Lonely Planet Scandinavian and Baltic Europe

This book is obviously aimed at the budget traveler, and does its job well enough, pointing out clean and cheap places to stay, eat, and get around. It doesn't have much to offer however to those travelers who'd like to sleep and dine a notch up. It gives adequate overviews of the cities, but I found the cultural particulars lacking.It seems to have a bias toward Disney style miniature villages etc., more than major museums. Or perhaps that's just Scandanavia; I haven't been there yet, am still in the process of planning a trip this summer. When you don't have a lot of time you want to know the outstanding sights in museums you'll visit, since you won't be able to see everything. Like most travel guides, this one will work better if you also read its competition, such as Fodors, Michelin Green, Insight in planning your trip. LONELY PLANT however, by skipping those glitzy color photos that might lure you away from home in the first place, creates a light and compact package that's sufficient for the journey, as long as you've used other guides and resources for advance planning.

Give credit to Lonely Planet for packing all of these areas together in one book. It would have been very easy to keep Iceland, Faroe Islands separate, the Baltic States separate, and a St. Petersburg city guide in a different book or just with Lonely Planet Russia. Besides the fact that the area it covers is very comprehensive, here's why I like this book over others. Lonely Planet does a great job covering budget options for food, hostels/pensions/hotels, and activities. The city maps are extremely comprehensive. For example, there are exact points for each place to stay, place to eat, and other important landmarks (train station, post office, bus station, sights, etc.) in each city map. How easy is that! In addition, Lonely Planet is the best guide to cover how to get there, get around, and get away. I find that many guides only assume you are getting around by Eurail or bus. And unlike other guides that treat only the major cities and outlying areas (Frommers, for example), Lonely Planet is just as concerned with telling you where to find the smaller, less-crowded parts of Scandinavia and Baltic Europe (Norway's fjords, Iceland's hot springs, etc.) Without a doubt, get this book.

Lonely Planet Scandanavia made my recent journey up north easier. the book covers nearly every aspect necessary for travel. The additional information regarding history and culture gave me a rare insight into the cities i visited. The range of accomodations, however, is limited but sufficient.