Lonely Planet Korea (Paperback)

~ Robert Storey (Author), Alex English (Author) "Korean folklore fixes the date of the na 's birth to a semi-deity named Tan'gun at around 2333 BC..." (more)
Key Phrases: express bus terminal, ondol rooms, take subway line, Greater Seoul, Kim Jong, Hong Kong (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

As usual the guidebook standard is set by Lonely Planet

-- Outside

Product Description

From teeming Seoul in its mountain cradle to remote offshore islands and secluded monasteries, Lonely Planet’s comprehensive guide will help you discover this land of dramatic natural beauty.

• 88 detailed and reliable maps with English and Korean script
• the best advice on how to visit the world’s last Cold-War nation - North Korea
• from galbi to gimchi, Korea's unique cuisine explained - plus listings of the best places to sample it
• climbs and hikes, boats and bikes - how to get around in style without missing a thing

Product Details

• Paperback: 460 pages
• Publisher: Lonely Planet Publications; 5th edition (March 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0864426976
• ISBN-13: 978-0864426970
• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 4.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #903,338 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not as good as Moon Handbooks, July 8, 2000

By	Jacquelyn Pursel (Michigan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lonely Planet Korea (4th ed) (Paperback)

If you're going to South Korea, I suggest you buy the Moon Handbooks guidebook. I took both it and the Lonely Planet book to Korea and I didn't use the Lonely Planet book. The Moon guidebook has more information and history on the sites, plus they have more places in it. I found a description of almost every place I visited even if it was just a small memorial off the side of the road. The Lonely Planet book does have more about places to stay and eat, but I found the Moon Handbook to be sufficient in this area, so I left the Lonely Planet book at home.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Frustrating lack of content, April 25, 2001

By	"49puppies" (USA) - See all my reviews

I lived in Korea for a year and found the former edition of the book alternately frustating and helpful. At least the new edition doesn't feature as many comments about there being nothing for tourists to do. The book needs more written in Korean. The romanizations are confusing because most of Korea uses a different system. So you will see different words at the bus station when you're looking for the English translation of where you're going. Additionally, the Korean alphabet is not hard. A typical foreigner can learn it in one night in a bar from a patient teacher. (I've seen this happen!) So there is no excuse for not including resturant and hotel names in Korean. Finally, fun things to do like singing rooms, coffee houses, good bars...all the stuff I wanted to find aren't mentioned very often. Different cities are famous for different kinds of food and the area specialties aren't mentioned for several places that really should have them. I agree with the former reviewers that the Moon guide book is better and the phrasebook by lonely planet is excellent.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars definetly lacking..., November 9, 1999

By	Jackson P. Wallop ([e-mail]) (Fromberg, Montana) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lonely Planet Korea (4th ed) (Paperback)

Granted, no travel book can be 100% complete , but I find myself quite dissapointed at what this Lonely Planet misses: there is no word of Iksan - a beautiful city with the most exotic collection of odd trees on the uni-campus, not to mention the center of Won Buddhism! Nor of the hundreds of ancient Buddhas at HwaSun(south of KwangJu). Nor even the famed Maisan Temple. And what of Mokpo? No! Its not just an ugly port - there is also the imfamous not-to-be missed Mokpo Boys High School. These are just a few examples. Also, much info is outdated; such as suggested cafes and restaurants that no longer exist. For the short term visitor to Korea, this is still probably the best bet - lets just hope for an updated version soon....