11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent for an overview, July 5, 2010
This review is from: Lonely Planet Discover Europe (Full Color Country Travel Guide) (Paperback)
This "Discover" books are very different from the usual Lonely Planet's guides. Yes, they came in full color, have great pictures and are easier to read. Therefore, they are excellent as a first reading, if you are interested only in the top highlights, or if you are not sure about your destination. Do not expect an usual Lonely Planet's guide, specially if you are looking for detailed information and aiming to longer stays. Of course, as a multi-country book it is not supposed to have too many details, however I was expecting something like the Western Europe guide in colors, but it is definitely not the case. One last thing: Portugal is not comprehended in Discover Europe!
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
A Good Overview Book, But Not for Independent Trip Planning, October 1, 2010
This review is from: Lonely Planet Discover Europe (Full Color Country Travel Guide) (Paperback)
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I've always found 'Lonely Planet' books to be thoughtful and full of good information. The "Problem" with this book is that it's really not an overview of Europe. It's mostly Western Europe with Greece and Turkey added, and with Denmark, Scandinavia, Luxembourg and Portugal subtracted. I find this to be irrational in that if you go to Europe you see the Benelux countries and can's without Lux, or Spain without Portugal.
Don't expect any of the countries to be very comprehensive. For example: France only includes the Riviera and Languedoc and Provence in the South, Paris and the north of France above the Seine; Italy has nothing on the Adriatic coast, the South or Sicily/Sardinia. It's for people who haven't gone to Europe before or expect to go on guided tours and want to learn about some off the common ground, but not much.
What makes 'Lonely Planet' worthwhile is that it takes you off the beaten path, but in this case it beats-its-feet all over the beaten path. This is not for independent travelers who want to see the 'real' country. Think of this as a "Cruise" itinerary without the boat.
Zeb Kantrowitz
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Too Superficial To Be a Useful Reference, October 7, 2010
This review is from: Lonely Planet Discover Europe (Full Color Country Travel Guide) (Paperback)
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Having visited 11 of the 16 countries profiled in "Discover Europe," I was hoping for a book that would be useful not only as an armchair reference, but also as an on-the-road guide for any future European trips that I might undertake. When I first hefted the heavy, 816-page volume, I was impressed. Surely, I thought, this massive tome contains lots of useful information.
Unfortunately, my first impressions turned out not to be true. On further examination, as I paged through the sections covering some of the countries that I've most enjoyed visiting, such as France, Greece and Turkey, I became disappointed with several aspects of the book. First, there are not many maps in it, and those that do appear are small, not very detailed and hard to read. They may be okay if you're on an organized tour and just want to get an idea of the "lay of the land" where the bus is going to take you next, but they are useless for the independent traveler. Second, the country sections are poorly organized. Information is shotgunned onto each page in various colors, in sidebars, with different fonts and type sizes, etc. Third, and to me the cardinal failing of "Discover Europe," is the lack of depth of the information it presents. Most of the memorable experiences that I've had on my European trips, such as visiting the Blue Mosque and the Basilica Cistern in Istanbul, trekking through fields of lavender in Provence and pub-hopping in England, get at most a sentence or two of text. Attractions such as museums and galleries are often glossed over, and there is virtually nothing useful about eating, drinking and lodging. Some of this information is perishable, of course, and the prudent person will do a lot of research on-line before traveling, but the paucity and shallowness of such material in this book make me wonder why any is included at all.
I've concluded that "Discover Europe" would have been of no use to me on the kinds of independent trips that I take, and likewise will not be my guidebook of choice for future trips. Given the number of countries that it covers, superficiality is inevitable, and for that reason I don't understand who makes up the intended audience. One or more country-specific travel guides for the itinerary you plan would, in my opinion, be far more useful. "Discover Europe" is the "If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium" guidebook (if you're familiar with the movie, you'll understand the reference). It will not be in my suitcase the next time I travel to the Continent.
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