The backpacker's bible

REVIEWS BY BRUCE TIERNEY

For 25-odd years, Lonely Planet Guides have been known as the "backpacker's bibles." Well-thumbed copies can be found in inexpensive hotel rooms from Catalonia to Kathmandu. Experienced travelers highlight passages in them, dog-ear the pages, scribble copious notes in the margins, even tear out sections for the places they plan to visit next. LP Guides come in several flavors:

Shoestring Guides, designed for people with more time than money. These guidebooks typically cover entire continents, and they are indispensable for the sort of travel that takes you from, say, the Darien Gap to Tierra del Fuego via local buses, trains and donkey carts. The newest in the series is South America on a Shoestring, but the other four titles (Europe, Africa, Southeast Asia and Central America) have all been heavily revised within the past year.


City Guides, which cover 54 of the world's most fascinating urban travel destinations. There are newly updated editions this season on Dublin, Hong Kong and Macau and Sydney. These guides go into far more detail than most guidebooks, particularly in the helpful areas of finding cheap eats and a place to sleep.


Activity Guides, which include such diverse recent titles as Diving and Snorkeling: Philippines, Cycling Vietnam and Watching Wildlife: Southern Africa. Each is chock-full of tips on safety, photography and sightseeing, as well as the usual attention to detail regarding lodgings, food and other basic necessities.


Designed for anyone on a budget, LP Guides offer travelers the prospect of uncovering untold treasures in each new destination and returning home with their personal treasury intact.

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