and insights and the authors don't miss a trick. Passporter has a ton of money-saving and sanity-saving tips that the other books don't have. There is also a Passporter website with updates and other useful information.

If you buy only one WDW guide, let this be the one!