DK Eyewitness India

This has everything one expects from a DK book--beautiful illustrations, clear historical information, lots of interesting details of the life and beliefs of this fascinating country. A must-have if you love and/or study India!

These DK white books are uncommonly heavy. They don't have as much detailed information as the Blue Guides or Rough Guides, but are good for brief visits or first timers. Where they excell is their outstanding illustrations and diagrams, often cutaways. The maps are good, but the labeling system makes it difficult to locate things easily. Lots of full page color photos give a preview of the trip. It's a daunting task to try to cover India in a single guide, but this book almost does it. It's well organized, color coded by region. The picture of Palitana in the Gujarat section became the foundation for that section of our 2003 trip to India [ cascoly.com/trav/india.asp ], and the diversion provided one of the highlights of the entire 6 week trip.Bottom line? Your best bet is to get the Rough and Blue Guides, then be sure that someone else on the trip is carrying the DK. Or buy the books you need, and then just scan the pages you need to bring with you.

DK's India is a work of joy. Very thorough and informative (including phrase books for five languages and tons of practical tips). Bought it in India and browsed through it as we visited places doubling the wonder of each experience. Written and put together by obviously a great team of writers, illustrators, art historians, photographers, editors and seasoned travellers. I am now finding that it is great for easy-chair travel around India also. Wonderful. Shabash!

As an Indian and Indophile, I found the layout of this book quite unique. It is not only a travel guide but also a concise historical, cultural and culinary guide.The photographs, plans and descriptions are so well done that I am reading it as I would a novel, reveling in every page!I am learning so much about the land of my birth through this book.Thanks to the writers and the editor for a magnificent job.Krishna Jayaraman

I was delighted to read your review of the Eyewitness Travel Guide to India. As the project editor of this title, I would like to add a few words on why this guide is special. First, it is the only international guide to India written entirely by Indians. This makes it more accurate, more authentic and more full of insights into Indian culture, customs and lesser known aspects of the country than any of the other guides. Apart from the well known sights, this guide also covers fascinating off-the-beaten track places and subjects that most other guides do not cover. Our special features on themes such as religion and iconography, Indian music and dance, and the great epics make these complex subjects easily accessible to a foreign visitor. This guide is like a visual encyclopedia, and is as much a book for the armchair traveller, or an India enthusiast, as for the first time traveller.Please do however give the correct names for the editors of the 2 Eyewitness travel titles on India. The editor of the Delhi, Agra Jaipur Eyewitness Guide is Aruna Ghose. The editor of the India Eyewitness Travel Guide is Nandini Mehta.I look forward to reading reviews of these titles by your readers.