Book Description

Exploring major regions and exotic countries of the world, the authoritative Impact Guides take today's discerning travelers into the fascinating worlds of artisans, craftspeople, shopkeepers, and fine hotels, restaurants, and sightseeing.These unique guides show travelers how to have a wonderful time discovering quality products, outstanding buys, and talented, interesting, and friendly people.Jam-packed with travel tips, bargaining strategies, and recommended shops, hotels, and restaurants, the Impact Guides represent some of the most exciting travel writing today. These books especially appeal to discriminating travelers who seek quality travel experiences that go beyond the standard descriptive guidebooks. ... Read more

Book Description

This guide to a great driving vacation offers a selection of the best regions for touring in Australia. It includes Sydney, Perth, Alice Springs and Tasmania. This book provides ideas for exploring on your own. It gives detailed guides to sightseeing and activities, together with accommodation, dining and shopping recommendations, and lists attractions and areas all rated to guide your personal choice. In addition, road maps and town plans pinpoint driving routes and other tours. ... Read more

Book Description

This comprehensive guide is the essential resource for independent travellers. Full of the down-to-earth information and reliable advice for every budget, it will lead you to pristine white beaches, ancient stone cities, WW2 relics and some of the most beautiful snorkelling and diving sites in the world. It also has insider advice on where to sample betel nuts, which islands make the best love potions and where to find 500-pound clams.

Covers: Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Marshall Islands, Kiribati, Nauru, Federated States of Micronesia, Palau, and US Territories (Howland, Baker, Jarvis, Palmyra Atoll, Kingman Reef, Johnston Atoll, Wake Atoll).

• hundreds of places to stay and eat for every budget
• details on island hopping by air and sea
• tips on diving and snorkelling - where to learn, where to dive and what to avoid
• detailed historical and cultural background
• concise and practical language sections

Reviews (4)

Sufficient
This is an OK guidebook for information about culture and hotels. I found that it covered all the basics. It covers all of the island nations in the Micronesia area. The section on Palau and Yap were particularly useful to me. However, I thought that there wasn't enough information about scuba diving. Most of the people visiting this region are interested in scuba diving. There isn't enough information on dive shops or dive sites. In fact, there aren't any maps of dive sites at all. If you're going to go diving, I would try another guidebook. If you're just going to go sightseeing, this is just fine. Also another thing I would like to see in the next edition is a few more photos. Sometimes photos can help you decide whether to go to a place or not. With more photos, I think this guidebook would attract more people to these lovely islands.

Only marginally outdated... still very useful.
I have been to Micronesia twice. The first time I lived there for a couple of years, and the second time I went as a tourist. I purchased this book before returning the second time. It had been seven years since I had been in Micronesia, and some of it had changed drastically while some parts hadn't changed at all. This book was a great guide, and helped me to find some of the better spots that I had somehow managed to miss while I lived there. Here is how the book stacked up. THE GOOD: 1) This book covers all of Micronesia, and that is no small task. It has information about all parts, ranging from Palau to the Marshall Islands. 2) This book gives a lot of information about each island. It explains the history, tells you what you should take, tells you about hotels and restaurants (from the five star establishments to the low end ones), tells you about how to travel to each island as well as how to travel around while on the island and many other bits of useful information to make your stay more enjoyable. 3) The maps are good. They aren't super detailed, but are nice maps of the islands and the villages on them. Quite good enough for any sight seeing or exploring that you might want to do. 4) This book tells you about the popular and good diving spots, hiking spots and historical points. So even though some of the book may be outdated (the nicest hotels in Guam) there are some things that will probably never change (how to hike to a nice hidden waterfall on Pohnpei.) THE BAD: Parts of Micronesia are changing quickly, and this book fails to capture those changes. For example, the list of popular places to stay, eat and shop on Guam wasn't very helpful since the island had changed so much in the past five years (since the book was published). To counteract this information lag, I just picked up tourist publications while I was on Guam, and that updated me enough to fill in all the gaps. OVERALL: It is like a computer that is a couple of years old: sure it is outdated some, but it still works nicely, and it is much better than having nothing at all!

Not bad, but badly outdated
Like most Lonely Planet books, this is well-researched and well-written, but it's much too old to really be of use to a traveller to the region. It'd be great if Lonely Planet would spend the money to update the book, but my guess is this title didn't bring in much of profit for them.

In the meantime, the superb Micronesia Handbook from Moon contains all the information from the LP book and more. It's a far more comprehensive guide, especially for the eco-tourist and those wishing to see some of the further-flung corners of the region - there's a lot more detail.

