Lonely Planet Thailand

I just returned from a month in Thailand and found the Lonely Planet Guide to be very impressive. Several things to remember is that: a) if the publishing date is 2005 the content is probably several months to a year older. b) if you have local friends and/or family the guide will still be useful but not nearly so compared to a traveler who is on their own. You might keep thinking why the guide doesn't cover something that your in country friend gives you great info or insight into. Relax, the LP guide, despite its heft can only provide so much info. Comments on LPs logistics and highlights... 1) Logistics. Negative. There wasn't a lot of coverage given on the new low fare airlines that are now available but this might be because these airlines did not exist in force when the research was done. Positive. I traveled on local bus, long distance bus, train, taxi, moto-taxi, sky train, subway, regional airplane and even tuk-tuk. The guild had very precise information on how to get around locally and through out the country. This was probably the most helpful part of the book with information I was not able to find easily elsewhere. (Always keep in mind that prices and times will change though.) Highlights. Negatives. I could tell that the writers have a particular perspective on what is a highlight and what is not. They love the Wats or temples. I admit that many are incredible and worth the journey. But there are many, many, many of them. After seeing a few Wats, Wat fatigue set. The point is to keep your own interests in mind and not let the guide pick too much of what you decide to do. Positives. I enjoyed many of the suggestions in the book including the cooking school in Kanchanaburi, walking the alleys of Chinatown in Bangkok, a particularly spectacular guest house in Koa Tao, etc.. My highlights were definitely not the guide's highlights but were found in the guide. Thailand has a lot to see and the LP guide does an admirable job within the limits of the print format. Now get out there!

Thoroughly dissatisfied with our original travel guide we were lucky enough to get Joe Cumming's "travel-bible" as a present in the middle of our journey. It really made a huge difference and turned our holidays into a unique experience. The descriptions of accommodation facilities turned out to be amazingly accurate and the numerous tips regarding means of travel were extremely helpful indeed. This truly comprehensive and well written guide provided us with very useful recommendations regarding travel routes, accommodation, and sightseeing while at the same time offering a thorough insight into the country's political, socio-economic and cultural background. However, one should not mistake it for a scientific essay but take it for what it is: A practical travel guide. Going by "Tuk Tuk" in Bangkok is a great experience but take Cumming's warning seriously and beware of drivers trying to guide you to cheap "promotion outlets" since these are nothing but tourist traps! The LP is an essential guide to getting around and finding interesting spots in Thailand and leads you safely to cheap but decent accommodation in almost every part of the country.

We went to Thailand on honeymoon and were in no doubt that this would be a fantastic experience. This was made all the better having a copy of the LP guide. What a god send. We found it user friendly, a great read, thorough and useful for us as we went off the beaten track. Overall, we would recommend this to anyone who has a sense of adventure and wants to see and experience the real Thailand.

We recently returned from a two week, self-organized tour of Thailand and Laos. Joe's books were our "Bible". We had family reasons for visiting Roi-Et, an out-of-the-way provincial capital in the northeast. We found very useful maps and descriptions even here. His warning about touts at the Chiang Mai bus station was right on, but beware even if you choose your own taxi driver and hotel (ours tried to guide us to a "better deal"). Another warning: An overnight bus ride in the winter can be like being in a refrigerator if the air con won't turn off. The low to medium priced hotels we chose from his guide for Bangkok, Chiang Mia, Khonkaen, and Vientiane (Laos guide) were all excellent. The recommended Khonkaen Silk Festival was really great, both the silk clothing and the Maw Lam music. One omission that we enjoyed (1 km jeep track & 1 km hike): The Borichinda Cave just inside the entrance to Doi Inthanon National Park.

I just returned from my latest trip to Thailand where I used the latest copy of Joe Cummings' guide. As always it's excellent; reflecting the expertise you'd expect from somebody who's lived there for so long. His writing style is informed and he doesn't gloss over important details that aren't always positive. There's nothing worse than a guidebook that reads like Conde Nast Traveller. If you can't travel with Joe, the next best thing is to buy a copy of his guidebook. He's found places nobody else has found throughbout the country including on the back streets of Bangkok.