No comments about Gone Fishin': Massachusetts' 100 Best Waters.

5 comments about Zagat Walt Disney World Insider's Guide (Zagat Survey: Walt Disney World Insider's Guide) (Zagat Walt Disney World Insider's Guide).

1. Save your money! A skimpy book, way overpriced, that reads as if it was thrown together in an afternoon. Each review is simply a series of quotation-marked quotes strung together to form a sentence or two. For example, a toy store is described this way: "Kids 'go wild' and adults 'relive their childhood' in this 'huge' marketplace bazaar."
   
   The pocket-size piece rates everything on 1-30 scale, based on an online survey of Disney World annual pass holders. That's interesting, but without any detail or explanation it's not really helpful. To be fair, the book also publishes those customers' one- or two-word opinions ("Great!" "Loved it!") on rides and shows, but this is a long, long way from a real travel guide. Zagat should stick to restaurant reviews.



2. This is a book? More like a thick pamphlet. Much thinner than Zagat's other surveys. Seems like something you'd find online for free.



3. My family is going to WDW next week, and I have read the other mentioned guide books cover to cover, and they were extremely helpful and offered tons of in-depth hints about pricing and reserving, etc.
   
   However, I was stuck trying to create a quick and dirty list of the basics so that I could carry it with us - (the other guides are big, thick and heavy). I got so turned around trying to remember all the recomendations from all of the parks, and what is rated too dark, or too loud, etc for my 4 year old.
   
   This has Top 20 lists, summary lists and such. So, if you are only going to buy one guide to Disney and you (like me) are starting with little or outdated knowledge, this may not be the book for you. HOWEVER, if you have made your plans are ready to get to the parks and you want a guide to take with you in the park.... this is essential! A GREAT summary book. It is not the ONLY guide, it is the EASIEST guide to handle and find what you need.
   
   (It also comes nicely with removable tabs to flag the important stuff as you go!)



4. This is a great guide book especially for those who have never been to Disney. I have been to Disney 20 times, but I am planning a trip in the Fall with several first time visitors and bought this for them. Also I am taking my nephew with me and have never taken a child with me to Disney and it has given me lots of great tips. It was well worth the price.



5. This helpful guide is portable and efficiently summarizes reader's opinions about the varied offerings at Disney World. It was a useful tool for my most recent visit.

No comments about Face of Florida.

2 comments about Rand Mcnally 2007 Road Atlas Florida (Rand McNally Road Atlas).

1. We are new to Florida and had little time to cover many different areas. I found the atlas to be very useful and the fun tips were entertaining as well. The spiral bound format helped to keep it from getting crumpled up like all our other atlases. I would definitely recommend this version.



2. My wife and I are planning a trip to Florida in April. I have done a lot of research and I did not find this book useful at all. In fact, my wife is mad at me for buying it and wants me to return it. It is not user friendly so don't waste your money folks...learn from my mistake...

No comments about The Florida Keys Ports of Call & Anchorages.

No comments about The Florida Handbook: 2005-2006 (Florida Handbook).

5 comments about Pauline Frommer's Walt Disney World & Orlando (Pauline Frommer Guides).

1. As a Floridian who lived in Orlando before the Disney mega park was built I have always wanted a book like this to help navigate the place.
   This is smart and helpful and I am sure there will be detractors who don't want the truth to be told. Better get a copy and give one to ANYONE thinking of going.



2. 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.



3. I bought this book just before taking my family to Disney World, and it was a huge help - from information about buying tickets to how to make the most of our day at Magic Kingdom to eating options. I also really enjoyed reading all of the little bits of interesting trivia that are in the book. Definitely a great resource for anyone considering a journey to the world of Disney! Just a word of caution to FL residents: Disney just changed its policy about giving discounted tickets for those who just want a one-day pass. We showed up at the window expecting to be able to get a discounted one-day pass, but were told that we would have had to do this online at least 24 hours ago, and that the only FL resident discount option at the window is a 3-day pass.



4. I can't wait to plan my next trip to Walt Disney World. Friends just returned from their family vacation giving kudos to Pauline Frommer's guidebook which provided them with extremely accurate & helpful tips and fun reading as well.



