Customer Reviews

Lonely Planet Coastal California (Regional Travel Guide)

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

 

 

I stumbled onto this travel guide and it truly made all the difference! I recently took a road trip from San Diego up to San Francisco. My boyfriend and I chose to stick mainly to Highway One. This lonely planet coastal book was the best information guide ever..We got to read about the main highlights of each town including accommodations, restaurants,activities, shopping and price ranges for everything. We tried all of their "top picks" and they never failed to disappoint. This is a must have guide!

The third updated edition of Coastal California expands its outdoors chapter to include surfing and hiking, offering new highlights of kid-friendly options and identifying sustainable ideas for an eco-friendly trip. Each area is broken down by region and includes tips on getting there, accommodations, nature and outdoors as well as local festival and entertainment options, and more, making this a 'must' take-along tote and reference for any California collection.

Book has a lot of useful information for a first time visitor to coastal California. However comments about several towns we had planned on visiting turned out to be rather snooty and inaccurate. For instance, a friend had suggested we include Solvang in our itinerary, but the book made it sound like a tourist trap. I actually tried to avoid staying there. Fortunately we ended up staying a day in Solvang, and now regret we didn't allow more time for it. A more adult edition of the work could make it a much better guide.

This book was a big disappointment. The book is designed for those really interested in backpacking, hiking and camping in ecofriendly ways. Not nearly enough information about doing anything else. Recommendations are too short to be helpful.

Love Lonely Planet guides, and this is a nice one that won't take up much room. However, it is basically just the same PCH info copied from the Lonely Planet California guide. I was expecting more in-depth info on PCH.

I picked up this book at the bookstore when I was planning a trip to the coast north of San Francisco. It caught my attention because it recommended I avoid the touristy Fisherman's Wharf area, a sentiment I could not agree with more. For the most part, it's standard fare. It tells you the must see attractions, provides maps, and lists amenities needed for any visit to an unfamiliar place.

The standout feature of this book is the restaurant recommendations. Without fail, all of the recommendations have been excellent. Usually they're tiny hole in the wall places with amazing food that I never would have stumbled upon without a guidebook or local to point me in the right direction.

Note that I've only visited the coast from Mendocino down to Monterey, but I haven't been led wrong yet. This book has become an essential item to bring along on my coastal road trips along with my detailed California atlas and credit card.