Customer Reviews

Lonely Planet Singapore (Singapore (Lonley Planet), 4th ed)

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

 

 

As an American having lived in Singapore for much of the past 30 years, it seems to me Mr. Hellander hasn't spent much time there. Much of his 'facts' and 'tips' are out of date, or just plain wrong. His 'tips' on hotels and restuarants in particular seem to be based on marketing data, and not real world experience. If you are planning to go to Singapore, there are many other, better written and more accurate, books to read. This would not be one of them. Insight and Essential Explorer do a much better job.

Like all Lonely Planet Guides this one on Singapore is professionally compiled, well mapped, with lots of info on places to eat, stay and visit. I couldn't have enjoyed Singapore as much as I did without it. Travelling anywhere with a Lonely Planet Guide gives me a peace of mind. I am able to plan every day of my holiday and make the most of the time I spend there. It's very helpful that everything is categorized into various budget range.

We found this book to be a very solid reference for transportation and side trips while traveling in Singapore. Compared to Fodor's Singapore guide, which we also carried, this book has more accurate and helpful information on sightseeing and transportation options, e.g., local places to buy bus or ferry tickets for side trips in Malaysia and Indonesia. The book is also a good source of ideas for exploring outlying islands, forests, and neighboring cities.

We were not impressed with the "Places to Eat" section. With two broad exceptions, the descriptions of "Places to Eat" and "Places to Stay" are too brief to be of much use in choosing a specific restaurant or hotel. However, each publisher covers hawker centers reasonably well. Lonely Planet's treatment of budget and alternative lodging arrangements--such as camping--seems fairly comprehensive. Finally, you will find more shopping advice in other guides, although this book's shopping section is not bad.

The information in the book is well organized and generally easy to find. While it is not a "pocket size" guide, its size (approx. 5 x 7 in. or 12.5 x 18.5 cm) makes it very easy to take along in a backpack, camera bag, or briefcase. At 200 pages plus maps, it is light enough to go almost anywhere.

For getting around in the city and to more remote locations, we found ourselves relying on this book. If you are familiar with Singapore, have already arranged accommodations, or are more interested in exploring and side trips, the options in this book can take you much farther afield without stress.

Lonely Planet also maintains a very good website, which features detailed content, including updates about Singapore and other destinations.

Conclusions:
* This is a very useful little reference that is likely to become more useful as you become increasingly familiar with Singapore (i.e., the more you visit).
* Combined with the website, the book can prepare you well for nearly all aspects of a trip there, especially if you intend to use Singapore as a hub for excursions elsewhere.
* More detailed descriptions of hotels, including further treatment and recommendations in the top half, and more material in the shopping section would give the book a stronger appeal to a broader audience.
* First time travelers to Singapore (other than those with extremely limited budgets) or those who go only for the shopping may find the Fodor's guide more helpful.

Hope this helps!

While this guide was useful in all the mundane ways (accomodation, eating), I'm grateful to for the way it got me thinking about some of the less understandable aspects of Singapore. After a couple of days of walking around S'pore I began to wonder at the odd sense of artificiality about the place, and the strange way my hosts and others talked of the city-state. I was glad to be reffered to Stan Sesser's book *The Lands of Charm and Cruelty*, which told me of "the fear that even the best educated Singaporeans feel towards their government." I am also grateful to this guide for steering me towards Ian Buruma's essay "The Nanny State of Asia," in his book *The Missionary and the Libertine*, which went into a lot of detail about the police state behind the facade of Singapore's clean toilets, etc. The guide was useful in all practical matters, but by dealing with some of the unpleasantness that is the reality of Singapore, I came away with a better understanding of the place which grew increasingly creepy the longer I stayed. Lonely Planet Singapore is an excellent, thoughtful guide that did what it was supposed to do, yet also led me to other books which helped enrich my business trip. For understanding some aspects of Chinese behaviour in a business setting, I also recommend Bo Yang's *The Ugly Chinaman and the Crisis in Chinese Culture*. Paul Theroux's *Saint Jack* is a novel set in Singapore - though written in the 70's, I found the attitudes and actions of many of the characters still relevant to locals and expats of Singapore today.

I am about to move to Singapore and find the information in this guide truly exceptional. Everything is included in this guide: History of Singapore, Places of Interest, Local Foods and Flavors, Where to go Shopping, How to get Around, Where to Stay, etc. I've rarely found a guide of pocketsize filled with so much information.

However, note that the Chinese Opera Circle is not necessarily done every Friday and Saturday night. Some nights they have not bookings. Call ahead to make sure that they are going to perform.

This is an excellent book as Singapore is an excellent country. I wish I lived there after visiting. They really love their people and they keep them safe. I wish America would copy after Singapore.