5. While I'll agree that the author's semi-synical sense of humor made for a fun read, this book was a little dated for a 2008 edition. My family and I recently returned from a visit in 2007 and are eagerly planning a trip in 2008 (yay!). I was looking for something to keep me up-to-date on any changes and for new tips on saving money. I really didn't want to buy the same books I bought last year (The Unofficial Guide & Birnbaum's Guide...both terrific though). Unfortunately, those 2007 editions were more current than this book was. While the author mentions some of the new attractions, he (yes, HE...I was tricked into believing that this was by a woman, Pauline Frommer) clearly has been living under a rock in regard to the MANY restaurant changes (in effect for my trip in August 2007), some attraction changes (Haunted Mansion, for example was refurbished during my visit; he never mentions the changes), and even the MGM name change. I couldn't believe this was the FIRST edition of anything! In addition, this is not the book for you if you are one of those people who likes to stay on Disney property. The author's main tip on saving money is to stay off property and rent a car. According to him, this opens the door to many activities and ("less expensive") off-property dining. To be honest, if you have a relatively small family, it is actually cheaper to stay on property and take advantage of the Disney transportation system. In addition, while most of the meals at Disney are expensive, they are relatively large and "sharable." The restaurants that the author suggests are basically all sit-down restaurants which aren't much of a value either. He also recommends them as "local eateries," but most of them are chains! Besides, who wants to waste valuable park time driving all over Orlando to save a few dollars? This may be a helpful book for you to save money if you do have a large family (not really a help if there are less than four of you, or if you're not comfortable staying off property), but I definitely recommend pairing it with something more current like the Unofficial Guide, Birnbaum's Guide, or PassPorter's).

4 comments about Exploring Wild South Florida: A Guide to Finding the Natural Areas and Wildlife of the Southern Peninsulaand the Florida Keys (Exploring Wild Florida Series).

1. We used this excellent book before and during our birdwatching trip to South Florida this spring. It was a useful complement to Bill Prantys 'A Birder's Guide to Florida'. In comparison to the latter book, you get more general information about the wildlife at different locationts and especially about facilities (e.g. bathrooms, food) at different wildlife refuges and parts of the Everglades National Park. In addition, there is a good introduction about different biotopes and 'special' animals and a stirring depiction of the passage of hurricane 'Andrew' over South Florida.



2. Overall this book is quite good, I think it is geared more toward people living in Florida than people like me who are planning a trip. I wish it had more travel info and maps. I also wish it had more pictures than it does, so you could see the places it talks about which would help out a lot.



3. My title sums the book up rather well. If you are going to South Florida with viewing nature and wildlife as one of your goals, you'll find the book extremely useful. If seeing the show at the Alligator Farm and the Seaquarium fills your need for nature, you probably won't need the book. Assuming you do use the book, you will appreciate the amount of detail it includes, though you'll probably wish for better maps and more illustrations! Despite this, highly recommended if you really want a book of this type.



4. As a person who has spent a good deal of time in many of the places listed in "Exploring Wild South Florida: A Guide to Finding the Natural Areas and Wildlife of the Southern Peninsula and the Florida Keys" I can say that it is a thorough, accurate, and informative guide to the South Florida area. This book is specifically made for the person who likes to explore areas that are still predominantly in their natural condition. If you are looking for a landscaped park to hike through then you will be disappointed. If you are looking for places where you are likely to see endangered species, the only air conditioning may be a breeze, and you may see very few people (if anyone) during your hike then this is the book you are looking for.

   Some places are truly remote and you may be on your own finding your way around (like the Florida Everglades) and some are less remote and may even have boardwalks through the forest to make your trip easier. The book starts with an extensive overview of everything you need to know about southern Florida - weather, what to wear, animals and plants to be cautious of, information on the various park systems, and anything else that you might have a question about when planning a trip.

   One of the nicer features of the book is a section on the various habitats that you are likely to encounter in south Florida. The author does an excellent job of explaining estuaries, coral reefs, cypress stands, mangroves, marshes, hammocks and other habitats. She covers what qualifies them as a specific habitat, what you should look for and expect in each of them and general educational information on each of them.

   She then covers special wildlife and unwanted pests before moving into the Federal Lands part of the book that actually starts the information on each site. When she gets to the specific sites she provides all the information that you will need to plan a trip there. She covers the local habitats you might find, wildlife, facilities, and complete contact information (worth the price of the book by itself).

   A highly recommended read for those who think camping equipment should not involve the word Winnebego.

5 comments about The Unofficial Guide to Florida with Kids (Unofficial Guides).

1. Ms. Brandon takes the guesswork out of vacationing in Florida, with her common sense approach to this book. Information is organized in a user-friendly fashion that makes it easy and fun to include the whole family in the planning process! Her vast knowledge of the subject matter is apparent; she has given clear and concise descriptions of specific attractions throughout Florida, from a perspective rich with personal experience and humor. Indeed, it is an enjoyable book to read, even if a trip to Florida is not on the horizon!



