Feature photo by Caitlinator. Photo above courtesy of Lola Akinmade
Choosing the right 2D companion for your travels
I once hopped a Florence-bound train at 5:30am on a Saturday just as light peeked its head above Termini station in Rome. I was lucky enough to have several new friends by my side, including one acquaintance who we’ll call “Cathy”.
Cathy’s value as a travel buddy initially seemed promising. She was talkative, outgoing, and intrigued by culture, art, and most importantly, il panini oozing with mozzarella, basil and olio.
As we searched for an internet café to look up our hostel address, Cathy shrieked:
Photo by Matt Murf
“WHOSE job was it to remember the address??”
Slightly mortified by her reaction, my friends and I spent the rest of the weekend dodging Cathy’s snide comments about our poor planning.
In retrospect, I understand that Cathy was by no means a terrible person; she was a bit more high-strung than I am when on the road.
For our friend Manny, who was extremely quiet (passive even), Cathy provided a rare equilibrium by taking charge—the kind necessary in messy, unplanned travel situations.
If we all look for different qualities in a travel cohort, wouldn’t we seek that same compatibility when selecting a guidebook?
For some travelers, these texts are the only form of companionship on the road; providing advice, consoling, entertaining, challenging, or even providing some calm during their journeys.
If you like to travel with…
Significant Others/Current Fling
Lonely Planet – LP is definitely interesting, attractive and casual enough to keep your attention (at least for the moment). With a commitment to detail, the guides feature various neighborhoods and a highly useful color-coded system to decipher its extensive knowledge on culture, dining, and tourist hot spots.
Parents
Fodor’s– Everyone enjoys occasionally gallivanting around with Mom and Dad. They front the bill, allowing some small luxury into your travels. I never would have made it to Villa Borghese or that great restaurant in Trastevere if it weren’t for Mom’s aesthetic eye or Dad’s zeal for wines. Even more importantly, there’s something special about traveling with family.
With its glossy pages and intimate accessibility, you’ll feel right at home the whole trip.
Grandparents
Photo by Caitlinator
Frommer’s – With its majestic cover and thick, course pages, Frommer’s may not be as glossy as LP or Fodor’s (re: if you’re a fan of picture books, then beware, Frommer’s are few and far apart).
Then again, Grandma and Grandpa are always thinking of you.
The G-rents have a wealth of knowledge and knee-slapper anecdotes waiting to be unleashed. They may be set in their ways, but those ways may just open your eyes to something you wouldn’t have noticed riding solo.
Professors/Academic Chaperons
Blue Guides – I couldn’t even open this one. The cover is totally unwelcoming and impersonal; I felt like I was about to open The Old Man and the Sea. Serious snooze alert so beware, as this might be your only companion for months.
Still, while traveling abroad I was always impressed at my professors’ approachability and enthusiasm once they opened up.
Maybe you just need to get them slightly drunk off wine at a Tuscan vineyard before you can appreciate their company?
Adventurers/Vagabonds
Rough Guides – It’s hard to hate on travelers when you are one! But everyone has “flaws.”
Known for their carefree attitude, vagabonds frequently lack the foresight to plan excursions, meals, or even (oops?) lodging.
So maybe I’m stereotyping. Regardless, deep down there’s a reason for all the disorganization: adventurers want to be immersed in local culture—how can you find what’s real other than by simply stumbling upon it?
Rough Guides provides this authenticity.
Other Writers/Friends
Matador Travel Community – Don’t worry, no one bribed me to write this. If you’ve got access to a computer while traveling, Matador’s extensive network of seasoned travelers, wanderlusts, and have provided a web of travel advice: from how to travel ‘green’ to the best gadgets to how to take better notes and photography.
It’s like traveling with yourself—except the reading material is much better!
Community Connection
Have you considered tossing your guidebook altogether? Check out 6 Simple Ways To Travel Without Your Guidebook and 5 Reasons Wiki Travel Guides Are Better Than Guidebooks.
What’s your favorite guidebook? Tell us below
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18 Comments... join the discussion!
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Hi Steven,
Thanks for the feedback. I totally agree that the guidebook industry is probably in need of an overhaul. Social media and various web networks (much like Matador!) are notably evolving,seriously jeopardizing all print forms — often with good reason, as they are multi-faceted sources with no word limit.
That being said, I’m glad you’ve also had some valuable experiences with guidebooks (I have too!), because many contributors are travelers just like us, and put a lot of time and thought into including useful recommendations. It will be very interesting to see where the industry heads next in light of the issues you brought up.
