Customer Reviews

The 10 Best of Everything: An Ultimate Guide for Travelers (National Geographic Ten Best of Everything: An Ultimate Guide)

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I'm at the point in my life where I have the time and the money to travel. Where should I go? This book provides great ideas of where to start. Of course, it's subjective. But, it allows one to start researching about the authors' top 10 spots. Also, like all top 10 lists, it allows discussions and debates among friends and families which also spring up other destination spots not listed in the book.

Some of lists include The 10 Best:
* Beaches
* Islands
* Climbs
* Walk & Hiking Tours
* Gardens
* U.S. National Parks
* Hideaway & Inns
* Cruises
* Drives
* Vistas
* Delis
* Patisseries
* Chocolates
* and much more

Colorful and nicely pictured, it makes a great gift for the travel-challenged...like me.

If. If. If. If only life was made for carefree voyages of exploration around this planet of ours. 10 Best of Everything is another volume in the genre of fantasy tourism. (Because who on earth could ever do even one fraction of everything that's listed?) This thick book details the best sites on earth in such categories as best golf courses, best tea shoppes, best sites along the Silk Road, best airlines to take, best places in the US National Park system, best sites in Rome, best places to have a good steak, best places to go in the Loire Valley, and many more bests as well. This is a nice book to peruse and if time and money were not factors, spending one's days trekking through the recommendations here would make for a memorable lifetime. 10 Best has beautiful photography worthy of the imprimatur of the National Geographic Society that rests on its cover, and everyone can probably find something in here that actually registers as a destination on their ultimate vacation list. Where other guides might be heavy on words, this one is loaded with illustrations and bite-sized snippets of fact, and it's as enjoyable to look at this lavish, heavyweight book as it is to read its well-written descriptions of cities, roadways, restaurants, hotels, diving expeditions, and the shopping malls of Madrid. It's a fun book!

Beginning with the introduction, I was taken on a fabulous journey. These gifted authors write a wonderful narrative. Lande's Snapshots add a lot to this impressive and comprehensive companion. They are as engaging as any short story in the New Yorker!
I found the collection of old posters designer appealing integrated with beautiful photography, as one would expect from National Geographic.
The Guide is uniquely for both armchair and active travelers and TWO books in one. The first carefully expertly evaluates Top Ten lists on everything travel related, from Hotels to Hideaways, National Parks to International Markets. Subjective of course. We all have our favorites. I particularly liked a chapter called "Ten Best Things to do on Sunday Afternoons in Ten Cities".
PART TWO includes Literary and Historical journeys, elevating this travel guide above all others. Ready made and travel ready. I'm on my way on the Road to Mandalay!
The book ends at lands end, with a country-by-country supplement to best destinations. What a travel kit! National Geographic's Ten Best of Everything is passport perfect in every way. You'll love every moment.

This superb book immediately earned a place of honor on the shelf of Very Special Favorites in my personal library, and has retained that position each time I've succumbed to the delightful temptation of re-reading it. I recommend it enthusiastically and wholeheartedly.

Unique in purpose and content, "THE 10 BEST OF EVERYTHING: PASSPORT TO THE BEST, An Ultimate Guide for Travelers" stands well above today's flood of look-alike travel and "best-of" books, and measures up to top travel literature from the past. Selective without being superficial, it's a great read. It evoked resonant memories of places I know and love (New York, Buenos Aires, the Amalfi Coast...), offered new takes on subjects I *thought* I knew (cameras, coffees, Paris...), and enticed me to add to my agenda much I might never have considered (Antarctica, comfy hand-made mattresses from London, a jet-boat safari through a New Zealand World Heritage area...). And it's great fun: the colorful tales with which these two master travelers and raconteurs regale us ("Waiting for MacPherson", "The Chair: Backstage at the Bolshoi"...) make me wish that I'd been along for the ride on their past adventures and that they'd accompany my future ones -- or at least plan my itineraries!

The clever organization and interweaving of this book's rich contents exemplify "thinking outside the box". It's really several books in one. Aside from the authors' personal recommendations and reminiscences and their wealth of ingeniously arranged lists, from which you'll be hard-pressed to tear yourself away, you also get what amounts to an exquisite art book -- the text is lavished with gorgeous historic travel posters and other travel-related art, providing evocative scenery for an armchair tour.

I marveled at the authors' combined range of experience and expertise, from high-end pursuits (Argentine polo, vintage wines, escapes to paradisiacal Malaysian resorts...) to equally satisfying simple pleasures that fit even the humblest budget (top-rated `burgers, flea/antique markets on several continents, awe-inspiring cathedrals for quiet contemplation, the religious experience of eating Arthur Bryant's barbecue in Kansas City...).

This book is a perfect and very classy gift at a reasonable price -- my holiday shopping will be VERY easy this year! It's already received raves from seasoned travelers to whom I've recommended it, and has inspired some friends who are confirmed homebodies to think about setting out to see the world.

More than all its absorbing narratives and intriguing recommendations, though, the real glory of this book is that it's a rare, totally unpedantic education in how to truly live well -- not necessarily expensively (although those seeking luxury couldn't have more savvy mentors than the Landes!), but to the fullest. The book has been a beacon illuminating the path between my dreams and the memorable journeys they're becoming.

I was very disappointed in this book. I expected better from National Geographic. There are a lot of inaccuracies, for example suggesting a theatre visit as one of the ten best things to do in London on a Sunday afternoon - almost all theatres are closed on Sunday and that one definitely is. So how accurate is the rest of it? The hotels and restaurants are the most expensive you could possibly find, but the most expensive are not always the best and the average reader could never follow these recommendations. It's a snob's guide. Don't waste your money.

If I had to choose only one travel guide it would undeniably be The 10 Best of Everything. As a seasoned traveler, I have found authors Nathaniel and Andrew Lande's encyclopedic work to mirror my own opinions in regard to my experience's and those of my well-traveled friends. This gorgeous book is an exciting read, informative guide, and beautiful piece of art to glance through with its very lush design. A truly awesome achievement.

This book is not only full of great recommendations, but also enjoyable reading for places one might not get a chance to visit. The food recommendations are, by and large, impeccable, though one might register a few minor cavils when one's favorite place isn't the same as that of the authors.

Travel connoisseurs and armchair readers alike will relish these descriptions of some thirty top trips gathered by veteran travelers Nathaniel and Andrew Lande: trips to museums, ski and tropical resorts, gardens, train trips and more. Also included are cruises, wines, hideaways, and landmarks on nearly every continent. The authors are a world traveler and a food and wine expert: their recommendations are choice, top picks.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

Nathaniel and Andrew Lande have crafted a beautifully written book,
taking you around the world in 480 pages that are informative and fun!
There is nothing like it.
The personal narratives landmark these travelers' companion miles over
any other guide. Seasoned experts, while subjective, have researched
selections.
The 10 Best of Everything is illustrated with rare vintage travel
posters and labels, and perfect photography. Along with passport to the
best top ten lists including hideaways, sports, restaurants, cruises,
cameras, chocolates, marketplaces, beaches, tailors, patisseries and
perfumes, are historical and literary journeys to engage every armchair
traveler. Lande's List is a treasure of inside impressive information
combined with famous contributors, sidebars, and wonderful amusing
stories called Snapshots. The Guide sets a new standard. I know. I
collect travel books. A perfect gift for travelers to explore
everything everywhere. National Geographic has published a 10!
J

i saw this book at a doctor's office and had a sufficient enough wait to be able to leaf through it. this is a 'must buy', chock full of fabulous tips. it passed my test when i found a couple of my 'where to go, what to do best kept secrets' inside. a great gift to your self or another.