Lonely Planet Bolivia: Travel Survival Kit

As always, this is a piece of lullage well worth its price and its weight. It contains unparalleled advice on how to get around in this wonderful land, from the heights bordering Peru to the low lands of Cochabamba and Santa Cruz. The advice is clear, well-writte, useful, and entertaining at the same time. Its only problem is that it dates back to 1996, and lots of things have changed since then.

Lonely planet is definately a must for those planning on travelling in Bolivia. During my stay there, I used the extensive knowledge provided in Lonely Planet to find the best attractions, places to stay, places to eat and most importantly places to see. Not only that, but it also provides a basic guide to the laungueges spoken there and helpful hints and tips. It was known by many simply as the 'Bible'. HOWEVER... One must remeber that the latest edition of this book was printed in 1996 - a lot has changed in 4 years, so don't go expecting everything it says to be true, because its not. The best option would be to buy this book and back it up with another more recent guide book on Bolivia. Other than that, its a super little book - great for thumbing through and easy to carry in your rucksack.

This is the best travel guide I have ever used. It is one of two guidebooks (LP Lonely Planet Peru was the other) that gave me enough info. to know for certain where I did and did not want to visit before I went. Description was given as to what inexpensive hotels were nice to hang out in (provided unique and interesting features - not just a list of facilities) so I made for those places as soon as I got off the bus (beating other tourists). Enough detail was given about various Andean treks that we had chosen one before we left home and had selected the recommended agency. Ditto for our week-long jungle adventure. The book even included names of reputable tour guides, one of whom I used in Sucre. Don't leave home without it!

Bought the book before the trip and studied it. Toured Bolivia with my daughter who had been in-country for over a year as a Peace Corps Volunteer, and I managed to show her a few things. In fact she confiscated the book when I came home so I had to buy another for future reference. The information is accurate and as timely as can be, given the publication date. Perhaps too much emphasis is placed on back-packers, but there is gold there for the rest of us.