The only name in Travel Guides
As a merchant marine, "travel" comes with the job. I have long been a collector of maps and travel guides, always searching for items that are the most user friendly & seeingly written for my budget, not one of the Rockerfeller's. I will tip my hat to Lonely Planet here. They accomplish the impossible with every book. Never did I expect to open a single guide book, not to mention a series of them & find myself so mesmerized by what was written. Their guides are not the commonly found or should I say "forced" "stay at the $$$$ hotel, eat at the $$$$ restaurant"... They give you such a wide, realistic range of places to go, visit, stay & enjoy, that they change you from the prospective dreamer ho-hummingly flipping pages in a book to the traveler that sees his/her goals come to pass. After all, isn't that what we really want out of travel? As for this particular guide book... I have been in Guam 4 months on and 4 months off since February of 1996, visiting Saipan as part of work & Rota & Tinian on my own time... I have used & abused this book (Cover still intact) & I have had many co-workers borrow it, with everyone coming away a satisfied reader. So, whether it be Guam, Saipan or any part of Micronesia, this is one guide book that I strongly recommend & if you are doing an around the world trip with Japan as your next stop... Do the right thing... Get the Japan Guide book, but also shell out a few extra dollars and purchase the Japanese Audio Pack. It is hands down the easiest (& one of the most economical) basic language teachers out there & it even comes with a Phrase Book! My current Lonely Planet Guide library includes: Micronesia, Japan (Book & Audio pack), Korea, Singapore-Brunei-Malaysia, Tonga, Southwest USA (Arizona-New Mexico-Utah), & Maldives & Islands Of The East Indian Ocean. I look to expand as I am planing a trip to Argentina's Andes in 2000. A satisfied ! customer I shall remain... I hope you, the reader of my review, read this & come to realize what wonderful publications Lonely Planet offers us. If you do, step back an use AMAZON.COM for all your travel needs. You will be glad you listened. (You know, I always thought these reviews were written by paid personel somewhere, TRUST me this isn't the case at all Customer satisfaction is my reward!) Happy Travels to all! ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Not a bad way to go!
I spent 4 months driving from west Oz to northern New South Wales, and the coastline was pretty well covered. But not so much that you can't find your own spots not listed. A great guide for the first time visitor.

excellent, accurate and up to date!
Being an Aussie and wanting to get out there amonst it all, this book says it all. Being one of five kids that all surf in different areas and using different modes of transport on the water this book has it all for all of us and this book is what they will all get for chrissy this year!!

Rad Book
This book is so rad. The pictures are awesome. It's just a great book

An excellent resource.
Good pictures, solid review of breaks. An excellent complement to the Surf Report. ... Read more

Book Description

Frommer's Portable Guides offer all the detailed information and insider advice of a Frommer's Complete Guide--but in a concise, pocket-sized format.

Perfect for the short-term traveler who insists on value and doesn't want to wade through or carry a full-size guidebook, this series selects the very best choices in all price categories and takes you straight to the top sights. Get the latest on hotels, restaurants, sightseeing, sports, shopping, and nightlife in a nutshell in these lightweight, inexpensive guides.

Written and personally researched by a local journalist, Frommer's Portable Sydney is completely up to date with all the latest developments as the city prepares for its moment in the Olympic spotlight. Our author has carefully selected the city's best accommodations and restaurants in all price categories, and he'll show you all the top sights. With detailed neighborhood maps and lots of valuable insider advice, Frommer's put the best of Sydney at your fingertips! ... Read more

Book Description

Many of us dream of escaping from everyday life, tossing a few possessions in a backpack and travelling light in far-off lands. Andrew Stevenson did more than dream: he packed his rucksack and went.

Andrew's destination was New Zealand, the island nation famous for its pristine wilderness, from sandy beaches and fast-flowing rivers to glacial mountains and primeval forests. In a hiker's heaven, he treks along the Milford Track, the Kepler Track, the Abel Tasman Track and other famous walking routes. Along the way he gets caught in a blizzard on a mountain path, spends time in a Maori settlement and tries hugging a tree.

With insight and a gentle humour, he explores the spirit of this spectacular land at the southern end of the Pacific, its indigenous and non-indigenous peoples, and provides an illuminating view of his fellow backpackers and twilight world they inhabit, forever between destinations. He also reveals that, however much or little you may have in you rucksack, the heaviest baggage is what you carry inside. ... Read more

Reviews (14)

is there a genre problem here?
As a travel book, Kiwi Tracks is hindered somewhat by the author's personal problems. He had ended a relationship prior to going on his journey and he keeps reflecting back on his solitude and loneliness. This sort of put a melancholy tone on what should have been an enjoyable trek. As a personal odyssey book, there didnt seem to be much spiritual growth. The specifics of the great NZ tracks were OK, and if one has been on a trek in NZ one would probably want to read this book and include it on his bookshelf. If, however, one has not been to NZ and would like to learn more about the tracks ("Just the facts, ma'am") one would be better served by one of the hiking guides. For a more upbeat look at the country from a personal journey standpoint, the reader might want to keep an eye out in the used bookstores for Edward Kanze's "Notes from New Zealand".