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You didn’t incude my favorites: the DK Eyewitness Series. They are the pretty guidebooks — the girls and the guys who are so gorgeous to look at but aren’t all that smart. I do love their maps but I have to supplement with website information with other guidebooks.
Guidebooks provide a lot of useful information that is hard to find on sites like Tripadvior (like how do you cross borders, visa info, etc.). Guidebooks are not dead because I rely heavily on maps while I am walking around cities or in places without internet access. Instead, the wave of the future is guidebooks that are downloadable into computers, iphone, and Kindles. I am excited that Lonely Planet is finally publishing their guidebooks in Kindle format and I think the rest of the companies need to jump on the bandwagon soon.
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I totally agree about DK Eyewitness. They are one of my faves as I’ve become disenchanted with like Fodors and Frommers which are what my parents used growing up.
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Lonely Planet to me is like Apple or McDonalds. Their strongest asset is their omnipresence. I don’t think the books are that good or more useful than the others.
When I’m going somewhere, I may or may not buy a guidebook, but when I do I peruse what’s available and pick the one that seems best. I’ve got a hodgepodge glut of Moon Guides, Insight, National Geographic, and Rough Guides that supplement what I can find on the web.↵ -
@Akila – “You didn’t incude my favorites: the DK Eyewitness Series. They are the pretty guidebooks — the girls and the guys who are so gorgeous to look at but aren’t all that smart.”
I love that reference! Sorry for the exclusion of them, but had to keep the selection limited here. I’ll definitely check them out.
@Ahimsa – I don’t think any book is more useful than the others, just that they each have different personas travelers may or may not like!
That’s what I was trying to show here.
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My bad. I just assumed that the status of “significant other” was more desirable than “grandparent” or “academic chaperon.”
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I guess that depends how awesome your g-parents are and how in love your significant other is…
But also, notice it’s significant other SLASH current fling. The idea with that was flings can be fun…until they’re not!
Thanks for pointing out the confusion though. I can see how the terms might be misleading as superior…
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I enjoy the Eyewitness books as well, not so much for planning but for browsing. The one I bought for Mexico really psyched me up!
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Those are pretty neat comparisons. But you forgot about two very good guidebooks. So if you’ll indulge me, here are my comparisons:
Treehuggers:
Footprint Guides – The eco-sensitive traveler often comes from a privileged country and is acutely aware of the impact his actions have on the planet. Which is why his every decision is made with nature in mind: he travels by air as little as possible, eats local food, and stays in simple, energy-miserly lodgings.Diligent explorers:
Moon Guides – They always finish a book, even if they don’t like it. They chase after every optional collectible in a video game. Their CDs and pictures are neatly categorized. This is the travel partner you want when you want no stone left unturned, no eatery un-tasted and no sight unseen.↵ -
Awesome, Roberto! Thanks for contributing these. They fit really well… I especially like, “They chase after every optional collectible in a video game” !
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Really liked this article, the comparisons made me chuckle.
Roberto – I like the 2 you’ve suggested too. Can you recommend Footprint guidebooks? I’ve heard good things but I’m a Brit and find it easier to compare prices in guidebooks when they’re given in pounds sterling.
Cheers,
Kathleen↵ -
I used only one Footprint, on a three-week stay in Colombia. It was very good and gave me what I needed from it. As for prices, it shows them by symbols representing a price range for hotels and restaurants. But I wouldn’t let the currency be a deciding factor. Doing quick conversion math in your head is a reality of travel wherever you go anyway.
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WOW! I loved this. Very helpful- there are always so many books to choose from! I’ll definitely be buying Frodor’s for my next vacation. Thanks for the tips.
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Another favorite for young people: the Let’s Go! series!
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I had to laugh- I’ve always like the format and writing styles of rough guides, and, much to all my friends dismay, I somehow end up in charge and often forget lodging.
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i like Rough Guides,best maps and a lot of info about books and culture from every place
I dont like LP, maps are horrible during my RTW i saw a lot of people with LP on their hands and was like the holy bible for them
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The Travel Guide Book industry could use an overhaul, just not sure what it would look like. I think there needs to be some more “realness” to it, although it’s tough because how many different ways can you say “that hole-in-the-wall restaurant”. I did a search recently and it was ridiculous how many different travel guides there are. Insider’s Guides are another popular one.
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