No comments about Grenada to the Virgin Islands 2nd Ed. (Imray Cruising Guide) (Imray Cruising Guide).

No comments about Diving and Snorkeling Guide to the Cayman Islands: Grand Cayman, Little Cayman, and Cayman Brac (Lonely Planet Diving & Snorkeling Guides).

No comments about Wonderful Adventures of Mrs. Seacole in Many Lands (Large Print Edition).

1 comments about Kingston: A Cultural and Literary History (Cities of the Imagination).

1. I found Kingston to be a refreshing and candid look at Jamaica's capital. Having grown up there, I found myself reminiscing of my childhood and at the same time learning interesting facts that I was not aware of. The author David Howard explores the history of the city from the days of Spanish conquest, through the British take over and destruction of Port Royal leading to the founding of Kingston across the harbor. It is difficult to find insightful literature on Jamaica and its culture, which is shameful since this is a country rich in diversity, talent, and international contribution. I would have welcomed more current statistics and further exploration of Kingston's current demographic, economic, and cultural makeup. So, I encourage Mr. Howard and other authors to explore further this dynamic nation.

1 comments about Dominican Days.

1. The prose wasn't fantastic, but I read this book straight through. It's a must read for anyone wanting to dig a little deeper into the DR - a fascinating look at DR in the 1980s. Thanks for writing this book and sharing your experiences.

2 comments about Saint Lucia.

1. The book has excellent content and wonderful color photos of St. Lucia, its people, culture, and geography. However, my sole complaint is that it is not laid out as well as it could be. It would be difficult to use this book as a real guide due to its lack of expansive "nitty-gritty" information such as exact locations, mileage, cost, etc. The book is instead an excellent casual read for someone curious about the island.



2. Sit back and relax...This one takes you on an appetizing ride through all st Lucia has to offer. Well, maybe its is a bit aimed at the tourist attractions but that's what made it so good for me: you can actually experience everything in the book yourself without going through too much trouble. And when we returned home, we only needed to flick through the pages to get that relaxed caribbean glow again. Take this book together with the 'rough guide' and you'll both have the glamour and the practical.

5 comments about Frommer's Caribbean Cruises and Ports of Call 2004.

1. this was a pretty good guide geared towards cruisers--only buy if you're interested on going on a big name cruise ship. port information was good for st. john, st. thomas, barbados, and aruba. the info on martinique was not good. the author described martinique's main town as cosmopolitan, people dress like paris, fort du france looks like new orleans. i don't know when he went to martinique. martinique was seedy and falling apart.



2. 
   Whether you are a seasoned cruiser and are looking for something new or have never cruised before this book is very handy. I have cruised three times but was not sure where I wanted to visit next and which cruise line I wanted to take to get me there so I borrowed Cruises & Ports of Call 2005 from the library. I spent the greater part of an afternoon studying cruise lines, ships, itineraries, and cabins. It immensely helped me choose which cruise was right for me because it went into a very detailed description of the ins and outs of each port and line out there.



3. As a person looking to take a cruise for the first time I found most of the info I was looking for in this book. It contains very detailed descriptions, especially of the various cruise lines and the type of activities, food and service that they offer. Of course, the opinions expressed are of the authors only and your taste may vary considerly. But overall they give a fairly objective assessment of the wide range of cruising experiences offered. Recommended.



4. This massive book (691 pages) manages to touch on just about every major cruise ship and port of call that there is in cruising. You get a little taste of everything.
   
   First, you get about 100 pages on the basics of cruising - how to get a good price, what to wear, how a cruise ship works. That will get you started on what a cruise trip is all about.
   
   Next, you get 300 pages on the actual cruise ships. While this seems like a ton of pages, they actually only do 1-2 page reviews of each ship in most cases. In many cases it's a review not just of that ship but of that ship class. For example if Carnival has 4 ships that are similar, you could get one review that covers all 4 ships, with small mentions of things that stand out on a given ship. Since no ship is REALLY identical to other ships, this isn't great.
   
   That being said, I really found the information given here to be FAR more valuable than in similar books. They actually review based on real information from real humans, not just copying from the cruise line's book. They tell you about "ridiculous 108 square feet" cabins. They warn you that on the Promenade deck, you're likely to have joggers running past (and peering in) your windows. They warn you which areas are noisy, they point out which lounges are usually not found by the masses and therefore are perfect places to escape from the noise.
   
   The rest of the book is a quite good write-up of the main port locations. Many people travel in to a port town and consider the port town part of their vacation. This area includes maps of the area, what to see, directions to the docks, and other information.
   
   I was a little put off by the 2005 in the title, implying that you had to buy a new book every year. On one hand you want to get a relatively new set of information - but even with this being "2005" I found errors in pricing. Obviously they can't update every single page in this every year. So it's a trade-off. Again, the book provides good guidelines but should never be taken as absolutely true.
   
   There is obviously no way that one book can cover ALL information on all towns, ships and ports!! Again, this is a sampler. You look through to find out which items appeal to you. Then you should get a full book on that ONE TOPIC. If you're going to Bermuda, don't expect this book to give you the full details. You should get a book on Bermuda.
   
   However, for what this book does, it does it very well. It takes you from the point of not knowing about cruising at all to the point of knowing what your options are and having a top-5 list to persue further. At that point it's time to go to those cruise line websites, to go the forums, and to get some books on specific ports. That will get you the detailed information you need to make your final decision, and to enjoy your cruise!



5. Cruise section is more up to date than ports of call. Very useful.

No comments about Sundancers and River Demons: Essays on Landscape and Ritual.

1 comments about Two Years in the French West Indies (Lost and Found Series).

1. A great writer and a fascinating man, better known for his books about Japan... This book is one long Caribbean moment preserved in amber.

No comments about The Turks and Caicos Guide: A Cruising Guide to the Turks and Caicos Islands.