Lonely Planet Peru (Country Guide)
by Paul Hellander, Rafael Wlodarski, Sara Benson
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Book Reviews of Lonely Planet Peru (Country Guide)
Book Review: Great place to start, but I wanted more
Summary: 3 Stars
My family used this guide on our recent trip to Peru and it certainly gave us the basic information. It was a good place to start while planning our trip. We used it extensively.
In general, the organization of the book could be better. I believe it is targeted at the younger crowd as there is extensive information on clubs and night life as well as adventure travel, but not all that much for families with younger children (i.e. some child friendly itinerary suggestions would be nice) although they do address most concerns that families have. We didn't see that many families with children traveling in Peru, so maybe it's not a popular destination for families, but my 8 year old loved it!
I was disappointed in the index. It was difficult to find some information that I knew was in there--had already read it--but then couldn't find it again. I was also disappointed in the lack of any small phrasebook section except a brief one in the food section of the book. I did not want to pack a separate phrasebook (traveling light in Peru is very helpful) and my Spanish is mediocre at best.
Book Review: Good general guide
Summary: 3 Stars
Peru is one of the most amazing countries in the world. The mountains are as spectacular as the Himalayas, and the deep canyons, remote jungles, and fabulous surfing beaches give an adventure traveler lots of options. The Lonely Planet guidebook is very helpful for exploring these vast resources. There are many good maps, and I have found there recommendations for hotels, and places of interest extremely helpful on occasion. They also include lots of tidbits about culture, history, and safety. The biggest problem with Lonely Planet is that it is very widely used, and the recommended hotels are suddenly crowded and prices can rapidly change. I have also met a few authors while traveling, and their budgets and time frames do not allow them to thoroughly check out all the places. I recommend buying this book, but keep your eyes and ears open. Many of the best places that I have found have been by word of mouth from other travelers, or just roaming the streets. Bus schedules and restaurants change rapidly, so it is best to inquire at the local stations. Dancing on the Edge of an Endangered PlanetBook Review: RIGHT ON LONELY PLANET PERU
Summary: 5 Stars
The LONELY PLANET guides are always my one stop source guide when I travel. It was my bible on my trip to PERU. There aren't a lot of travel guides written about Peru but LONELY PLANET had the information I needed. The series always provides insight into the history and culture of a country. Peru is tranforming itself into a tourist country. It's a work in progress so realize that information can become quickly outdated once a book is published. Restaurants open and close, details on museums change so keep that in mind with any travel guide. I traveled to several cities and found the LONELY PLANET guide to be immensely useful. Lonely Planet guides are great for people of all budgets. Hotels and restaurants are broken down into budget and expensive. You have the choice. I used LONELY PLANET PERU to make my hotel decisions and couldn't have been more pleased with their honest recommendations. If a place is shabby but has a great staff and location, Lonely Planet will tell it like it is. I found their suggestions and recommendations to be right on the mark.Book Review: Choose a different guide!
Summary: 2 Stars
Lonely Planet typically does a decent job with its guide books and I have bought quite a few of them. However, Lonely Planet Peru does not make the cut. This book is awful. I just purchased the newest version (2007) for a trip to Peru in May 2007 and the information in the book was almost useless.
First, there is a lot of incorrect information. For example, we had our hearts set on eating at a restaurant recommended by Lonely Planet in Cusco, but when we got to the address, we found that the restaurant was out of business. Also discovered that many addresses are wrong. Descriptions of the bus trip from Puno, Peru to La Paz, Bolivia are misleading, and the overall organization of the book is confusing and very disappointing.
Do yourself a favor and look for a different Peru guide book.
Book Review: A decent travel guide for the economy traveler
Summary: 4 Stars
I use the Lonely Planet travel guides all of the time. They are of great help in trip planning. I am a budget traveler normally, being more interested in seeing the local sights and local aves than in staying at 5 star hotels. This travel guide fills that purpose explicitly. My one critique is that smaller towns are not very well covered if at all. The guide does provide very useful information on bus connections and where the bus stations are located. The maps are not always completely accurate and the locations specified for restaurants and hotels are not always exactly where they should be, but for the volume of information that is covered they due a more than sufficient job. The book is very good about providing internet addresses to various Peru links.