Home
About Us
Guidebooks
Maps
Family Travel

Lonely Planet Travel Guides

green up arrow

Lonely Planet travel guides cover every destination imaginable, from the Arctic to Zimbabwe. Some of the books have over 1000 pages and cover huge areas like Europe and South America. There are also books for individual countries and for major cities around the world.

These books are written mainly for the young, independent traveler on a budget. They were originally "the backpacker's bible," but Lonely Planet is trying to broaden its appeal by offering choices for midrange and higher end budgets as well. There is also a Lonely Planet Shoestring series aimed even more specifically at the student or budget traveler.

The Lonely Planet travel guides have a few color pictures and maps in the front of the books. Most maps are in black and white, and they contain short lists of places to visit, along with places to eat and stay. There are small highlighted sections called Author's Choice with one choice for a hostel, hotel or good place to eat.

These are good trip planning guides and, as you might expect, these books have information on getting around by public transportation, boat, air, taxi, and even by scooter and bicycle. There are notes on history and climate, how to get to a place and how to get around once you're there. There are suggestions on the best ways to explore.

Many people also carry these guides around when they travel. There are suggestions for walking tours and fun out-of-the-way places to see.


red down arrow Lonely Planet travel guides are so popular that they can make something that's "off the beaten track" seem more like a crowded tourist trap. A hotel or restaurant recommended by Lonely Planet can fill up very quickly and become difficult to visit.

Some love the Lonely Planet maps and find them extremely helpful. Others say the different shades of gray and small print make the Lonely Planet maps difficult to read. We find them to be not terribly detailed, but they do have a limited number of suggestions for places to eat, stay and visit. The suggestions are not exhaustive by any means, but there's enough there to get you started. Then you can branch out and find some unlisted "gems" of your own.

These books may not be updated as often as other travel guides, so you need to watch out for inaccuracies and outdated information. Those wanting more choices for midrange and high end budgets should check Fodor or Frommer's guidebooks.


footer for lonely planet travel guides page