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You are here: Home / Walt Disney World Resort / Reviewing the Bibles

Reviewing the Bibles

May 16, 2003 by Mike Scopa

This is the second installment of our series that

looks at the Disney bibles from the perspective of a newcomer

to Walt Disney World. In this session, I focus on The

Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World by Bob

Sehlinger (John Wiley & Sons: 2003. ISBN: 0-7645-6604-0; click

link to buy).

Besides looking at this book from a first timer’s perspective we

will also hear from author Bob Sehlinger and a few of his key

contributors as they give our MousePlanet readers an exclusive

behind the scenes look at how this amazing book is put together.

The Unofficial Guide Approach

It would be a disservice to not begin this discussion without tuning

in to what distinguishes this book from the others, or simply,

what sets the Unofficial Guide series of books apart.

Bob describes the uniqueness of the Unofficial Guide books

(there are over two dozen) by pointing out how they are “differentiated

by their comprehensiveness, strong consumer orientation,” their

team approach giving them “the capability to undertake much more

sophisticated and extensive research projects.”

Bob feels that only through an incredible amount of time and effort

in data gathering can a team arrive at comprehensive and accurate

information.

For example, over a dozen researchers collected waiting time data

for the book’s new touring plan software. Much care was taken

to validate the information before it landed on the pages of this

book. To ensure that the data was of the highest credibility,

they spent several days visiting the various theme parks and recording

information.

There’s more: They visited the parks for several days at different

times of the year.

There’s even more: This was done over a period of four years.

First-time WDW planners can be assured that the information Sehlinger

provides in his book can be arguably the most accurate of all

the WDW guidebooks currently in print.

Part Seven of Sehlinger’s book introduces the Disney Transportation

System as well as other information on getting around Orlando.

Again, the information presented here was a result of solid investigation.

To gather this information and ensure accuracy, Sehlinger said,

“Requires riding and timing every bus, boat, and monorail route,

a task that takes four researchers almost a week to complete.”

It is no coincidence that the vast amount of information provided

in the Unofficial Guide is a result of some very dedicated

teamwork by an array of talent who know their subject matter,

making it easy for newcomers to put together a viable plan for

their first visit to Central Florida’s vacation hotspot.

The Unofficial Guide is unique. “The scope of the research

and processing of data require time, experience, and resources

that are beyond the capabilities of a single author or even several

co-authors,” Sehlinger said. “An entire organization collects

and compiles information for the Unofficial Guide, an organization

guided by individuals with extensive training and experience in

research design as well as primary data collection and analysis.”

The roster of who collects and gathers this information is quite

amazing.

Among the Unofficial Guide researchers are those who have

served as consultants or project planners for the Busch Entertainment

Corporation, H.B.J. Theme Park Division, the Utah Ski Association,

the Eastern Professional River Outfitters Association, and the

Boy Scouts of America.

Of course we cannot overlook the many individuals, guests, Orlando

visitors, and readers who also contribute to the book’s information

gathering.

Such a team effort speaks to the integrity of the information dispersed

to the reader. For first-time visitors to Orlando and WDW, this

book is not just a resource but a key to unlocking the answers

to any they may have regarding the resort.

Focusing on the Audience

An important aspect as to how this book was built is not just the

research done on the parks, attractions, and resorts but more

importantly, research on the reader.

“Other guides, regardless how information is formatted to fit a

given series, are researched and developed by individual authors

or co-authors,” said Sehlinger. “Thus, everything is filtered

through the lens of those authors’ tastes, preferences, and opinions.

Publishers of these guides hope that the information the author

presents is compatible with the needs of the reader.”

Sehlinger points out that this compatibility with the needs of

the reader is often accidental. “In Unofficial Guide books,

by way of contrast, it is the tastes, preferences, and opinions

of our readers that dictate the content of the guides,” he said.

“In other words, we start with the needs of our reader, identified

through exhaustive research, and build a book that specifically

meets those needs.”

Over the years, Sehlinger and staff have talked with and conducted

surveys with over 25,000 WDW guests, gathering input of opinions

on every facet of the WDW resort. More importantly, this allows

those with limited time to make educated decisions as to where

to best spend their time in Orlando.

