Lonely Planet Hanoi & Halong Bay Encounter [With Pull-Out Map]

The main plus with this book is that it conatined a fold out map of Hanoi. The map is paper and probably won't last more than a trip or two to Hanoi, but it was pretty detailed with a good street index. On a 5 day trip to Vietnam, I relied on this book more than most. It was pretty easy to use because it divided the city up into sections, so you could easily plan your time efficiently without criss-crossing town when it was not needed. I thought there was a lack of information about specifics, such as opening/closing times, admission prices, etc, taxi costs, etc. Also, a cab from the airport into town should cost about $15 USD or 250,000 Dong. Prices in Dong are usually quoted by dropping the three zeros (e.g. 250), so if someone quotes you a price of 2,500, they mean 2,500,000 Dong. For Lonely Planet, I thought these kinds of tips should have been included in the book, but they were lacking.

I have always enjoyed the writing in LP books. Everything is usually up to date and to the point. I wanted something quick to read on Hanoi and Halong Bay so I tried this out. This is my first Encounter book and I can say that I am very pleased with the quality of it. It's pretty small and can fit in your pocket or small bag. Have you tried carrying some of the LP big books with you? Not easy, especially if you're on foot from place to place. The book has a nice fresh design, good writing and covers the basics of the brief time you may have in a city. A nice added touch were several profiles on almost random citizens of the area. Cities are about the people too, not just the places you eat and sleep. Comes with several maps and a pullout map of the city. Well done LP.