BudgetTravel

The Complete Walt Disney World primarily focuses on the theme parks. If you're looking for a primer to choose a hotel, this is not the guidebook for you. But what it does offer is ride length, average wait times, and even seating capacities at every restaurant and snack bar on the property. This is more than a history book!

It also offers the most in-depth run-down of the two Disney water parks: Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach. These water parks are immensely popular, and were featured in our list of Top 10 U.S. Water Parks.

The author's wife embraces her inner five-year-old…and Donald Duck. (Anthony Falcone)

For the seasoned veteran who thinks he's seen it all, this guidebook even offers a bonus section of "Hidden Mickeys" you can look for throughout the park. (Hidden Mickeys are the familiar mouse-shaped icon, hidden in the background of many of the parks' attractions.)

Which guide? The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World with Kids ($16.99)
Who's it for? The family
Why should you read it? If the last time you went to WDW was when you were the kid, it's easy to forget just how much you need to know to navigate successfully with little ones. The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World with Kids is a great place to start. Written by two parents and three children, it's a way of getting advice from people who have really lived through it. The guidebook is full of testimonials from average resort guests, and especially other kids. Want to know if Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is too intense for your child? Don't ask a grown-up. Take some advice from 8-year-old Hannah instead. (For the record, she came to enjoy it after some initial uneasiness.)

This guidebook also helps you plan all the logistics you need to deal with when traveling with children. Having no children myself, I wouldn't even begin to know where to rent a stroller, or what to do with it once I had one. Three dedicated pages to it later, I feel like a stroller pro.

The Unofficial Guide also helps you pick hotels and restaurants, keeping in mind that you have a child's tastes and interests to consider. Believe it or not, even at Disney World, not every restaurant caters to children. This guidebook helps you head straight for the places your kids will go nuts for.

And while most guidebooks do offer some type of suggested daily itinerary, this particular one offers the most detailed itineraries I've seen. They even offer alternative plans for children of specific ages.

Other resources

Don't limit yourself to just guidebooks! There are dozens of Disney sites out there, all dedicated to helping you max out your trip. These three gems are required reading for all WDW newbies:

Disneyworld.com may seem like an obvious place to start, and it is. The official website, it's loaded with park schedules, parade times, and more photos of the hotels than you'll ever find in a guidebook.

Mousesavers.com can help you find the latest deals and discounts to help you make the most of your money.

AllEarsNet.com has menus for every restaurant on the property and hundreds of photos of just about everything, all submitted by fellow travelers.

With the right guidance, you'll have a trip to remember, and one you'll want to repeat again and again. Just ask my wife. She's busy packing for trip number three!