Customer Reviews

Lonely Planet USA

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I bought this book before driving from Savannah GA to Los Angeles CA at the begining of this summer and I thought that this last edition (april 2010) would have been updated, but it wasn't. We tried to go to a BBQ restaurant they suggest in Memphis and when we got there it was not only out of business but it was also in a sketchy neighborhood. The information about Graceland was incomplete, no address at all, only a website (if you buy the book is because you don't have internet in the car or phone right?). A good thing that the book has is a map with milage and time between major cities.

When I first received my Lonely Planet USA book in the post I noticed it was very heavy. The book itself is over 1000 pages long and personally I thought it was going to be a huge drag to read, but when I finally found tht time to start, I couldn't stop!

The book includes the hisotry of America, food and drinks, weather, the environment and entertainment sections just to brief you on what America is like and not once was I bored. It was all up-to-date and really interested me, even though I thought it would be a boring section in the book!

It has plenty on everything with a lot of the authors of the book experiencing what they have written and reviewed.

I recommend it to anyone who is going to America for the first time and wants to visit some amazing locations you may not have heard about!!

4.5/5

By trying to pack so much information into one book, this one loses the depth I've come to expect from Lonely Planet. I just can't imagine a trip where this would be more helpful than the more specific, regional books on the United States. Also, Lonely Planet in general offers some of the best travel guides out there, but is very urban-focused and doesn't offer a lot for someone hoping to get a little further off the beaten path and outside the cities.

Lonely Planet has been the standard for in-depth guidebooks for a while now, with more and more titles being added and updates more frequently. But has success gone to their head? I'm finding LP's most recent books have developed an "attitude". I.E., their travel writing is becoming more and more smarmy and "hipsterish". I dunno, maybe I'm just getting old? :( This LP USA guide is the worst yet I've read so far in regard. They're trying so hard to be "cool" or something, like it was an LP book written by guys watching MTV or something. If this continues, I don't know if I'll continue to buy their updates of favorite titles. The depth of info here is still pretty top notch and their organizing of their books is still great. But for heck's sake, guys, just REPORT, OK? Stop trying to act like Stephen Colbert or Jon Stewart writing travel essays!

I bought this bok because i travel a lot in the states.
I used it first for the westcoat. Its a good book, sometimes i missed
some sort of walking route or sights route. I like those stuff like "must see's".

I also used the Lonely Planet book for California. It had much more intersting stuff in there than the one for the whole america.

So if you plan to travel more than one week in the same state, i would recommend to buy the Lonely Planet book for the particular state.

I've always believed that the best way to judge a travel book series is by grabbing a volume that speaks about an area you know. In this case, LP fails. It seems as if the authors have no clue as to what they're talking about. One museum is presented as two separate museums; places that haven't existed in almost a decade are still listed; attractions are attributed to the wrong neighborhoods; they even made-up a hike-bike trail. Coupled with the un-opinionated writing this reeks of internet research and armchair travel on the part of the writers. I mean, if you visit a place you should have developed some sort of opinion, right? Not everything is wonderful, the best, great, etc. If I want this kind of misinformation, I'll just use the internet.

Lonely Planet produces guidebooks that are useful. This one tackles a country--the U. S. A. Obviously, there are tradeoffs. One gets remarkable breadth of coverage--from sea to shining sea plus Alaska plus Hawaii. However, one sacrifices depth. For instance, Illinois. Chicago gets plenty of space for this volume--well over twenty pages. But there are entire guidebooks that focus just on Chicago. And downstate Illinois has very little space devoted to it. But that is a part of the tradeoff. A person buying this book is going to understand that breadth of coverage is an objective--not depth. And, on those terms, this volume suffices.

Again, take Illinois (my home state). Chicago. Where to eat? The Near North Side? The Billy Goat Tavern (remember the SNL cheeseburger cheeseburger cheeseburger scene? This is based on the Billy Goat Tavern). The Loop? Cafecito and Oasis are recommendations. There is also a listing of places to see, such as the Art Institute, the Magnificent Mile, Navy Pier, Lincoln Park Zoo, and so on.

Interesting features: scenic routes (see page 9 for a listing), including the remnants of Route 66 or Pacific Coast highways; weird and wonderful (including Roswell and the alleged UFO conspiracy); beauty (e.g., the Rocky Mountains); urban scenes. Maps of cities are detailed and useful, although type face can be pretty small. There is a section on national parks, too.

But the main focus is a region by region, state by state view of where to eat, where to sleep, what to do, a little bit about the culture and history. At the end of the book (well over 1,000 pages long, by the way) are discussions of transportation, a directory of accommodations, and so on.

All in all, a useful volume.

I am very happy with my purchase. I love LONELY PLANET. I travel a lot and this is my most reliable source of information. I have used it in all countries I have been so far and it never failed me. By now I am having my own small collection.

We have made many journeys based around the information that we have gained from this great book. It has helped us through many situations where we would have been lost without it- even with our two American housemates as tour guides they have found the book a great help to them also. Considering that it is a book that has tried to fit in an entire continent- and a large and full one at that it contains a lot of great and helpful information! And it is a relatively small book- I carry it either in my handbag or backpack when travelling. Like most lonely Planet guides it has not just information on the cool things to do and see how the stories behind them, but also a lot of information on sleeping, eating, stores etc., which I myself don't find terribly useful as I tend to plan that stuff ahead on line nor to I travel to shop, however for many who do not work that way it is a great help! I would recommend it not just to people travelling the USA but those who live here and might want to make trips, even learn some new things about the area they come from!

USA is a thick guide for a take-along tote, but it packs in road trip coverage and custom itineraries, offers pull-out maps (over 146 maps total), and is filled with tested tips on travel across the country. History, culture and travel specifics make this a top guide.