Customer Reviews

Lonely Planet Bahamas Turks Caicos

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

 

 

Found the book useful as a starting point. Complete, thorough. Interesting tidbits. But when it came down to actually scheduling trips and tickets, I found out that most of the information was already out of date.

BahamasAir wasn't familiar with the AirPass, so I had to fax them the section where the author cattily railed on them. All they had to say was "interesting."

The suggested weekend and week trips were a little sketchy as well. In fact, when I had acutally arrived, I never used the book because of the terrific tourist infrastructure already in place.

Overall, I felt the author was a little harsh on his take with Bahamian culture, keeping a good sense of humor but almost crossing the line of offensive in some places.

People should remember that these tour books are a subjective peephole into their place of destination, and should always keep an open mind to discover for themselves.

I had a great time there.

I am usually a fan of Lonely Planet, but having just returned from Grand Bahama, I would not recommend this guide. Published in 2001, which means it was researched before that, it is quite out of date given the tough post 9/11 economy. Examples: Running Mon Resort- closed. Hydroflora gardens- closed. Rand Nature Center- closed. Many retailers- closed, moved, renamed, etc. Restaurant prices - way out of date.

Some of this is just irritating, but some is more dangerous- eg. LP suggests that, to get to Water Cay you drive the 'dirt road' to the 'north dock' and hire a boat from a local. Do it their way, and you may be a lot lonelier than you bargained for: That dirt road takes 45 minutes on a rutted logging road, lots of forks, no signs, and there is no dock- just a narrow ramp and a couple abandoned cars. High tide there swamps a good 2-300 yards of the shoreline. Time to do a new edition, guys!

I thought the maps provided were inadequate. For some reason, LP takes the trouble to make a map of Downtown Freeport with some of the restaurants (including a Burger King!?!) and attractions located and numbered, but they don't put the map number with the review! Add that to the Bahamian's indifference to street address numbers, street signs.

Conclusion: Not up to LP's usual standards. Though useful for background information, be prepared to check everything by phone or on the web before you depart. Or skip the guide and start with the web...

Excellent maps. More budget minded then most guide books. Gives actual prices for hotels, not just $ signs. Easy to read, and honest evaluations. Gives ideas of ways to cut costs. Full coverage of all islands, including out islands. Complement with one other guide and you'll be complete. Site coverages basic, but real use information such as days, times, how to get there.

This guide actually covers the out islands of the Bahamas with detailed coverage. The guide has most every place in the Bahamas covered down to the grains of the sandy beaches.

This is one of the best travel guides that I have read. I thought the political information about the Bahamas was really interesting. Just the level of detail--which is probably too much if you're just cruising to Nassau--but it really explains a lot about why things are the way they are in the Bahamas. I dont really use the Lonely Planet guides while on vacation because you dont need that much information. However they really help a lot when you are reasearching a destination.