Customer Reviews

Explore Puerto Rico Fifth Edition

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I had the opportunity to acquire Harry Pariser's 5th edition to his guidebook, Explore Puerto Rico, recently.

This book is a remarkable piece of assistance to any visitor to Puerto Rico. The single most important fact is his attention to detail. He has packed this volume with more useful information than any other similar book - and it is good helpful information to assist the new or veteran travel to Puerto Rico.

I have a friend who was at one time in his life was the station manager for the South Pole Station in Antarctica. One of his views of life is that you cannot have too many maps. So what does this have to do with Pariser's guidebook to Puerto Rico? Mr. Pariser's maps are without question the clearest most accurate contained in any guidebook. Sometimes it is a challenge to correctly navigate the back roads of the island. The maps in the Pariser book will clearly be of assistance in this endeavor.

In additions to his maps, Pariser has a superior guide and evaluation to the many beaches of Puerto Rico. The desirability of a given beach is in the eye of the beholder and varies with what one wants. Mr. Pariser gives you the information you need to start your search for your perfect Puerto Rican Beach. For example, he discussed the handicapped access to the ocean at Luquillo; other guidebooks seem to overlook this information that is essential to those with disabilities.

Mr. Pariser also discusses what you can do to make you beach visit a little more "friendly" for the sea turtles that lay their eggs on the same beach at night. It is truly a pity that other guidebooks don't demonstrate a similar concern for those with whom we share the beach.

The book also contains really first rate discussions of culture, history, environmental concerns, restaurants and hotels. (I do think he was a little too hard on Coors beer thought - read his book to find out why; but remember this is a guidebook to Puerto Rico, not beers of the world. I drink Medallia beer when I am in Puerto Rico; and recommend it over both Coors and Bud!) If I had my choice at the moment, I would be on one of Harry's beaches reading his book to find tomorrow's beach.

If you are in the market for a guidebook to Puerto Rico, I heartily recommend you get Harry Pariser's Explore Puerto Rico.

I used this book on a recent trip to Puerto Rico along with the Lonely Planet guide. Explore Puerto Rico was more comprehensive and up to date. I found museums, beaches, snorkeling spots, rock art, restaurants and out of the way hotels that I otherwise would not have found. I compared the two books thoroughly, as I was both in the interior mountainous regions, as well as the beaches. The detailed maps are extremely helpful, as are the tips and charts, and Harry's photography is again: incomparable (I own his other books, as well) He often digs down and gives a lot more information about the culture, and background which I always find refreshing, and his sense of humor is low key. I recommend this book, and his others, as well. Great revised edition!

Having used 3 guides on our most recent trip to Puerto Rico, Mr.Pariser's is weak in many aspects. Many of his phone numbers are wrong or have a digit missing. You can guess at which places he writes about and probably never saw in person. A lot of his writing needs proofreading as it looks sloppy and unedited. He doesn't describe restaurants in very helpful ways and seems pretty clueless understanding the culture. In fact, he didn't seem to care very much about what underlies today's Puerto Rico- the history, politics, cultural traditions. This book seems more like a journalistic assignment and less like a meaningful undertaking for the author. Pariser brings no passion to the subject.

I agree with the previous reviewer. There is a lot of inaccurate information (phone numbers, prices) and there is much that is not included, as compared with other guides. It does seem that the author has "heard" about, rather than experienced first hand, some of the things he includes. For the independent, budget traveller, I would not recommend this book. I just returned from Puerto Rico and used Lonely planet and Let's go PR. Let's go was the best one of the bunch! LP was next best. If you have to choose one, Let's Go would be it. On the other hand, if $$ is not the primary concern, Explore Puerto Rico does include more complete and interesting historical review and details of the environment and makes for a good read for a day at the beach.

This book takes you off the beaten path and into small towns and villages, through the rainforest (there are pages on El Yunque) and down to explore caves. Pariser likes to explore not only the terrain of Puerto Rico with its natural forests, beaches and snorkeling spots, but he also likes the local color and likes to meet the local people. Every festival day is covered and every little town seems to have one. Of course there are listings of hotels and guesthouses, restaurants and lunch spots, not only in San Juan, but in the surfing mecca of Rincon, in Ponce, and plenty of other places. Bus routes and driving directions are given. A visit to the small island of Culebra is another adventure.
Old San Juan gets strong coverage, plus there is a good section where typical Puerto Rican menu items are translated (you'll need that outside of the big hotel area since many residents do not speak English). A quick Spanish Vocabulary in the back gives you the most common phrases at a glance.
The history and culture sections are sprinkled throughout the book with lots of opinions on everything from colonialism to greenhouse emissions to the ritual of sea turtles laying their eggs. Pariser packs a lot into a single guide and his historical sidebars are fascinating.

It was a refreshingly honest look at the island and its culture. Rarely does a guide book both respect a place and give you the 'warts and all' assessment of what goes down there and how. Very glad to have bought and read it!

We found this book to be really interesting and helpful. It's funny the silly things some of these posters complain about! We found it to be one of the better books, and we stayed in many smaller places we found in here. It also helped us find nightlife (although there is not a lot in Puerto Rico, except in San Juan) and get around. We think some of these people writing here should write the author with their suggestions so this good book can be even better. We used the author's previous edition some years ago, and this one is much better.

I used this book on a recent trip to Puerto Rico along with the Lonely Planet guide. Explore Puerto Rico was more comprehensive and up to date. I found museums, beaches, snorkeling spots, rock art, restaurants and out of the way hotels that I otherwise would not have found. I compared the two books thoroughly, as I was both in the interior mountainous regions, as well as the beaches. The detailed maps are extremely helpful, as are the tips and charts, and Harry's photography is again: incomparable (I own his other books, as well) He often digs down and gives a lot more information about the culture, and background which I always find refreshing, and his sense of humor is low key. I recommend this book, and his others, as well. Great revised edition!

We used this guide both planning a trip and while touring Puerto Rico and found it enormously helpful. It was especially fine for treking the countryside and beachside spots. The book well describes off the beaten track scenic places with surprisingly accurate details on small local sites and restaurants. The maps were a big help as were the color photos, travel tips, and stuff
on history, culture, and nature. I think anyone who likes birding, hiking, watersports will be pleased to get a copy of Explore Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rico means "rich port" and this guide will introduce the reader to all of the riches that the island has to offer including the only tropical National Forest in the U.S. Detailed visitor information is provided for the major cities, small towns and the outer regions of the main island but this guide also dedicates several pages to each of the two other islands just off of Puerto Rico: Vieques and Culebra. There is even information about the least known of the offshore islands, Mona Island. Readers will find descriptive accounts of music, festivals, foods, sports & sporting events, hiking tours, accommodations and entertainment. Learn how to spot migrating humpback whales between December and May, search the skies for the Puerto Rican parrot that is nearly extinct and explore the diminishing Mangroves that dampen waves and winds. Other interesting information is provided about native arts and crafts, locally produced beer and rum, sugar and coffee plantations, vanilla production and exportation. I visited Puerto Rico twice before reading Explore Puerto Rico and it helped me see that I discovered only a small fraction of what the island has to offer. I'll definitely use this guide on my next visit. Review by JoAnna Carey, Rat Race Relaxer: Your Potential & The Maze of Life