Istanbul to Cairo on a Shoestring (Lonely Planet Istanbul to Cairo: Classic Overland Route) [Paperback]

Andrew Humphreys (Author), Jeff Williams (Author)

Book Description

Series: Lonely Planet Istanbul to Cairo: Classic Overland Route | Publication Date: January 2000

Guides the budget traveller along the popular Istanbul to Cairo route covering the Middle East's most fascinating and accessible countries - Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian Territories, and Egypt. Includes up-to-date information on border crossings, visa formalities and transport options.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'Lonely Planet books speak the language of youthful, independent, tourist-trap-avoiding travellers'

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Product Details

• Paperback: 512 pages
• Publisher: Lonely Planet Publications; 1St Edition edition (January 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0864427492
• ISBN-13: 978-0864427496
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,552,050 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #38 in Books > Travel > Africa > Egypt > Cairo
  • #94 in Books > Travel > Asia > Turkey > Istanbul

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Guidebook, May 4, 2000

By 

"joet1" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Istanbul to Cairo on a Shoestring (Lonely Planet Istanbul to Cairo: Classic Overland Route) (Paperback)

Wandering through the bustling Istanbul Grand Bazaar, exploring the Syrian desert oasis ruins of Palmyra, feeling like Indiana Jones in front of the amazing rock temples and treasuries of Petra, floating along the Nile, and swimming with schools of the most remarkable exotic fish in the Red Sea are just a fraction of the adventures to be had while exploring the 'cradle of civilizaion.' Lonely Planet once again scores big with a very accurate and informative guidebook that is ESSENTIAL for navigating through this region of the world. I used this book as my primary guide along the Istanbul-Cairo route and found its maps, hotel and restaurant suggestions, itinerary suggestions, and even bus/train timetables to be right on cue with reality and far more informative than its rival guidebook companies. The Istanbul to Cairo overland route is an amazing experience, and this book has a great abundance of information about travelling through there. Still, however, I suggest as always purchasing LP's individual country books as well, in that they go more into depth. If you are interested primarily in travelling though this book's countries (Turkey, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Israel, and Egypt) then I would suggest this book over LP's general Middle East book and DEFINITELY over the Let's Go Middle East book, for this edition has more maps, accurate info, and details than either of its two rivals. Good luck and safe travels!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Very good, if..., August 26, 2001

By 

Wyote (Seoul) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Istanbul to Cairo on a Shoestring (Lonely Planet Istanbul to Cairo: Classic Overland Route) (Paperback)

This book outlines an excellent journey from Istanbul to Cairo, with all the detail and information we expect from Lonely Planet. The only problem emerges if you want to take a different route than the one they've outlined. They make hardly any allowance for this possibility, and this is the book's fatal flaw. Use it as a suggestion book, as a guide; but consider buying a guide to the Middle East instead, and thus providing yourself with much more information on the places between Istanbul and Cairo, places you may want to visit even though they're "off the beaten track." For instance, with more information I chose to go South through Jordan, ferry to Egypt, and then go back North into Israel, ending in Jerusalem. This made sites such as Petra in Jordan and St. Anthony's Monastery in Egypt fit nicely on the itinerary, and for me ending in Jerusalem provided a more fitting climax. No one trip can fit everyone. Whatever your desires, consider a guidebook that presents more options. Make sure you include Istanbul, Ephesus, Damascus, Baalbek, Beirut, Petra, Jerusalem, Cairo. Strongly consider Nazareth, Haifa, Luxor, and Mt. Sinai. Have fun!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars not bad, April 11, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Istanbul to Cairo on a Shoestring (Lonely Planet Istanbul to Cairo: Classic Overland Route) (Paperback)

I used this book for Israel and Jordan. I liked the layout and found it useful. The entries for each country are basically abbreviated versions of Lonely Planet's single-country books. Instead of giving it five starts, I'm giving it only four because I usually found the city maps to be deplorable. These maps are more like sketches than real maps. The main problem is that all the city streets are not on the maps, and the steets that are there often don't have their names. This makes it impossible to orient oneself when lost, and it is very difficult to find something marked on a steet that has no name on the map and located amidst other streets that aren't on the map. I realized I was not alone in this appraisal when I went to the tourist information office in Eilat, Israel. I asked where a bicycle shop was and asked the man to show me where it was on Lonely Planet's map. He glanced at the map and had obviously seen it before because he gave a disgusted grunt and brushed the book aside saying, "That's not a map," and proceeded to give me verbal directions.