Customer Reviews

Lonely Planet Iran

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

While the guide is relatively useful for hotels (prices are outdated), it is not very interesting for the restaurants nor transport (many many obvious options aren't listed), nor for other practical information as many of Pat Yale's comments are negative, predicting hassle, bureaucracy or cheating when there is only friendlyness, smiles and enough english to handle the situation.
Her comments on wearing the Hedjab are displaced. If wearing a scarf ruins your holiday to that point, are you realy the right person to write a guide book ?
Pat Yale seems to have been afraid during her trip in Iran, and annoyed by iranians. They are the most friendly people I have encourtered on my many trips. I travelled on my own, and was not pinched in the back or molestated by anyone, never. The Lonely Planet, full of comments warning lone women travellers to better take a guided tour, made me hesitating unneccesarily before my departure.
I did not appreciate her comments on the american blocus, where she pretends that other countries, including Europe and Japan, are too eager to tap on Irans ressources.
Iran and the Iranians, and you as a tourist, definitely desserve a better guide, and Lonely Planet needs more competition.

This book gives an fairly impartial yet Western view of modern Iran. I can see how some Iranians would criticize it, but my wife who is Iranian and me (an American) spent 4 weeks traveling in Iran in March 2000 found this book to be useful before, during, and after the trip. We never encountered any anti-American or anti-West attitudes during our trip, in fact just the opposite. Sure there aren't the nightclubs or other forms of 'entertainment' that you find in the west, like Paul mentions but for us this became an opportunity to do other things. They don't roll up the streets at dark, far from it. The coffee shops, resturants, stores, and bazaars in many cities are open quite late with many people shopping, having a meal or a chat. My wife said it was much better there than her last trip in 1996. I had a great time! If you're planning a trip to Iran (even if you're Iranian) get this book (my wife enjoyed it too).

A waste of time! The authors far too negative about everything and doesn't show Iran for what it really is. I travelled to practically every corner of Iran over the course of two and a half months: Alot of the things that were worth checking out hardly even got a mention in the guide!

I ended up binning the lonely planet guide and bought a better guide book in Tehran.

It started with Mr. St. Vincent, contiued with Mr Greenway and now a new gentleman has continued this trend in travel writing. This third edition to Iran is simply a mere augmentation of the second. After traveling Iran on the Second edition, a few years after its publication, its comforting that future travelers can budget and plan with up to date prices and information. However, one can travel Iran and write a new book with updated practical information, however its another thing to give an update a new outlook on the slowly changing Iran. Some places in Iran are not worth going to while some are hidden treasure troves of spectacular people and undending fulfilment. Its understandable that the author of a lonely planet guide can not give too much personal credence to places. Paul loved Kermanshaw, I hated it. Paul said a thing or two about Hamadan, he should have said a hundred, and the update doesnt change this form of writers liberty. Tehran is a fantastic city well worth spending time, as with many places, which is something I believe the authors miss. With this kind of coverage of places, a traveler has to let their intuition get the best of them. One must use the guide as what the word implies, guidence. In general it is a good book, and since it is the only proper guide available in the West, it is essential. However it misses the essence of Iran in the new mellenium. There is too much personal opinion. As well, it would be useful if information was provided for upscale travelers as well, who are merely visitng on business. Hopefuly the next edition will not only include the updated prices, but also include the updated Iran.

This book was not objective and had nothing positive to say about the country. It was somewhat mean spirited and had a plethora of stereotypical information.

I don't know what book some of these people were reading, as this book is in no way biased against Iran. It is quite the opposite. Covers main cities like Tehran and goes way off the beaten track to little villages near the Afghani border. Gives great info on Iranian culture and shows that Iran is really no where near as intimidating to westerners as many think.