Sehlinger is proud that his guides are the only WDW books that

run contrary reader opinions right beside their own opinions.

He feels it is vital for the audience to know both sides of the

issue.

Again, this reader input can be found on just about everything

in the WDW resort.

The Aim for Objectivity

Another essential element of the guide and very important to Sehlinger

is the minimizing of author bias. He is able to do so only because

of the sheer number of researchers who provide input.

“A single author incorporates his or her own singular tastes and

opinions in his work. Our research team, by way of contrast, includes

individuals ranging in age from 60 to 16 and sometimes, for special

assignments, we seek the assistance of children as young as 8

years old,” Sehlinger said. “Thus, the opinions and advice in

the Unofficial Guide are informed by the perspectives of

a diverse group of researchers, a process, we believe, that achieves

the highest level of objectivity.”

The team approach gives them expertise in specific areas as no

single individual is a qualified expert in all aspects of WDW.

For example:

  • Part Five of this book, “Walt Disney World for Kids,” was

    developed after consulting with three nationally respected

    child psychologists and an advisory group of parents.

  • Part Nine, which discusses the dining aspects of WDW, was

    put together with the help of some professional culinary experts

    dedicated solely to the task of rating restaurants.

  • The section on golfing in Walt Disney World is handled by

    professional golf writer, Larry Olmsted.

Putting technology to work

How can newcomers make the best use of their time? More importantly,

how can they best visit and enjoy what’s inside all the theme

parks? Here is yet another area where Sehlinger’s book distinguishes

itself from all the others.

The Unofficial Guide, like other guides, offer readers several

touring plans. However, instead of arriving at their version by

simply putting together a composite of ideas based on “best practices”

from a handful of people, Sehlinger’s team added a little technology

to the mix.

The key to Sehlinger’s touring plan is a database and touring plan

program developed by Len Testa. This program was a result of thousands

of hours of work by more than a dozen Unofficial Guide

data collectors, in consultation with internationally acclaimed

experts in the fields of operations research and evolutionary

algorithms.

Ed Waller, who worked with Testa in testing the plan, says the

software indicated that it might be possible to see all of the

attractions in the Magic Kingdom in a single day. Waller and Testa

began a correspondence, discussing ways of validating the data.

“The important point is that Len developed the Ultimate Magic Kingdom

Touring Plan,” Waller said. “My ‘job’ was to be the guinea pig

that tested the plan to see if it was possible to experience all

of the Magic Kingdom attractions in one day.”

Statistician Fred Hazelton read an article about the program, and

contacted Sehlinger and Testa to offer his services. Hazelton

felt the program needed the credibility of an expert statistician.

“I contacted Len and Bob to offer my services,” Hazelton said.

“Basically, they needed a way to compile all the data they had

collected and use it to feed into Len’s program for producing

custom touring plans.”

Since the success of the touring plans depended on the use of good

estimates for the amount of time that a visitor would wait in

line at any given attraction during various times of the day,

this is where Hazelton and his penchant for numbers and statistics

came in.

“We did some statistical tests on the data to determine what would

be the best estimate of the wait time at each attraction in Walt

Disney World for every 15 minute interval,” Hazel said. “We did

this for various crowd levels and for both Extra Magic Hour days

and normal opening days.”

The team recognized that there were some areas that they needed

to pay special attention to. “The major challenge in producing

these estimates was dealing with missing data,” Hazelton said.

“During the data collection days, there are many obstacles that

make it impossible to record the wait time, such as attraction

breakdowns and closures. In these cases we do some statistical

analysis to see what attractions follow similar trends in wait

time and use those trends to estimate the wait times for the missing

attractions. Once all the holes are filled in we end up with a

complete set of tables containing estimates for all the attractions

for every 15 minute interval.”

What they discovered went a long way in producing the optimal touring

plan. For one thing, they discovered that the wait time on any

particular time of day was pretty consistent on a daily basis.

“In general, if the average wait time at Space Mountain at 11:00

a.m. is 30 minutes then the wait time at 11:00 a.m. on any given

day is very likely to be between 25 and 35 minutes,” Hazelton

said. “It was encouraging to know that the few days of data that

we do collect are very likely to be representative of a typical

day. This gave us confidence in our estimates in our tables and

therefore in the touring plans.”