Where is New Zealand heading?
I very much recommend Andrew Stevenson's "Kiwi Tracks," equally well for those who do and do not know personally New Zealand's natural and cultural landscape and her Great Walks. I myself fall somewhat in between these categories - having explored the South Island only, during some six visits in the last 20 years, always tramping, always in awe.

He tells well how the Great Walks (the term had not existed in my early tramps) have turned from a few persons in lonely huts to nearly hundreds of packed-in campers on solo or guided tours -in just a few short decades. Also his South Island walks were unusually impaired by a massive snow storm and so come across a bit off-putting.

Stevenson gave me the best-yet view of what I have been missing in the North Island ("away from the Mainland," as he quips).

Overall, his book is a beautiful, honest, and detailed travel narrative (thank goodness for someone taking the time to name by name the many fauna and flora experienced). But it is markedly canted by his own ah, delicate emotional state during the journey. The book's dust jacket warns us: "... whatever you have in your rucksack, the heaviest baggage is what you carry inside." Stevenson's emotional center of mass during his trip clearly is located a bit outside himself and he is prone to tip over emotionally during the journey. His honesty about this both hurts and helps the narrative - it does give the reader a reference point: The author is working hard to discover that which is truly important to himself in his journey, as well as puzzling over that same question for New Zealand - the colonist vs. native Maori views of national politics, natural heritage, and future directions.

While relating the pristine and inutterably amazing natural beauty of this land, not the least being the almost inconceivable human innocence and generosity of its citizens, he gives us a tutorial in NZ's basic dilemma. When he asks a fellow tramper to quote the best and worst of his travels: [I paraphrase] "The worst is to see the landscape so corrupted by commercialism so quickly." (You can guess - the bus tours, helicopters, jet boats, egregious mountain re-landscaping.) "The best is that New Zealand is still so unbelievable beautiful." This echoed within me, watching once-quiet towns transformed at the snap of a dollar into teaming Disneylands.

Stevenson shows us, by example(s), of how New Zealand transforms and helps its visitors. A German therapist suggests that tramping holds more value than health insurance premiums. I am inclined to agree.

Of the highest value to me in the book is that Stevenson gives us some great insight into the NZ national values debate (still-ongoing) contrasting (via his hitchhiker's car-cabin testimonies) the views of the progeny of the more recent Western, rough-hewn pioneers against the natural spiritualism of
Maoris, who also gave him rides, and to whom he related more. He shows us that the people of New Zealand must finally listen to the Maori, and strive to preserve their naturalist vision (in the face of adventure bungee-jumping tourism). Between the lines, he shows us that the dialog must go both ways,
especially when facing the World's money, foreign buyers and the touristic denizens of the new millennium.

I'm not a fan of travel writing, but ...
I found this to be an interesting book. If you want to learn all about New Zealand, its flora and fuana, or great "tramps" (hikes, for you and me), this isn't the book for you. However, it is an enjoyable light read, giving the reader interesting snapshots of life in NZ. Stevenson meets some interesting people along his journey and I found the way in which he shares their stories much more engaging than most of his descriptions of his walks in the woods. Yes, at times the book strains credulity and some of the characters may seem a bit cliche, but I, too, stood in wonder of many of the situations he encounters. Ultimately what comes through is that New Zealand is a land both unlike any other and exactly like home, too.

A wonderful personal diary of a New Zealand vacation
Andrew Stevenson has successfully accomplished what very few others are able to do.
He has written a travel guide that is actually enthralling to read. From its pages you will gain a wonderful sense of the flora, fauna and people of "The Land of the White Cloud."
Although the title suggests it to be a book on hiking... it is not. It is a personal account of his time in New Zealand, where he spends 4 months marching through some of the most beautiful places on earth.
The casts of characters that he introduces us to are not "over the top" hard to imagine people, but... simply the everyday folks of New Zealand and the foreigners that are vacationing there too.
I look forward to reading all of Mr. Stevenson's works.
Andrew... if you ever need a hiking buddy... drop me a line!

Exciting Country, Depressing Author
Being that I am preparing to spend the next two years of my life in school in New Zealand, I have been looking for books that can help to prepare me for what my experience in the country will be. That said, I found this book a valuable read. The author presents a good picture of an outsider's view of New Zealand, at least from a traveller's perspective. I think the overall picture, of a beautiful country with an old fashioned mindset, is an interesting one, and I'm looking forward to experiencing it for myself. His descriptions of NZ's natural offerings are the strong point of the book.

