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41 of 42 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Downright incomplete, June 2, 2007
I am a major, lifelong supporter of Lonely Planet from the first core Asia books. I have till date not filed a review of a book online, but felt compelled to highlight some major deficiencies in this product and make a recommendation to look elsewhere for information on the American Southwest. Of late, I have begun branching away from Lonely Planet for more detailed information, but still rely on it for useful phone numbers, maps and other logistical information. For a three week camping trip in the Southwest with a few splurges along the way, I wanted to rely heavily on just such a book.
In the Southwest book, much of this information was not present (for example, 'Many campgrounds are available in local state parks' is one of the entries, but no phone numbers, maps nor details given. Not only were options for lodging half-heartedly described, often food options and maps were entirely missing or erroneously described.
The cities are a bit better described, but that isn't offering much of an excuse for an area and geography that is utterly unlike any on earth.
It is not surprising that this particular book is so short on useful information given its small size, but I found it egregious that LP would compromise so heavily on its core responsibility - providing useful, practical information that saves time and enhances the travel experience.
I highly recommend flipping through another guidebook in your local bookstore or experimenting with one of the other brands before relying on the Lonely Planet in this case. I plan to do so for the near future.
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20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The leader in books on the American Southwest.. A must-purchase!, April 4, 2007
I recently made a road trip across the American Southwest and purchased both the Lonely Planet 4th Edition (December 2005) and the Rough Guide 4th Edition (October 2006) as my guides for the week-long adventure. Lonely Planet emerges as the clear winner when the two are compared side by side. It is less than half the thickness of the Rough Guide book, yet has more coverage per town or natural site. I commend Lonely Planet for using such a thin but readable font and thin, high-quality paper to make this guidebook have such a small footprint.
The Lonely Planet guide is divided into tabbed chapters by state (the guide covers Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, Las Vegas, and Southwestern Colorado). Maps cover both regions and downtown areas of the major cities and towns in the Southwest. For each city, restaurants, hotels, attractions, and essentials like internet access, post offices, bookstores, and medical facilities are listed. The sidebars contain information from a historical or side note perspective--these are perfect for reading aloud during the inevitable driving time for any Southwest adventure.
If you are planning to spend a long time in the Grand Canyon or other attraction area, I recommend purchasing an additional supplemental guidebook. As a road warrior, I appreciated that this book has all the essentials, but leaves week-long trips to Las Vegas or the Grand Canyon to other guidebooks.
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24 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
What happened to this guidebook?, January 3, 2006
Lonely Planet has taken an interesting turn with this edition: drastically cut the content and quality and increase the price! Because I spend a lot of time in the southwest, I buy every new edition when it comes out. I'll be looking for something else now. What happened, Lonely Planet??
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