Explorer's Guide Northern California (Explorer's Complete) [Paperback]

Michele Bigley (Author)

Book Description

Series: Explorer's Complete | Publication Date: June 1, 2009

In addition to tourist attractions such as the Fisherman’s Wharf, this guide presents the authentic Northern California experience.

Explorer’s Guide Northern California offers the most up-to-date information on the region, from Big Sur to Yosemite, north to the Oregon Border while, urging travelers to understand the impact of their footprint on the land. With detailed descriptions of lodging options, honest reviews of restaurants, from taco trucks to upscale bistros, cultural attractions, natural wonders, recreation, transportation, history scattered throughout each listing, over 100 photos, and maps, readers will feel like they are getting a tour around this beautiful land from an old friend. 100 black-and-white photographs and maps

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

World traveler and longtime San Franciscan, Michele Bigley has written about her travels for over a decade. Her wanderlust has taken her to over thirty countries and almost every state in the US. She is the author of Explorer's Guide Kauai: A Great Destination and Explorer’s Guide Northern California, as well as innumerable fiction pieces and travel articles.

Product Details

• Paperback: 560 pages
• Publisher: Countryman Press (June 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0881508322
• ISBN-13: 978-0881508321
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #147,365 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An encyclopedia for Northern California travel, June 15, 2010

By 

Roy W. Latham (Fremont, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Explorer's Guide Northern California (Explorer's Complete) (Paperback)

This book is amazing in its scope. It covers the details of places you didn't even know were places. That makes it ideal when you have picked a general location, but want to know the restaurants and attractions in that area. The book conveniently divides "Where to Eat" into "Dining out" and "Eating out" categories. We are usually in the more-or-less "cheap eats" category of "Eating out," but it's also good to prepare for the occasional splurge. The recommendations we have tested so far have been reliable. The author noted one popular restaurant famous for it's expensive (about $20) lobster sandwich, saying that she had serious problems with spending that much on a sandwich, no matter what. That's exactly my thinking!

The book has addresses, phone numbers, and website references. I hate to be so geeky, but I'll suggest the author add GPS coordinates for some of the more remote attractions. Street numbers on Highway 1 may not work in GPS, and some places, like Point Lobos State Reserve, don't have assigned street addresses that can be referenced, so they exist only as directions (e.g., three miles south of Carmel). The Apple Hill area could use a little more detail. These are nits; the book is terrific!

This is the guidebook to get if you live in Northern California or if you are a serious visitor.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent! Even helpful for the local who thinks they "know" Northern California!, June 1, 2009

By 

A. Nachman (berkeley, ca United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Explorer's Guide Northern California (Explorer's Complete) (Paperback)

With so many places to visit in northern California, I look forward to using this book as an on-going reference while out and about and for longer term planning of adventures. There are so many excellent aspects of this book that I look for in a travel book, including helpful hints for traveling as a family, camping in nature, eating good food and finding off the beaten path adventures. In addition, I love that this book supports and takes a preference for local businesses. Awesome book and great for any budget.

3.0 out of 5 stars Not all that helpful, May 20, 2011

By 

Cinnamon "peace" (PORTLAND, OR, United States) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Explorer's Guide Northern California (Explorer's Complete) (Paperback)

I thought this book would be good for our road trip though Northern California, however we did not find that much useful into here. Used our other books more. It is lacking in maps as well.