Racist commentary presented in backhanded journo-speak that is unfortunately typical of english language books on Iran. Example of tactics employed - if you want to say something particularly offensive/outrageous/demeaning, deflect blame by attributing the comment to a "source" or a "reader". Hopefully actual readers with the gumption to travel to the Middle East are intelligent enough to sift through Yale's antipathetic commentary and put the book to its best use - a compact set of maps, place names and telephone numbers.

The overwhelming impression one gets when reading Pat Yale's contributions to this book are that here we have a woman who, due to her own ill-founded preconceptions, has almost completely failed to understand and appreciate the beauty of the culture into which she finds herself immersed. As a result, her comments regarding Iranian culture come across as being crude and disrespectful, often obnoxious, and even downright racist. Perhaps as a Westerner she cannot help being the way she is, but if that is the case, what on earth is she doing going to Iran in the first place, and what kind of an authority is she to write a travel guide?

For example, in the section on p.51 entitled "The Iranian Way of Life", we are forced, amongst other things, to put up with the unnecessary snide comment, "It's a rare husband... who would as much as carry a dirty dish to the sink, let alone do any housework" - now would this not just as aptly describe a typical British or American husband (perhaps even her own?), who would rather spend his evenings down the local pub with his mates - and who will later urinate on someone's wall on the way home, while singing loudly and hurling abuse at innocent passers-by? And then there are the ridiculous comments about rising divorce rates - which the author idiotically puts down to the existence of arranged marriages, failing completely to realise that the divorce rates in countries where arranged marriages are prevalent are MUCH lower than in the West where pre-marital sexual promiscuity is taken for granted. If she had half a brain, she would have reached exactly the opposite conclusion - that it is the gradual Westernisation of Iran that was leading to the increase in divorce rates (which is presumably one of the many reasons that they would rather do without the rapidly spreading disease of Westernisation - and if the satellite TV propaganda machine fails, there are always the bombs, eh?). And the section ends with the stereotypical and spitefully Islamophobic comment, "These days it's a rare man who can afford to take up his Islamic right to have four wives".

And she does rant on and on about the oppressive hijab that she has been forced to wear, and the segregation between men and women. Sadly for her, the author does not appreciate the beauty of a society in which modesty and piety are valued so greatly. Rather, the author (deducing that all Iranian men must be sexually repressed) expresses her surprise at not having been fondled! She did in passing mention the fact that she was treated with great dignity as a lone woman while queing for her visa extension, but apparently failed to see past her veil enough to realise that this elevated respect for women permeates the whole of Islamic culture. And she would do well to note that it is precisely this modesty which makes arranged marriages work so well (in complete contradistinction to the misguided promiscuity and sexual freedom in the West, which effectively renders marriage meaningless and leads them to fail).

So the result is a book which is technically sound and reasonably comprehensive, interspersed with the most ourageous Islamophobic/Iranophobic Western hate propaganda - an irritating and unusual combination which leaves you wanting to kick [...] Perfect then, for your stereotypical FOX-News/CNN-educated American tourist, who probably should never have been let out of the country in the first place.

Until something better comes along (perhaps a new edition completely rewritten by someone who actually ENJOYS being in Iran and APPRECIATES its culture), then unfortunately this otherwise dubious piece of hate-literature remains a useful guide.

[If the spiteful comments get too much, simply striking through the offending paragraphs/pages with a thick black marker pen may help].

I am surprised that the Lonely Planet allowed the publication of this guide book; the authors would have looked more objective if they had reduced the number of sarcastic remarks. I am also concerned that the authors highlighted too many warnings to lone female travelers; Iran is one of the safest countries for male and lone female travelers of any nationality. As the authors accurately report, Iranians are hospitable to the point of embarrassment. Please consider purchasing the 2006 edition of this guide instead, as the authors were changed.

If you want an example of rasicm then this is the book for you. This book misrepresents and dehumanizes the Iranian people. I have traveled all througout Iran and many other parts of the world and could not find such warm and wonderful people. If you need something to keep the fire going on a winter night this book is for you.