No comments about Family Explorer: Abu Dhabi & Dubai (Explorer S.).

No comments about Istanbul Map.

No comments about AZU's Dreams of Thailand Hua Hin (Dreams of) (Dreams of).

No comments about Lost on Planet China.

1 comments about China: Yunnan Province: The Bradt Travel Guide (Bradt Travel Guide China: Yunnan Province).

1. This book desperately needs to be updated and rewritten! I brought it along on a bicycle trip the length of Yunnan in the spring of 2005, but found the information extremely outdated and nearly worthless. None of the hotel and restaurant listings were useable, and the sights were poorly described. The writing also failed to capture a sense of the place. I found Lonely Planet's South-West China (2002) far superior; unfortunately this book is getting old and Lonely Planet does not plan a new edition. Lonely Planet's China (2005) skips over some of the best places--such as the southeast--of Yunnan. Yunnan is a marvellous place to visit, but needs a comprehensive, up-to-date, well-written guidebook. The 2001 Bradt guide isn't it.

No comments about Olympos: A Pirate's Town in Lycia (Homer Archaeological Guides) (Homer Archaeological Guides).

No comments about Lonely Planet India (Lonely Planet. (Spanish Guides)).

5 comments about Lonely Planet Indonesia.

1. This book is great for giving you ideas as to which places to visit. But seeing now that it's 3 years out of date it has a lot of errors. I just used it in august of 2003 and all the prices are way off. Expect to pay about 2-3 times (sometimes 5-6 times) what the guide says because Indonesia's economy has picked up since the book has been released. For example: Borobudur is listed as 10,000Rp (~$1.80CDN) for entrance in the guidebook, now it's 58,000Rp (~$10CDN). They should be putting out a new one soon so if you can, wait for the next one to come out.



2. This is a good guidebook and fairly accurate. In a country like Indonesia, however, things change quickly so use this book as a reference not as a bible. Do you own research and talk to other travellers. Since LP Indo is the default travellers' guide to this region, most of the restaurants and hotels are not the best values. Many get a steady stream of customers just because of a good review and never bother to maintain the facilities. The best deals require a lot of footwork and bargaining! Also, bus/boat schedules always change. So don't plan a rigid itinerary based on the data in this book. I know a couple that lost a week because they planned a trip around a ferry described in this book but didn't actually exist! Be prepared to wait if you're going off the beaten path. Some boat services are infrequent between the islands.

   Learning some bahasa indonesia always helps bargaining. The language section is adequate but the phrasebook is much better.




3. This is currently the best overall guide to Indonesia for independent travellers. It covers enough attractions to keep people occupied for months, and is more than enough for those with an average interest in the country.
   As usual with this series, it is strong on practical details like prices, public transport and city maps, though one should never forget that prices in particular will have changed by the time one gets there - this 7th edition was researched in 2002, and reflects the situation as it was then.
   There is also more than enough background information about culture and history for most readers.
   Note however that coverage of remoter, less-visited regions is poorer - the chapter on Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo) is nearly useless, and the one on Papua (Indonesian New Guinea) is little better.
   Those with a deeper interest in Indonesia, or with an interest in a particular region, might want more detailed guides to those areas - Lonely Planet has great guides to Java and Nusa Tenggara, while Periplus has eight separate ones to all parts of the country, though the Periplus ones are best backed up with this book for practical details.



4. this is the most useful and necessary guidebook not only for indonesia but for any destination you may have!



5. This is a good book, but an updated edition is supposed to come out December 2006 so wait until then if you want this book.

No comments about Japan: Reports from an Enigmatic Land.

1 comments about The Ochre Border: A Journey Through the Tibetan Frontierlands.

1. Justine Hardy a young british adventurer gathered a group of travelers together when the area in Ladakh, India was just opened for recreational travel. She writes a fascinating account of this journey that is well worth reading if you plan any travel in the Indian Himalaya.

   
   She has spent many years working and traveling in India and her love of the country and affection for the many who assisted her on this innovative journey is apparent. Well worth the effort if you can find this out of print book