Unfortunately, the author is leaving behind a life in Norway that was apparently, in his mind, quite tragic, and he drags the reader through his problems. He's gone to NZ to think about his life, and apparently tramping alone through the wilderness doesn't perk him up much. Reading about how depressed and lonely he is becomes an annoyance from the first chapter, and negatively impacts the entire book. The country he describes sounds beautiful in itself, but with his constant crying, you can't help but feel down about the whole experience. It's like taking a vacation with a friend who's going through a rough divorce.

Overall, the book was good when it stuck to any issue other than the author's relational troubles. I'd recommend it if you can pick it up secondhand, or at the library, as I did. ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (2)

Good but still has a lot of unnecessary weight
Vastly superior to it's competitor, this book still has a few inaccuracies but nothing compared to the mistake ridden Lonely Planet Australia. This new edition by Let's Go isn't too different to its predecessors but it is slightly smaller in size. Every centimetre and gram of weight does count when you're lugging the thing around the vast continent of Australia.

A fair number of hostel listings are in here but not all of them. There are lots of free publications in a lot of hostels with most hostels listed so if buying the book for this reason alone maybe save your money. There is still a lot of weight unnecessarily taken up with stuff such as hotels and restaurants which backpackers obviously never use. Let's Go should produce two versions, one for travellers interested in that kind of stuff and one for backpackers. This book would then be half the size and weight.

This book is good for general information on Australia especially if you've never been here before or don't know much. You don't really need one of these types of books to travel Australia or anywhere else but if you must get one definitely get this over Lonely Planet.

The best travel guide to Australia
The best travel guide to budget travellers among look alike guides. ... Read more

Book Description

Over 200 B&Bs, including homestays, farmstays, guest houses and inns in New Zealand are featured and described in this full-color informative guide.From budget accommodations to luxurious lodges, it's the people who make the difference and these places are run by regular New Zealand folk, who help make any stay memorable.

While the hosts and accommodation vary, they all reflect the genuine warmth and friendly hospitality for which New Zealanders are known.Complete information including the names of the hosts, telephone numbers, addresses, prices, what to see and do, and features and attractions is included. ... Read more

Book Description

This new edition introduces the best New Zealand trout fishing spots and is packed with the latest on access, season, and bag limits. The book lists professional fishing guides and tackle shops, and local attractions for non-fishing days. This comprehensive guide to locations and techniques covers a range of rivers and lakes organized by region for easy reference.The authors have years of experience fishing throughout New Zealand. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

updated edition
This book is out-of-print but, as the author, I suggest you put in a cross-reference to "New Zealand by Bike", the second edition, most recently revised in 1998. Thanks. N>B. Please note the author's name is Bruce Ringer not Brude Mirger. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Sir Thomas Beecham wondered why it hadn't been called Herbert. Captain Cook even managed to miss the harbor's entrance, leaving it to Arthur Phillip to discover the site for what has become one of the most vibrant cities in the world. Since the convict-laden First Fleet arrived in 1788, Sydney has experienced its share of growing pains, but, perched on the brink of the 21st century, it is now a racially diverse, culturally abundant hotspot emerging triumphantly from its adolescence.

Geoffrey Moorhouse embraces the city with the glorious energy of one who is smitten. The bibliography attests to the dusty volumes devoured to produce a narrative stuffed with fact, anecdote, and entertaining hearsay that glides from objective to subjective perspective with an imperious swagger. A broad brush is successfully employed, for the author's winning enthusiasm and eclectically baggy rendition refreshes a palette fatigued by the self-conscious cynicism of which so much modern travel writing reeks. Giving due consideration to ethnic issues both indigenous and immigrant, sporting heritage, architecture, politics, Mardi Gras, ANZAC Day, and the city's deep-rooted rivalry with the Other Place--Melbourne--Moorhouse cannot help but constantly return to Sydney's most cherished heirloom, its focus and raison d'être: the Harbour (where, these days, arriving vessels bear a different and more affluent kind of passenger). An intermingling of past and snapshot present gives rise to a valuable sociological chronicle both old-fashioned and progressive in the best sense of both words--as well as providing a darned good read, whether or not you're familiar with the city. If not, chances are you'll very quickly want to be. --David Vincent, Amazon.co.uk ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Just in time
for the Olympics. This is an excellent pre-travel reference for anyone planning to attend the Summer Olympics in Sydney this year. The historical background will help to bring the city to life, from its beginnings as a penal colony to its growth into one of the world's truly great cities.

Just in time for the Olympics
Sydney started out as a landing place for convicts from Great Britain. But from those humble beginnings, it has grown into one of the world's great cities. This is a "must read" for anyone planning a trip Down Under any time soon. The insights provided by the author will help the Australian visitor have a much better understanding of the city before him. With the Olympics coming soon to Sydney, the timing of this release couldn't have been better. This is a book worth the investment of time and money. You'll enjoy it. ... Read more