Customer Reviews

Lonely Planet Alaska

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

 

 

Along with Frommer's Alaska 2004, this is tied for first place among the Alaska travel guides. Especially for the outdoors stuff they include. There are 70+ maps inside, showing trails, waterways, etc., for the adventurer. And there is an entire section devoted to the top ten of hiking in Alaska. For an adventuring trip to Alaska, this book is great.

But I believe it's also the best of the "big 3" (Fodor's, Frommer's, Lonely Planet) as far as how much it encompasses overall. It is quite comprehensive for the tourist, pointing out all of the things a tourist may want to see, and it balances this with the same amount of equally useful information for people going to Alaska to kayak, hike, bike, and explore.

While I still enjoy the Frommer's Alaska more than any of the Alaska guides, this book has things that Frommer's doesn't when it comes to tourist-oriented sightseeing. Fodor's Alaska 2004, on the other hand, is almost entirely tourist-oriented, with little useful information for anyone going to Alaska to adventure. But this book is a solid guide, and I've taken it to Alaska with me on my adventuring trips. Worth the money, and my time to recommend this book!

We recently returned from 18 days of independent travel in Alaska (we arrived in Anchorage and drove to Denali, Fairbanks, Skagway, and Juneau - the last via ferry). We planned our trip using three travel guides: Fodor's, Lonely Planet, and The Milepost. We enjoy day hiking and outdoor activities, but we also enjoy luxury accomodations. Lonely Planet was the best resource for planning because of it's in-depth coverage of trails. The Milepost was a useful reference for travel restrictions, road conditions, and local advertising. I don't recommend Fodor's unless you're going on a cruise.

We just returned from a month of exploring Alaska and found this book very useful in planning. It has a less commercial view, so we appreciated the suggested accommodations and reviews of things to see. They were always right on target with the less commercial things highlighted. Very useful.

As a lifelong Alaskan and a frequent user of Lonely Planet, I peeked inside this book to see what it had to say about my home state.

The editors must have been asleep on the job! Within 5 minutes, I identified three glaring errors: neighboring Whitehorse was listed as "Whitehorse, British Columbia" (it's the capital of the Yukon!) and our governor and congresspeople were hopelessly mixed up. I would also dispute the assertion that it is possible to see bears in or around downtown Anchorage.

While none of those mistakes would seriously affect a tourist, I hate to imagine what else was overlooked in the editing process. It may be useful as a reference, but don't take it as the absolute truth, and double-check any information that's vital to your travel plans!

I'm going to take a cruise to Alaska this summer. And when I saw this book in the bookshop, I bought it immediately. It didn't say much about cruise and any helpful tips for the visitors. Also, it didn't describe the places with much details. If you are going to Alaska by YOURSELF (not tour guides) and you would like to do some investigation, then this book is for you.

If you hitchkiking, backpacking or not using an RV that this is your book. If you using a RV, this book as little value.