This, according to Hazelton, also explains why the touring plans

seem to perform so well on any given day.

The team continues to compile information and even today work towards

making their data as accurate as possible. Hazelton hopes that

they will eventually have enough data to figure out the wait times

based on specific variables.

“Factors such as weather, walking speed and attraction breakdown

rates can all have an affect,” Hazelton said. “If we had an estimate

of their influence we could potentially make adjustments in order

to make the touring plans even better.”

Thanks to this extensive system, thee touring plans found in Sehlinger’s

book are obviously the best possible starting points for any newcomer

visiting the Orlando Disney theme parks.

Going Beyond the Obvious

The Unofficial Guide tries to do so much more than the other

guidebooks. Sehlinger explains:

“Most guidebooks do a reasonably good job with what and where.

Unofficial Guide books add the dimensions of how and

why. Describing attractions like Dumbo, or hotels or restaurants

(the what) at a given destination (the where) is the foundation

of other travel guidebooks.

We know from our research, however, that our readers like to

know how things work. Take hotels as an example. In the Unofficial

Guide, we not only provide the reader with abundant hotel

choices (rated and ranked, of course), but also explain the

economic and operational logic of the lodging industry (the

why), and offer instruction (the how) that enables the reader

to consistently take advantage of opportunities for discounts,

room upgrades, and the like.

In the WDW guide and all our other Unofficial Guide

books, whether we’re discussing cruise ships, theme parks,

ski resorts, casinos, or golf courses, we reveal the travel

industry’s inner workings and demonstrate how to use such

insight in selecting and purchasing travel, and for planning

itineraries. For the reader, knowledge is power, which translates

into informed decision making and confidence.”

According to Sehlinger most guides give the reader a plate of fish

to choose from, while Unofficial Guide also points out

which fish are best. More importantly, however, an Unofficial

Guide teaches the reader how to fish. “Anyone who has ever

read the hotel chapter in any Unofficial Guide can use

the information and methodology to book a great hotel room at

a bargain price in any city in the world,” he said.

“So, the bottom line is that there are more of us so that we can

do more for the reader. I put the fruits of our research into

words, but behind me there is an organization unequaled, to the

best of our knowledge, in all of travel publishing.”

A Future Peek

So what else is there left for Sehlinger and staff to do to make

the Unofficial Guide even better?

“For the 2004 edition that we’re working on now, we timed how long

it takes to commute from over 260 different area hotels to each

of the Disney theme parks. A reader using the new guide will be

able to ascertain on a comparative basis exactly how convenient

his hotel is to the parks.

In covering the lodging scene, the Unofficial Guide reviews,

rates, and ranks almost 250 Disney World area hotels (about 270

in the 2004 edition), more than four times as many as other guidebooks.

We’re the only guide that provides in-depth profiles of the best

hotels for families outside of Walt Disney Word (of course, we

profile the Disney resorts extensively as well). On any given

research trip, we have two teams of specialized hotel inspectors

checking out hotels all day long for the entire research period.”

Pioneer Bob

Bob Sehlinger is a true a pioneer in his field who has brought

to the travel industry a revolutionary approach to the matter

of travel guides. He continues to nurture this unique approach

in data and information gathering and the result is a reference

tool that delivers credible information based on not one but many

sources.

There is no other book that can better prepare the newcomer for

a visit to WDW than Sehlinger’s book. The wealth of information

between the covers of this book are a result of countless number

of hours devoted to getting solid facts on every aspect of the

WDW resort. The book has earned recognition as a WDW bible and

should be on the bookshelf of every person planning their first

trip to WDW.

Next time

So far we’ve helped first-time visitors to WDW look at Birnbaum

for an introduction to the WDW resort and The Unofficial Guide

as a tool for accurately planning how you will visit the resort

once you get there.

Next time we will turn our attention to Passporter: Walt Disney

World 2003 and how it best serves the first time WDW guest.

Class dismissed.

Author

  • Mike Scopa
    Mike Scopa

    View all posts

Filed Under: Walt Disney World Resort

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