Which Disneyland tour book?

[noryglory]

With the great tips on this board and on other websites, you hardly need to get a tour book, but...if I still want one, which one?

I'm one of those people that like to have the hot-of-the-press tips from the web, as well as a hard copy that I can look through at bedtime, or on the plane, or at the park....

So, I checked on Amazon and there seem to be two "leading" Disneyland tour books: Birnbaum's Disneyland Resort and The Unofficial Guide to Disneyland by Bob Sehlinger.

We are longtime Disneyland attendees so we're not complete newbies, but haven't been there substantially in years, and only recently (2002) as parents with kids for more than a few hours (complete disaster--Saturday at Christmastime, the most crowded we'd ever seen it), and have never stayed onsite NOR have we ever been to DCA. (Is DCA a part of these guides? I assume???) This time we're staying for four nights at DLH, doing the whole she-bang at both parks.

So, besides the obvious "one is authorized and one is not"--which book is the better of the two for a family like ours and/or do we need both? Or are there other books I'm not aware of that will suit us? AND, will it REALLY matter if I hold off to buy the 2006 edition (Sehlinger's has just come out, Birnbaum's not 'til October 5) or will 2005's do me fine?...how much really changes from year to year in these guides?

 

[Dobie]

I like the Birnbaum book. I think the "Unofficial Guides" can be a bit negative, and as long as you get to the park when it opens and use fast past, the touring plans are a bit anal.

 

[Duckfan]

Well this will really confuse you but I would go with the Unofficial Guide as it has a lot more info, more references, and ideas about touring. I read both planning for my trip but went back to the Unofficial more. There is also Econoguide and a few others.

 

[brenda1966]

Another vote for the Unofficial Guide. I wouldn't necessarily worry about getting the latest edition if you can get a 2005 copy cheap second hand. Not much changes from year to year.

I think the Unofficial guide is great because it give you an honest run down of the rides and strategies to save time. If you love Disney already, the "negativity" shouldn't bother you.

 

[LucyKate]

I love the Unofficial Guide - I know some here think it a bit negative - I just think it is very honest and helpful.

I agree the touring plans are very anal and we certainly didn't use them, but they could be helpful if you arrive at a very busy time.

It's great strength is that it reviews every single ride and then assesses them for 5 different age groups, and highlights any potential oproblems - extremely useful.

BUt as with any book, it will be out of date even before it is printed. So get the book as an overall guide, but then use sites like this to get last minute advice on ride closures etc.

 

[kkheburn]

I enjoyed reading the Unofficial Guide. I got it from my local libary. It gave me all kinds of tips for traveling with a preschooler.

 

[Redcon1]

Another vote for the Unofficial Guide. I've been reading both the DL and WDW editions for about ten years(even when we're not traveling that year), and find plenty of great specific information that Birnbaums' doesn't have. Birnbaum seems to just give the facts with no personal insight.
I really don't think the UG is even that negative. When it offers criticism, it's usually constructive. You can tell from the writing that the authors really do enjoy the Disney experience and they're only offering the type of criticism that's found at messageboards such as these: opinions on how to improve the parks and guests' experience when visiting.