Most Helpful Customer Reviews
36 of 37 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Finally!, May 11, 2000
By A Customer
Finally a travel guide for Croatia. For several years, Croatia was left out of the various larger, multiple-country guidebooks; somehow it wasn't considered a part of Eastern Europe or Central Europe! I have worked in this country for about two years, and recently had the opportunity to explore the coast with the help of this book. The information was excellent and quite accurate, considering a year or more has passed since the publication and much has changed in that time. The only quibbles: some mistakes in the pronunciation guide, and the suggestion that people try swimming in the Drava River, which is polluted--a friend of mine wound up in the hospital for a week after taking a dip. My colleagues and I had to laugh at that recommendation! Like most tourist information on Croatia, the book is strong on the Adriatic and weak on the rest of the country--admittedly, not quite as spectacular, but with some places of interest nonetheless. The book is compact, the perfect size for toting around, and includes lots of intriguing historical sidebars. It will need updating soon, as the country is going through considerable change.
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47 of 53 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Uncomplete and dated, August 29, 2002
Shortly: this is the worst ever Lonely Planet Guide that I bought. I have just returned home from Croatia and this book didn't help me at all. I could have had a 5-pound stone in my pocket and it could have helped me more. Explained: the book is absolutely incomplete because it simply doesn't cover the north half of the country (about half the territory of Croatia). It misses towns like Sisak, Virovitica, Cakovec and it doesn't contain anything about the Osijek castle. I don't know why the writer ignored this part of the country, I suppose she might have liked the beautiful sea-shore better but this doesn't make an excuse at all. Then: it ignores some significant towns near the Bosnian border, like Knin and Sinj, I know these places aren't the most likeable ones but they have a historical significance - these were the cities most affected by the civil war and these places are a part of Croatian history and quite an important one. Moreover: even though she spent most of her time on the shore, what about Novi Vinodolski, Senj, Karlobag, Umag, Porec and the inner Istria? These places are worth discovering and there isn't a single word about them in the book. It is dated, because it doesn't contain up-to-date information about the country. For example: if you drive a car (having a picnic in the countryside) or walking around you should be prepared for mine fields - there are still many of them in the country. These fields aren't on the map and they are near main roads, too. The section on driving is incomplete in another aspects, too. There are also other failures and mistakes that I don't want to list, it would be too long to fit into a review. So I don't suggest anyone buying this book. Try something else. This time Lonely Planet is your worst choice.
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15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A solid guide w/ mostly accurate info, December 7, 2006
I used LP Croatia side-by-side with the Rough Guide to Croatia during May and June 2006. I only visited Southern and Central Dalmatia including Split, Hvar, and Dubrovnik.
LP Croatia is concise and had no serious inaccuracies but it lacked lots of the context, detail, and history that the Rough Guide provided. If you're just looking for places to go, how to get there, and where to stay I'd get LP. If you want more of a tour guide with lots of bios, background, art & architecture info, I'd take the Rough Guide. If I went again, I'd take both.
Pros: Good logistical information on how to get around and where sites were. Good food sections (burek is amazing) and good language/phrase sections(except that the most important words were all buried). Also, did a great job of explaining how the private room accommodations work. Provided good, practical advice on how to get the best rooms, etc.
Cons:
Maps were sometimes inaccurate--Rough Guide's were generally better. This was largely because of the lack of street signs and lots of small alleys that trick you. GPS would have been very useful.
Unusually, I think LP underrated some places--namely Dubrovnik.
Doesn't prioritize where to go or what to see. For instance, Diocletian's Palace in Split was covered in graffiti and the city had little to offer.
They need a section on "If you have to choose" between different sites and different cities that tells you which are the best sites overall for certain interests.
Bottom line: LP Croatia was a solid travel guide but it could have provided more advice to the first-time traveler.
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