2. I live in Central Florida, so I can say first-hand what an amazing book this really is. It has so many fabulous ideas and great vacation strategies. As a mother of 5, I know how hard it it to plan a well-rounded vacation. This book gives an outstanding variety of suggestions on places to go for kids ages 1 to 100! Give this book a read if you're going to Florida--you'll have the best vacation possible.



3. After our family's great success with The Unofficial Guide to Disney World, we eagerly snapped up The Unofficial Guide to Florida With Kids when the 2nd Edition was published in January, 2001. What a terrific book!

   We decided to take a weekend trip to St. Augustine, FL this past Wednesday, and left after work on Friday. With very little time to plan, I dug out this book and quickly flipped to the chapter dedicated to St. Augustine. There, the author gives a quick and interesting history of the city, as well as a map with recommended family resorts, attractions, and restaurants clearly marked. This section is followed by impartial reviews of each.

   The family resorts section goes over a number of cozy historical hand-picked bed & breakfasts and inns, with an eye towards children. It is very helpful in telling you what aged children are welcome, whether breakfast (and what type) is included, accurate rates, distance to nearby attractions, etc.

   The restaurant section focuses on dependable family-friendly local restaurants. This list is a godsend when you cannot stand the sight of another fast food restaurant, yet are afraid to try anything else.

   The place where this book really shines, however, is in the attractions section. Here the author and actual readers list and rate each attraction's appeal by age group! This feature is extremely handy in trying to sort through Florida's myriad of attractions with limited time on your hands and with an even smaller budget! We really liked the fact that the author points out lesser-known and less crowded attractions that are often overlooked by unprepared families.

   For instance, although we normally would never have stopped at anything called the St. Augustine Alligator Farm (I still grin at the name :)), we took the advice of the book and gave it a chance. It turned out to be terrific, one of my 3 1/2 year old's favorite parts of the trip! Another attraction that we would have certainly overlooked was Marineland, listed at the end of the chapter under side trips. Normally we wouldn't have given the park a second look, but we followed the book anyway and spent a fantastic Sunday afternoon there. Much smaller crowds meant that we got great seats at all of the shows, and we also got to spend a good bit of time talking with the animal trainers. My daughter even got to pet, feed, help train, and have her picture taken with a live dolphin! She was ecstatic, and I quietly whispered a thank you to author Pam Brandon for sending us here instead of the ultra-crowded Sea World where we could never have gotten that much time so close to the animals.

   I overrode the book's warnings about taking a preschooler to the Ripley's Believe It Or Not museum (rated in the book as 1 star out of 5 for that age group, although higher for older kids and adults). Sure enough, Ripley's was way too scary for my daughter, and I regretted not listening to the author's good advice. We could have saved $20 right there - more than I paid for the book!

   The Unofficial Guide to Florida With Kids saved us so much time and money in one weekend that it has already more than paid for itself. We are currently pouring through our copy working on our next trip. We spend a lot of time and effort on our family vacations, and we want to get our money's worth. We won't go back to Florida without this book. Highly recommended.




4. The book provides a very thorough representation of what there is to do in Florida with children, but I found a couple of things with which I take issue. First, on page 176, Brandon's advice for Waiting Line Strategies for Theme Parks suggests to use "elevator shoes for the short and the brave." Maybe Brandon doesn't understand that the height restrictions for theme park rides is for the protection and safety of kids and small adults, and legal liability of the theme parks! Getting your kids to stand up straighter, or putting heel lifts in their shoes (Brandon's advice) just so they will be permitted to ride an attraction is pretty lame, not to mention dangerous.

   In addition, I was shocked to visit St. Augustine Beach and see cars driving on the beach. I thought I had thoroughly read the St. Augustine chapter of the book. Guess not. The only mention of cars on the beach is on page 78, listed under Northeast Florida's Best Beaches, NOT in the St. Augustine chapter. I was very disappointed and felt that the driving on the beach is a hazard for young families, and is obviously downplayed both in this book and by the proprietors of beachside motels (particularly the author-recommended LaFiesta Oceanside Inn). All in all, a disappointing book which I feel I can't trust for further Florida adventures with my children.




5. We used this book on our trip to Florida this August and was a great buy. It is not a book that lists ALL there is in Florida, but what is BEST to see if you travel with kids. It gives insights that are a rarity in books of this type and it proved good both for things to do and for restaurants that pleased both kids and adults (from diner to real restaurants). We spared a lot of time and, consequentially, money.
   We used it together with a traditional guide book for reference, but we learned to trust the 'Unofficial' advice better.

No comments about Chasing the Horizon.